What is Natural Farming?

There are two contributions in Natural Farming that are unique to Master Cho. 

 

• Microbial soil health for Soil Foundation

• Directed Biochemistry based on the Nutritive Cycle

 

SOIL FOUNDATION & MICROBES

The basis for a living system is the soil. Having healthy, fertile soil is the basis for a healthy, fertile, ecosystem, whether it is in the wild or in a food production system. The foundation of health and fertility in the soil comes from the microbial ecology of the soil. In order to have a Soil Foundation that is healthy, fertile, and dynamically balanced, we cultivate a microbial community from a healthy fertile environment. While chemical fertilizers and pesticides kill microbes, Natural Farming seeks to enhance and improve microbes in the soil and on the plants.

 

The basis for the Soil Foundation in Korean Natural Farming, known as KNF, is IMO. The method of cultivating IMO developed by Master Cho is the most advanced and effective method for creating a solid Soil Foundation. In his method the Soil Foundation is built by installing an intact, healthy and balanced ecosystem of soil microbes using IMO, Indigenous Micro Organisms. The microbes are installed as a complete and dynamically balance soil ecosystem.

 

IMO is collected from soil duff and leaf mold from an area close to the farm. Indigenous means local. No other microbes are as adaptive, and have as much strength and effectiveness for you as microbes that have been in your area for millennia.

 

IMO is safe, easy, inexpensive, and highly effective. It is used to establish balanced, healthy, vigorous soil. It maintains the relationship between roots and microbes, allowing the plant to grow stronger despite bad weather, tolerate high and low temperature extremes, and long periods of rain or drought. A healthy root-microbe balance means the plant can maintain an area around the roots with the proper pH, even if the soil is not ideal. This means it can uptake the proper nutrients it needs, when it needs them, and in the proper amounts. IMO also maintains the microbial balance on leaves, stems, and other aerial plant parts. Many biochemical reactions take place above ground, not just with the roots.

 

DIRECTED BIOCHEMISTRY & NUTRITIVE CYCLE

Directed Biochemistry is accomplished with the Nutritive Cycle, by giving weekly foliar sprays according to a plants specific stage of life. These sprays contain hormones, enzymes, co-factors and other essential plant compounds. They are made from materials found on or near the farm, and made bio-available, most from undergoing wild Aerobic Fermentation, which makes the results immediate.

 

Foliar sprays are given weekly, about an hour before sunset. Weekly formulas mean you can react to a changing environment in real time. The formulas are based on the life cycle of the plant and can be used to correct deficiencies and maintain desired growth patterns.

 

Very small amounts of the inputs are needed for the desired effect. They are easy to make from natural material on or near your property. Everything is safe and edible. Many inputs are taken by people regularly and used in cooking. Most inputs can be kept for several years if properly stored.

 

By using the Nutritive Cycle we respect the stages of life, by offering plants the ability to use only what they need, when they need it, and in the proper amounts. This is important because insufficiency and excess both lead to pests and disease.

 

In order for the Nutritive Cycle to work properly it is important to have a good Soil Foundation. We need to insure that the plant can get what it needs from the soil.

 

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