Amending Soils in the Organic Dairy Pasture

Watch the webinar on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYjvi56P59g

About the Webinar

This webinar was recorded on June 27, 2013. In organic dairy systems, the adage, "it all starts with the soil" means that high forage intake and optimal milk production rely on maintaining good soil fertility. Investing in your soils can actually provide returns that continue to pay "dividends" long after the deposit is made into the proverbial soil bank account. Making that initial investment was an important step in the organic evolution of the certified acreage at the University Farm at Calfornia State University, Chico. In this webinar, Dr. Cindy Daley will describe a long-term soil remediation field trial designed at the University Farm to study the effects of a basic soil amendment program on forage quality and yield, with an emphasis on the economic return that would result from added milk production.

About the Presenter

Cindy Daley is a professor in the College of Agriculture at the California State University, Chico. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in animal science at the University of Illinois and her PhD in animal science--endocrinology at the University of California, Davis. Cindy is the faculty supervisor and manager of the Organic Dairy Teaching and Applied Research Unit at CSU-Chico where, in 2007, she spearheaded the effort to transition the dairy to a certified organic operation. The farm has100 certified organic acres (including 60 acres of irrigated pasture, 10 acres in winter forage and 30 acres in alfalfa) and supports 80 cross-bred milking cows, as a seasonal system. In addition to the integrated organic livestock/cropping system, the farm also has an organic vegetable project with sales to food services on campus.

Find all upcoming and archived eOrganic webinars at https://eorganic.org/node/4942

 

Published May 14, 2013

This is an eOrganic article and was reviewed for compliance with National Organic Program regulations by members of the eOrganic community. Always check with your organic certification agency before adopting new practices or using new materials. For more information, refer to eOrganic's articles on organic certification.