AVA Farms – Food Forest Model

AVA Farms

We are maintaining 3 layers of food forest model in our AVA farms. We grow Papaya , moringa are main crops which are perennial crops. In Between we go with seasonal greens brinjal, bhindi are intercrops. Ground layers – spring onions to support the other crops.We also have separate plots for gourds, cucurbits. We have an exclusive polyhouse setup where we grow Palak on regular basis. Legumes also planned in all places to support the soil enrichment. For Gourds like Bottle gourd and Snake gourd, we are maintaining a separate plots with trellis. The crop rotation has been followed with different gourds in each season. Pumpkins and Ash gourds also planted as border crops and intercrops which helps cover the soil to control weeds.  And there is separate fruit orchard , in which we grow guava lemon, mango, jamun and other seasonal fruits.

The idea of this multi-cropping system is emerged to ensure regular income from both perennial and seasonal crops through out the year. Additionally we can get different varieties of fruits and vegetables at different point in time. Along with plots, we have established container plantations with the support of Airpots all over the farm along the pathways, so as to not waste even a smaller piece of land. In the airpot containers we have Papaya, Moringa and Hibiscus to keep the farm aesthetically good and provide income. The entire idea of the maintaining all the models within a farm environment is to keep the biodiversity of the farm better.