Natural Sequence Farming
Growing up in Scotland and Northern England surrounded by farms gave me a decent respect for the work involved in farming. I still remember desperately pulling on my “wellington” (gum) boots and running to catch up with the local shepherd’s tractor as he passed by our house.
Under the advice of the very same shepherd, I did not to go into farming, however, I’m still drawn by stories like this ABC episode of Australian Story on Peter Andrews:
Peter Andrews is a racehorse breeder and farmer credited with remarkable success in converting degraded, salt-ravaged properties into fertile, drought-resistant pastures. His methods are so at odds with conventional scientific wisdom, that for 30 years he has been dismissed and ridiculed as a madman. He has faced bankruptcy and family break-up.
The programme and the Natural Sequence Farming website are a good read for anyone interested in the uniqueness of the Australian landscape and the ways in which traditional European agricultural methods have worked against it.
