For Farmers

Yes it is possible, but you need to incorporate principles into your system in the future that lead to the retention of as much organic matter/carbon in the soil as possible.

Involvement in our project is not affected by the application of plant protection products or fertilisers. However, there is an expectation that the frequency of application will decrease over time.

Yes, you can. Just bear in mind that incorporating any material into the soil releases carbon previously stored there.

This situation should not arise. The increase in carbon depends on the number of principles you put in place, the more you put in place, the faster your soils will improve and the more carbon will increase.

Financial rewards are being financed by large corporations in service industries that are trying to achieve carbon neutrality but are unable to get to zero with existing technologies. Typically these are various banks, IT companies, operators, etc. These are not direct stack CO2 emitters like power or heating plants, their emissions are regulated by emission permits.

The use of both cultivators and disk harrows increases the mineralisation of carbon in the soil, which is released into the atmosphere as CO2. The more intensive the soil intervention, the more carbon is released.

Regenerative agriculture uses minimal mechanical tillage, direct seeding techniques, strip-till, cover cropping and other practices. Any mechanical disturbance of the soil releases oxidisable carbon in the form of carbon dioxide. Additionally, any deeper mechanical disturbance of the soil will, among other things, disrupt the mycorrhizal fungi hyphae that live in symbiosis with the crop, thereby depriving the crop of the nutrients that the fungi could contribute.

Replace mechanical soil disturbance with suitable mixtures of cover crops. Different cover crops affect the soil structure at different depths. For example, the roots of peas, vetches, oats, or cowpeas affect the top layers of the soil, broad beans or mung beans affect the middle layers, and it is mainly the Brassicas such as mustard, radish, or rapeseed that reach down to the depths of one metre or more. If the subsoil layer is compacted, the roots are able to grow through the cracks and tunnels left by earthworms to break up the layer. If the compacted layer is too thick, it is advisable to first break it up mechanically and then sow a deep-rooting cover crop such as alfalfa or purple clover. In this case, the cover crop should be left on the plot for at least 2-3 years. When selecting cover crops, it is advisable to form mixtures, the roots will then grow through the entire soil profile and, due to competition with each other, will also grow through the deeper soil layers.

In accordance with current legislation, we recommend that manure is spread as evenly as possible.

Applying compost is a suitable and recommended method to add organic matter and nutrients to your fields. However, take care to ensure the quality of the compost.

Cover crop roots dig deep into the soil, increasing its water-holding capacity to make better use of rainfall from heavy rains. In addition, soil rich in organic matter is able to retain a considerable amount of water, which plants can use for their growth even in drought conditions and then subsequently cool the surrounding landscape with their leaves via evapotranspiration. The soil covered by green plants is heated less and is protected from excessive evaporation and water loss.

Yes you can, you need to change to rotational managed grazing.