Inspirational ideas: Looking after the soil to bring life and carbon back

This inspirational idea is also available in a Slovak version. 

Translation courtesy of the National Rural Network Slovakia. Read more EIP-AGRI inspirational ideas in Slovak on the NRN website. 

Alfred Grand is an organic arable farmer near Tulln, Austria. Minimising tillage and using a rotational cropping system on his 90 ha farm is what he swears by to increase organic matter in his soil. He is part of the Austrian Operational Group BIOBO.

Since 1998 Alfred has reduced tillage and when he converted to organic farming in 2006, he stopped using fertilisers completely. His approach since then has to been to look after his soil as a priority, in order to ensure healthy and productive crops, whilst storing carbon in the soil. Alfred: “If I want the soil to work for me, I have to provide the environment and the tools so that my soil can fulfil all its functions. This means I have to reduce tillage, seed cover crops as early as possible and implement a good crop rotation”.

In the Operational Group (OG) BIOBO, a number of practices are tested on farms in different regions. Alfred is one of the 6 organic farmers involved. This OG focusses on improving yield and developing humus in the soil through reduced soil cultivation and organic fertilisation (green manure and organic fertiliser). BIOBO will gain new insights into alternative procedures in arable farming on the topic of soil fertility which could be useful for both organic and conventional farms.

The practice of minimising tillage is one of the main management practices that Alfred uses to stop the decline of organic matter in soils and regenerate soil health. He also takes crop rotation into account, integrating crops that contribute to the soil biomass such as alfalfa (lucerne). Alfred is constantly looking for ways to improve his practices and recently he discovered the “roller-crimper” method developed by Rodale Institute (USA). “I am always looking for new ways to improve my results, sometimes my colleges think I am crazy” says Alfred. In this new method, in Autumn a cover crop mixture is sown and then in Spring when the cover crop is flowering, it is rolled and crimped. During rolling, a cash crop, Alfred used soybean, is seeded directly into the mulch. The timing of the rolling and crimping has to be just right, Alfred explains “I learned this the hard way, if it’s done too early the plant will start to regrow, if done too late, it will result in seeds falling into the soil and creating a weed problem for next years’ crop”. By using this method with the correct timing, annual weeds are suppressed, the soil stays moist, biodiversity is supported, erosion is prevented, and carbon sequestration is promoted. The improved soil structure also results in a higher water infiltration rate.

Alfred compared 2 fields last year within the BIOBO project, one with his standard method and one using the roller-crimper method: “Looking at the results, the roller-crimper yield was 600kg lower than the standard method, but the weed control in the roller-crimper field was zero.” Economic analysis shows that the savings on weed control compensated for the lower yield “I benefit as a farmer, but so does the environment, the climate, biodiversity and the soil itself!”

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