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“On reading An Agricultural Testament, I was affected so profoundly that I could not rest until I purchased a farm. The reading of this great book showed me how simple the practice of the organic method could be.”
– J. Rodale
Discover the groundbreaking insights of Albert Howard in An Agricultural Testament, a seminal work that lays the foundation for modern organic farming.
Drawing from decades of research and practical experience in India, Howard advocates for a harmonious relationship between agriculture and nature, emphasizing the critical role of soil health in sustainable farming practices.
In this comprehensive guide, Howard states, “The maintenance of the fertility of the soil is the first condition of any permanent system of agriculture,” highlighting the urgent need for methods that restore and preserve soil vitality rather than deplete it.
Through detailed analysis and innovative techniques like the Indore Process, which transforms organic waste into rich humus, Howard provides practical solutions for farmers seeking to revitalize their land. His observations on traditional farming practices reveal that sustainable agriculture is not just a modern concept but a return to time-tested methods that respect natural ecosystems.
Join Howard on a journey to understand the intricate connections between soil, crops, and livestock, and learn how these relationships can lead to healthier food systems and resilient communities. An Agricultural Testament is not just a book; it’s a call to action for anyone passionate about the future of food and farming.
Wendell Berry wrote in The Last Whole Earth Catalog:
“Howard’s discoveries and methods, and their implications, are given in detail in An Agricultural Testament. They are of enormous usefulness to gardeners and farmers, and to anyone who may be interested in the history and the problems of land use. But aside from its practical worth, Howard’s book is valuable for his ability to place his facts and insights within the perspective of history. This book is a critique of civilisations, judging them not by their artefacts and victories, but by their response to the sacred duty of handing over to the next generation, unimpaired, the heritage of a fertile soil.”
Contents
Introduction
- Nature’s methods of soil management
- The agriculture of the nations of the past
- The practices of the East
- The agricultural methods of the West
Soil Fertility and Agriculture
- 1.1 The nature of soil fertility
- 1.2 The restoration of fertility
The Indore Process
- 2.1 The Indore Process.
- The raw materials needed – Pits versus heaps – Charging the heaps or pits – Turning the compost – The storage of humus – Output
- 2.2 Practical applications of the Indore Process.
- Coffee – Tea – Sugar cane – Cotton – Sisal – Maize – Rice – Vegetables – Vine
- 2.3 Developments of the Indore Process.
- Green-manuring – The safeguarding of nitrate accumulations – The production of humus – The safeguarding of nitrates and the manufacture of humus – The reform of green-manuring
- 2.4 Grassland management.
- 2.5 The utilisation of town wastes.
Health, Indisposition, and Disease in Agriculture
- 3.1 Soil aeration.
- The soil aeration factor in relation to grass and trees – The root system of deciduous trees – The root system of evergreens – The harmful effect of grass – The effect of aeration trenches on young trees under grass – The cause of the harmful effect of grass – Forest trees and grass – The aeration of the subsoil
- 3.2 Diseases of the soil.
- Soil erosion – The formation of alkaline land
- 3.3 The retreat of the crop and the animal before the parasite.
- Humus and disease resistance – The mycorrhizal association and disease – The investigations of tomorrow
- 3.4 Soil fertility and national health.
Agricultural Research
- 4.1 Current agricultural research.
- 4.2 An example of successful agricultural research.
Appendices
- 5.1 Compost manufacture on a tea estate in Bengal
- 5.2 Compost making at Chipoli, Southern Rhodesia
- 5.3 The manufacture of humus from the wastes of the town and the village
Albert Howard
Nineteenth-century farmers and market gardeners had much practical knowledge about using manures and making composts that worked like fertilizers, but little was known about the actual microbial process of composting until our century. As information became available about compost ecology, one brilliant individual, Sir Albert Howard, incorporated the new science of soil microbiology into his composting and by patient experiment learned how to make superior compost
During the 1920s, Albert Howard was in charge of a government research farm at Indore, India. At heart a Peace Corps volunteer, he made Indore operate like a very representative Indian farm, growing all the main staples of the local agriculture: cotton, sugar cane, and cereals. The farm was powered by the same work oxen used by the surrounding farmers. It would have been easy for Howard to demonstrate better yields through high technology by buying chemical fertilizers or using seed meal wastes from oil extraction, using tractors, and growing new, high-yielding varieties that could make use of more intense soil nutrition. But these inputs were not affordable to the average Indian farmer and Howard’s purpose was to offer genuine help to his neighbors by demonstrating methods they could easily afford and use.
Read more at Backyard Gardening.
‘Artificial manures lead inevitably to artificial nutrition, artificial food, artificial animals and finally to artificial men and women.’
– Albert Howard
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