The farming system we are going to talk about here truly works with nature. It requires no fertilizers, tractors or any other chemicals or pesticides. Absolutely nothing goes to waste as waste of one element feeds another. No need of fires in fields. It will conserve and benefit soil. It will not damage your farming lands but increase their produce and make them fertile. It is all possible because we work in harmony with Mother Nature.
Permaculture: An Introduction
Permaculture is the combination of two words Permanent and Agriculture. It is a system for designing Agriculture Landscapes to work with nature without the use of chemicals and machinery.
Every landscape is different for farming and agriculture and permaculture helps us in understanding that and design a system that works in accordance with the conditions of that landscape.
With Permaculture, you can turn ‘Waste into resources’ & ‘Problems into solutions’. The best part is that you can apply these Permaculture principles to any land in the world and make it fertile. You just have to work according to the natural balance of that landscape.
How Permaculture can solve all your farming problems
For any agricultural land, field of any landscape first you need to be observant. You have to look that what techniques of farming can work here. To make it simple, just remember to opt for techniques that should be in sync with Earth, Water, Air and Agriculture of your landscape. For Example, Rainwater can be harvested for areas where water is a problem, Grow crops according to season, Grow multiple crops at the same time using the method of Multilayer Farming.
1. Water Management:
Rainwater harvesting can be the solution for water for agricultural areas that have less water challenged areas. This is a well-known technique that is helping small villages to Modern Urban cities. For areas that can have water irrigation, they can opt for that.
For lands that are not fertile, rainwater harvesting can work wonders. Just let the water go inside the land and soil. Let the water flow under and see the magic. Dig wells and ponds to conserve rainwater and maintain them for only 1-2 years and after that it can sustain on its own. For permaculture rainwater harvesting is a very dependable technique.
There are 3 rules for watering soil and agriculture lands more efficiently.
• First, slow down the flow of water.
• Second, let the water spread and cover more area.
• Third, then let it go under the soil and earth.
Fast flow of water causes soil erosion and damages topmost layer of soil. Water, when released in slow flow is absorbed by soil and land much more.
2. Soil Health:
It is said that there are more living organisms in a fistful of soil then there are human beings on this earth. These organisms make the soil fertile. So when we put pressure on soil like fires in the fields, these organisms die which impacts the soil health. Every year after harvesting when the residue is burnt, the organisms that live up till 4-5mm depth die.
3. Pest Management:
In Permaculture, we don’t need to use manufactured pesticides. Natural ways are more than sufficient. If pests are a problem that you are worried about, then Marigold Flowers are one of the best solutions to that. It is also called ‘Pest Attractor’. Use Marigold instead of pesticides, it will attract 90% of pests that were supposed to go to other crops. Marigold takes only ½ inch space. The more the Marigold matures, the more pests it will attract.
The other options are planting Tulsi, Aloevera, Onion or Garlic.
4. Multi-Layer Farming:
It is a farming technique where different plants and crops of different heights are grown in the same field at the same time. It will help in utilizing the land in a much more efficient way. You can grow more in small portion of lands with same resources as you will use for growing one crop. Click on below article link for complete information about Multi-Layer Farming.
5. Mulching:
Compost can made by farm residue within the farm. After harvesting, the uprooted plants and crops should never be burnt. Leave it in your farm land. It will become compost. Within 108-110 days every crop residue decomposes. Compost can be made of dried leaves then. It also becomes fertile soil when decomposes.
Once you know the importance of crop residue and dried leaves, you will never burn them. When we leave dead crops and plants in agriculture fields, whatever nutrients they took from soil will get returned as they become compost. That’s how soil health can be maintained.
6. Compost & Fertilizer
Farm Waste, Wild Grass, Cow Dung, Dried Leaves are considered as waste or garbage. They all can be reused to make compost for your agricultural farm land. Don’t burn or throw them. Make a place on your field to put and store them. They will decompose with time into compost. It will then can be used as fertilizer. It will be cheap, easy and sustainable way to make your own fertilizer.
Farming should be done in a way that it should not negatively affect our atmosphere & biosphere. We can save our earth with these methods of Permaculture by not using chemicals like manufactured pesticides, Fertilizers and machines.
