Regenerative Agriculture
Wikipedia defines it as "Regenerative agriculture is a conservation and rehabilitation approach to food and farming systems. It focuses on topsoil regeneration, increasing biodiversity, improving the water cycle, enhancing ecosystem services, supporting biosequestration, increasing resilience to climate change, and strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil.
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At High Mountain we believe in regenerative practices, giving back to the soil. For those that follow organic practices like us, soil health is critical and a big part of the quality of the plant. We decided that HugelKultur was the way we wanted to build the soil.
Hügelkultur
"Hügelkultur is a horticultural technique where a mound constructed from decaying wood debris and other compostable biomass plant materials is planted as a raised bed"
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"Hügelkultur is said to replicate the natural process of decomposition that occurs on forest floors, however in natural ecosystems wood would be present at the soil surface.Trees that fall in a forest often become nurse logs decaying and providing ecological facilitation to seedlings. As the wood decays, its porosity increases, allowing it to store water like a sponge. The water is slowly released back into the environment, benefiting nearby plants.
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These beds are also considered beneficial because of the airpockets created by the settling caused by the wood's decomposition. This gives the benefits of tilling, without the destruction of soil microorganisms that come with tilling ("every time you till the soil, you lose 30% of the organic material (microbial soil life is killed, and plants feast on their bodies)". And, the organic material of the rotting wood also houses beneficial soil microorganisms."
Wikipedia
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