Organic Growth

Organic practice

In disagreement with what the market asked me in previous years (Fruits, bigger, brighter, greener vegetables, and prices always at the lowest to satisfy my customers), the choice of organic was quickly decided. Today, all of my production is grown in organic farming. This mode of agricultural production is based on a fundamental principle: 80% of life on earth is found in the first 30 centimeters of the soil.
My duty is, therefore, to develop this reserve, by promoting microbial activity and above all by prohibiting me from all products, such as fertilizers and pesticides which would destroy in a single pass all the work that I have been putting in place for 5 years.

Different practices aim to protect and promote this life:

Spread composted manure

Composting of organic matter, which consists of a process of transformation of our equine or bovine manure, recovered after analysis thereof.

The advantage of using these composts:

  • Product rich in humus, an element necessary for life on the ground
  • Improvement of soil structure (organic matter binds and stabilizes clays)
  • Increased water and nutrient retention capacity of the soil

 

Growing green manures

  • Allows you to control the development of weeds with its plant cover
  • Limits erosion
  • Thanks to the root system, it improves the soil structure.

Crop rotation

The rotation consists in making crops of different families succeed on the same plot. Its advantage is therefore not to exhaust the soil by the same demands of a species of vegetable.
Alternate legumes, Rosaceae, cucurbits, Solanaceae, etc.

In 2015

Permanent planks

In other words, they no longer plow the soil in depth. Avoid compaction on the growing boards. Do not use rotary tools such as Rotovator or others that denaturalize the structure if you exaggerate their use. Simple tools with teeth and passages carried out in time according to the humidity of the ground allow a progressive improvement of the ground.

Natural means of control

  • Against the enemies of our cultures (insects and diseases).
  • Biological control – releases of predatory insects (author on pear against psyllids).
  • Sexual confusion – sticks tied on fruit trees emanate a hormone that disrupts the reproduction of certain flies and butterflies.
  • Spraying of fermented extracts of nettles, horsetail, comfrey, and fern.
  • Use of fine mesh nets to form a physical barrier to certain insects.