| THE BROCCOLI TEST:
CHEMICAL AGRICULTURE
vs. ORGANIC AGRICULTURE
vs. GROW BIOINTENSIVE® AGRICULTURE
 |
Chemical Agriculture
|
Organic Agriculture
|
GROW BIOINTENSIVE Agriculture |
What is the most effective way to grow healthy crops in poor soil
while improving the fertility of the soil?
The following comparative yields were obtained
from chemical, organic and GROW BIOINTENSIVE agriculture-type tests
run in our compacted "C-horizon" material at Ecology Action's
first site in the Stanford University Industrial Park in Palo Alto,
California. This material, which is broken down rock, normally takes
about 500 years to become soil. The topsoil and subsoil from this
site, the "A- and B- Horizons", had been previously removed
during a construction process. Several crops were grown in side-by-side
trials with each test acting as a "control" for the other
tests. The broccoli test described below is a typical example. The
plants in the above photograph are representative samples of the
broccoli plants grown with each of these techniques. In addition,
the relative differences in the results are representative of those
which occurred with each of the crops tested in this way.
Chemical Agricultural Practices
The stunted broccoli plant on the left was grown using chemical
agricultural practices: loosening the soil about 7 inches deep and
adding chemical fertilizer as indicated in its directions plus 2
cubic feet of composted organic matter without soil per 100 square
feet. The crops were planted in rows with the conventional distance
between rows and between plants within the rows. The broccoli heads
were about 1/4 the size of an adult person's little fingernail.
Organic Agricultural Practices
The broccoli shown in the middle was grown using organic farming
practices: loosening the soil about 11 inches deep and adding an
appropriate amount of organic fertilizers plus 8 cubic feet of composted
organic matter without soil per 100 square feet. The crops were
planted in rows with the conventional distance between rows and
between plants within the rows. The broccoli heads were about 4
inches in diameter and weighed about 4 ounces each.
GROW BIOINTENSIVE Agricultural Practices
The broccoli shown on the right was grown using GROW BIOINTENSIVE
agricultural practices: loosening the soil about 24 inches deep
and adding the same appropriate amount of organic fertilizers plus
8 cubic feet of composted organic matter without soil per 100 square
feet. The crops were planted in raised-growing beds 6 feet wide
by 19 feet long with standard GROW BIOINTENSIVE offset spacing (and
no widely spaced rows), so the plants' leaves touched at maturity.
The broccoli heads were about 10 inches in diameter and weighed
about 10 ounces each, or 2.5 times greater than in the organic farming
test and 120 times greater than in the chemical agriculture test.
In addition, the overall yield for the GROW BIOINTENSIVE agriculture
test was 7.5 times higher per unit of area than the organic farming
test, because 3 times more plants could be planted per unit of area
with the close "living mulch" crop spacings used in raised-bed
growing-areas.
After this initial test in 1973-1974, it was discovered
that more than 8 cubic feet of composted organic matter without
soil per 100 square feet is not normally sustainable. However, 8
cubic feet of composted organic matter, including 50% soil, should
produce similar, though different, parallel results.
|