Organic Orchard, Vineyard and Berry Crop Documentation Forms

The Purpose and Use of These Forms

In order to become certified organic, producers must demonstrate to an accredited certifier that their farm operation complies with National Organic Program regulations. This process is begun by completing an Organic System Plan (OSP)—normally part of the application for certification. The OSP illustrates to the certifier how the producer plans to comply with the regulations by detailing the practices, the inputs, and the monitoring procedures that will be used. The Organic System Plan is backed up by on-site inspection to ensure that the producer is, in fact, farming in the manner outlined in his or her OSP. It is the inspector's responsibility to look for documentation and indicators that bear out the producer's claim to organic status, as well as look for any violations.

The forms in this package are provided as tools that orchardists and viticulturists can use for documenting practices, inputs, and activities that demonstrate compliance with regulations or that assist in other aspects of farm record keeping. The forms can be kept anywhere they make recording easy, such as the tractor, packing area, or machinery shed.

Please note that these are not required forms! Organic fruit and nut producers have more than enough mandatory paperwork to keep them occupied. These forms are merely intended to give you something convenient and organized to record routine things that may be important to document. Use only those forms that fit your operation and recycle the rest.

Acknowledgements

These documentation forms were developed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) with funds provided by the USDA/National Organic Program (NOP) and the USDA/CSREES Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program. Distribution is provided by NCAT's ATTRA Project, the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service.

The authors wish to acknowledge the contributions of those in the organic community who contributed to the creation of these documents including:

• Katherine Adam, NCAT, Fayetteville, AR
• Janet Bachmann, NCAT, Fayetteville, AR
• Harriet Behar, farmer, organic inspector, and OMRI, Gays Mills, WI
• Diane Bowen, IFOAM, Milwaukee, WI
• Emily Brown-Rosen, Organic Materials Review Institute, Titusville, NJ
• Rex Dufour, NCAT, Davis, CA
• John Foster, inspector, OMRI, and Seven Spoke Farm, McMinnville, OR
• Lance Gegner, NCAT, Fayetteville, AR
• Gail Hardy, NCAT, Fayetteville, AR
• Keith Jones, Director of Program Development, National Organic Program
• Mark Keating, Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA, Washington, DC
• Rose Koenig, Rosie's Organic Farm and NOSB, Gainesville, FL
• Nick Maravell, Nick's Organic Farm, Potomac, MD
• Nancy Matheson, NCAT, Helena, MT
• Teresa Maurer, NCAT, Fayetteville, AR
• Miles McEvoy, Washington State Department of Agriculture, Olympia, WA
• Jim Riddle, Organic Independents and NOSB, Winona, MN
• Maria Rosmann, Rosmann Family Farms, Harlan, IA
• Kelly Shea, Director of Organic Agriculture, Horizon Organic, Penrose, CO
• Francis Thicke, Radiance Dairy, Fairfield, IA
• Ann Wells, NCAT, Fayetteville, AR

These documentation forms may be downloaded and/or printed as Excel spreadsheets.

This set of documentation forms contains

A. Orchard / Vineyard Activity Log (MS Excel / 21 K)
Use to record all practices and equipment used for each block of perennial fruits, nuts, and berries.

B. Orchard / Vineyard Inputs Log (MS Excel / 21 K)
Use to record all materials, cover crop seeds, etc., used for each block of perennial fruits, nuts, and berries.

C. Orchard / Vineyard Establishment Year Log (MS Excel / 19 K)
Use to record all activities and inputs during the establishment year for each block of perennial fruits, nuts, and berries.

D. Planting Stock Record (MS Excel / 16 K)
Use to document source, treatment, and other information on planting stock used.

E. Cover Crop Seed Record (MS Excel / 16 K)
Use to document source, treatment, and other information on cover crop seed used.

F. Organic Planting Stock and Seed Search Record (MS Excel / 18 K)
Use to demonstrate attempts made to locate an organic source when non-organic planting stock or seed is used.

G. Fertility / Soil Monitoring Log (MS Excel / 20 K)
Use to document monitoring of soil fertility and soil erosion in your orchard or vineyard. Monitoring procedures are required to justify the use of most micronutrient fertilizers.

H. Pest / Weed Monitoring Log (MS Excel / 20 K)
Use to document monitoring of insect pests, diseases, and weeds in your orchard or vineyard. Monitoring procedures are required to justify the use of most biological, botanical, and allowed synthetic pesticides.

I. Harvest Record (MS Excel / 18 K)
Use to record your organic and buffer zone harvest information.

J. On-Farm Cooler / Cold Storage Record for Organic Crops (MS Excel / 20 K)
Use to record details of your on-farm refrigerated storage in organic-only farming operations.

K. On-Farm Cooler / Cold Storage Record for SPLIT Operations (MS Excel / 20 K)
Use to record details of your on-farm refrigerated storage of organic, transitional, and conventional crops.

L. Off-Farm Cooler / Cold Storage Record for Organic Crops (MS Excel / 21 K)
Use to monitor off-farm refrigerated storage of organic crops.

M. Storage Pest Inputs (MS Excel / 15 K)
Use for recording pest control activities and inputs in your crop storage units.

N. Equipment Cleanout Log (MS Excel / 16 K)
Use to record cleanout activities of farm equipment.

O. Equipment Settings Record (MS Excel / 15 K)
Use to record settings and adjustments for your orchard or vineyard equipment, for your convenience and increased efficiency year to year.

P. Sales Record (MS Excel / 16 K)
Use to record sales of farm production.

Q. Compost Production Record (MS Excel / 20 K)
Use to document your compost production methods in order to meet National Organic Program regulations.

These forms may be copied and distributed freely. Additional hardcopies can also be obtained by writing ATTRA at P.O. Box 3657, Fayetteville, AR 72702, or by calling 1-800-346-9140.

Organic Orchard, Vineyard and Berry Crop Documentation Forms
By George Kuepper
NCAT Program Specialist
Tiffany Nitschke, HTML Production
IP 238
Slot 240

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ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service is managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) and is funded under a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Business-Cooperative Service. Visit the NCAT Web site for more information on our sustainable agriculture projects.

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