No Till Grains?

My husband and I just watched the Back to Eden film and were contemplating whether grains (wheat, oats, etc) could be grown no till in quantities great enough to feed a family and livestock. Plowing certainly makes it easier to plant in the beginning, but could no till be done successfully long-term without massive amounts of time/ labor/ inputs? We're looking at calories here as well as quality of life. We don't want to be subsistence farmers or to be so involved in growing things to eat that we have no time for other interests (and we have many).

Take a look at "Kernza". I'm not sure about how it would grow in your climate. Thynopirium intermedium is what Rodale started out with in the development of "Kernza" Some of the perennial ryes I think are for a bit colder climate. I like Great Basin Seeds they might have a suggestion for your zone .

Search for Marc Bonfils for no-plow wheat production.

Winter rye grows feral in the wildlands here. It takes care of itself with no weeding, and no irrigation. No other grain grows consistently in the wildlands in my ecosystem.

I can harvest and clean enough grain in an hour to feed myself for a week. I love subsistence farming. Makes my heart sing.

Robert Ray wrote:Take a look at "Kernza". I'm not sure about how it would grow in your climate. Thynopirium intermedium is what Rodale started out with in the development of "Kernza" Some of the perennial ryes I think are for a bit colder climate. I like Great Basin Seeds they might have a suggestion for your zone .

Kernza would probably grow here, but we're not quite to the level of growing 20 acres which it looks like is the minimum amount they'll sell for planting. I think my husband figured 5 acres to be enough for our personal use with the heirloom wheat we planted this year (can't remember the variety off the top of my head. We planted 1/3 acre and will save the seed to plant next year.) That being said, kernza yields are lower than standard wheat so we'd have to plant more. Might be worth it if we didn't have to mess with plowing, disking, and planting.

Christopher Weeks wrote:Search for Marc Bonfils for no-plow wheat production.

My husband has been looking at that one, possibly planting ladino clover on the field with the wheat (he may have already done that, but I'm not sure), but we're questioning long-term yields with the Bonfils method.  Another question is how labor intensive is it? If we can't do it in the same amount of time with similar yields to the traditional plowing and sowing, then it may be unrealistic for our sustainability goals. We're also looking at rocky, clay soil so may need to do other amendments for satisfactory results. That's why Back to Eden is appealing to me right now, though obtaining enough organic matter to cover 5 acres 4-6 inches deep might be problematic... 🤔

Joseph Lofthouse wrote:Winter rye grows feral in the wildlands here. It takes care of itself with no weeding, and no irrigation. No other grain grows consistently in the wildlands in my ecosystem.

I can harvest and clean enough grain in an hour to feed myself for a week. I love subsistence farming. Makes my heart sing.

I wonder what the yield per acre is, how satisfactorily it can be harvested with a combine, and whether additional processing steps are required before it's ready to turn into the final product (ground, rolled, crimped, etc)? I know many permies enjoy subsistence farming which is why I said we're not very interested in it since the farming methods may well differ!

I'm not sure how close "Kernza" is to thyropinium intermedium but that is what Rodale started with and it is available in small quantities. Landrace it, see what you get.

Joseph, could you describe your technique for harvesting and threshing it out?  Thanks.

Do you mean no till or perennial grains?  No till is easy but needs some expensive toys.  The neighbors no till drill covers 24 feet in a pass.

In my estimation, no-till organic grain harvests cannot be done with a combine. Because the high percentage of green weeds in the field hampers the proper functioning of combines, which require completely dry crops.

I harvest by hand, with secateurs, sickle, or knife.

Throw seed heads onto a tarp.

Thresh by stamping with feet, or beating with a stick.

Screen.

Winnow.

Same technique which built civilization.