Students will be familiar with the procedures and methods of organic farming as well as the opportunities it offers. They will be aware of the factors affecting profitability in organic farming, and they will be knowledgeable of the channels available for marketing organically grown products.
Student's Workload
Lectures 35 h, autonomous studies 45 h.
Prerequisites / Recommended Optional Courses
No previous studies are required.
Contents
- Introduction to ecology
- Scope of organic production
- Rules, subsidisation and control of organic production
- Cultivation possibilities of and caring for the soil
- Crop rotation and rotation schemes
- Fertilization in organic cultivation
- plant protection in organic cultivation
- Financial management and marketing
- Introduction to organic livestock husbandry
Recommended or Required Reading
- Rajala, 2004. Luonnonmukainen maatalous. University of Helsinki: Maaseudun tutkimus- ja koulutuskeskus. OR
- Källander & Bovin. 1993. Luonnonmukainen maanviljely. Kirjayhtymä.
- Briggs, S. 2008. Organic cereal and pulse production. A complete guide.
Mode of Delivery / Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods
Grade 1. The student tells the ecological basis for the organic production and lists the most important rules concerning organic production. The student specifies the main things of the cultivation technique of organic farming and the main principles of organic animal production. Student draws up a crop rotation plan for an organic farm. The student lists factors which affect the profitability of the organic production and lists marketing channels.
Grade 3. The student describes the ecological basis for the organic production and explains rules concerning organic production. The student makes the summary of the cultivation technique of organic farming and explains factors which affect it. The student sums up the the principles of organic animal production. The student draws up a crop rotation plan for an organic farm and justifies the practices of the farm. The student estimates factors affecting the profitability of the organic production and lists the marketing channels of different products.
Grade 5. The student explains which ecological points the organic production is based on and interprets and comments on the rules of the organic production. The student explains the cultivation technique of organic farming and analyses affecting factors. The student explains the significance of knowledge of species-specific behaviour in organic animal production and the connections between organic crop and animal production. The student designs a crop rotation plan for an organic farm, compares different alternatives and justifies his/her choices and development proposals. The student compares the profitability factors of the organic production and the marketing channels.
Assessment Methods
- Active participation in lectures
- Approved assignment
- Exam