Trials
At Weaver Seed we are constantly looking for new ways to farm. At our facility, and across Oregon, we trial all our varieties to ensure the best product, as well as developing new ones.
We are proud to be working with universities to develop and trial new cultivars, and hope to expand our trial and research programs in the upcoming years. If you have any input, or are interested in working or trialing vegetable varieties we would love to hear from you!
We welcome people to come take a look at our trials, and are excited about expanding our cover crop blend trials, to both organic and conventional this fall!
Organic Chemical Applications
Effective organic weed control is quite a tricky beast. We have been working to provide options to reduce or eliminate imput of expensive organic chemical applications. One Promising method of pre-planting weed control, or spot/confined application during the season of acidified vinegar. We are always looking for innovative ways to scale down on chemical costs, especially in the organic sector. In addition to looking at creative herbicide options, we are also looking at the alleopathic (think chemical warfare between plants) interactions between many plants, that limit weeds ability to germinate and survive.
Analyzing the chemical make up of our plants
A project to look at the medicinal quality of our Diakon radish sprouts has spread into a look at many of our cover crop varieties chemical function in the soil. Two things that are particularly exciting is the role of isothiocyanates in diakon radish, and glucosinolate in mustards. these compounds reduce insect populations, and cause byproduct gasses in the soil that kill off fungi and bacteria. Looking deeper into the chemical structures of our varieties helps us put together a cover crop blend that provides many benefits simultaneously
Research Collaboration
This fall we will be working with the Oregon State University Organic Growers Club to optimize our cover crop blends. By measuring biomass above, and below ground, along with keeping close notes about effects on soil texture, structure, and nutrient levels, we are working to create the best possible cover crop blends for a variety of soil types. We have a goal on this project to reduce costs of cover crop blends, making them accessible to every farmer while maintaining and improving function.