Project Overview
Commodities
Practices
Proposal abstract:
We will test felted wool mats as a solution to suppress weeds, conserve soil moisture, and maximize crop yield, establishing a new market for non-textile-quality wool and converting fiber waste into a valuable resource. With our needle-felting machine and scoured waste wool from Power Acres, a local fiber mill, we can produce standardized, easily installable mats. Previous research demonstrated that raw wool is a good soil amendment due to its inherent nutrient content and complete biodegradability. Our mats can overcome the disadvantages of raw wool when used as mulch: high labor for application, inconsistent weed suppression, risks from weed seeds or pathogens, poor aesthetics, and susceptibility to wind displacement.
The project will evaluate wool felt mat's potential to reduce labor costs, increase crop yields, and conserve water in three strategic crop trials in the Great Lakes region: peppers and flowers will test weed suppression and moisture retention, and strawberries will determine mat's durability for perennial use; Project success will be measured at Crown Point Ecology Center, Oxbow Orchard, and Cleveland Roots using a comprehensive Return on Investment (ROI) calculation that quantifies labor savings relative to material costs.
Project objectives from proposal:
Objectives
Develop & Standardize Mat Production: Establish an efficient, reproducible process to convert waste wool into standardized, needle-felted agricultural mats.
Quantify Performance: Determine the mat's efficacy for weed suppression, soil moisture conservation, and crop yield across three distinct trials (strawberries, peppers, and flowers).
Demonstrate Labor Savings: Measure the mat's impact on weeding, irrigation, and potentially harvest labor in the respective trials.
Calculate Economic Viability: Determine the Return on Investment (ROI) by correlating documented labor savings and yield with the material costs of the mats.
Establish New Market: Create a high-value agricultural market for non-textile-quality wool in the Great Lakes region.