My guest in this session Andrew Mefferd, worked for seven years in the research department of Johnny’s selected seeds and has travelled around the world to connect with farmers and researchers about greenhouse growing and soil conservation. He then started his own farm in Maine to apply all of that knowledge and experience, which he writes about and curates as the editor of “Growing for Market Magazine”.

In this episode Andrew and I talk about his new book “The Organic No-Till Farming Revolution,” We begin by identifying the systemic problem that industrial agriculture, specifically with its reliance on soil tillage, has caused, and the massive losses of topsoil and the nutrient degradation that has resulted from this ubiquitous practice. From there Andrew breaks down the four no-till market gardening methods that he’s seen used successfully in his travels and research. We cover Mulch grown in place, Cardboard mulch, Deep straw mulch, and Deep compost mulch as well as the pros and cons of each method and how to choose the no-till methods that works best for your context. Andrew also explains how soil health ties in with climate stability, small farm profitability and much more. This is the first in a two part series with Andrew, because all the knowledge that he shared was best split in two to avoid going too long, so don’t forget to catch next Friday’s conclusion of this interview, and two more soil building episodes in this month’s focused look at building market gardening soil.

Resources:

Growing for Market Magazine

Buy the book “The Organic No-Till Farming Revolution”

Buy the book “The Greenhouse and Hoophouse Grower’s Handbook”

Andrew Mefferd on FB