seedcorn said:
We've tried interplanting soybeans but the soybean yields are reduced due to competition from the corn.
You may get a reduced soybean yield by interplanting with corn, but dont you get a higher corn yield?
http://cornandsoybeandigest.com/pre...edges-capture-more-light-reward-higher-yields
As far as documentation that manure costs as much as commercial fertilizer, that's how it is priced. They do an analysis of it and price it accordingly.
In other words the consumer price for manure is set by the consumer price of commercial fertilizer and not by the supply of manure relative to demand. So organic farmers are being gouged by their suppliers and in turn these farmers do the same thing to their customers.
As far as non-GMO new inbreds being produced there is only 1 major seed breeder left to do that. Why? $$$$ as that is what the farmers want.
http://www.cropchoice.com/leadstry3539.html?recid=561
http://nongmosourcebook.com/non-gmosourcebook/us_suppliers.php?page=6
http://www.clarksongrain.com/
It's not that organic input costs are higher, it's just that yields are much less because of weeds and insects.
Then these so-called organic farmers are not doing something right because studies have shown that yields on organic farms can be just as high as they are on conventional farms and in some situations organic yields are even higher.
http://jcwinnie.biz/wordpress/?p=6208
contrary to general belief and prejudice fostered by agribusiness, industrial crops do not consistently yield more food. In fact, it is a pernicious myth that ecological organic agriculture yields less than conventional agriculture. A comprehensive study of 293 crop comparisons of industrial and organic agriculture demonstrated that organic farm yields are roughly comparable to industrial farm yields in developed countries; and result in much higher yields in developing nations.
http://journeytoforever.org/
The Guardian newspaper has reported, "The truth, so effectively suppressed that it is now almost impossible to believe, is that organic farming is the key to feeding the world".
http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com/sc/1009/sc1009-organics.html
Research from the Rodale Institute, however, shows that once soil is restored organically, organic crop yields are comparable to the latest chemical yields.
In 1981 Rodale began the Farm System Trial (FST) project.
The FST research found that crop yields from organic and synthetic/chemical farms are similar in years of average precipitation.
It also found that organic farm yields are higher than those of chemical farms during droughts and floods, due to stronger root systems in organic plants, and better moisture retention in the soil, which prevents runoff and erosion.
The FST data also showed that organic production requires 30 percent less energy than chemical production when growing corn and soybeans, that organic farms create jobs because labor inputs are approximately 15 percent higher, and that the net economic return for organic crops is equal to or higher than that for chemically produced crops because upfront costs are lower.
In other word production costs per yield are not a contributing factor to higher consumer prices for organic foods.
Homewardbound, I challenge you to keep 30 acres of row crops clean by hand labor.
If you are talking vegetables rather than grain, I wouldnt be stupid enough to grow them in rows. I would use square foot methods to save time, labor and money. And if you are talking about grain you should note that weeds dont usually like good textured, fertile soil- which is what youd find on a legitimate organic farm.
Worst part is that you will starve off of the net profits on 30 acres.
Documentation? Proof? I need more than your say-so to go on.
