Over the course of four years, PISCES plans to bring four hectares (about 10 acres or 7.5 football fields) into sustainable organic production. We will use a variety of organic techniques, such as agroforestry, composting, and crop rotation, to improve the soil and grow crops without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides. As we experiment with and refine these techniques, we will be training neighboring farmers to apply these strategies on their own land in order to encourage more sustainable agriculture in the region.

 

As transitioning from Industrial Agriculture to Organic Agriculture (more on this difference later) takes time and effort, a new hectare will be brought into production each year. Each hectare will be divided into four sections: a forest for rain-water water retention and firewood, a field for the cultivation of cereals and legumes, a garden for vegetables and fruit, and a section for raising animals, such as chickens, rabbits, goats, and sheep

 

As shown in the plan above, the hectares work together synergistically, after four years, there is a large forest in the middle of the farm; and there are two long fields running east to west to facilitate wind pollination. The animal husbandry sections are separated, to minimize disease transmission, but also located near the gardens, which have the greatest need of animal manure.

 

The entire farm will be surrounded by a "live fence" made up of perennial grasses and thorny bushes. After this has been established, it will help keep roaming animals out of the fields and aid in the capture and retention of rain water and soil, which would otherwise run off into nearby streams. If our plan is successful, then we will host apprentices who are interested in applying the PISCES model on their own land and provide financial and technical support as they convert their land to organic production.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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