Location

AustraliaWestern Australia

1 Weir Rd
Harvey WA 6220
Australia

Type

Regenerative Farm

Values

Chemical FreePesticide freeRegenerativeWorms & Composting

Certifications

Website

Roly Poly Farm

May 3, 2020

Here at Roly Poly Farm, our vegetables are grown using a range of methodologies, including organic, bio-intensive and bio-dynamic, all without the use of synthetic pesticides or herbicides. We are transparent in our practices, without the inflated cost and superfluities of a label. We happily let our produce be dictated by the seasons, and relish in the abundance that each season brings. To grow these delicious vegetables, we harness methods that are giving to the soil, forgiving on the water table, and don’t harm any of the little critters and creatures that help us to grow our bounty. Cover cropping; no-till agriculture; compost; bio-intensive planting and perennial hedges are just some of the practices we embrace, and that result in our farm being a part of, not a detriment to, the land.

We acknowledge and respect the first nations continuing culture and the contribution they make to the life of this region, city and boodja, and pay our respects to Elders past and present. You can see all the vegetables we grow here.

Things of note

We broadfork
A broadfork is a simple yet powerful human-scale tool, which relies upon leverage to aerate and loosen the soil without inverting it. This minimises disturbance to the many soil layers that comprise a delicate underground soil ecosystem. Combined with the other methods we use at the farm, broadforking aids to replace mechanically deep-ripping and tilling, and helps to build soil (without damaging all of the critters, bacteria and fungi that are a part of it!), meaning that we can regeneratively grow delicious, nutrient-dense veggies.

We companion plant
Companion planting is an age-old approach to gardening, and embraces the idea that, by planting certain plants next to or near one another, they can help with pest control, growth, flavour development, and the attraction of beneficial insects. Whilst the actual effectiveness of this is, and most likely will always be, debated, we have embraced this method as a way to ensure biodoiversity within our crops and farm ecosystem.

We compost
The recycling of ‘waste’ such as food scraps, manure and old plant material back into a useful product for soil and plant biology is a pretty amazing feat of nature. Instead of throwing away all of these nutrients and letting them go to landfill, we combine them into piles, add water, turn them a few times as they decompose, and let the oxygen, sunshine and microbes work their magic. By getting the ratio of carbon to nitrogen right, we create an ideal environment for conversion of these products into a beautiful, nutrient rich, disease suppressing supplement for the soil.

We are heirloom
We incorporate heirloom and open-pollinated breeds of vegetables into our commercial vegetable production. This is for a number of reasons. One is to play our part in creating greater diversity and resiliency within our food system. Whenever you grow, buy, sell or eat an heirloom or open-pollinated vegetable, you are helping to preserve local culture, biodiversity, and strengthen our collective sovereignty over the food we consume.

Transparency

We're transparent about how we grow everything and list all our techniques on our website. We are transparent in our practices, without the inflated cost and superfluities of a label. We believe in greater food resiliency, and are passionate in relocalising the food economy. We provide the connection between you and the food you are eating. We use growing methods which are centered around regenerating and caring for the land upon which we find ourselves. We believe in food sovereignty, which is centered around the belief that all have the right to access nutritious, ethically produced food, grown through agricultural systems that the collective consumer has a say in.

More information

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