Permaculture�Living organisms �in soil

Permaculture with bio-organisms

. აი რა ყოფილა მიზეზი

კარგი მოსავლი იმაზე არაა დამიკიდებული თუ რამდენჯერ დაამუშავებ, რამდენ სასუქს დაუყრი ან რამდენჯერ მორწყავ მიწას, საქმე მიწის ორგანიზმები ყოფილა.

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We all want less work and more harvest, don't we? Climate, soil, its content and processing play a big role in a good harvest. Personally, I have a small plot of land and am trying to pay attention to it. I cultivate several times a year and still I get the same harvest as those who do not cultivate at all. This raised questions for me. I could not understand how, after so much cultivation, I could have the same harvest as others.

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We all want less work and more harvest, don't we? Climate, soil, its content and processing play a big role in a good harvest. Personally, I have a small plot of land and am trying to pay attention to it. I cultivate several times a year and still I get the same harvest as those who do not cultivate at all. This raised questions for me. I could not understand how, after so much cultivation, I could have the same harvest as others.

A good harvest does not depend on how often you till, how much fertilizer you apply or how often you water the soil, it is about the soil organisms.

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It turns out that worms and other soil creatures that I often removed from the soil are helpful.

For example, the composition of substances processed and secreted by a worm is as follows:

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• (N2) 44% Solid nitrogen
• (k2CO3)2.2% Potash
• (Ca) 2.0% Calcium
• (Fe) 37% Iron

These data depend on the type of worm and its diet. Nitrogen is especially excreted by black and pink worms, and potash and calcium by white worms. These nutrients are important plants and healthy .

In addition to soil organisms, cattle manure and vegetable manure are necessary for crop production, which feed the soil with various substances.

Specialists advise us to use the remains of plant products that we throw away after cooking as compost.

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Tomatoes, carrots, beets and the skin of capsicum are especially rich in minerals. Also fruits, apples, pears and strawberries.

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Due to their chemical composition, they soon begin to rot and supply the soil with substances. You can also use eggshell.

Rules for use:

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Collect the residues and then distribute them on the ground. There, humidity and temperature will increase slowly, which will promote decay. The use of manure is recommended before sowing grain or other crops (horse and cow manure is especially good).

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If we more supply different nutrients to the soil, it will be more fertile.

Citrus cannot be used as compost due to its different composition. It is possible to supply the land with other residues (leaves, coal, soft twigs and various soils).

Bacteria are an extremely diverse group of organisms; a gram of soil may contain many thousand different species. Although some kinds of bacteria live in flooded soils without oxygen, most require well-aerated soils. When colonies of bacteria develop they frequently produce a sticky material that, together with remnant cell walls of dead bacteria, help to form soil aggregates. In addition to being among the first organisms to begin decomposing residues in develop they Frequentiy produce a sticky material that, together with remnant cell walls of dead bacteria, help to form soil aggregates. In addition to being among the first organisms to begin decomposing residues in the soil, bacteria benefit plants by increasing nutrient availability. For example, many bacteria dissolve phosphorus, making it more available for plants to use. ��

Fungi Fungi are another group of soil organisms. Many are small, some even single celled. Farmers know that there are fungi that cause many plant diseases, such as downy mildew, damping-off, various types of root rot and apple scab. Fungi also initiate the decomposition of fresh organic residues. They help get things going by softening organic debris and making it easier for other organisms to join in the decomposition process. Protozoa Protozoa are single-celled animals that use a variety of means to move about in the soil. Like bacteria and many fungi, they can be seen only with the help of a microscope. Protozoa—through their grazing on nitrogen-rich organisms (especially bacteria) and waste excretions—are believed to be responsible for mineralizing (releasing nutrients from organic molecules) much of the nitrogen in agricultural soils.

Thank you

Soil management �Using permaculture methods

• Permaculture gardens promote efficiency of space and resources.

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• The flexibility of permaculture means families which may not have space for a garden can use their patios, walls or fences.

Future’s permaculture priniciples are:

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• Nutrition gardens contain many plants
• The space is carefully planned and designed
• Organic practices are emphasized.
• Families grow their own seedlings and manage poultry and animals
• Recycling and reusing materials are prioritized.
• Environmental protection is valued

Composting

Compost is a product resulting from fermentation and biological oxidation of organic materials.

• We use crop residues, food residues eggshells and others.

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• There are different types of compost, from traditional compost to hot compost, coffee compost, avicompost from Japanese bokashi.

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• At the next stage of composting, fungi, various worms and various organisms are decomposed. These processes result in nitrogen-rich, coarse, fresh compost. It takes another 2-3 months for the it to ripen, during which the compost gets a dark color and becomes porous as a result of the active life of worms.

• On the one hand, compost improves the structure of the soil, its chemical and physical properties, and on the other hand, it provides plants with useful nutrients.During composting, nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) easily assimilated by the plant increase in the organic mass. Pathogenic microflora and eggs are destroyed, the amount of cellulose and pectins decreases, which in turn contributes to the process of transition of food elements into a form easily digestible by the plant.

• • Plants that are diseased or heavily damaged by pests.
• • Plants affected by fungal diseases.
• • Poisonous plants (lentzofa, konyo, castor, lema). They can destroy beneficial microorganisms living in the soil.
• • Plants whose decomposition process is long-lasting
• • Plants characterized by high acidity (pine pine)
• • Cat and dog excrement (may contain pathological microorganisms). The latter do not always die during the decomposition of the compost pile.
• • Diseased animal manure or other organic waste.
• • Metal, plastic, glass, large pieces of wood, large amounts of paper.

It cannot be used in composting!!!

Use of compost Soil

• compost is used for soil. The use of compost increases the humidity of the sandy soil, protects the plant from drought. Applying compost to clay soils improves drainage and aeration.

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• The use of compost over time loosens the soil.

MULCH

• Mulch is an English word and means to protect the soil from harmful meteorological conditions. The soil can be mulched with different materials and for different purposes.

• For mulching, crushed peat, burnt organic material, stubble of grain crops, fallen leaves, sawdust, grass, polyethylene, cardboard, paper and other organic and inorganic materials are used. Mulching with organic material is a good way to improve soil structure. In addition to the fact that the soil covered with mulch retains heat, moisture and looseness for a long time, the humus layer of the soil is quickly restored.

• Organic mulch prevents the formation of a soil crust, protects the soil from the effects of wind and sunlight, while the soil "breathes" better, enhances the beneficial biochemical processes in the soil, as a result of which plant nutrition improves and the plant becomes stronger.In mulched soil, the amplitude of temperature fluctuations is less, optimal humidity and heat regime are maintained, which accelerates metabolic processes and improves plant nutrition.

• Optimum conditions for the existence of microorganisms are created under the mulch. They recycle organic mulch and enrich the soil. In addition, organic mulch encourages the reproduction of earthworms and other soil animals that improve soil structure.

THANK YOU!

Traditional methods of land cultivation

Farming in old Samegrelo

Georgia is the ancient center of three thousand-year-old culture. The material about Georgians' economic life, labor rules, and farming practices has reached us both through written and oral sources.

Farming in old Samegrelo

As in other parts of Georgia, in Samegrelo they used to take akhos. The land was prepared for sowing by clearing the area from the forest. Corn, peas, beat and "kopeshia" were grown. As in other parts of Georgia, great attention was paid to soil characteristics and agro-technical measures. The land was chosen according to its color, yield, composition and topographical location.

Farming in old Samegrelo

As evidenced by the scripts various soil types were used for various uses. For example "Ucha Dikha" and "Rena" belong to black lands and those were the most productive lands used for farming and food production. People in Samegrelo chose low-yielding soils called red soil for creating pond for fishing. When they selected a plot of land, they first cut down the forest there, part of it was used as mulch, and part of it was burned to fertilize the soil. To fertilize the soil, they also used manure from the fallen leaves in the fall.

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Farming in old Samegrelo

The plowing technique is also interesting, the land was plowed in late autumn or early spring in order to wait for the frost and loosen it. If we go deeper, they protected the structure of the soil from being disturbed.

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In the first image you see how plowing is done today: a tractor enters a field, chooses one side that is easy to plow and plows in the same direction every year, damaging both the soil structure and changing the topography. The other image on the right shows how people used to plow in the past to maintain soil structure.

Farming in old Samegrelo

We read interesting information in the works of the 17th century Italian traveler Archangelo Lambert. He lived in Samegrelo for 20 years, got to know the local culture and traditions. From his work, we understand that a Magrelian man, regardless of his status (peasant or noble), treated the land with great respect and cultivated it with his own hands. It is also interesting that people would sing while cultivating the land, which had a double purpose: one to cheer everyone up and the other to speed up the work process. They had special songs, the tempo of which was slowly increasing, and farmers followed accordingly. The singers were headed by two peasants and they were responsible for controlling the pace of work.

Thank you� for �your attention!!