From 11 to 16 December, we had the honour of hosting Philip Barton, a soil specialist who combines the theory and practice of Soil Food Web (SFW), syntropic agriculture, landscape and permaculture design. He has literally inoculated us with a love of soil, which is a key prerequisite for soil conservation and also for climate protection.
During a lecture in Brno at the Mendel University and in Prague at the Czech University of Agriculture, the charismatic student of the famous pedologist Elaine Ingham tried to explain in a fun and engaging way why the health of humanity, the landscape and the climate depends on living soil. He showed how important the ratio of nitrogen to carbon is in the soil food web and explained that this ratio can be easily analysed through the microscope, where we can observe the ratio between bacteria and fungal hyphae. From this ratio we can then define the suitability of our soil for growing specific crops.
Philip Barton also shared the results of soil food web measurements at the site of the founder of syntropic agriculture, Ernst Götsch, in Brazil and at the Sara Ana research station in Bolivia, where scientists from the Swiss FiBL and technicians from the Ecotop Foundation, led by one of Götsch’s first students, Joachim Milz, are based. In both cases, it can be seen that syntropic farming practices can significantly accelerate soil regeneration. In Ernst Götsch’s case, regular pruning of the so-called mother trees results in up to four times more new soil growth than in a nearby forest left without human intervention.
We will try to make the recordings of both lectures available on our website in due course.
During the three-day workshop, it was already possible to go more in depth in theory and try out the establishment of biocompost in practice at the legendary Částkov Farm, led by Simona Hrochová, a pioneer of sensitive methods of soil care and regeneration.
Simona also gave us a tour of her family permaculture farm, where she and her husband grow vegetables, fruits and herbs, despite the seemingly unsuitable soil and minimal rainfall. She showed us that an area cultivated from the beginning without soil movement/regenerative management and without artificially supplied watering was harvested about 2-3 weeks earlier than a plot where a plough or rotavator was used for establishment years ago, despite the fact that the area was under drip irrigation at the time of growth.
Philip then guided all the participants through the process of making biocompost, showing us how to calculate the ratio of input materials, how to start the compost heap correctly and how to monitor it to gradually work out a recipe tailored to our site.
We were also shown how to measure soil compaction, outlined how to deal with problematic situations, and were able to see the preparation of an infusion of protozoa and nematode extract to revive soil biology.
The programme culminated in a practical microscopy session where participants could try out a simple and inexpensive method to monitor the condition of their own soil and compost.
We hope that this first visit of Philip Barton to the Czech Republic will be the beginning of a longer-term cooperation with Czech farmers and scientists. The development of life underground is directly related to the development of life on the surface. If we can accelerate these processes through the Soil Food Web and Syntropic Agriculture methods, we will have powerful tools in our hands for regenerating our soil and protecting our climate.
We would like to thank Philip Barton from Minds of Soil, AMPI Association, Mendel University in Brno, Czech University of Agriculture in Prague, Částkov Family Farm and all Czech and foreign participants for their interest and support, without which these events would not have been possible.
“Let’s be like bacteria! Let’s become an instrument of transformation.” (Sandor Ellix Katz)
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If you’re interested in learning more about Philip Barton’s work, check out our other posts:
Soil Food Web and Syntropic Agriculture – Zoom entry
Recording of a webinar with leading experts in syntropic agriculture
