Broadacre Farming is a term applied to large scale agricultural production, which in New Zealand is most commonly pastoral farming. This module explores the context of pastoral farming in New Zealand, possible developments of this farming type and how permaculture ideas of diversification and inter- connectedness can be applied to make these systems more robust and sustainable.
The main ideas covered are silver pasture farming (integrating tree crops in pastoral farming), using cell grazing techniques to move livestock to mimic natural grazing patterns, and development of a more diverse and nutritious range or grasses and herbs within a grazing system.
The main ideas covered are silver pasture farming (integrating tree crops in pastoral farming), using cell grazing techniques to move livestock to mimic natural grazing patterns, and development of a more diverse and nutritious range or grasses and herbs within a grazing system.
A Broadacre Farm
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EBook
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Silver Pasture Farming and Alley Cropping
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One particular type of planting system that is emerging and being trialed by innovative farmers in America and Europe is silver pasture farming where mixed tree guild plantings on contour are interspersed by strips of pasture for grazing animals.
These systems provide a variety of animal and plant yields and have a mutually beneficial production. The animals provide weed control and increase soil fertility, while the trees provide shelter, avoid soil erosion and provide additional food resources. Alley cropping applies a similar principle, with crops grown between the rows of trees. |
Cell Grazing
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Cell grazing is a techniques used to move a high density of grazing animals onto a pasture for a short duration of time. Before the grazers are moved onto that pasture, it should be left for a period of time that has allowed the grasses and herbs to grow to an optimal forage height.
Once the grazers are moved onto the pasture, they quickly convert the plant matter to manure. This results in a high input of fertility into the soil and promotes better growth of grasses and herbs. This method of grazing imitates that of grazers in natural prairie ecosystems, which have examples of the most fertile soils in the world. |
Keyline Design
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Keyline design is a landscaping technique of maximizing the beneficial use of the water resources of a tract of land. The "keyline" denominates a specific topographic feature related to the natural flow of water on the tract. Keyline design is a system of principles and techniques of developing rural and urban landscapes to optimize use of their water resources.
Australian farmer and engineer P. A. Yeomans invented and developed Keyline design in his books The Keyline Plan, The Challenge of Landscape, Water For Every Farm, and The City Forest. In many nations, including Australia, it is important to optimize infiltration of rainfall, and Keyline cultivation accomplishes this while delaying the concentration of runoff that could damage the land. |
Holistic Grazing
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The practice of Holistic Management helps to increase water retention in the soil and is an effective means of regenerating degraded dry lands and even deserts.
Applied at the farm scale it is also an excellent strategy for creating resilient, regenerative and lucrative farm businesses. Mimicking the grazing patterns of ecosystems with diverse grazers, the cows are followed by chickens and pigs using innovative mobile animal shelters. Each species takes a specific role in fertilizing and enriching the diversity of the perennial prairie polyculture. |
Thought Leaders
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Darren Doherty
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Matt Poore - Cell Grazing
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Geoff Lawton - Cell Grazing
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