Can Dryland Farming Help Growers Endure Increasing Heatwaves and Drought?
via Modern Farmer
·
Posted June 14, 2022 6:22 pm
Today I learned a little about Dryland Farming thanks to this week's Modern Farmer's newsletter. Drought is a problem in much of the western United States, and Colorado is no exception. As Ashley and I start looking at a sustainable business model for a bakery that looks to help build up our local and regional food systems, water is a big problem for the farmer's we hope to work with in the near future.
Increasingly, the Sonoran and other dry places are showing us what a heat-and-drought-riddled future has in store for more of our food systems. These examples suggest that deep knowledge of dryland farming practices could blunt the impacts, giving some farmers a workable path forward. Whether conventional agriculture is willing to learn anything at all from these systems, however, is the question.
The article also mentions a book called Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond by Brad Lancaster that looks like it may serve as a good primer on the topic that I am adding to my reading list.