Resources on Organic Farming in the Southeast

COVID-19 Resources for Southeastern Farmers

• Alabama Small Farms Resources During COVID-19 from the Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Network
• COVID-19 Food Safety Resources from North Carolina State University
• NCAT ATTRA COVID-19 Response: Excellent resource list for farmers including financial assistance programs

USDA Coronavirus Food Assistance Program

Coronavirus Food Assistance for Producers

USDA is implementing updates to the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) for producers of agricultural commodities marketed in 2020 who faced market disruptions due to COVID-19. This is part of a larger effort to reach a greater share of farming operations and improve USDA pandemic assistance. If you owned or produced any of the following in 2020, you may be eligible for financial assistance through CFAP 2.

• Livestock (cattle, pigs, sheep/wool, broilers/pullets, eggs and more)
• Row or specialty crops (including aquaculture, nursery, and more)

The CFAP 2 signup period reopened as part of USDA’s new Pandemic Assistance for Producers initiative. Note: Participation in CFAP 1 is NOT required for assistance through CFAP 2. To learn more, visit https://www.farmers.gov/pandemic-assistance/cfap, contact 877-508-8364, or contact your local FSA office. The new deadline is October 12, 2021.

Publications by Collaborators in the Southeast Partnership Project

• Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Network. 2021. Farming in the Margins. A Needs Assessment of Alabama Sustainable Producers. Funded by Southern SARE. Available at https://asanonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/FNA_Final_digital.pdf.
• Chitturi Anitha, Davis Jeanine, Bloomquist Margaret, Quarcoo Franklin, Kpomblekou-A Kokoasse, Mortley Desmond. 2019. Insect Population Dynamics, Varietal Preference and Performance of Organic Bio-Pesticides. Professional Agricultural Workers Journal: Vol. 7: No. 1, 11. Available at https://tuspubs.tuskegee.edu/pawj/vol7/iss1/11 1
• Chitturi, Anitha, Franklin Quarcoo, Kokoasse Kpomblekou-A, and Desmond Mortley November 2019. Management of Aphids in Organic Vegetable Production in Alabama
• Chitturi, Anitha, Franklin Quarcoo, Kokoasse Kpomblekou-A, and Desmond Mortley November 2019. Management of Stink Bugs in Organic Tomato Production. A
• Chitturi, Anitha, Franklin Quarcoo, Kokoasse Kpomblekou-A, and Desmond Mortley November 2019.  Management of Tomato Fruit Worm in Organic Tomato.
• Chitturi, Anitha, Franklin Quarcoo, Kokoasse Kpomblekou-A, and Desmond Mortley November 2019. Management of Tomato Horn Worms in Organic Tomato Production in Alabama.
• Davis, Keniya and Julian Jones. 2019, Nutritional and Physical Contents of Organic Sweet Potatoes (Ipomoea batatas [L.] Lam) Treated with Organic Pesticides
• Goodrich, Brittney, Joel Cuffey, and Kokoasse Kpomblekou-A. 2020. Challenges and Barriers to Certified Organic Production in Alabama. eOrganic article. Available at http://eorganic.org/node/34351
• Sonu Koirala B. K., Franklin Quarcoo, Kokoasse Kpomblekou-A, Desmond Mortley. 2021. Organic Tomato Production in Alabama: Host Preference of the Tomato Hornworm (Manduca quinquemaculata) and Performance of Selected Biopesticides, American Journal of Entomology. Vol. 5, No. 1, 2021, pp. 10-17. doi: 10.11648/j.aje.20210501.12. Available at http://www.eorganic.info/sites/eorganic.info/files/u461/10.11648.j.aje_.20210501.12.pdf

Extension Programs and Publications from the Southeast

• Alabama Extension recognized nationally for helping organic producers with insect control
• Proper Use of Approved Insecticides in Organic Farming Systems
• Understanding NOP Standards for Pest Management in Specialty Crops

University of Florida Extension Small Farms Program: Organic Production

• http://sfyl.ifas.ufl.edu/agriculture/organic-production/

Georgia: University of Georgia Extension organic publications:

• Growing Vegetables Organically
• Organic Cool-Season Vegetable Rotations for the Southeast

Mississippi State University Vegetable Crop Physiology and Production Systems

• Vegetable Physiology and Production Systems Research Lab
• Organic Fruit and Vegetables
• Becoming a Certified Organic Grower
• Organic Vegetable IPM Guide 

North Carolina:

• NC State Extension New Crops and Organics Website
• North Carolina Organic Grain Production Guide
• Organic Research and Publications

South Carolina: Clemson sustainable agriculture program and student organic farm

• Clemson University Organic Research Center
• Clemson University Sustainable Agricultural Program

Tennessee: University of Tennessee Organic and Sustainable Crop Production

• University of Tennessee Extension Organic and Sustainable Crop Production 

Plant Disease Clinics in the South

• Alabama Plant Diagnostic Lab at Auburn
• Alabama Plant Diagnostic Lab at Birmingham
• The Arkansas Plant Health Clinic
• University of Florida Plant Diagnostic Center
• University of Georgia Plant Disease Clinics
• University of Kentucky Plant Disease Diagnostic Laboratories
• Louisiana State University Plant Diagnostic Center
• Mississippi State University Plant Disease Clinic
• North Carolina State University Plant Disease & Insect Clinic
• South Carolina – Clemson University Plant Problem Clinic
• The University of Tennessee Soil, Plant Pest Diagnostic Center
• Virginia Tech Plant Disease Clinic
• West Virginia University Extension Plant Diagnostic Clinic

Information on Disease-resistant Varieties

Hubbard, K. 2019. Organic Plant Breeding Yields Superior Varieties for Cucurbit Growers. Available at https://www.carolinafarmstewards.org/organic-plant-breeding-yields-superior-varieties-for-cucurbit-growers/

Organic and Sustainable Agriculture Organizations in the Southeast

• Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Network http://asanonline.org/
• Carolina Farm Stewardship Organization https://www.carolinafarmstewards.org/
• Center for Environmental Farming Systems https://cefs.ncsu.edu/
• Florida Organic Growers http://www.foginfo.org/
• Future Harvest: Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture https://www.futureharvestcasa.org/
• Georgia Organics https://georgiaorganics.org/
• Organic Growers School https://organicgrowersschool.org/
• Southeastern African American Farmers Organic Network http://www.saafon.org/
• Southern SARE https://www.southernsare.org/
• Virginia Association for Biological Farming http://vabf.org/

OMRI Website

• The OMRI Products List©: The OMRI Products List© is the most complete directory of products for organic production or processing under the U.S. National Organic Program standards, and includes over 6,000 "OMRI Listed®" products.

1. Read the label to be sure that the product is labeled for the crop and pest you intend to control, and make sure it is legal to use in the state, county, or other location where it will be applied,
2. Read and understand the safety precautions and application restrictions, and
3. Make sure that the brand name product is listed in your Organic System Plan and approved by your USDA-approved certifier. If you are trying to deal with an unanticipated pest problem, get approval from your certifier before using a product that is not listed in your plan—doing otherwise may put your certification at risk.
4. Note that, although OMRI and WSDA lists are good places to identify potentially useful products, all products that you use must be approved by your certifier. For more information on how to determine whether a pest control product can be used on your farm, see the related article, Can I Use This Input On My Organic Farm?