Restoration Agriculture

Real-World Permaculture for Farmers

By: Mark Shepard

Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross

Length: 13 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

Restoration Agriculture reveals how to sustainably grow perennial food crops that can feed us in our resource-compromised future.  

The restoration agriculture system described in this award-winning book works! It is possible for humans to produce staple foods using perennial agricultural ecosystems that actually improve the quality of the environment. This can be done on a backyard, farm, or ranch scale and is needed right now - on a global scale.  

Restoration Agriculture explains how we can have all of the benefits of natural, perennial ecosystems and create agricultural systems that imitate nature in form and function while still providing for our food, building, fuel, and many other needs. Using the restoration agriculture system, an oak savanna mimic will produce more than twice the number of edible human calories per acre as an average acre of corn, never needs to be planted again, prevents erosion, creates oil, and can be managed with no fossil fuel inputs. This book, based on real-world practices, presents an alternative to the agriculture system of eradication and offers exciting hope for our future.

©2013 Mark Shepard (P)2019 Tantor

Meh.

I was so frustrated by Mr. Shepard's pontification on the ills of society and how these are related to annual crops that I wrote a very negative review before. I've decided to go for neutral, because I didn't finish the book so I don't know whether he every started telling me anything that would be useful to someone interested in the practice of sustainable agriculture. The last 6 hours of the book may be awesome. I will likely never know.

brilliant eye opening perspective on agriculture!

anyone worried about agriculture practices and the environmental degradation that follows will be captivated by this book. Mark Shepard is permaculture farming on an industrial scale, his perspective on how to farm is truly unique. I have struggled coddling fruit trees but I am adopting the STUN method of planting and will definitely view and approach things differently after learning from this book.

I wasted my money

More of a manifesto, than anything. Short on hard data or citations. Uncertain how this is any different from permaculture.

Excellent Exposé On Perennial Agriculture

I have treasured the value and power of perennials on our farm for a long time. However I have not taken the time to consider seriously how that might be expanded across our entire operation. This book provided that opportunity and important elements for implementation.

very real a must read book

once i finish listening to this book i just realized how cruel we really are as a resident of earth. and this book tells me how monocrop system in agriculture had a big impact in our ecosysytem and in our health as a human being..such a great book

Fantastic resource

Inspirational, informative and just enough for basic to commercial. Way to not sell anything; instead this resource asks the reader to question everything and not be satisfied with the current facade. My next step is to write the author and personally thank him and his mentors for this wonderful book! Thank you Mark Shepard and influencing team members!

Magnificent

This book is packed full of wisdom and information. I will be listening to it again soon.

Did not enjoy being lectured on global warming.

it was hard to finish. I love the ideas of putting trees in the ground and making things better in my small part of the world. I did not enjoy being lectured on how terrible we as a scocity are. stop lecturing just need the information to make my part of the world productive.

Worth it!

Very interesting, informative, and inspiring. Everyone should read about the benefits of permaculture and food forestry. Also, if you have Netflix, a good companion might be the documentary Kiss the Ground, as it gives a good bit of visual aid to this story as well as expounding on some central ideas.

A must read for anyone wanting to grow food!

This book was absolutely incredible! I loved every bit of it! This is a powerful and useful tool for anyone wanting to grow their own food!

Muddled and not clearly expressed.

I had high hopes for this book... unfortunately it zig-zaged across themes of conversation in a muddled fashion lacking any direction and sensible continuity. The book's content applies only to one part of the USA so much if it has no relevance to Europe, Asia or South America. It is in fact somewhat parochial and colloquial and I am afraid, being European was struggling to gain much information from it.

Totally inspiring!!

This book has completely blown my mind and the obvious brilliance of it all is truly inspiring. Of course why hasn't any thought to simply copy what nature has been doing right all this time. Superb!!

Read many books on the subject, but I still learnt

great book no issue finishing and a must read if you're interest in the subject matter.

Great and informative

A bit heavy, listening to this for more than a few hours at a time but it's a good book and read well.

inspiring

A call to action. A combination of the pragmatic approach to restoration agriculture and the underlying ethos. it is an eye opening view on how so many of the world's currently problems could be addressed. It was an engrossing listen.