AGROFORESTRY COURSE | Lesson 15, Module 4 - Covering the Soil | Food Forest COURSE |

Our full Agroforestry Introduction Course will give you all the initial information you need in order to start developing your own agroforestry systems, and enjoy a higher production from your farm or garden, while improving your soil.
During the course, you will have access to 5 modules, where we will show you different Agroforestry systems, explain to you the basic principles behind it, show you some important techniques, and take you through the initial planting of a system. We will take you through all the steps, from preparing the soil, to covering the soil, to planting, AND we will keep you up-to-date on the development of the system planted during the course.
MODULE I - INTRODUCTION
• LESSON 1: Welcome (Meet the Agroforestry Academy crew)
• LESSON 2: Our goal with this course (What we want for you)
• LESSON 3: Why Agroforestry (What’s in it for you)
MODULE II - EXAMPLES OF SYSTEMS
• LESSON 4: Grass System (Food forests for grass production)
• LESSON 5:Vegetables Systems (Food forests for vegetables production)
• LESSON 6: Fruits Systems (Food forests for fruit production)
• LESSON 7: Coffee System (Food forests for coffee production)
• LESSON 8: Final Considerations (A few last words)
MODULE III - PRINCIPLES
• LESSON 9: Optimizing Resources and Energy (Getting the most from your resources)
• LESSON 10: Succession of species (Taking advantage of species with different life cycles)
• LESSON 11: Stratification (Working with a multi-layered system)
• LESSON 12: Planting in Abundance (Nature’s own strategy for genetic selection)
• LESSON 13: Adapting to a main crop (Designing and Managing your system to a specific crop)
• LESSON 14: Final considerations (A few last words)
MODULE IV - TECHNIQUES
• LESSON 15: Covering the soil (Put all that organic matter on the floor!)
• LESSON 16: Companion planting (When together, plants grow better)
• LESSON 17: Pruning (Keeping things nice and tidy)
• LESSON 18: Final Considerations
MODULE V - PRACTICE
• LESSON 19: Preparing the soil (Getting the beds of your seeds and seedlings nice and welcoming)
• LESSON 20: Trees row (Planting your Legacy)
• LESSON 21: System I - Roots (Cassava, taro and sweet potato)
• LESSON 22: System II - Vegetables (Carrots, cabbage, coriander, beets and much more)
• LESSON 23: System III - Coffee (Coffee plants in the under-story)
• LESSON 24: System IV - Grains and grass (Corn, beans and grass)
• LESSON 25: Final Considerations
The Agroforestry Academy is bringing YOU first class FREE AGROFORESTRY TRAINING material. SUPPORT US ON PATREON and get access to extra material, if you want to take a further step in your agroforestry training.
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You can also reach out to us with you doubt, criticism and comments through our
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[@lis819]

You guys are an inspiration!

[@jeremyhula931]

It's great to plant trees, but 1st bury parts of animal carcasses underneath the tree holes 🕳. This provides lots of nutrition for later on, especially if you mix some inoculated activated charcoal with the animal carcass along with some Is chicken manure and such And whatever kind of scraps mixed with sawdust as well. All underneath the tree hole.

[@philkeshish5834]

Bacteria create microaggregates, fungi macroaggregates

[@jotac6342]

So much great info! Thank you guys. Do you use the manure direct from the horses beds? I mean the horse manure kind of fresh mixed with woodchips?
Here in the tropics, especifically in Colombia what do you think is the best orientation for the beds or the rows? There are two seasons in the area, the rainy and the dry one, it's a hot climate

[@AgroforestryAcademy]

Yes, we use it directly from the horse beds.
Since you're so close to the Ecuador, the orientation won't matter much in relation to the sunlight (unless you're on a slope). What will dictate is:
- Predominant wind >> you want each row of trees to act as a windbreak for the next one
- Slope >> if you're using tractors, you'll want to plant in contour lines, depending on the steepless of the slope

[@jotac6342]

@@AgroforestryAcademy thank you!

[@gacaumaina7372]

Can you say something about the drawing of nitrogen from the soil that many say wood chips do? Also in areas with lots of termites, using wood chips tends to attract them and they often destroy other plants.

[@sandeepkakani29]

Thanks so much guys, so many great points. If we can produce specific crops that others can't in certain seasons there is the market or money. What do u guys recommend covering the soil? because here in India farmers are used to monoculture and with a lot of pesticides and fertilizers, soil's health is very bad.

[@AgroforestryAcademy]

Coveing the soil is one of the very basic principles. We always recommend covering the soil with whatever organic matter is available, from wood chips to grass clippings, from branches and twigs to logs of wood

[@sandeepkakani29]

@@AgroforestryAcademy Thank you much

[@misaventuras6995]

Why ferns are not used in agroforestry as ground covers, when in nature, especially in tropics, you see a lot of ferns in old forests and once established they can be used for chop and drop.

[@interpret9282]

Good question!!!!did you find out?

[@rudekperezacupuncturist]

@@interpret9282 no, no answer.