The Curriculum
INTEGRATED ORGANIC AGRICULTURE COURSE: AN ECOSYSTEM APPROACH
Coming soon!
A new exciting offer is being developed as an upgrade to the yearly Maymester class offered in conjunction with the University of Georgia School of Ecology.
Courses are held at Spring Valley EcoFarms, a 100 acre farm dedicated to research, outreach, and education. It is located just 5 miles from the University of Georgia, in Athens Georgia, and is affiliated with the Agroecology laboratory of the Odum School of Ecology.
Informal classes – outdoor lectures, hands-on field experiments, practical experience in organic agriculture. Be prepared for poison ivy, mosquito bites, sun burn, fire ants. We do not recommend shorts, sandals, flip-flops.
Course organized and taught by Dr. Carl Jordan, Professor Emeritus at the University of Georgia. Guest practitioners, researchers and growers will give talks and demonstrations in areas such as integrated pest management, plant disease, and other specific topics. Presentations assume no specialized background, but for those interested in further pursuit of a topic, references will be given.
This course is patterned after the accredited Univ. of Georgia Course “Organic Agriculture” (Ecology 3700), which has been taught for eight years by Jordan and a fantastic team of collaborators. It has been a very successful course, always oversubscribed.
One of the top priorities for organic agriculture in the Southeast that emerged from a workshop at the Feb. 2008 Georgia Organics Conference in Dalton Georgia was “Education and Practical Experience” in Organic Agriculture. For this reason, we are now opening a course to aspiring organic farmers who are not UGA students.
Please email us today for more information.
info@springvalleyecofarms.org
Please indicate why you are interested in organic agriculture, and your experience in farming/ gardening/ the environment/ sustainable agriculture.
Organic Agriculture Curriculum
The Organic Agriculture Curriculum at Spring Valley EcoFarms has three main components:
1.Ecological Theory: What are the general principles that govern agriculture, regardless of where it is practiced? Why is organic agriculture more sustainable than conventional agriculture, anywhere in the world?
2.Local Characteristics: What are the characteristics of the local environment that govern how ecological principles are applied at that site?
3.Local Application: What are the management practices that best promote sustainability in a particular local environment?
