Iside Farm

Scenario

Agroforestry is one of the application models ofagroecology, an alternative agricultural paradigm based on the application of ecological principles to the design and management of agroecosystems. This approach aims to replace intensive industrial agriculture, which shows ecological, economic and social limitations, with resilient, sustainable systems rooted in local natural and social dynamics.

Agroforestry is a practice that is able to lift up realities in economic distress and environmental crisis through regeneration processes. This is the case of ICEI (Istituto Cooperazione Economica Internazionale), which did a study in Mozambique on how to address the degradation of the country’s soil fertility through agroforestry.

ICEI’s project is to increase crop yields by creating a productive forest through the integration of different tree species together with food crops with the involvement of local communities.

Today we know that these techniques are used to improve soil fertility , prevent soil erosion, promote biodiversity, and provide natural protection against external climatic effects such as drought or heavy rainfall.

In addition, the presence of trees in agricultural areas helps to implement carbon dioxide absorption. Agroforestry enables the co-evolution of biotic and social capital through a set of practices, in harmony with nature, aimed not only at production but also at protecting local communities and generating ecosystem services, such as nutrient recycling, biological suppression of pests and diseases, and control of the local microclimate.

Description

Azienda Agricola Bio Iside is a family-run farm founded in 2015 in Sulzano, in the province of Brescia, Lombardy, by Paola Archetti and Matteo Mazzola. The property covers six hectares of hilly land, two of which are used to grow vegetables and four of which are managed through the integration of agroforestry and pastoral practices in a mixed agro-sylvo-pastoral system that is continuously being experimented.

One of the basic pillars of the project is the application of the permaculture principle whereby each element must perform at least two functions, preferably three. In fact, animals graze freely between the inter-rows according to a predetermined sequence that, before transitioning to cows, includes sheep, then donkeys grazing, and, finally, chickens spreading manure and feeding on seeds and insects.

Similarly, the choice of plants and trees is aimed at creating a balance that resembles as much as possible that of the natural ecosystem in which each element has its own role in preserving the whole.

These elements, together with the use of natural compost, obtained from mowing and excess grass along with hay or foliage, and self-grown compost worms, have made it possible to improve soil fertility, prevent erosion, control the microclimate, and provide habitats for pollinating insects and other ecosystem-friendly species.

Finally, Paola and Matteo also pay special attention to the sales methods that consist of using CSA, Community Supporting Agriculture. In this systemthe consumer becomes a co-producer, contributing to choices on the farm, sharing opinions and activating a subscription to buy what is available. This creates a community of knowledgeable and loyal customers who recognize the quality of the products.

So, the Bio Isis Farm cooperates with nature with the goal of creating a regenerative system in which each actor involved benefits from the relationship with other elements.

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