‘I haven’t watered my crops for 23 years’: bio farmer is not bothered by the pumping ban

But none of that is a problem for an organic farmer from Ruddervoorde. He says he hasn’t watered his crops for 23 years. This can be done by using the soil smartly and not using fertilizers.

Diederik Steyaert, Bioboerderij De Zaaier: “This piece is ready to plant something on. At the top it looks extremely dry, but if you look into the ground. The ground feels very cool, you have nice moist soil.”

And that is due to organic material, which retains much more water than artificial substances, which dry out the soil due to the salt. One percent more organic

Diederik Steyaert: “These are all fibres. You can see those fungi growing in that grass. They already break down that organic material. It has a very low fertilization value, but these are all fibers that can retain water. It is so dry now, but if you reach into it, it’s nice and wet. That retains the water in our soil.”

Organic farm De Zaaier grows vegetables on eleven hectares. In 23 years, Diederik had to give his crops less than a liter of water. It takes up to five years for a plot to have enough organic matter again, and even then you have to use it wisely.

Tractor on GPS

“We use a tractor on GPS. The advantage is that you have fixed driving paths, so that the soil is no longer compacted, and the roots can go deep into the soil. If you have moisture in the soil, you also want to retain it there. That’s why we use a hoeing bar with blades, the blades cut through the top two centimeters of the soil, which dries it out very much, but underneath it retains moisture by cutting through the evaporation capillaries, so we can conserve the moisture in the soil. “

Mass agriculture should also use these techniques, says Diederik. And this way of working has other advantages. “The advantage is that we have much stronger plants, which are much more resistant. Not only to drought, but also more stress-resistant. As a result, we suffer less from diseases, and we have a better yield. That also results in a better taste. You get a fuller taste of the product.”

So the sun can still shine here for a while.