Over the last few years of studying, designing and installing syntropic agroforestry systems, I have picked up a few small tips and tricks. Some of these are very practical and specific to species or management, others are based around the design concepts and principles. Regardless, I hope they provide some insights so that your work might move forward in succession.
If you don’t know what Syntropic Farming is, then check out this older blog from a few years ago.
My Favorite Syntropic Tricks and Tips
Density over Diversity
If I have to choose between these two concepts, I prefer to have a very high density system with lower diversity, instead of a very diverse system with low density. The most up to date soil science, coming from Dr Christine Jones, tells us that we need a minimum of four different plant families present in our system. I use that as a baseline for achieving the diversity I seek. It is much easier to increase the diversity over time by adding plants in the future. It is easy to reduce the density to achieve the spacing or stratification you want.
Nacadero as an All-Star Species
The use of Nacadero (Trichanthera gigantea) in Bahia as a climax/low species was notable for me. I found that Boton de Oro (Tithonia diversifolia) was often phased out during year two and replaced by Nacadero. I even saw Nacadero get moved closer or further away from tree rows as the systems’ tolerance of shade changed. As we say in Spanish, it is a very well behaved plant, especially compared to the rapid and messy growth of Boton de Oro.
Prepare the Soil or Use Nests
In Costa Rica’s mountainous cattle land it can be hard to find machinery to properly prepare the soil. In our experience it is really hard to get a system jump started in poor soil without this one time disturbance. Our approach is to use a Nest design when we don’t have access to machinery. This allows us to focus our energy and simplifies the systems. Nests work great on very small sites, where you can only fit a tree or two, or very large sites where you have to be cautious about over extending your capacity.
Jackfruit and Mamonchino as Biomass Species
In Bahia this was a common practice and I am adopting it for our work in Costa Rica in particular. The pattern though, is that both of these trees produce a lot of seed and in a good season that they can be directly seeded into new beds. Do not prune them for harvest or expect a harvest. There will be many analogues for this but it has been good to look at common fruit trees for different purposes.
Embrace the Language
Jargon can be off putting; what do words like placenta, accumulation, life cycle actually mean? None the less, I find that most of the precise words used in syntropy are there for a reason. It is worth studying the language. For example, the idea of Placenta species. Just as the placenta nourishes and supports the embryo, the life that is coming; in syntropy the placenta plants nourish those that come next.
Use Tree Seeds Fearlessly
Scott Hall really emphasizes this in his community, which I recommend. We often don’t know which trees will thrive in these systems, with this type of competition and pruning. So plant everything that you can find. In Costa Rica we are taking advantage of various tree planting programs to get lots of free or very affordable native trees and planting them at increasingly tight densities. Gather all the seeds you can find and plant them directly and learn from this succession.
Mombasa Grass as an Ally
I am convinced that Mombasa grass in the tropics is a powerful ally. Learn how to propagate and care for this plant. It can be a tricky plant to establish. Try it in veggie trays, transplant beds and direct seeding. We coat the seed in a pre-germination mix to repel ants and encourage microbial life on the seed coat. This has significantly helped with germination. If you can “master” this plant then you are significantly more likely to achieve enough biomass to cover the soil.
Pay Extra Attention to Placenta 2 & Secondary 1
These are usually the most challenging aspects of the consortium to get right. We often underestimate how poor soils are, how quickly biomass will break down, how much biomass we need, etc. Usually we do a good job with quick Placenta 1 species but once these have been harvested it is common to find a gap as our latter life cycle species slowly come into their own. Pay attention to these life cycle categories in particular.
Detailed Biomass Management
Always take your time to put down biomass exactly where it goes. It should first cover the soil that is exposed and second be located close to the main commercial/productive species. Be sure to put woody biomass in contact with the soil and cover it with green, leafy material.
Take selective weeding seriously. Identify the plants that will cause challenges in your systems: usually climbing/spreading vines and plants that rapidly go to seed. I am less concerned about low ground covers or anything perennial in nature.
Banana Tips
If you have poor soil don’t plant bananas in year one as they will often demand too much from the soil at the expense of the whole. As well, if you have very good soil the bananas might grow so fast that they “out-grow” their consortium group. Consider planting them in year two.
If a banana plant is not growing well, cut it below the soil and let it regrow from a new part of the root ball.
Select banana suckers so that the fruit is hanging over walking paths, i.e. perpendicular to the rows. This makes harvest of fruit and trunks easy and allows much more space in the rows.
Strata doesn’t matter in Early Succession
In early successional groups, most plants want full or near full sunlight. It is hard to achieve a stratified Placenta 1 group of plants to be specific. What this means is that when I am designing a system, I am very detailed with the spacing of my Secondary and Climax species. These plants are in the system for many years and if I have the spacing wrong, then their sunlight needs might not be met. Versus, if the spacing of my placenta 1 species is wrong, well, those plants move out of the system after three or nine months. That mistake has little consequence. Spend the time getting the species that are in the system longest in their proper location; don’t spend much time make sure every lettuce or bean or ginger is exactly where it should go.
Design from Target Crops Backwards
Once you know the purpose of the project, ie what you are trying to produce; then you can design the system. If you choose Avocado as a target crop, for example, then you will use the standard commercial spacing of Avocados to set your row spacing, to set the spacing of plants between rows. Everything else will work backwards from this crop.
Upcoming Syntropic Farming Opportunities
Syntropic Farming: Design Process Case Study → Free Webinar
Thursday, September 26th 2024
10 am PT, 11 am MT, 12 pm CT, 1 pm ET
All registrants for the webinar will receive the replay link.
Sign up today: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/6217253112476/WN_odKjjLF9ToWyGStv8XVw3Q
Syntropic Farming Primer → Online Course
A 7 week exploration of Syntropic Farming designed to move you through the design process and get you planting as soon as possible. A deep exploration of ecosystem succession and how to apply it to growing food in your context.
October 15th to November 26th
More information here: https://www.regenerativeliving.online/course/syntropic-primer
Curso de Agricultura Sintrópica → Curso Presencial
23 y 24 de Noviembre
San Isidro de Penas Blancas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Ubicacion: Tierra Valiente y Finca Luna Nueva
Facilitadores: Scott Gallant de Porvenir Design, Jorge Espinosa de Colectivo Waybil, y Gerado Calderon de Finca Luna Nueva
Mas informacion aca: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PzPnSTFveBth49ZSdGQ4Y5_-Dq7EsavG/view
