The Organic Gardening Experimental Farm part 1

Maxatawny, an Indian word whose translation’is “Creek Where the Bears Walk,” is the site of Rodale Press’s new Organic Gardening Experimental Farm (OGEF). This land was originally farmed by a German family. Rodale purchased the chemically farmed acreage. The acquisition of these 122 hectares (305 acres) in eastern Pennsylvania has opened the door to more extensive research in agriculture production based on simpler and saner techniques. The farm fits nicely into other Rodale activities. It is on the not particularly fertile soils of this farm in Emmaus that Rodale’s Research and Development people have set up their Home Utilities Workshop to test small-scale gardening and farming tools and equipment. Devices like seed and bean sprouters and food driers are tested in the Fitness House Kitchen, also in Emmaus, which uses food produced on the farm. Rodale’s findings are published and disseminated throughout the world.

The device that is cultivating one of the farm’s experimental plots is Research and Development’s (R&D’s) Energy Cycle. At Rodale there is a feeling that the small-scale family farm is coming back. Research by Rural America, Inc., indicates that a new breed of younger farmers with smaller acreages is successfully adopting energy-saving methods. The Cycle is one example of an appropriately-sized piece of equipment that will help these farmers become economically competitive by freeing them from their dependence on expensive motors and fossil-fuel energy. The 74.5 watts (0.1 horsepower) that our legs are capable of generating can grind, juice, crop food, pump water, churn butter, turn a lathe, and even generate electricity. The Cycle was still being debugged when I was at Rodale, but by the time you read this it will probably be available for sale.

A $300 per-season heating bill for a 23.8-square-meter (256square-foot) greenhouse prompted the Rodale people to build a solar greenhouse. Unlike the other solar greenhouses discussed, Rodale’s performance has been monitored. Although greenhouses are traditionally constructed of transparent material, they never receive direct sunlight from the north side. Since it is a simple matter to compensate for the diffuse light available through the north wall, it seems logical to insulate this portion of the house to reduce heat loss. At OGEF a portion of the roof and the east and west walls, as well as the north wall, are insulated with 19 centimeters (7.5 inches) of cellulose fiber. The plants are vigorous, straight, and tall. In the winter the sun rises and sets so far south on the horizon that clear side walls would give little extra light. The most effective sunlight for heating occurs between 9:00 A.M. and 3:00 P.M. in midwinter, and that shines through the clear south wall. To prevent heat loss through the ground, 5 centimeters (2 inches) of plastic foam sheets have been placed under 60 centimeters (2 feet) of an earth floor. The heat-storage system consists of a bank of metal containers painted black, filled with water, and stacked against the interior north wall. This thermal sink stores heat for use when the sun isn’t shining and also helps to cool the greenhouse when it overheats. A small fan in the peak of the ceiling can be used to force hot air over the water-storage area and reduce air temperature considerably. On a sunny day a greenhouse such as this will gather 44 kilowatt-hours (150,000 BTUs) of energy. Very little of this energy is necessary to keep the house warm, so it seems logical to capture and store it for later use.

Other solar work being researched includes the testing of four solar panels. The performances of these panels are being metered in the R & D lab, and from these tests a panel for more widespread use on the farm and in farmhouses will be selected. Solar reflector fences are being used in crop plots to stretch the growing seasons and keep the soil a little warmer. In an interplanting trial—which will be discussed in more detail—soybean yields were reduced when planted with corn because they were overshadowed by the corn. Solar fences will be used to reflect light into the lower soybeans. Rodale has found that if soybeans receive sufficient light during the flowering stage, their yields will not be affected.

The batch methane digestor is solar heated to speed gas production by the bacteria. A portable insulated reflector panel on the front of the unit increases daytime radiation and is closed at night to retain heat. As bio-gas is generated, it is piped and stored in a water-submerged tank. At its peak, the digestor was producing enough gas to operate one Bunsen burner for eight hours a day, with an average output of 0.34 cubic meters (12 cubic feet) per day. The methane is used in a Bunsen burner to distill water for use in the R & D laboratory.

A “hot box” is based on the thermos concept. A hot, but not cooked, stew or soup is placed in this foil-lined, heavily insulated box. The residual heat from the dish is trapped, and it cooks itself. Temperatures of 74° C. (165° F.) for four hours have been recorded, which is sufficient to cook the food.

The longtime research by Rodale on agriculture alternatives is impressive, but their current work is even more extensive. Interplanting—the planting together of crops that complement each other—may have far-reaching effects on yields and natural fertility systems. Planting corn, a high nitrogen feeder, with soybeans, a crop capable of fixing atmospheric nitrogen in the soil, is an example of one such system. The denser leaf canopy created by interplanting shades out weeds, conserves moisture by reducing evaporation, and captures more solar energy. Other plant pairings now under experimentation are carrots with sugar peas, cabbage with bush beans, and tomatoes with soybeans.

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