Systems Research for Agriculture PDF Download

Author: Laurie E. Drinkwater
Publisher: Department of Agriculture
ISBN: 9781888626162
Category : Agricultural systems
Languages : en
Pages :

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Author: Ben Falk
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Company
ISBN: 1603584447
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 323

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Book Description
The Resilient Farm and Homestead is a manual for developing durable, beautiful, and highly functional human habitat systems fit to handle an age of rapid transition. Ben Falk is a land designer and site developer whose permaculture-research farm has drawn national attention. The site is a terraced paradise on a hillside in Vermont that would otherwise be overlooked by conventional farmers as unworthy farmland. Falk's wide array of fruit trees, rice paddies (relatively unheard of in the Northeast), ducks, nuts, and earth-inspired buildings is a hopeful image for the future of regenerative agriculture and modern homesteading. The book covers nearly every strategy Falk and his team have been testing at the Whole Systems Research Farm over the past decade, as well as experiments from other sites Falk has designed through his off-farm consulting business. The book includes detailed information on earthworks; gravity-fed water systems; species composition; the site-design process; site management; fuelwood hedge production and processing; human health and nutrient-dense production strategies; rapid topsoil formation and remineralization; agroforestry/silvopasture/grazing; ecosystem services, especially regarding flood mitigation; fertility management; human labor and social-systems aspects; tools/equipment/appropriate technology; and much more, complete with gorgeous photography and detailed design drawings. The Resilient Farm and Homestead is more than just a book of tricks and techniques for regenerative site development, but offers actual working results in living within complex farm-ecosystems based on research from the "great thinkers" in permaculture, and presents a viable home-scale model for an intentional food-producing ecosystem in cold climates, and beyond. Inspiring to would-be homesteaders everywhere, but especially for those who find themselves with "unlikely" farming land, Falk is an inspiration in what can be done by imitating natural systems, and making the most of what we have by re-imagining what's possible. A gorgeous case study for the homestead of the future.

Author: Ben Hartman
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing
ISBN: 1603585923
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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A practical, systems-based approach for a more sustainable farming operation To many people today, using the words "factory" and "farm" in the same sentence is nothing short of sacrilege. In many cases, though, the same sound business practices apply whether you are producing cars or carrots. Author Ben Hartman and other young farmers are increasingly finding that incorporating the best new ideas from business into their farming can drastically cut their wastes and increase their profits, making their farms more environmentally and economically sustainable. By explaining the lean system for identifying and eliminating waste and introducing efficiency in every aspect of the farm operation, The Lean Farm makes the case that small-scale farming can be an attractive career option for young people who are interested in growing food for their community. Working smarter, not harder, also prevents the kind of burnout that start-up farmers often encounter in the face of long, hard, backbreaking labor. Lean principles grew out of the Japanese automotive industry, but they are now being followed on progressive farms around the world. Using examples from his own family's one-acre community-supported farm in Indiana, Hartman clearly instructs other small farmers in how to incorporate lean practices in each step of their production chain, from starting a farm and harvesting crops to training employees and selling goods. While the intended audience for this book is small-scale farmers who are part of the growing local food movement, Hartman's prescriptions for high-value, low-cost production apply to farms and businesses of almost any size or scale that hope to harness the power of lean in their production processes.

Author: Leah Penniman
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing
ISBN: 1603587616
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 369

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Farming While Black is the first comprehensive "how to" guide for aspiring African-heritage growers to reclaim their dignity as agriculturists and for all farmers to understand the distinct, technical contributions of African-heritage people to sustainable agriculture. At Soul Fire Farm, author Leah Penniman co-created the Black and Latino Farmers Immersion (BLFI) program as a container for new farmers to share growing skills in a culturally relevant and supportive environment led by people of color. Farming While Black organizes and expands upon the curriculum of the BLFI to provide readers with a concise guide to all aspects of small-scale farming, from business planning to preserving the harvest. Throughout the chapters Penniman uplifts the wisdom of the African diasporic farmers and activists whose work informs the techniques described--from whole farm planning, soil fertility, seed selection, and agroecology, to using whole foods in culturally appropriate recipes, sharing stories of ancestors, and tools for healing from the trauma associated with slavery and economic exploitation on the land. Woven throughout the book is the story of Soul Fire Farm, a national leader in the food justice movement.--AMAZON.

Author: S.S. Walia
Publisher: Scientific Publishers
ISBN: 9388812921
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 280

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The land holding of the farmer is decreasing day by day due to urbanisation and there is no chance for horizontal increase in agricultural land. To increase the income of the farmers, few steps for vertical increase in agricultural production have been discussed in this book. A detailed and comprehensive information regarding the historical background of farming system, farming system and its components, integrated farming system and allied enterprises, integrated farming system models in different agroclimatic zones, role of integrated farming system in agriculture and livelihood security, resource cycling and flow of energy in different farming systems, role of crop residues in agriculture, farming system of dryland agriculture, role of agroforestry in farming system, scope of organic farming in farming system have been given. A detailed information regarding the latest concepts of agronomy like conservation agriculture strategies in cropping system, sustainable agriculture, scope of hydroponics techniques in agriculture have also been discussed. In the end tools for determining production and efficiencies in cropping and farming system have also been given.

Author: James Hammond
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
ISBN: 2832515894
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 255

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Book Description
Smallholder farming systems contribute a substantial quantity of the food consumed in many lower and middle-income countries and contribute to the national and local economies. Despite the importance of smallholder farming, a transformation is needed in order to deliver food security and decent incomes for the farmers themselves and at the national level. This transformation must also be sustainable in terms of environmental impacts and social equity in order to be successful in the long term. The pressures of population growth, climate change, and land fragmentation compound the problem. Addressing these overlapping issues is a big challenge. One obstacle is the lack of good quality granular data linking these issues together. Household surveys are the workhorse method for gathering such data, but there are well-known problems that prevent household survey data from building up a “big picture” and delivering insights beyond the geographical boundary of each individual study. Such obstacles include the lack of access to datasets, differences in survey design, and respondent biases. Agile, data-oriented research tools can help to overcome these challenges. We use the term “agile” to imply methods that do not attempt exhaustive measurements, which are designed to be easy to use, and which entail some degree of flexibility in terms of adaptation to local conditions and integration with other tools or methods. Often these methods also nudge the behavior of tool users towards best practices. In recent years various research tools and approaches have been published which fit within our definition of “agile data-oriented research tools”. The domains these tools function in include monitoring and evaluation, intervention targeting, tailored information delivery, citizen science, credit scoring, and user feedback collection; all with the over-arching aim to improve data quality and access for those studying the sustainable development of smallholder farming systems. The goal of this Research Topic is to better define that niche, the ecosystem of tools and current practices, and to explore how such approaches can provide the underpinning knowledge required for the transformation of smallholder farming systems. One example of an agile data-oriented research tool is the Rural Household Multi-Indicator Survey (RHoMIS). It is a modular, digital system for building household surveys addressing the common topics in smallholder development. It was purposefully designed to give a broad overview of the farm system whist keeping survey duration to a minimum, to be user-friendly in implementation, and to be sufficiently flexible to function in a broad variety of locations and projects. Since 2015 it has been used by 30 organizations in 32 countries to interview over 34,000 households. The tool and database are open access and a community of practice is developing around the tool. We particularly welcome contributions that engage with the RHoMIS tool and data. However, we also describe the tool in order to provide an example of what is meant by an agile data-oriented research tool, and welcome contributions focusing on other tools or methodologies. We encourage the submission of manuscripts addressing the above topic, and those which fit within one of the following three sub-themes: (i) Perspectives or review articles which explore the niche, best practices, or promising approaches in agile data-oriented research tools for smallholder farm system transformation. Also, technology and code articles that describe new tools are welcomed. (ii) Original research articles presenting analyses based on data derived from agile data-oriented tools used at the project level. Examples include impact evaluations, adoption studies, targeting studies, or adaptive management, and should reflect on the additional benefit leveraged by the agile method applied. (iii) Original research articles that make use of the large amounts of data generated by such agile methods and/or link between agile data and other data sources. Examples include meta-analyses of data from multiple studies, layering data collected from different agile tools, or linking agile data to remote sensing or large-scale modeling outputs.

Author: Dana L. Jackson
Publisher: Island Press
ISBN: 9781597262699
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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The Farm as Natural Habitat is a vital new contribution to the debate about agriculture and its impacts on the land. Arising from the conviction that the agricultural landscape as a whole could be restored to a healthy diversity, the book challenges the notion that the dominant agricultural landscape -- bereft of its original vegetation and wildlife and despoiled by chemical runoff -- is inevitable if we are to feed ourselves. Contributors bring together insights and practices from the fields of conservation biology, sustainable agriculture, and environmental restoration to link agriculture and biodiversity, farming and nature, in celebrating a unique alternative to conventional agriculture.Rejecting the idea that "ecological sacrifice zones" are a necessary part of feeding a hungry world, the book offers compelling examples of an alternative agriculture that can produce not only healthful food, but fully functioning ecosystems and abundant populations of native species. Contributors include Collin Bode, George Boody, Brian DeVore, Arthur (Tex) Hawkins, Buddy Huffaker, Rhonda Janke, Richard Jefferson, Nick Jordan, Cheryl Miller, Heather Robertson, Carol Shennan, Judith Soule, Beth Waterhouse, and others.The Farm as Natural Habitat is both hopeful and visionary, grounded in real examples, and guided by a commitment to healthy land and thriving communities. It is the first book to offer a viable approach to addressing the challenges of protecting and restoring biodiversity on private agricultural land and is essential reading for anyone concerned with issues of land or biodiversity conservation, farming and agriculture, ecological restoration, or the health of rural communities and landscapes.

Author:
Publisher: Bib. Orton IICA / CATIE
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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Author: Shawn Jadrnicek
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing
ISBN: 1603585885
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 385

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Book Description
The Bio-Integrated Farm is a twenty-first-century manual for managing nature's resources. This groundbreaking book brings "system farming" and permaculture to a whole new level. Author Shawn Jadrnicek presents new insights into permaculture, moving beyond the philosophical foundation to practical advanced designs based on a functional analysis. Holding his designs to a higher standard, Jadrnicek's components serve at least seven functions (classical permaculture theory only seeks at least two functions). With every additional function a component performs, the design becomes more advanced and saves more energy. A bio-integrated greenhouse, for example, doesn't just extend the season for growing vegetables; it also serves as a rainwater collector, a pond site, an aquaponics system, and a heat generator. Jadrnicek's prevalent theme is using water to do the work. Although applicable in many climates, his designs are particularly important for areas coping with water scarcity. Jadrnicek focuses on his experience as farm manager at the Clemson University Student Organic Farm and at his residence in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. These locations lie at the cooler northern edge of a humid subtropical climate that extends west to the middle of Texas and north along the coast to New Jersey. He has created permaculture patterns ranging from raising transplants and field design to freshwater prawn production and composting. These patterns have simplified the operation of the 125-share CSA farm while reducing reliance on outside resources. In less time than it takes to mow his two-acre homestead, Jadrnicek is building a you-pick fruit farm using permaculture patterns. His landscape requires only the labor of harvesting, and the only outside input he buys is a small amount of chicken feed. By carefully engaging the free forces of nature--water, wind, sunlight, convection, gravity, and decomposition--Jadrnicek creates sustenance without maintenance and transforms waste into valuable farm resources. The Bio-Integrated Farm offers in-depth information about designing and building a wide range of bio-integrated projects including reflecting ponds, water-storage ponds, multipurpose basins, greenhouses, compost heat extraction, pastured chicken systems, aquaculture, hydroponics, hydronic heating, water filtration and aeration, cover cropping, and innovative rainwater-harvesting systems that supply water for drip irrigation and flushing toilets.

Author: P. L. Nuthall
Publisher: CABI
ISBN: 9781845938406
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 463

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The third and final instalment of Peter Nuthall's "Farm Business Management" series, this volume teaches the practical skills needed to manage a farm, such as risk analysis, budgeting, cost benefit analyses and much more. The key characteristic of this book is its ability to simplify the complex subject of business management into a clear, accessible volume tailored to the topic of farming, by using engaging techniques such as worked examples to fully explain the complex decision making tools necessary for this discipline.