Biointensive Farming
Although the basic concept behind biointensive farming dates back to ancient China, more than 4000 years ago, the techniques have been greatly improved over the past 30 years. One of the leaders in this movement is John Jeavons, founder of Ecology Action, whose farm in Willits California is both a model and an educational center. People come from around the world (more than 130 countries) to learn his highly-developed system. Over the past 25 years, he has been able to average four times the productivity (per acre) of commercial farms, with yields that are sometimes 16 times as high.
Biointensive farming is not only highly productive, it is environmentally sustainable. It can require as little as 10% of the external energy (per unit of output) that is required for large commercial farms; it can use 60-80% less water; it minimizes and often eliminates the need for external fertilizers, chemicals, pesticides and seed purchases; and it requires only simple tools and relatively little in the way of start-up capital.
Biointensive farming involves at least eight distinct elements, including:
- Double-dug raised beds. The basic "technology" associated with biointensive farming involves the use of carefully prepared raised garden beds that have been "double-dug" down to at least 24 inches underground. This allows for very close spacing of plants and very deep roots, along with a carefully controlled nutrient and watering regime. Double digging also allows for much deeper penetration of air, water, and nutrients, as well as simplifying the weeding process and minimizing soil erosion. Plant roots can thus grow more freely
- Composting. This is a major element, because it replenishes nutrients that many food crops take out of the soil. It is vital for maintaining the health and vigor of the topsoil. Compost also helps to sustain the critically important community of micro biota in the soil - bacteria and fungi - that play a key role in nurturing plant root systems. A pound of healthy topsoil may contain several billion microorganisms.
- Intensive planting. Seeds are typically propagated in flats, often in mini-green houses, and are carefully transplanted with very close spacing, so that the leaves of the mature plants will touch one another. This creates an umbrella - a "micro-climate" -- over the bed which reduces water evaporation, retards the growth of weeds, retains the carbon dioxide that the plants need for growth and protects the micro biota living in the soil.
- Companion planting. For reasons that are still not well understood but have been thoroughly validated, many plants complement one another and grow more abundantly together - say bush beans and strawberries. In other cases, companion plants may serve to repel garden pests of various kinds, or may attract beneficial insects. For instance, borage helps to control tomato worms and also attracts pollinators like bees.
- Compost farming. "Growing soil" is the key to long-term farm sustainability. Some 50-60% of all the crops grown on a modern biointensive farm are dual-purpose crops that provide both calories for humans and an abundance of material for building compost piles. These crops include many grains, corn, fava beans and sunflowers, among others.
- Calorie farming. Here the emphasis is on growing the most efficient calorie-producers for human consumption. For instance, about 30% of all the crops that are grown on a small subsistence farm are high-calorie root crops, such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, parsnips and others.
- Open pollinated seeds. Rather than using commercial seeds, which have little diversity and are designed for use in a rigid, energy-intensive, chemically-dependent growing regime, open pollinated seeds have been selected over many generations for their adaptability to a broad range of growing environments without compromising yields. Many biointensive farmers also save their own seeds.
- A "whole system" approach. Biointensive farming emphasizes the need for integrating all of the many parts and fully utilizing all of the available knowledge about farming techniques. Some of that knowledge is very subtle. For instance, it has been found that the flavor of lettuce depends on what time of day it is harvested. Lettuce is much sweeter if it is harvested before dawn, because the bitter saps descend into the plant roots during the night and rise up into the plant again when the sun comes up.
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