We have added the family-run EkoFarma No.5 to the Krajina \u017eiv\u00e1 programme<\/p>\n
This family farm is located right in Galanta and was set up four years ago on the site of a former vineyard that had been left unused for the previous 30 years. After partly clearing self-seeded trees and shrubs, the Vince family began growing several kinds of vegetables on the former vineyard, drawing on their knowledge of organic farming. They are building a mixed fruit orchard on agroforestry principles. They also provide space for a local beekeeper and run a community garden for the town's residents. What makes the farm exceptional is that they make their own organic fertilisers and preparations and measure progress in soil regeneration using horizontal paper chromatography. This is a qualitative analysis of the presence of microbiota and the quality of relationships in the soil. A seriously scientific approach - we were amazed.<\/p>\n
Comments from members of the Krajina \u017eiv\u00e1 expert panel after visiting the farm:<\/p>\n
Mgr. Dobromil Galv\u00e1nek, PhD., botanist:
\n\u201eThe area around Galanta is dominated by maize, rapeseed and cereals. This small farm is a kind of counterpoint to them. Set against uniform, monotonous fields is a small patch of diversity and seeming disorder. The orchard, the meadow beneath it and the vegetable beds create a very varied environment for all kinds of organisms.\u201c<\/p>\n
Ing. Jaroslav Jankovi\u010da CSc., agroforestry specialist:
\n\u201eThe owners began creating the farm on unused agricultural land overgrown with trees and shrubs, where there used to be vineyards. The plots are being cultivated step by step, with some of the trees left standing, creating an agroforestry system. This approach to bringing abandoned, overgrown farmland back into use is considered optimal in the current era of climate change and is favoured worldwide.\u201c<\/p>\n
Mgr. Adriana Holo\u0161kov\u00e1, ornithologist:
\n\u201eThanks to the old hollow trees that have been left standing and the nest boxes that have been put up, EkoFarma No.5 is an excellent place for birds. Besides nesting opportunities, organic management and mosaic mowing mean they also find plenty of food here.\u201c<\/p>\n