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Southern Italy Speaks: Farmers Share Hopes and Worries for a Regenerative Future

Southern Italy Speaks: Farmers Share Hopes and Worries for a Regenerative Future This article is based on a survey carried out as part of GreenRoots, a two-year initiative co-funded by the European Union. The project’s goal is to support the transition to a more regenerative and organic agriculture by designing events, workshops, and online learning modules tailored to real needs. The insights presented here come directly from farmers and agricultural professionals in Southern Italy — their challenges, their dreams, and their readiness for change. Who took part? The majority of respondents are active farmers who produce and sell their own crops, especially olives, vegetables, and fruit trees. A smaller group includes agronomists, consultants, and those working in agricultural supply chains. What emerges clearly from the data is a strong connection to the land and a preference for tools that are practical, low-impact, and suited to small- to medium-scale production. Here’s what they use most to work their fields: Manual tools are incredibly common but hand hoes (zappa manuale) is the undisputed protagonist. Small-scale mechanization is also popular, with many relying on rototillers (fresa), flail mower (trincia) and motor hoes (motozappa) to manage soil and residues. Some are experimenting with regenerative tools like the grelinette (broadfork) — a sign of growing interest in soil-friendly methods. A handful mentioned working entirely by hand, showing the persistence of manual labor and traditional methods in the region. This tool diversity reflects both the constraints and creativity of farming in Southern Italy — where innovation often coexists with resilience and a deep-rooted sense of place.   What Worries Farmers the Most? Participants expressed strong concern about the long-term sustainability of current agricultural practices. The top concern? The impact of chemical substances (particularly fertilizers and pesticides) on both soil health and food quality. Other recurring themes include nutrient loss in food and economic pressure from input costs. What They Believe (and What They Don’t) Farmers were asked to rank their level of agreement (from 1 to 5) with several key statements. Here’s what stood out: Soil health is crucial: Nearly all respondents gave the highest score to the statement “Soil health is one of the most important factors for producing nutritious food” (average score: 4.8). Many believe that food quality has declined over the last two decades due to industrial practices. Interestingly, most do not believe the cost of synthetic inputs is justified by their results (average score: 1.7). What Motivates Change? When asked what might convince them to adopt more sustainable methods, participants cited: Environmental benefits (better soil, cleaner water), Economic incentives (subsidies or reduced input costs), and Greater knowledge and support. Barriers included lack of technical knowledge, access to natural inputs, and market uncertainty for sustainable products. What They Want to Learn The good news? Interest in learning is strong: 73% want to improve soil health 49% are eager to learn about composting and natural fertilization 44% want to boost profitability with sustainable practices 44% also want tools to manage pests and diseases naturally There’s a growing movement toward knowledge-based, regenerative farming — and farmers are ready to lead it. Final Thoughts The message is clear: farmers in Southern Italy are ready for change, but they need support, knowledge, and community to make that transition confidently. They’re aware of the problems, they value their land, and they’re open to solutions that respect both tradition and ecology. That’s exactly why we’re organizing the Regenerative Agriculture Workshop on June 12–13. Whether you’re a farmer, agronomist, or simply curious about healthier and more sustainable ways of working the land, this two-day workshop is for you. The event blends theory and hands-on experience, covering topics like: Understanding soil microbiology Production of biofertilizers Tools and techniques for low-input, high-resilience systems You’ll get to see practices in action, exchange with other growers, and go home with real strategies you can apply immediately. Info event

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What is a guild?

What is a guild? In permaculture, a guild refers to a carefully designed and interconnected group of plants, animals, fungi, and other elements that work together synergistically in a sustainable and productive ecosystem.   The main principle behind guild design is creating a diverse and resilient system, where each element performs multiple functions and supports the overall productivity of the ecosystem.   A permaculture guild typically consists of several key components:   Central Species: At the core of a guild, there is usually a main plant or tree species that serves as the focal point or primary provider of resources. This central species is often a long-lived perennial (for example a tree) that forms the backbone of the guild. Companion Plants: Surrounding the central species are a variety of complementary plants, known as companion plants. These plants are carefully selected to fulfill specific functions that support the overall health and productivity of the guild. They may provide additional resources such as nitrogen fixation, pest control, pollination, nutrient accumulation, or shade regulation. Beneficial insects and animals: Guilds incorporate beneficial insects and animals that play important roles in pest management, pollination, soil aeration, or nutrient cycling. For example, certain plants may attract predatory insects that control pest populations, while flowers can attract pollinators like bees and butterflies. Soil Enhancers: Guilds often include plants or organisms that contribute to soil fertility and health. Nitrogen-fixing plants, such as legumes, convert atmospheric nitrogen into a form that other plants can utilize. Dynamic accumulators, like comfrey or yarrow, draw nutrients from deeper soil layers and make them available to shallower-rooted plants when their leaves decompose. Mulch and / or Ground Covers: Ground covers and mulch plants are employed to protect the soil from erosion, conserve moisture, suppress weeds, and provide organic matter as they decompose. These plants, such as low-growing herbs or spreading perennials, also serve as living mulch, creating microclimates and optimizing resource utilization within the guild.   By carefully selecting and arranging plant species and other components based on their functional relationships, we aim to create self-sustaining and low-maintenance systems that mimic the balance and efficiency of natural ecosystems.  The exact composition of a guild will depend on the specific goals, climate, and local conditions of a particular site. Left picture: Guild around a young olive tree with various perennial herbs and some annual fruit and vegetable plants.   When it comes to guilds with olive trees, there are several companion plants that can be beneficial in enhancing the overall health and productivity of the olive tree ecosystem.   Picture at the right: view of the companion plants we chose for our olive tree. Other good companion plants for an olive tree guild could be: Borage (Borago officinalis), Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), Marigold (Tagetes spp.), Nasturtium (Tropaeolum spp.). I. Comfrey (Symphytum spp.): Comfrey is an accumulator plant and known for its deep taproots that can mine nutrients from deep in the soil. It accumulates minerals and makes them available to other plants, making it an excellent choice for almost any type of guild. Its huge leaves create lots of shade and help suppress unwanted weeds. Note: We have placed the comfrey in the shade of the olive tree (north side) as it still is difficult to grow comfrey in our climate. Comfrey generally prefers half-shade and cooler temperatures. With a thick woodchip mulch layer, which is reducing surface temperature considerably, we hope that the comfrey will thrive here.   II. Lavender (Lavandula spp.): Lavender attracts pollinators and beneficial insects while repelling pests. Its aromatic foliage can also help deter pests from olive trees. III. Thyme (Thymus spp.): Thyme is a low-growing herb that can act as a living mulch around the base of olive trees, suppressing weeds and conserving moisture. It also attracts pollinators and repels certain pests. IV. Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis): Rosemary is a hardy herb that can thrive in the same conditions as olive trees. It attracts bees and other beneficial insects while providing some shade to the soil around the tree.   V. Ballota (Ballota acetabulosa): The flowers of this herbaceous plant are attractive for bees and when big enough, the leaves will work as a ground cover. VI. Incense (Plectranthus madagascariensis): Incense attracts insects, pollinators and butterflies and therefore also birds to the garden.The leaves and branches of this species give off a strong scent and are sometimes used to ward off flies. We’re hoping to keep away the nasty flies that puncture the olives! VII. Sugar melon (Cucumis melo): This melon is an experiment – we are very curious as to how well annual vegetables can do around an olive tree. So far, the plant looks quite happy, growing a first little melon. With its beautiful flowers, this melon will attract pollinators and create shade / ground cover with its big leaves Remember to consider the specific growing conditions, climate, and region when selecting companion plants for your guild. It’s also beneficial to choose plants that have similar water and sunlight requirements to ensure they thrive together.

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Building our composting area

Building our composting area Compost production is at the heart of our regenerative practices and having a proper space to produce it seemed an important milestone in our journey.   It all started from the wish to professionalize our compost production. At the beginning, we were making our compost outside, having to protect our piles from sun, wind, and rain. A fully covered area would give us the benefit of working in the shade and protect our fresh piles and the finished product from too much heat, wind or humidity. All of which contributes to a better product in the end: a rich, dark compost, that is full with microbial life. It all starts with a rough sketch… So, the task at hand was to construct a spacious, covered area that would allow us to have more control over the entire process while making our lives a bit easier at the same time. We always try to design our systems with a permaculture approach – each element performs many functions. Thus, the new building should not only help us to produce compost, protect us and the compost from the elements but should also integrate in the existing systems. That’s why the “relative location” of each element is crucial. By placing it right next to (and one terrace level up from) the main garden, we can choose to gravity-feed our veggie garden by connecting the liquid compost tank to the irrigation system. This way, we save ourselves a lot of time and effort. Future plans involve adding animal stables right next to the compost area, which is another example of a “relative location”. The need for fresh manure in our compost production makes the placement of animal stables right next to it a smart choice. The building process After having found the right location, we started out with a rough sketch, some measuring, and the help of many volunteers. We had to select the right logs for the pillars, shave the bark off of them and bury them 1m deep in the compacted clay soil. Picture at the right shows the first task completed: Coco and Chris are celebrating the accomplished burying and aligning of the pillars. Now that the pillars were in place, we started to connect them with horizontal crossbeams. On top of these connectors, we had to fix other logs using simple joinery. Even though it was basic woodworking, the irregularity of roundwood has got its challenges. Nevertheless, we were determined to spend as little money as possible (as opposed to buying more processed – meaning square – pillars and beams) and we simply love the “rinky-dinky” style of building with roundwood. As soon as the main structure was up, we could cover the roof. We decided on rough boards from locally sourced Douglas firs. To protect the roof from rain, we used overlapping rows of tar paper. We heated the tar paper at the edge where the rows overlap in order to glue them together properly. Finally, it was time to take care of the work area itself. After some debating whether to use cement or not, we’ve decided to pour a cement floor for half of the building. We wanted a flat and clean workspace for storing the finished compost and more importantly, placing the brewing tank for our liquid compost production. We boarded up the walls on the two “wheater sides”, to protect from winds and precipitation from north and west. Leaving enough space on top of every wall would grant us enough natural light and also lessen the wind pressure on the structure. All we had to do now was installing water and power lines and build a wooden platform to carry our 600lt tank. We’ve also included a ladder and service platform on top of it to be able to easily access and clean the residues inside the tank after each brewing process. We’ve already used it many times and it works perfectly! The elevated platform provides some altitude to empty the tank without any pump or power, simply using gravity. In the future, we’re planning to install a wind turbine and batteries to hopefully generate enough electricity for the air pumps, which are needed to produce a high-quality liquid compost (tea & extracts). Another future project is to harvest the rain water from the roof to further minimize the environmental impact in our compost production. Surely, we’ll be looking for the best possible “relative location” of the rainwater catchment system to ensure that it’ll be also adhering to the permaculture principle of “each element performs many functions”. For now, we’re super thrilled to be able to work efficiently and produce one of our main assets, a dark, rich, microbially active compost in larger quantities.   This will speed up the regeneration process of all the parts of our land, be it the olive groves, the food forest, or our veggie gardens.

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