February-March 1979 RAIN Page 11 Tools for the small Farm by Phil Conti I In the past several decades, agricultural research and development has focused on the demands of the large, chemicaldependent, capital-intensive, mechanized farm. Development of technology appropriate for the scale of the small family farm has been overlooked. Because of this small family farms have become increasingly "uneconomic" Now, however, there are signs that this may be changing. Gene and Steve Talbot, an innovative father and son team operating a ten-acre organic farm in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, have developed an integrated system of diversified row crop production. Central to the operation is a transplanting machine. The transplanter works by using prefertilized water under pressure to drill a muddy hole into the cultivated beds. The seedlings are then hand set. By providing moisture immediately, there is significant reduction in the shock and mortality rate associated with transplanting, plus there is minimum interruption of plant growth. The usual row crops of lettuce, onions, tomatoes, corn, broccoli, squash, cucumbers, etc. can be planted with this system. An article in the Fall '78 issue of Tilth, a Northwest agricultural journal, tells of successfully transplanting celery last July during a week of 90 degree daytime temperatures. The methods employed by the Talbots at Windfall Farm provide a model that could change the economics of small scale farming. The system consists of four main elements: a solar greenhouse, specially designed transplanting trays, permanent beds, and the transplanting machine. • Solar greenhouse- 16'x96' contains over 80,000 seedlings in transplanting flats supported by 55-gallon drums. The drums act as a thermal storage mass and reduce any radical fluctuations in temperature. The Talbots are currently experimenting with dried molasses as a component of their soil mix. The results have been positive, with an increase in both the micro-organism population and resistance to aphids. Steve Talbot uses the pushcart transplanter on Windfell Farm. • Speedling transplanting trays-produce a seedling root base with tapered sides in the shape of an inverted pyramid. Seedling production costs currently run 1¢/plant, including labor, heat, soil mix and depreciation on trays and greenhouse. Transplanting allows intensive use of the land. Four crops of lettuce can be harvested in the usual three crop season (180 days). • Permanent beds-five feet wide, prevent compaction of soil and allow continuous building of organic material. • Transplanting machine-available in three sizes: a hand held sprayer which hooks to a garden hose or backpack has three nozzles; a push cart which supports a twelve-gallon pressurized water tank has eight nozzles, drills 1000 holes/ hour/nozzle, approximate cost $600; a trailer pulled by a tractor holds a thirty-gallon tank and three workers to plant seedlings, six nozzles, drills 2000 holes/hour/nozzle, approximate cost $6,500. Intensive use of the land and successful production transplanting do not have to be restricted to farm use. This highyield crop system can be applied in more densely populated areas. For the suburban or urban gardeners who do their gardening after work or on weekends, time is an important factor. Cooperative use of adjacent backyards and common ownership of a cultivator, transplanter and greenhouse could produce abundant crops at low cost and within the available time limitations. The same cooperative approach could also be taken by community garden members and neighborhood associations. For a more in-depth evaluation of the push cart model, marketed as the Jetmaster, read Tilth, Fall '78, "Evaluation of the Jetmaster" (subscription $5/yr., Rt. 2, Box 190-A, Arlington, WA 98223). For more information on the transplanting system, contact the Talbots at: Windfell Farm P.O. Box 172 Banks, OR 97106 Right: Diagram - "~nzzle drilling hole and seedling with specially tapered root base being set.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc4NTAz