Hey guys. So nice to find this topic. I have been researching Terra Preta de Índio for a while now and I have visited some sites where it exists and the idea is fascinating. I am Brazilian and met natives from the Amazon, my family has a long time relation with the cause. I liked the video very much, I have been struggling with an idea on how to even start the process, and this video gave a direction to follow.
A few things I would like to add to the discussion:
Terra Preta wasn't something they built as a product for a special purpose. It was part of their lifestyle, of their way of surviving and thriving in that harsh environment. Natives tend to think of themselves as just another player in the forest game, not the main ones, having to develop a way of being that allows them to have what they need and ensure that their kids also thrive, but not by acting over nature but according to it. They don't accumulate, everything has a purpose. They find a place to make their homes, they clear the jungle, build houses with that material, and there is fire going on all the time, for cooking, smoking stuff, rituals, the cassava flour making process, and every utensil is made for a reason, they don't keep a shelf full of different bowls and stuff. they make what they use and that is that. If something has finished it's purpose it is discarded. But they do it in a way that cycles it back. They stay in a place for maybe 2 to 4 years, take everything down and move to another location. They keep doing that in the same area but never stay in a place for too long nor make it too big and crowded. War was something sacred and holy to them and almost all of them were cannibals, eating their enemies and deceased in a ritual. Nowadays things are different but this puts a light in the thinking process.
They would use an area, grow crops, hunt, make war, breed and after a while they move, and while taking it all down they break the pottery and spread it around, burn the houses and fences down, leave the bones and scraps there, mulch it and let nature do its thing. When they come back, after a while, the soil is richer and they repeat it. This went on for thousands of years.
So first, the best we can do is a poor imitation, but we can use the principle: look around and figure how can you use what you have and cycle it back? Burning? Burying? What is missing? How can I use what I have to fix that? What can I do different so it will be easier to cycle back and make the soil better?
These are just provocations, to enrich the discussion.
I would bet on mixing everything in layers, lots of biochar, bones, clay, broken pottery, inoculate with IMO, rotate crops and leave the soil to rest from time to time, letting the native spontaneous plants grow, then take it all down, more layering, grow and rotate crops and so on. Biochar I guess is a must, also bones and scraps. The rest is going to depend on your local reality. But I think there is no sense in bringing in stuff from far away, has to be done with stuff you have available around.
I hope to see updates of this. Gonna try it myself too
