Soil microbiota respond to green manure in organic vineyards

Aims The aim of this work was to investigate the effects of biodynamic management with and without the addition of green manure, in comparison with organic management, on the microbiota in vineyards soil. Methods and Results High throughput sequencing was used to compare the taxonomic structure of the soil bacterial and fungal communities from vineyards managed with different methods (organic, biodynamic or biodynamic with green manure). Our results showed that microbial communities associated with biodynamic and organic farming systems were very similar, while green manure was the greatest source of soil microbial biodiversity and significantly changed microbial richness and community composition compared with other soils. Green manure also significantly enriched bacterial taxa involved in the soil nitrogen cycle (e.g. Microvirga sp., Pontibacter sp. and Nitrospira sp.). Conclusions Our results showed that the diversity and composition of the microbial communities associated with biodynamic and organic farming systems were similar, indicating that the use of biodynamic preparations 500 and 501 did not cause any significant detectable changes to the soil microbial community in the short term, while the effects of green manure were significant in soil microbiota. Significance and Impact of the Study The microbiological richness and structure of soil are used as a sensitive indicator of soil quality. The extension of organic/biodynamic farming, associated with green manure application, could contribute to increase the abundance of functional groups of biological and agronomical relevance and maintaining microbial biodiversity in vineyard soils

Organic certification as assemblage: The case of Cuban honey

Through the lens of assemblage theory, we conceptualise organic certification for agricultural products in Cuba as a “dispositif‐assemblage,” through which we trace a multiple and conflicted “will to govern” the production and valuing of food qualities. We juxtapose the hierarchical third‐party certification system for Cuban organic honey for export with a proposed horizontal participatory guarantee system for organic products to be consumed in Cuba. The analysis highlights that there are multiple ways in which commodities take on value and meaning within assemblages, some of which are extra‐economic in nature