The essence of water retention

The amount of water available to our site is dependent on the relationship between the climate and the land shape. This relationship is optimized by keyline design through clever observation of where water moves across the land. It is then possible to capture it, hold it and distribute evenly across the landscape when dryer periods occur. It rains less frequently, but with higher quantities these days. We have experienced that the land did not absorb all the water and therefore the most effective way to catch the water is by using keyline. We use marker swales (ditches) where we plow small channels along as you can see below.

Keyline design uses natural landscape contours to slow, sink, spread and store rainwater. This opens the land completely and speeds up the water absorption. But it’s only a temporary fix. It must be followed up by tree planting and/or grazing.

The trees are planned along the lines and we will graze in between. This is all according to P. A. Yeomans keyline methods that enable the rapid development of deep biologically fertile soil by converting subsoil into living topsoil. Results are the healing of soil erosion and the long term storage of atmospheric carbon in the soil as humus.

Keyline plowing uses a subsoil plow method with a very flat plow shank to slice through the soil and create channels below the surface. These channels help break up soil compaction, create a place for new roots to grow with less effort and direct water more easily. This practice mimics nature as it used to be. Big grazers opened up the soil in the wild.