The above diagram is a theoretical 50 ft by 50 ft (2500 sqft) area.
In this area, we can keep chickens, for eggs and meat, as well as have them roam freely in the white-box area to spread their manure. This will allow for additional composting material to seep into the soil for the plants.
Apart from that, the weeds, snails, slugs and worms taken from around the farm can be thrown into the white-box area to feed the chickens.
Then, we have the green area for planting. We can use square foot planting method to maximise planting area, as well as reduce pest risk, as we plant different varieties in each square foot. In this diagram, I've counted about 900 sqft of planting space. By changing the design, you may get more planting space.
We will also have a bit of space for both worm compost and conventional compost, to create more nutrition for our plants. Dried leaves, weeds, spent coffee, spent tea leaves, kitchen waste and so on can be collected to be used here. The output of these composts, will be spread on the planting area to increase fertility of the land.
From the side view, you can see that we can actually apply hugelkultur by putting in woody material in the soil. When these woods rot, they become sponge to retain nutrient and water, allowing the plants to get the best out of the soil.
Apart from that, we can do raised bed for the planting area, keeping weed out of the main planting area.
Depending on design, we can have slope area as shown in the diagram to increase planting area. I am not sure if this will help make the planting more efficient or less, since some plants may not do well on slopes.
Lastly, as you will have noticed, we have raised ground and water will definitely flow in excess when we have rain. If we use a little bit of creativity, we can create a simple drain system to direct all the water into a pond nearby, to be reused to water the plants. Also, this pond can be used for fish rearing and planting of aquatic plants.
I shall be trying out this model soon but given the limitation of funding, manpower, machinery and time, it will be quite a few months before I can give any feedback on using the system.
Hope this might inspire something. Happy farming!
