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The Effects Of Living Mulches On Organic, Reduced-Till Broccoli Growth And Management, Sarah Elizabeth Broughton

Masters Theses

Conservation tillage programs have been successfully implemented for many agronomic cropping systems, but adoption of reduced tillage for vegetable crops has been slow. As many conventionally managed conservation tillage programs rely on synthetic herbicides for clean cultivation, alternative methods must be devised to suppress weed pressure and reduce reliance on mechanical cultivation to aid in the development of reduced tillage programs for organic cropping system. Strip tillage is a reduced tillage method that is well suited to vegetable crop production, and the utilization of cover crops and living mulches between rows provides a viable weed management option for organic systems. …

A Comparison Of Costs And Returns For Organic And Conventional Cabernet Sauvignon Grape Production In San Luis Obispo County, Amanda N. Johansen

Agribusiness

This study examined the differences in costs and profitability for established conventional and organic Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards in the Edna Valley region of San Luis Obispo County, California. The study used a partial budgeting approach to compare cost and profitability for established vineyards for 2009, and thus ignored transition costs. Data were obtained from UC Davis cost studies for organic and conventional grape production in other regions of California in previous years. Adjustments made to these costs to account for changes in input use, input costs and grape prices in San Luis Obispo County during the 2009 growing season.

The …