At the Light-Community Fraternity of Aurora, affiliated with the Fraternity-International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF) a meeting open to the public took place that implemented the second stage in the Agroforestry project that began in October of 2024. Farmers, teachers, neighbors and collaborators from Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil participated, joining the Light Community to go deeper into this cultivation technique through discussions and practical applications, from March 8 to 11, 2025.
The meeting was attended by Diego Sabbado, a Brazilian agroforestry consultant with over 10 years of experience with this technique, and who spoke about this topic and a major project that will be carried out in the R2 area, together with Brother Patrício de San Pío, responsible for the Planting and Seeds Sector of the Community.
During the four days of the meeting, the participants were instructed on the matter then moved on to the practice through the preparation of the soil and the planting of more than 500 trees and approximately 3,000 different kinds of vegetables, in three rows, adding up to 420m of ground. “We had illustrative talks and work that was carried out on the land, in an environment of harmony, cooperation, dynamism and joy.” – says Oscar Di Marco, who travelled from Mar del Plata, Argentina, to participate in the meeting.
Beginning a new plan
Since 2019, the idea has been to implement this technique of soil cultivation in the Light Community, where the foundation is the introduction of trees into the agriculture. “We chose this system among many others mainly because it is about a more healthy and complete agriculture, which maintains biodiversity, creating a microclimate and assuring a better production of food, which allows it to be considered a part of the Emergency Plan.” – says Brother Patricio.
Throughout the years, different attempts were made to get results from this plan through various strategies, and since 2023, the Planting and Seeds Sector of the Light Community, with the collaboration of Diego Sabbado, slowly designed a new work plan, based on an exhaustive study of diverse and variable characteristics of the region, called the “Pampa” Biome, in line with the frequency of work done in the area, the number of people who could collaborate, the analysis of species that could be included, based on previous experiences, and what the Community consumed. Having concluded the work plan, the planning for the implementation of the cultivation was carried out, detailing the direction of the rows, the spaces and the species for each bed, according to their development.
“The way the technique is developed is different in each region, therefore, you have to pay attention to native trees and others types of trees to see how they develop. Generally, the use of herbicides and pesticides occurs because the environmental needs of the plants are not known, which may not be feeling okay where they are.” – comments Diego.
Getting to work
Because of the monoculture and the land rotation, which didn’t allow natural organisms to survive, the area presented a compacted soil with a minimum amount of nutrients. Therefore, the first step was the necessary regeneration of the soil with the strategy of covering it with organic matter, without removing it, so the micro-organisms and fungi could reproduce naturally, allowing them to contribute to the porosity of the soil.
As a characteristic of this system, the roots of trees also help in this process, allowing water to filter down and be available in the deeper layers, this being observed in the short term, since areas that previously were waterlogged now demonstrated a better filtration. Diego clarifies: “One of the principles of Agroforestry is that it’s about a regenerative agriculture because it succeeds in producing food, while at the same time, it improves the quality of the soil, leaving it in a better condition than it was previously.”
Other characteristics of equal importance at the time of organizing a successful cultivation: planting “windbreaker” species, with “Elephant Grass”, which allows the crops to be protected from the strong winds that remove humidity from the soil; a greater study of the moment of production and consumption of the species, so the result can be a harvesting of what is truly necessary for the Community. This allows the energy employed to function as a balance between maintenance and production.
Based on this study, various species of fruit trees, such as citruses, pear, apple, mulberry, and loquats, as well as eucalyptus and chinaberry trees, among others, were planted; given that in the last row, native species that could fulfill a double function were prioritized: the production of food and a second line of “windbreakers”.
Brother Patrício explains: “As our objective is the production of food for the Community, we saw that it is more practical to have a greater variety of species, different than ordinary agriculture, in which that would not be productive.”
Until the trees grow, in three to five years’ time, the focus of the system will be the production of vegetables, medicinal plants, and maintaining the soil by removing the weeds and renewing the compost.
Results of the meeting
Of the eight planned beds, five were able to be planted during those two meetings, following the anticipated design. All participants, among which were neighbors and teachers from the University of Salto, Uruguay, received a great impulse of timely knowledge on producing organic food without damaging the soil, as well as biodiversity.
“We were able to learn about the importance of the study, planning and the responsibility that is planting an agroforest. Many of those who participated don’t live in the Community, so a sharing of the process experienced here was achieved, giving an incentive to whoever wishes to implement their own projects”, – says Glaucia Pereira, a member of the Light Community.
Remembering that one of the goals of the project is a greater interaction of the Light Community and collaborators with the planting as an opportunity for physical and spiritual integration with the Kingdoms of Nature, Diego Sabbado comments: “Besides the objective being production, the idea is that it also be an activity that brings satisfaction when carrying it out, and that it not be just another task.”
This project, which allows the development of agro-diversity, mutual cooperation among the Kingdoms of Nature and humankind, the production of organic food, among others, and in the future, a possible self-sustainability of the Community, will receive another great impulse for finalizing the period of plantings through the third meeting in the month of October, 2025.
