We are looking for donations to improve our soil health. We are hoping to raise about £5000 to make improvements to our growing area. This would allow us to buy compost and biological soil amendments that will encourage vital micro-organisms to thrive in our soil.
Our food systems have been exploiting our soils for years, our soils have been exhausted through vast monocultures (a single crop) where soil nutrients are taken up by plants then harvested leaving the soils depleted, this gap in soil nutrients has been filled with artificial fertilisers. Poor soil health leads to poor plant health, conventional farming has remedied through herbicides and pesticides which are damaging the health of consumers and the planet. We will regenerate our soil health through our farming practices such as growing polycultures (many different crops), perennials, and using crop rotations and green manures. As part of this we will buy in compost and biological soil amendments to naturally boost our soil health which we need help with…
From surviving to thriving
Upper Ballaird Farm Coop exists, it produces cut flowers and veg in regenerative ways, welcomes groups from schools, food banks, and other social enterprises & charities, offers training in Growing Your Own food, delivers food to Start Up Stirling, and so on. It is safe to say: “We are making a difference!”
Now that we exist, we are entering the “survive” phase of our journey. As is common with CSAs, it will be a few more years until we reach something that resembles financial sustainability (the “thrive” phase). We are doing our utmost to shorten the survival phase. It is in our own interest because without reaching ‘thrive’, paying a salary for all of the hours we work is not feasible. Also, the shorter the period in which we fight for survival the more likely we are to persist as a community business.
At the farm we want to thrive, not just financially, we want wildlife to thrive, vibrant colours, strong growth, and veg that is as nutrient dense as it could be. In short, we want to generate an abundance of health. Health for animals, plants, and humans. Human/animal health is dependent on plant health and plant health is dependent on soil health.
Soil health is at the core of all health. The agroecological way we farm builds soil health and, thus, builds plant health and your health over time.
With soil health comes increased quality but also increased quantity of produce. And that is where the circle closes. Soil health, plant health, people health, wildlife health, financial health are all part of the same picture. They all reinforce each other in myriad and positive ways. It is what makes our enterprise holistic.
So, you may ask, what are the downsides of this approach? If its so great why is not all our food produced in these ways? It is an important question with some simple and some complex answers. The answer most relevant to our situation is: the soils we have are not healthy. Improving them takes skill, time, and resources. The way we treated our soils over the last century (and longer) is destructive and exploitative. Fixing what we broke takes years, not months.
Help us
We, your growers, are committed to this journey towards a fairer system for growers, members and the environment. We want to create a farm where health is abundant, where local people benefit from that health in physical and psychological ways. But we cannot do it on our own. Today, we are asking you to help us create soil health. We are asking you to invest in the health of the soils that nurture you. The donations we receive we will use to improve soil health by purchasing compost and biological soil amendments (think ‘sourdough starter’ for soils). This is, quite literally, a down-payment for future abundance and health. It will speed up the regeneration of ours soils, fix carbon, improve plant health, diversify the soil microbiome, and so on. This, single intervention, will boost our regenerative efforts for the short and long term. All our other regenerative practices will be enhanced, multiplied, and accelerated if we can make this investment before the next spring.
We are aware that this is a lot to ask. Making a contribution to this effort will be impossible for many of our members. We are looking to raise about £5000 (but we can put smaller amounts to good soil health uses also). If there are any among you that can invest in healthy soils at Upper Ballaird Farm Coop then any contribution will be much appreciated; appreciated by your growers, by our community, by our environment, and by our climate.
Thank you very much for considering. Please get in touch with us if you have questions about soil health at Upper Ballaird Farm.
Help us build our soil health…
We are looking for donations to improve our soil health. We are hoping to raise about £5000 to make improvements to our growing area. This would allow us to buy compost and biological soil amendments that will encourage vital micro-organisms to thrive in our soil.
Our food systems have been exploiting our soils for years, our soils have been exhausted through vast monocultures (a single crop) where soil nutrients are taken up by plants then harvested leaving the soils depleted, this gap in soil nutrients has been filled with artificial fertilisers. Poor soil health leads to poor plant health, conventional farming has remedied through herbicides and pesticides which are damaging the health of consumers and the planet. We will regenerate our soil health through our farming practices such as growing polycultures (many different crops), perennials, and using crop rotations and green manures. As part of this we will buy in compost and biological soil amendments to naturally boost our soil health which we need help with…
From surviving to thriving
Upper Ballaird Farm Coop exists, it produces cut flowers and veg in regenerative ways, welcomes groups from schools, food banks, and other social enterprises & charities, offers training in Growing Your Own food, delivers food to Start Up Stirling, and so on. It is safe to say: “We are making a difference!”
Now that we exist, we are entering the “survive” phase of our journey. As is common with CSAs, it will be a few more years until we reach something that resembles financial sustainability (the “thrive” phase). We are doing our utmost to shorten the survival phase. It is in our own interest because without reaching ‘thrive’, paying a salary for all of the hours we work is not feasible. Also, the shorter the period in which we fight for survival the more likely we are to persist as a community business.
At the farm we want to thrive, not just financially, we want wildlife to thrive, vibrant colours, strong growth, and veg that is as nutrient dense as it could be. In short, we want to generate an abundance of health. Health for animals, plants, and humans. Human/animal health is dependent on plant health and plant health is dependent on soil health.
Soil health is at the core of all health. The agroecological way we farm builds soil health and, thus, builds plant health and your health over time.
With soil health comes increased quality but also increased quantity of produce. And that is where the circle closes. Soil health, plant health, people health, wildlife health, financial health are all part of the same picture. They all reinforce each other in myriad and positive ways. It is what makes our enterprise holistic.
So, you may ask, what are the downsides of this approach? If its so great why is not all our food produced in these ways? It is an important question with some simple and some complex answers. The answer most relevant to our situation is: the soils we have are not healthy. Improving them takes skill, time, and resources. The way we treated our soils over the last century (and longer) is destructive and exploitative. Fixing what we broke takes years, not months.
Help us
We, your growers, are committed to this journey towards a fairer system for growers, members and the environment. We want to create a farm where health is abundant, where local people benefit from that health in physical and psychological ways. But we cannot do it on our own. Today, we are asking you to help us create soil health. We are asking you to invest in the health of the soils that nurture you. The donations we receive we will use to improve soil health by purchasing compost and biological soil amendments (think ‘sourdough starter’ for soils). This is, quite literally, a down-payment for future abundance and health. It will speed up the regeneration of ours soils, fix carbon, improve plant health, diversify the soil microbiome, and so on. This, single intervention, will boost our regenerative efforts for the short and long term. All our other regenerative practices will be enhanced, multiplied, and accelerated if we can make this investment before the next spring.
We are aware that this is a lot to ask. Making a contribution to this effort will be impossible for many of our members. We are looking to raise about £5000 (but we can put smaller amounts to good soil health uses also). If there are any among you that can invest in healthy soils at Upper Ballaird Farm Coop then any contribution will be much appreciated; appreciated by your growers, by our community, by our environment, and by our climate.
Thank you very much for considering. Please get in touch with us if you have questions about soil health at Upper Ballaird Farm.
Louise and Philipp
Soil Fundraiser
Invest in our soils by making a donation