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Welcome to the Kerr Center
A private non-profit educational foundation
Located just off highway 2715 miles south of Poteau, Oklahoma, on Kerr Rd.
We demonstrate sustainable agriculture on the Kerr Farm & Ranch
Kerr Foundation: Established by the family of Senator Robert S. Kerr after his death in 1963
Kerr Center Beginnings
• 1965-66, Agriculture Division of the larger Kerr Foundation established
• Mission: Outreach to farmers and ranchers in SE Oklahoma
• In 1985 sustainability became central focus
Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture
Foundation supported by an endowment,
grants and donations.
Dr. Jim Horne• President of Kerr
Center since transition to sustainable organization
On-farm & ranch projects make Kerr Center different from most non-profit sustainable educational foundations
• Organic Horticulture
• Sustainable Livestock
• Conservation
What Kerr Center offers...• Online & in print• In person, in Poteau
www.kerrcenter.com
Education available online:publications, videos,slideshows
Social mediaFORID:0
● Beginning Farmer and Rancher Training Program
● Resilient Farm (Organic) Project
● Intern Training Program
● Native Pollinator Project
Current Special Initiatives
So, how do you “do” sustainable agriculture?
So, how do you “do” sustainable agriculture?
In the 1990s Kerr Center identified 8 components of sustainable ag • Healthy Soil• Water Quality & Conservation• Responsible Waste Management• Adapted Crops
• Biodiversity• Ecological Pest Management• Energy Conservation• Profitability
Steps are Covered in this 2001 book:
1. Soil:
• Conserve and Create
Good Soil: The foundation of a sustainable agriculture
Microorganisms in one spoonful of soil outnumber the people on earth
Sustainable Ag
Soil
Erosion: still a threat Erosion threatens the productive capacity of nearly one of every three cropland acres.
---Natural Resources Conservation Service
One solution: Keep the soil covered
Cover crops or green manures: basis of Kerr Center’s organic program
Cover crops like vetch also add nitrogen, a key nutrient, to the soil.
George Kuepper, Horticulture Manager,
mowing cover crop
The mowed material can be tilled in, or left on the surface as mulch.
We also create healthy soil with compost
& compost tea...
2. Water:
• Conserve and Protect Its Quality
Riparian buffers on Kerr Ranch
Buffers can trap 70-80% of
sediment and contaminants in
run off.
Protecting Water Quality
Drip irrigation conserves water
3. Organic Wastes:
• Manage so They Don’t Pollute
Sustainable Agriculture
• Animals are raised on integrated farms • Animal wastes provide nutrients for growing
crops without polluting watersheds
Kerr cows on the move: rotational grazing
Electric fencing allows management intensive grazing
As cows move to new pastures, manure is distributed more evenly & doesn’t pollute
4. Adapted to the Environment:
• Grow Locally-Adapted Breeds and Varieties
• With large amounts of inputs, farmers can raise non-adapted crops
• Farmers raise animals and plants adapted to the existing environment
Industrial Sustainable Agriculture Agriculture
2010 -2012: heirloom sweet potato variety trials...
Sweet potatoes are heat and drought tolerant
and well adapted to Oklahoma
Looking for the best tomato: Trials of heirloom varieties
Okra, squash, sorghum, flour corn also tested
Reports with results from all variety trialsare available free online.
A Good Mix for Oklahoma
Angus X GelbviehCattle
Adaptability—Sustainable Ag
Pineywoods cattle: hardy heritage breed
• 5. Encourage Biodiversity
Biodiversity
• Over 100 breeds of livestock and poultry are endangered in U.S.
• With important genetic traits: adaptability, hardiness, disease resistance• Only 20 per cent of the maize varieties reported in Mexico in 1930 are now being grown
Kerr Center is growing rare corn varieties
Biodiversity Threatened
• Monoculture-- planting fence row to fence row-- destroys habitat for native plants and wildlife
Saving space for wildlife on the Kerr Ranch
Wildflower Meadows & Plots Provide Habitat for Diverse Pollinators
A native pollinator (sweat bee)
Wildlife on the ranch
Kerr Ranch has woods, pastures, riparian corridors
Beneficial insects help control insect pests in hort plots.
Birds eat millions of insects and billions of weed seeds
Pests:
• Manage Them with Minimal Environmental Impact
Environmental Consequences of Overuse of Pesticides• Resistance: 500 insect pests, 270 weed species,
150 diseases resulting in chemical treadmill
• Non-target pests often killed, too often beneficial predators
Industrial Ag--Chemicals
Health Consequences• Pesticide poisoning (worldwide)
• 10-20,000 deaths per year
• At least 3 million acute cases
• American farm workers have the highest rate of chemical-related illness of any group
Industrial Ag--Chemicals
Pesticide Use
• Rate of usage in agriculture more than doubled since 1964—3/4 of usage in U.S.
• Share of farm budget for pesticides rose 35 percent in same period
Industrial Ag--Chemicals
.
Our Cannon Horticulture Farm is certified organic
Without herbicides, controlling bermudagrass is a challenge...
...but sorghum-sudangrass, a summer cover crop, outcompetes it
Energy:
• Conserve Nonrenewable Resources
Conserve fuel by using small-scale equipment
Solar-powered fencing
Profitability:
• Increase Profitability and Reduce Risk
Consumers are driving change
• Farmers’ markets• Farm-to-school • Community gardens• CSA farms• Food cooperatives
Opportunities: Direct and local sales
• Higher per acre returns– horticulture crops
• Direct sales: farmers get 100% of food dollar
• Attractive to young, women, minority and beginning farmers
Farmers’ Markets• Increase Access to
Healthy Foods, Affordable
• 70 Farmers’ Markets in Oklahoma (35 in 2007)
• For more info: http://okfarmandfood.org
It’s Affordable! Selected produce price comparisons ($/lb.), (F.M. had lower prices on majority of items)
Farmers' Market Wal-Mart
• Romaine Lettuce $0.76 $1.38• Turnips $0.91 $1.46 • Green Onions $1.63 $3.26
Farm-to-School
• Makes healthy foodsavailable to low-income kids
• Research says farm-to-school programs significantly improve eating habits
• 2007: 40 school districts in OK• 2013: over 100 school districts• More info:
http://www.okfarmtoschool.com/
We Can Grow It in Oklahoma
• From A-Z, Asparagus to Zucchini
For more info read our report Closer to Home : http://www.kerrcenter.com/publications/closer_to_home/toc.htm
Consumers are the key to change
• Buying safe, nutritious, locally-produced food
• Be willing to pay a fair price for this food
WE NEED MORE FARMERS
Farmer Training at Kerr Center
• Beginning Farmer and Rancher Training Program
• Resilient Farmer Project
• Intern Training Program
Intern Program: college students get hands-on experience in sustainable ag
Popular educational events held regularly
Learn about Kerr Center online
• Programs, history, staff bios, awards
TremendousProgress since 1985
• and • Many
Challenges to Come
Contact us:918.647.9123
• www.kerrcenter.com
• 24456 Kerr Road• Poteau, OK 74953-8163
When you’re right, don’t run. Hoe your row out.
• Robert S. Kerr
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