ARE YOUR VEGETABLES ORGANIC?
An explanation of our farming philosophy

 The only legal way that products can be called organic is to be certified by the USDA label. We believe in the concept and are pleased that it has been defined so that consumers can have confidence in organic labels.  We are aware of organic requirements and have contact with organic growers.  While working for Texas Cooperative Extension Service,  Nancy gave talks on organic farming and even trained county Extension agents about organic produce farming.

 

 So, why have we chosen not to pursue organic certification? Frankly, we don’t think that, at this time, the technology exists to enable us to do it profitably in the subtropical climate of south Florida.  Most other agricultural regions have a cold or dry period during which many plants are dead or dormant. This greatly slows insect and disease reproduction.  Here we rarely have that period of time, so our insect and disease organism populations are almost constant. The dynamics of tropical soils are also very different from those in temperate climates. Microbiological processes proceed very rapidly, making it difficult to build up organic matter in the soil using the methods used in temperate climates.

Rather than being certified organic, we are working towards sustainability of our operation. In order to truly be sustainable, there are three important aspects that must be fulfilled:

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               Environmental compatibility. We base our management decisions on the environment effects. We try to look at the whole picture. For instance, organic farmers usually control weeds by cultivation, but perhaps it is better for the environment to spray once with a low-toxicity herbicide than to use the fuel and emit the chemicals that result from several trips through the field with a plow or cultivator? Perhaps it is better for the environment to eat produce that is produced locally, even with some pesticides, rather than have organic produce shipped thousands of miles? Environmental compatibility also means using compost made from materials which otherwise would be wasted, such as yard trimmings and manures. These types of organic materials can add nutrients and improve the microorganism population of the soil. Our pest control program involves prevention of problems by crop rotations and other cultural management and constant monitoring of pest populations. We do use pesticides, most of which are newer ones which are more specific and safer than the old ones. That's because they break down in the environment much faster than the older pesticides did.

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We also have an ongoing research program with projects that work towards sustainability by studying details such as soil microbiology, insect and weed populations, and new vegetable varieties that have resistance to diseases.