Regenerative No-Till

We working assiduously to convert our entire farm to a no-till paradigm (low-till in the case of sugarcane). No-till is a sine qua non: a 2017 UN FAO study notes how Pakistani soils are devoid of soil organic matter, essentially dead. Globally, “eroding soils are darkening our future” and the world only has less than 60 years of soil left. The current agriculture systems used in Pakistan (and many other places) are little different from hydroponic systems where the ground/dirt is used as a mere substrate. Effective, affordable and regionally adaptable no-till is the bedrock of starting to build soil, which is our unfettered goal and ambition. What we are trying to craft are mechanical larger-scale versions of the sublimely elegant, extraordinarily bioproductive, intensive and abundant systems that Singing Frog Farms have forged in California (we’re HUGE fans). Of course, the Rodale Institute and Jeff Moyer must be payed homage for their work on roller crimpers and organic no-till which inspired our own foray into no-till.

No-till is only the beginning step - albeit a colossal one. With these beds we are adding organic matter and carbon through composts, charged biochar and biological mulches. These form the bedrock of our practices so far, but as we develop “synergistically stacked” foliar systems we’ll add updates to our practices. Expect to hear more (& send us all the good vibes you can).

This system combines various solutions noted in Drawdown, including regenerative agriculture, conservation agriculture and SRI - System of Rice Intensification (in our case we’re using SRI’s translation beyond rice: SCI).