#monoculture — Public Fediverse posts

10 #IndigenousGardening Techniques Still Used Today

By: Robin Sweetser, May 3, 2026

"As gardeners, we are connected to all people who have come before us, caring for the earth and learning how to best grow crops. Ready for the best gardening techniques? Let’s have a look at some age-old gardening wisdom that’s still relevant today.

A Long History of #Gardening

#Gourds, #beans, and #peppers were being cultivated in #Mexico by 5500 BC, and by 5000 BC, #maize was being grown in #Mesoamerica, and #potatoes in #SouthAmerica. The success or failure of these crops had a major impact on people’s survival. It was critical not only that the land provided sustenance but that it sustained them year after year, which required knowledge of #sustainable growing techniques to preserve the land for future generations.

We hear buzzwords like 'sustainable' or 'permaculture' and 'organic' today. But these techniques were here long before we started talking about 'going green.' Perhaps your grandparents also knew some of the older, gentler ways. Many are simply intuitive and based on fostering a closer relationship with nature and the land. If you don’t already, you might want to think about integrating some of these techniques into your own landscape.

Many of the following practices are often viewed as 'new' to the gardening world, but they’ve been around for a long, long time. They have all been traditionally used by #NativeAmerican peoples, but that is not to say that all of these techniques were used by all Native American cultures. Just like separate countries, #Indigenous cultures vary widely in their gardening philosophies and techniques. Below are just a few #sustainable, Earth-conscious ways to grow a better garden.

These practices originate from diverse Indigenous nations across North and South America, including the #Haudenosaunee (#Iroquois), #Hopi, #Wampanoag, and many others. Agricultural traditions varied widely by climate, geography, and culture.

Companion Planting (the #ThreeSisters Method)

Time-honored gardening wisdom says that certain plants, when grown together, improve each other’s health and yields. For instance, some plants attract beneficial insects that help to protect a companion, while other plants (particularly herbs) act as repellents.

A commonly cited example is the Three Sisters Garden, which has been traditionally practiced by the Wampanoag people of what is now the northeastern United States. A prime demonstration of companion planting at its best, corn provides support for pole beans to climb, the beans add nitrogen to the soil for future crops to use, and squash leaves shade the soil around the taller plants, like a living mulch. Squash’s prickly leaves also deter marauding animal pests. Some would add a fourth sister—a flowering plant such as #sunflowers—to draw in #pollinators.

#Intercropping or #polyculture of plants that have mutual benefits (aka companion planting) mimics the way different species grow together in nature. #Monoculture, on the other hand, leads to the exhaustion of soil nutrients. Indigenous people also discovered that plant diversity meant diet diversity. If one crop should fail, the others could fill that void.

Try 'intercropping' in your vegetable garden. Sneak small crops in between bigger ones; the small crops will be ready before the big ones need the space.

#Terracing for #SoilConservation

Terracing creates flat planting beds in hilly terrain. Taming the steep slopes slows runoff, allowing water to seep into the beds and curb erosion.

Creating terraces in which to garden is an especially good way to garden where rain is seasonal, sporadic, and often comes in heavy downpours. In the southwestern U.S., for example, terracing was key to the agricultural success of the Anasazi and their descendants, the #Hopi, who still use terraced gardens today. This can be seen in the village of #HotevillaBacavi, in northern Arizona, where traditional #TerracedGardens were restored in the 1990s.

If you wish to garden sustainably on sloped land for years to come, the use of terracing is essential in avoiding soil erosion that carries your precious topsoil away.

There are different types of #terracing. If you have a slope, consider using some rocks or retaining walls to create a series of flattened areas, mitigating runoff. Ancient terraces are seen all over the steep terrain in #Greece, too.

Traditional Irrigation Methods

Thousands of years ago, the Anasazi people inhabited what is now the Four Corners region of the U.S., an area known for its low annual rainfall. They traditionally built catchments, check dams (dams made of rock that held onto soil but allowed water to pass through), and reservoirs to collect the infrequent stormwater. The Hopi people of northern Arizona also use these age-old techniques to irrigate their gardens in this arid landscape, although modern technology has allowed for expanded #WaterConservation efforts.

If you live in a dry area, storing water in ponds, cisterns, or even a #RainBarrel is a wise idea, as the reserved water can be used for irrigation as needed.

Conversely, in areas with floods, people learned how to use what could be destructive as a way to boost productivity. For example, one technique was to create shallow depressions so that when the floodwaters rose, the water could be stored. Another technique was to use #canals near rivers to divert water to nearby farmland."

Read more:
https://www.almanac.com/10-indigenous-gardening-techniques-still-used-today

#SolarPunkSunday #GrowYourOwnFood #NativeAmericans #TraditionalTechnology #ClimateChangeGardening #TraditionalEcologicalKnowledge #TEK #TerracedGardens #RainGardens

Can Himalayan Crops Help Secure The Future Of Food?
(Exploring how genomic diversity, traditional crops, and regional cooperation can strengthen climate resilience and food security across the Hindu Kush Himalaya [HKH])
--
https://substack.com/home/post/p-207443153 <-- shared technical post
--
https://openlibrary.substack.com/ <-- shared Substack, “Open Library on Green Economy”
--
https://adaptationwithoutborders.org/knowledge-base/adaptation-without-borders/shifting-cooperation-in-the-hindu-kush-himalaya/ <-- shared technical article, “Shifting cooperation in the [HKH]”
--
https://www.icimod.org/who-we-are/the-hindu-kush-himalaya/ <-- background on the HKH, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)
--
https://doi.org/10.48130/cas-0026-0003 <-- shared paper
--
[not at all my technical area - but fascinating, including the spatial component #alldataisspatial]
H/T @jeevan Labh
“As we navigate the intensifying impacts of the 2026 El Niño, the vulnerability of our global food systems require careful evaluation. With this year’s erratic weather patterns driving severe, prolonged droughts in some regions and unseasonal, devastating floods in others, the climate crisis is proving that it is not a distant threat; it is happening right now, in our fields and on our plates.
This crisis is more visible in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region. Often called the “water tower of Asia,” this vast mountain range sustains 240 million people across eight countries and provides essential ecosystem services to nearly 2 billion people downstream. When glaciers melt at accelerated rates and monsoons become unpredictable, the narrative often focuses solely on the mountain communities. But the truth is much broader: a disrupted harvest in the high hills of Nepal or Bhutan creates a domino effect. It leads to displaced populations, reduced agricultural output flowing into the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra basins, and ultimately, skyrocketing food prices for families living in the sprawling downstream plains.
The climate crisis respects no borders and recognizes no difference between altitude and sea level. Because this problem affects us all, the solution must protect us all. Fortunately, the means to overcome this challenge are already in our hands, locked within the ancient seeds of the mountains…”
## #GreenEconomy #economy #monoculture #agriculture #farming #crop #cropland #HinduKushHimalaya #himalaya #mountain #HKH #spatial #mapping #elevation #climatechange #foodsecurity #food #extremeweather #weather #ElNiño #drought #rainfall #precipitation #snowmelt #climatecrisis #mountainrange #water #hydrology #ecosystem #glacier #moonsoons #community #harvest #Nepal #Bhutan #watersheds #watersecurity #risk #hazard #waterresources #genes #genomicdiversity #cooperation

So, this is a timely topic! From the latest issue of #InTheseTimes! The connection between Amazon Deforestation and CEO land grabs in the Western United States -- bought with blood money!

Fortress Yellowstone

The #UltraRich are fortifying themselves inside one of America’s last intact #ecosystems—with money plundered from ecological #SacrificeZones around the world

by Joseph Bullington, April 6, 2026

Excerpt: "Some of these ultra-rich ranch owners celebrate the natural beauty of their land and are ardent conservationists when it comes to the Yellowstone ecosystem. In digging into their business dealings, however, I found that most of these landowners accumulated their wealth through industries that help drive the destruction of nature elsewhere. Their ranks include private equity investors, oil and gas billionaires and real estate developers. "

[...]

"Now, instead of forests full of fruits and animals and mandioca clearings, industrial soy plantations press in on #Açaizal like a closing fist. There is no escape from the onslaught of #monoculture. Manoel shows me where rows of broken cornstalks run right up against the edge of the community’s soccer field, which the soy farmers also want to plow. The soybeans and corn, like those in the United States, are genetically engineered to withstand the #herbicides and #pesticides the farmers dump on them to beat back weeds and pests, but the chemicals drift, says Manoel, making it impossible to grow fruits and vegetables and #mandioca nearby. The streams run low and full of poison."

Read more:
https://inthesetimes.com/article/yellowstone-billionaires-conservation-montana-deforest-amazon

#Billionaires #UberRich #CEOs #AmazonDeforestation #BigAg #SoybeanProduction #IndustralSoybeans #PoisoningTheAmazon #GMOs #Monoculture #Deforestation #Cargill #HomeDepot #SoyPlantations #SaveTheForest #SaveTheRainforest #Earth4All #DSA #DemocraticSocialism #ReadItBeforeItsBanned #TaxTheRich #NoTaxHavens #EatTheRich #YeetTheRich #BigCorporations

The NT: In them old cotton fields back home

"Incoming Northern Territory Administrator David Connolly has apologised over his trove of divisive past social media posts, a day before he is formally sworn-in."

"Mr Connolly's past commentary has been labelled variously as sexist, racist, transphobic, homophobic and bigoted by various groups including the Northern Land Council (NLC), the Country Women's Association NT and the Aboriginal Peak Organisations of the NT (APONT)." >>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02-25/david-connolly-apologises-over-social-media-controversy/106389356

King Charles’s official representative in the Northern Territory >>
https://mastodon.au/@Bellingen/116135022082276542

#NT #Australia #cotton #monoculture #plantations #sexism #racism #homophobia #transphobia #sorry #DevelopingNation

Image: The 'wide open spaces' of the NT populated with cotton. As far as the eye can see a "third-world crop" or a critical commodity for developing nations.

A yearning for the idyllic forest scene and cellulose factories

When they want to ‘get away from it all’ and ‘go for a drive’ through nature, the idyllic forest scene, they are in denial that the romantic craving for the bush turns out to be industrial plantations.

“Nature ... is a planned product of the forestry industry, a purely wisely placed storehouse for cellulose production, which is readily apparent.”
- The Man Without Qualities, Robert Musil, 1930

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Man_Without_Qualities
#forests #forestryCorporation #forestry #CelluloseFactories #LoggingIndustry #landscapes #TheBush #plantations #monoculture #RawMaterials #extractivism #biodiversity #nature #book #literature

Replacing native birds with an invasive species of birds

"The Invasive Species Council has raised concern about the spread of the Indian myna in country Australia. When Indian mynas move into an area they force native birds out of their wood hollows and kill their chicks, leading to a decline in native bird numbers."

"People in rural areas are seeing them spread along the highways...They like well-manicured gardens, they like grass and lots of places they can sit. So planting native trees is something people can do to help our native birds out."

Any council actions in Bellingen and Sawtell?
>>
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-01-31/indian-myna-spread-rural-australia-invasive-species-council/103404894
#birds #NativeBirds #InvasiveSpecies #NSW #Bellingen #Sawtell #WaterfallWay #ChurchSt #HydeSt #roads #impacts #BellingenShire #monoculture #landscapes

Has anyone watched the final #WildIsles on #BBC #iPlayer (the one that was banned from being broadcast)?

Aside from an implied critique of #monoculture #agriculture I really can't see why it could have been seen to be controversial.

What did I miss? Certainly wasn't as hard-hitting on #climatechange as I have seen other programmes to be....

Pour l’Union des paysans indonésiens, «Michelin a fermé les yeux sur la réalité au niveau local, où les entreprises qui répondent à ses besoins de production ont privé les agriculteurs de leurs droits fonciers.»
#monoculture #caoutchouc #accaparement

👉 https://www.bastamag.net/Accaparement-terres-Indonesie-caoutchouc-hevea-Via-Campesina-Michelin