Dry Grasslands
Keyline Design
Implement Keyline Design to optimize water management in arid regions, enhancing soil fertility and reducing erosion by aligning land use with natural topography.
Grow food · 16 Guides
Production Systems
Vegetables, herbs, grains and mushrooms in a dry climate
Agroforestry 13 Aquaponics 13 Dry Grasslands 10 Extensive Farming 2 Food Forest 15 Garden 84 Intensive Farming 8 Permaculture 22 Regenerative Agriculture 2 Sprout Feed 1 Urban Agriculture 2 Water Plant Farming 4
Start with: Keyline Design then follow the Guides in order
Permaculture
Water-Efficient Plant Selection
Discover how to create sustainable, low-maintenance gardens by selecting water-efficient plants that thrive in dry climates, conserve water, and support local ecosystems.
Food Forest
Transform Your Backyard: Simple Greywater Food Circles.
food circle Windhoek Concept of Food CirclesImplementation in WindhoekImpact and Community Engagement of Food CirclesFood Circle Design and StructureFood Circle Operation…
Garden
How Windbreaks Can Save Water, Soil and Crops in Harsh Climates
Protect crops, reduce soil erosion, and conserve moisture using drought-tolerant windbreaks like soutbos and kei apple. Improve yields naturally in drylands!
Garden
Contour Farming
Contour Farming IntroductionHistory and DevelopmentPrinciples1. Following the Natural Contours2. Reducing Soil Erosion3. Enhancing Water Conservation4. Integrating with O…
Regenerative Agriculture
Regenerative Agriculture
regenerative agriculture - harvesting bananas in an agroforestry system Regenerative Agriculture Regenerative agriculture is a way of farming that improves the land…
Production Systems
Agroecology in Africa
agroecology - Photo by shutter Rwanda: https://www.pexels.com/photo/lush-summer-field-under-vibrant-blue-sky-36966546/ Agroecology is an approach to farming that works wi…
Cattle
Holistic Rotational Grazing
Photo by ArtHouse Studio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/sheep-on-green-grass-field-4639043/ Introduction to Holistic Grazing Holistic grazing is a land management approach…
Cattle
Mobile Electric Camp/Paddock for mob grazing
Building small mobile enclosures with electric fences for mob grazing can be a practical and effective way to manage livestock rotation without…
Garden
Compost
Plants need food, just like animals do. To have a productive farm, you need to focus on feeding the soil in which…
Garden
Growing cucumbers in Namibia: beds, trellises and harvest
Cucumbers can provide a regular fresh harvest from a bed, container or reachable trellis. Choose the variety, water supply and support together, then follow the crop thro…
Garden
Mulch
What is mulch? Let's talk about mulching, which is a helpful gardening technique that you might find quite interesting. Imagine you have…
Aquaponics
Commercial Aquaponics
You can build a commercial aquaponics system as a business. It allows you to produce a lot of fresh vegetables in a…
Aquaponics
Aquaponics – possible issues and diseases
Let's explore some possible issues and diseases that can occur in aquaponics. Water Quality Concerns: Aquaponics relies on maintaining good water quality…
Aquaponics
Simple Aquaponics
Simple Aquaponics is a very simple system which anyone can afford. It uses very little water and can produce a lot of…
Intensive Farming
Seed Sprout Fodder System
(This article needs some cleaning up - there are duplications and some sections could be structured better - if you have time,…
Aquaponics
Fish feed
We can grow all our own fish food. Photo by Alexey Demidov: https://www.pexels.com/photo/fishes-on-water-12349154/ Feeding fish in an aquaponics system is a critical…
Aquaponics
Duckponics
Duckponics, also known as "Aquaponics with Ducks" or "Duck-Aquaponics," is a system that combines aquaponics and duck farming. It's a sustainable and…
Garden
Companion planting
Photo by sergio souza: https://www.pexels.com/photo/colorful-garden-beds-with-plants-5047448/ Companion planting is a cool gardening technique where we grow different pla…
Garden
Deep Soil
Core (Sponge) Gardening Another method that uses very little water in standard beds. Grass is used as a water sponge under the…
Garden
Critical Guide to Organic Pest Control in Southern Africa: Proven Natural Solutions for Healthier Crops
organic pest control - a ladybug eating aphids Organic pest control is a way of managing garden pests without using harmful chemicals.…
Garden
Wicking Beds
Wicking beds are an excellent gardening technique, especially in arid regions, where water conservation is essential. They offer several benefits and help…
Garden
Raised Beds
Image from Joe Gardener (https://joegardener.com/podcast/raised-bed-gardening-pt-1/) Benefits of raised garden beds A raised garden bed is simply a garden bed with some b…
Food Forest
Food Forest
A 2000 year old Food forest in the desert A food forest, or forest garden, is a type of sustainable agroforestry system…
Aquaponics
Backyard Aquaponics
Aquaponics is THE key ingredient in our plan to live sustainably in Namibia! It allows us to produce a lot of food…
Garden
Seeds
Here we explain the reasons to use heirloom seeds in a homestead or village garden. Photo by Alexander Sergienko: https://www.pexels.com/photo/sliced-fruits-laid-out-5499…
Permaculture
Building/sealing earth dams
https://proagri.co.za/?s=Water+Wise+farmers+build+earth+dams Building and sealing earthen dams is a vital aspect of water management in farming and agriculture. Earthen d…
Garden
Basic Components in the garden
Photo by Karolina Grabowska: https://www.pexels.com/photo/faceless-woman-working-with-soil-in-garden-4207908/ Chemicals are unwanted in an organic natural garden. We don'…
Food Forest
Agroforestry: Revolutionary Farming with Trees for Soil Health & Climate Resilience
Syntropic Agroforestry in Namibia: A Sustainable Oasis in Dry Conditions Arid Agroforestry What is Syntropic Agroforestry? Syntropic agroforestry, also known as agrofores…
Aquaponics
Sandgardening
Sandgardening is a slightly different method of Aquaponics. Instead of gravel it uses sand as the grow medium with the following claimed…
Garden
Bag Gardening
Produce food in a very small space with very little water and work. This is made possible by bag gardening where you…
Aquaponics
Flow Through Aquaponics Wicking Bed
This is a mix of a wicking bed and aquaponics. In this way you can grow your plants in soil while using…
Garden
Hot Bed
A Hot Bed is an ancient way to grow vegetables earlier if you have cold winters. https://www.growveg.co.uk/guides/how-to-make-a-hotbed-for-the-earliest-sowings/ So let's…
Dry Grasslands
Conservation Agriculture
https://www.landportal.org/node/100963. Zimbabwe Farmers Embrace Conservation Agriculture To Beat Effects Of Climate Change Conservation agriculture is an innovative and…
Dry Grasslands
Rain fed crops in the desert
Prickly Pear Cactus in Israel: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/PikiWiki_Israel_32010_The_Orly_Cactus_Pear_Farm.JPG Growing crops in the desert can be…
Intensive Farming
Duckweed & Azolla Ponds
https://fishykart.com/products/duckweed-floating-plant Growing duckweed and/or Azolla in a small homestead setting can be an excellent idea for several reasons, and it br…
Intensive Farming
Azolla
https://m.indiamart.com/proddetail/organic-azolla-21865354162.html About Azolla Azolla: A Tiny Water Plant with Amazing Benefits for Farming Azolla is a small water plant…
Garden
Clay Pipes & Ollah Pots
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377413000176 You can save massive amounts of water in your garden by installing clay pipes and Ollah pots. Olla irr…
Aquaponics
Chinampa
Happy fish eating mosquito larvae and duck weed - https://www.permaculturenews.org/2013/05/28/chinampas-2-0-an-elegant-technology-from-the-past-to-save-the-future/ A chin…
Permaculture
Permaculture
https://agraryo.com/agriculture/permaculture-in-the-philippines-all-you-need-to-know/ Overview Permaculture is a holistic and sustainable approach to designing systems th…
Permaculture
Terracing
Imagine you have a small piece of land where you want to grow crops, like vegetables or fruits. Now, terracing is a…
Aquaponics
Terraponics
https://www.youtube.com/@THEURBANHILLBILLY Some plants, like root crops, like to live in soil and not in a soilless medium like clay pebbles or gravel…
Garden
Companions
https://mygardenlife.com/resources/vegetable-companion-planting-chart Let's dive into the exciting world of companion planting on a small farm in a way that's easy to und…
Garden
Start a seed nursery: from sowing to a strong transplant
A small seed nursery helps you care for young plants before they move into a garden. Start with one tray or a few clean containers and a crop you will use.
Dry Grasslands
19+ Important Dryland Strategies
dryland strategies From a permaculture perspective, there are several dryland strategies to increase water retention and availability on dry lands. These strategies…
Intensive Farming
Intensive Sheep Production
https://youtu.be/fhMXc-gkMYc Intenstive sheep production on only 5 ha using barley sprout fodder. The video is in Afrikaans with no subtitles unfortunately. Here's…
Aquaponics
Freshwater Shrimp & Prawns
Photo by Terje Sollie: https://www.pexels.com/photo/boiled-shrimps-566344/ Farming freshwater shrimp and prawns in the desert involves creating artificial environments th…
Food Forest
Watering Fruit trees
Photo by Álvaro Carrilho: https://www.pexels.com/photo/ripe-oranges-on-trees-10970006/ Watering fruit trees in the desert or semi-arid regions requires careful planning a…
Chicken
Regenerative chicken farming
Photo by Guillaume de Germain on Unsplash Regenerative Chicken Farming Regenerative Chicken Farming with Rotational Grazing in Chicken Tractors or Eggmobiles for…
Garden
EM (effective micro-organisms)
Effective microorganisms in action - photo by Nadia Lawton of the permaculture research institute. This is a must use resource! See their…
Permaculture
Microdams/ Half-moons
Micro dams or microdams ...also called Demi lunes, Halfmoon basins, crescent dams, semilunar bunds, semi-circular bunds, crescent catchments, Zai pits, Tassa, planting…
Permaculture
Hugelkultur
https://redemptionpermaculture.com/hugelkultur-garden-beds-a-step-by-step-beginners-guide/ Hugelkultur is a permaculture gardening technique that involves creating raised…
Garden
Saving seeds
Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán: https://www.pexels.com/photo/four-brown-wooden-spoons-screenshot-971080/ Saving Seeds Choose the Right Seeds: Look for the healthiest and tas…
Food Forest
Growing trees in the desert
Photo by Hosni Hannoun: https://www.pexels.com/photo/green-trees-2774966/ Growing trees in desert environments can be a challenge due to the scarcity of water and harsh…
Permaculture
Swales
https://www.facebook.com/groups/AugustaCountyPermacultureGuild/ Introduction to Swales and Their Construction Ever thought about conserving water in your garden without c…
Garden
Growing tomatoes in Namibia: planting to harvest and storage
Grow tomatoes at a scale you can water, support and harvest consistently. This guide follows the crop from variety choice and planting through pruning, pest checks, ripen…
Garden
Soil
soil The Power of Organic Garden Soil Hey, fellow garden lovers! Have you ever wondered why some gardens seem to have super…
Garden
Organic Fertiliser
https://denbydalecoffee.co.uk/2022/05/26/5-ways-to-use-coffee-grounds/ Understanding Organic Fertilizers Organic fertilizers are like a gourmet meal for your plants, sour…
Garden
Worm farm, bin or bath
Photo by Sippakorn Yamkasikorn: https://www.pexels.com/photo/earthworms-on-a-persons-hand-3696170/ A worm farm is a simple way to keep compost worms and harvest their ver…
Garden
Compost Worms
https://www.sustainablebrisbane.com.au/how-to-make-a-bathtub-worm-farm/ Compost worms benefits Plants need food, just like animals do. To have a productive farm, you need…
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