Cal Poly to Co-Host Health Soils Project Demonstration Field Day Nov. 29 in Paso Robles

Presenters will discuss compost use from a variety of perspectives and showcase the types of soil monitoring taking place at J. Lohr Vineyards as part of a three-year project funded by a $200,000 grant from the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Healthy Soils Program. The project will demonstrate the potential for vineyard soils to capture and store carbon through the use of appropriate land management practices.

An interdisciplinary team of Cal Poly professors and Central Coast vineyards have partnered to study the effects of compost application and no-till methods on soil carbon and greenhouse gas emissions relevant to the production of wine grapes on the Central Coast. Cal Poly’s Center for Sustainability, the Horticulture and Crop Science Department, and the Wine and Viticulture Department are collaborating with the Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences Department on the research, taking place at two vineyards in Paso Robles — J. Lohr Vineyards and Tablas Creek Vineyard — over a three-year period.

The free field day, open to all agricultural professionals, is being co-hosted by Cal Poly and the Vineyard Team, an Atascadero-based organization dedicated to sustainable farming through research, education and grower-to-grower networking. J. Lohr Vineyards is located at 6169 Airport Road in Paso Robles. For more information about the event, visit: www.vineyardteam.org/events.

The CDFA Healthy Soils Program will begin soliciting grant applications for its next round of funds in November. Growers interested in applying for their own Healthy Soils Program grant will be provided information about the application process for the incentives program at the Nov. 29 healthy soils field day. 

About the CDFA Healthy Soils Program
The Healthy Soils Program (HSP) has funded the implementation of soil health practices on 8,610 acres of farm and ranchland throughout California. These projects are estimated to collectively sequester 18,683 metric tons of CO2e annually, or the equivalent of removing 4,000 cars from the road each year. Learn more at www.cdfa.ca.gov/oefi/healthysoils/.

About the Center for Sustainability
The Cal Poly Center for Sustainability (www.cfs.calpoly.edu) is a cross-disciplinary initiative in the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences dedicated to advancing education on sustainable food and agricultural systems through curriculum, professional development and on-farm education.

Contact: Cal Poly Center for Sustainability
805-756-5086; cfs@calpoly.edu

November 13, 2018