![[logo] US EPA](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090510041746im_/http://www.epa.gov/epafiles/images/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program
The Sustainable Agriculture Research and
Education 
program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
funds research and education projects that find ways to prevent the degradation
of natural resources from agricultural production. EPA is partnering with
the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program to provide
funds to projects in each of its four regions. Examples follow below,
including links to the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
Program's national database, which offers more information about each
project.
North Central Region
University
of Wisconsin-Madison researchers are evaluating alternatives to synthetic
fungicides in apple production.
Their research indicates that an inexpensive spray mix
of amino acids and vitamins, or even a solution of potassium bicarbonate,
can effectively reduce certain apple diseases such as sooty blotch and
flyspeck. Left untreated, the fungi responsible for those diseases cause
unsightly blemishes on apple surfaces, reducing or eliminating the fruits'
market value. When the alternative sprays are applied in place of conventional
synthetic fungicides, the sprays provided levels of disease control comparable
to the fungicide sulfur. The use of such environmentally benign compounds
reduces the risk that potentially harmful chemicals will enter ground
water, nearby streams, or the food chain.
Western Region
California strawberry growers have long relied on the soil fumigant methyl
bromide to control soil-borne diseases from destroying this valuable crop.
Since the chemical will not be available after 2005, researchers are seeking
new, environmentally sound, and cost-effective ways to control strawberry
wilt. University
of California researchers are testing a rotation using broccoli to suppress
this disease.
Lettuce and brussels sprouts were also evaluated as rotational
crops for strawberries. The broccoli rotations appear the most effective
in controlling wilt, especially when two broccoli crops are planted prior
to strawberries. Although growing two crops of broccoli prior to strawberries
may be less profitable than growing strawberries year round, growers can
realize some cost savings from not buying pesticides. Area growers are
interested in this non-chemical alternative. An organic strawberry grower
has adopted the rotation, while three large conventional strawberry growers
are testing it.
Northeast Region
Healthy soil and a dynamic ecosystem allow potato growers to better control pests and provide them with more consistent yields. University of Maine research has shown that practices such as the use of manure and potato-based compost improve soil structure and enable fields to retain more moisture. Under drought conditions, these plots averaged 28% higher yields in 1994 and 9% more in 1995 compared with conventionally managed potato plots. Although such practices added $270 per acre in costs, yield increases and adequate crop prices should enable potato farmers to cover these expenses and increase their profits. This research suggests that growers could trim their costs by reducing use of commercial fertilizers and by composting their own potato culls.
Southern Region
In Southern Georgia, a group of researchers, farmers, extension educators and high school students assessed nutrient levels in streams throughout their watershed and evaluated ways to improve water quality. A researcher worked with 15 farmers to sample water quality and determine practices that minimize the flow of nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen into streams and creeks. The group was trained to take accurate water quality samples and installed monitoring devices at 20 locations. Some farmers used vegetative buffers at field edges to catch nutrients and keep water clean. For other farmers, the results varied: one found that fecal coliform bacteria from cattle runoff settled in a pond on his property, thereby, protecting a nearby stream; a dairy farmer spread slurry from his manure lagoon onto a silage field and used an adjacent hayfield as an effective buffer. These "best management practices" were included in a workbook about managing nutrients in farm watersheds.
In Mississippi, a water quality project showed that vegetative barriers of erect-growing grasses reduce the flow of sediment from fields by 75%. In 2000, the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a national practice standard for this technology. The two projects confirmed that creeks and streams benefit from careful farming practices. Water flowing through the watersheds, dotted with farms, improved.