https://reasonstobecheerful.world/dutch-salt-tolerant-farming//
"When Arjan Berkhuysen and his fellow volunteers on the Dutch island of
Terschelling looked for a spot to start a garden, they sought the least fertile
location they could find. The plot they landed on is just over a dike from the
Wadden Sea along the Netherlands’ northern coast. The water in the irrigation
ditches is often brackish. For most growers, salinity is an affliction; salt in
soil or water can diminish plant health and reduce crop yield. But for this
group of gardeners, the spot was ideal.
De Zilte Smaak — “The Salty Taste” — specializes in edible plants that grow in
saline conditions, like samphire, tiny spears that resemble asparagus, and
tender-leafed sea aster. The salt-loving delicacies grown on this plot end up
on plates in restaurants across this island, a popular summer destination. The
project is one of a number of initiatives in the Netherlands exploring the
possibilities of farming in salty conditions, ranging from edible plants in
small-scale gardens like this, to identification of salt-tolerant varietals of
conventional crops like potatoes and beets.
In the Netherlands and worldwide, more and more farmers are facing challenges
with food production as climate change makes soils and water saltier. Globally,
an estimated 20 percent of cultivated land is affected by salinity. In the
Netherlands, where a quarter of land is below sea level, some regions are
seeing impacts already, and salinity is expected to become a more prominent
hurdle for agriculture in the decades ahead. But recent developments are
proving it’s possible to adapt farming techniques and crops to saline
conditions.
“As humans, we tend to always adapt the environment to us,” says Berkhuysen, a
member of De Zilte Smaak’s board. “Here, [we] try to adapt ourselves to the
environment.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
