World Soil Day falls on December 7th and it has the importance of soil as a lifeblood of horticulture and the planet on our minds.  In this week's blog post we look at a monumental 100 year-long study into soil health, and the promising findings it's made regarding how growers can improve their soil health and yields, and how organic growers in particular can match conventional yields.  We'll also look at how the study has highlighted the need to bridge the gap between scientific studies and practical application.  Finally, we'll discuss how Croptracker helps growers conduct their own longitudinal studies, helping them get the most out of experimental trials and make more informed decisions for their operations.

The U.S. organic food market surpassed $45 billion in sales in 2017, but organic acreage only account for 1% of the country's total farmland.  This isn't just the case for the U.S. - this imbalance is being mirrored around the world.  What are some of the biggest obstacles blocking the growth of organic farming, and can anything be done to mitigate them?  In this blog post we'll explore 3 major barriers to entry for organic growers, and look at how the industry and its stakeholders are coming together to overcome them.

In today's blog post we look at biopesticides, their benefits and challenges, and why they are becoming increasingly popular among conventional growers as well as organic producers.

Research shows that female growers are on the rise.  The share of U.S. farms operated by women nearly tripled over the past three decades, according to a study by the USDA’s Economic Research Service, which analyzed gender roles in the Census of Agriculture from 1978 to 2007.