Objective: In the current context of the agricultural crisis, Organic Farming (OF) worth to be studied in order to develop in the EEC a more ecological agriculture approach, cheaper and not so intensive as currently practiced.

The principal objective is to establish scientific basis of the agrobiological system in order to clearly delimit the typical input and output. Other goals are to improve current techniques and to disseminate these techniques in the Agricultural World. Most of the techniques used in OF will be potentially used by others and so this research will show a valid way for the European Agriculture. General Information: More precisely, following topics are studied :

a) Economical aspects : to investigate about the data concerning costs of the methods recommended in OF Evaluate the gross margins of several crops.
b) Weed control : to establish new approaches and to improve current methods.
c) Soil fertility and plant nutrition : to describe and ultimately be able to anticipate the different aspects of the dynamic of fertilizing elements in OF fields.
d) Varietal aspects : to determine the best adapted varieties for selected farming systems.
e) Reconversion : to identify parameters to be taken into account in the course of reconversion from "classical" towards OF.
f) Crop protection : to establish scientific basis and to improve efficiency of the methods used in OF.

The experiments are realised both in farm condition and in experimental stations. Achievments:The object of the project was to establish a scientific basis for organic farming systems, with a clear definition of typical inputs and corresponding outputs. The field experiments which have been completed were concerned with the following crops and corresponding investigations: weed and pest control in alfalfa; varieties of fababean; biostimulants for maize and fodder beet; varieties and crop protection for potatoes and field beans; varieties, seeding modes and rates for rye, winter wheat and winter oats; association of spring barley and oat with pea; varieties, rhizobium effectiveness, and weed control in sainfoin; and use of green manures. The effects of organic fertilizers have been studied on legumes and barley, haymaking trials to compare mixtures of species have been carried out and a first economic analysis made of potato production. Analysis of the production experiments is continuing. On 2 plots in Belgium and Ireland where the land is being converted to organic farming, the base level of soil fertility (major and minor elements, biological fertility), earthworm activity and weed flora were established at the beginning and are now monitored regularly.