Regenerative Agriculture:
food-production systems that increase their own resource base over time.
True Grass Farms
Valley Ford, California
This installation was part of an educational workshop led by Guido Frosini of True Grass Farms and Jeremy Watts of Edible Ecology. Our objective was to convert a portion of the farm's pastureland into silvopasture, which is an agroforestry practice that combines forest (silvo) with rangeland (pasture) for their combined benefits.
Over 70 cork oak (Quercus suber) trees were selected for planting-out a small portion of the 1,200 acre, pasture-based cattle, pig and sheep operation. The idea was to mimic a natural oak savanna, one of the most highly-productive terrestrial systems found in nature, in terms of calorie production. The oaks will provide numerous benefits: fog catchment, shade and protection for the pasture and animals from the dessicating coastal winds, forage for the livestock, habitat for wildlife, and an occasional crop of cork to supply corks for the wine they plan to produce in the future, and possibly a bumper crop of Chantarelle mushrooms. This tree species was chosen for its proven track record of producing very high-quality pig forage (as is used in the Mediterranean Dehesa system) as well as for its general suitability for our climate.
The next phase of the project may be to expand the savanna or to interplant compatible species within the oak rows for complementary benefits and additional yields. This agroforestry system will outlive all of its creators and provide future generations with a guiding cultivation pattern, abundant fodder crops, and the many other benefits that trees bring.
Over 70 cork oak (Quercus suber) trees were selected for planting-out a small portion of the 1,200 acre, pasture-based cattle, pig and sheep operation. The idea was to mimic a natural oak savanna, one of the most highly-productive terrestrial systems found in nature, in terms of calorie production. The oaks will provide numerous benefits: fog catchment, shade and protection for the pasture and animals from the dessicating coastal winds, forage for the livestock, habitat for wildlife, and an occasional crop of cork to supply corks for the wine they plan to produce in the future, and possibly a bumper crop of Chantarelle mushrooms. This tree species was chosen for its proven track record of producing very high-quality pig forage (as is used in the Mediterranean Dehesa system) as well as for its general suitability for our climate.
The next phase of the project may be to expand the savanna or to interplant compatible species within the oak rows for complementary benefits and additional yields. This agroforestry system will outlive all of its creators and provide future generations with a guiding cultivation pattern, abundant fodder crops, and the many other benefits that trees bring.
Orella Ranch
Goleta, California
Goleta, California
As part of a Regrarians training and consultancy, our team of designers proposed revisions to the farm's water, access, and fencing systems.
Using the Keyline design process (as in the above example), infrastructure is designed to maximize efficiency and create systems patterned according to the climatic and geographic realities. Utilizing planned grazing, the ranchers will employ cattle to rebuild the degraded land's fertility, and to provide their community with delicious value. Agroforestry systems will be used to stack multiple, long-term yields of tree crops on top of the beef operation, providing benefits to continued generations of this family farm.
Using the Keyline design process (as in the above example), infrastructure is designed to maximize efficiency and create systems patterned according to the climatic and geographic realities. Utilizing planned grazing, the ranchers will employ cattle to rebuild the degraded land's fertility, and to provide their community with delicious value. Agroforestry systems will be used to stack multiple, long-term yields of tree crops on top of the beef operation, providing benefits to continued generations of this family farm.
