The New Organic Grower

Coleman, Eliot. The New Organic Grower.

I am continuously amazed by the depth of my own ignorance. After devouring a couple of Joel Salatin's books, I began searching for some of the works listed in his bibliography and cited by him as exemplary books on farming. Salatin is my new favorite author, so why not? Few of the books were available immediately from the Indianapolis Public Library, but I was able to put a hold (recall) on this one, Eliot Coleman's The New Organic Grower: A Master's Manual of Tools and Techniques for the Home and Market Gardener (A gardener's supply book). Wow! I thought I had already been exposed to all of the great classics of Organic Gardening, but here is an author whose 30 years in the garden has been hiding from me since 1988, when this book was first published.

Simply stated, Coleman has perfected the kind of farming to which I aspire. He calls it "biological agriculture." Whatever. It is small scale. He claims that 5 acres is the "optimum" size. (For a couple; or 2.5 acres per adult family member. He claims that 100 people can be fed a year's worth of vegetables from 2.5 acres.) In other words, to borrow a phrase from Logsdon, Coleman farms at nature's pace and on a sustainable human scale. But Coleman is not stuck in the past. He learns from the past, certainly. He talks about how he first went to school on pre-1940 publications (the sorts of books we are re-publishing in digital form at tumbledownfarm.com), but he also uses the latest technology (best crafted hand tools, small implements, simplest techniques) when it offers the best option for maximizing vegetable growth. What a breath of fresh air! Here is an author who recognizes and makes use of the best ideas of pre-industrial agriculture in a 21st century world.

Many of the basic topics Coleman covers are already familiar to me, so I was able to skim the sections related to cover crops, crop rotations, and the like. But I read slowly, and then re-read the sections on soil fertility (I can never get enough of techniques for improving the soil), especially farm-generated fertility, soil blocks (something I'll definitely try now), and pests (something I haven't paid enough attention to in the past). Eliot is especially known for season extension (in fact, he has a whole 'nuther book on the subject, Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long). Perhaps best, Coleman offers a full bibliography of "contemporary" and "classic" books and articles related to organic gardening and farming, and a list of gardening tool suppliers. It is a breath of fresh air to hear an author who clearly has so much to offer, paying homage to these written sources. And it is great to see a practitioner who clearly also appreciates books and reading. His stories about monthly trips to the State University Library were inspiring. Perhaps the best news that Eliot offers is his example that farming needn't be anti-intellectual. He has learned from many sources and he shares freely what he has learned.

What is missing? In a book that so inspires people to "go and do likewise," it would have been helpful to see a real budget. When you say that a model is economically viable, you have some responsibility to support the claim with dollar amounts for expenses and revenues so that we can see whether there appears to be some slight of hand.

Need I say it? Get the book, you'll not regret it!