The Biomass Belt Revisited - A Polyculture for Producing Fertility Without Manure
Back in May of 2016, I published an article on an experimental polyculture for meeting the fertility demands of the fruits, nuts, herbs and perennial vegetables on our plot without relying on animal manures and imported compost. We called this polyculture the biomass belt.
You can find the original biomass belt article here. 4 years later we have had a chance to see how the polyculture has performed and have learned a thing or two about the way the plants interact with each other, what works and what does not. During this post, I'll be revising the design based on our observations and presenting a version of the design that appears to be working well in our polyculture market garden.
I'll start with an introduction to the polyculture and the species involved and go through the design considerations, development, and management practices for this polyculture. We'll look at how the polyculture has developed in our garden and how you c…