The essence of water retention
The amount of water available to our site depends on the relationship between climate and land shape. Keyline design optimizes this relationship through careful observation of water movement across the terrain. It allows us to capture, hold, and evenly distribute water across the landscape during drier periods.
With rainfall occurring less frequently but in higher quantities these days, we've found that keyline design is the most effective method for water retention. We employ marker swales—ditches created by plowing small channels—to facilitate this process.
Keyline design utilizes natural contours to slow, sink, spread, and store rainwater, significantly enhancing water absorption. However, it's essential to follow this with tree planting and/or grazing to sustain these benefits. Trees are strategically planted along these contours, with grazing managed in between, following P. A. Yeomans' keyline methods.
These methods promote the rapid development of deep, biologically fertile soil by converting subsoil into living topsoil. This approach not only addresses soil erosion but also facilitates long-term carbon storage in the soil as humus.
“No artist or artisan ever has such broad control of the medium through which he expresses his own character and personality as does the farmer or grazier in the control he can exercise over his land. ”