028, Bryan O'Hara: Increase Life, Abundance, and Vitality with Intensive No-Till

Soul Soil: Where Agriculture and Spirit Intersect with Brooke Kornegay

If there were one enterprise that addresses environmental degradation, chronic illness, depression, and poverty, would you be willing to learn about it? Today, we speak to someone who seems to have hit the jackpot…he and his family have developed a highly productive, dense nutrient-producing farming style that feeds people like medicine. They have reached a point with their fields where weeds, pests, and disease issues are all but null, and the life and vitality that reaches well beyond their farm is rewarded with a community that supports and celebrates their efforts. Bryan O’Hara has been growing vegetables for a livelihood since 1990 at Tobacco Road Farm in Lebanon, Connecticut. He works with natural systems to build complex and balanced soil life, resulting in a highly productive, vibrant growing system. Bryan was named Northeast Organic Farming Association’s Farmer of the Year in 2016, and is the author of No-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture.

It’s easy to fall into the mentality that humans are bad for the Earth…but the Earth is actually overjoyed to have humans work with her, and are in fact the Earth’s best allies in bringing about health, vitality and increase of life and abundance for not only ourselves, but all of nature around us.

In this episode…

• How declining environmental conditions caused Bryan to explore the way he raised his vegetables
• How he transitioned to a no-till growing system
• Weeds, insects and disease show the farmer what kind of imbalance exists in the environment; when plants are a state of health and vitality, insects and diseases do not attack those plants
• We are currently experiencing a global pandemic that we can view as an indicator that our planetary environment is likewise imbalanced
• If a crop is experiencing lack of fertility or vitality, it will experience pest and disease pressure. Typically, a pesticide is applied to protect that crop, but if that plant lacked the vitality to survive, it will not confer vitality to the animal (or human) that consumes that crop.
• …conversely, a crop that is full of vitality that doesn’t attract insects and diseases, has the vital compounds that readily transfer to the consumer and produces higher-functioning humans or animals.
• Many of Bryan’s customers have been with him for 3 decades…over that time, the impacts of consuming highly vital, nutrient dense food have had profound effects on their health, vitality, and even their medical conditions.
• How operating within the community with the goal of “love for the other” creates a culture of cooperation, goodwill, and success
• Growing 4 acres’ worth of produce in one acre…the efficiencies of crop intensification
• Layering composting materials with living plant cover and other no-till techniques
• How to identify nutrient-dense food without equipment Some think that humans are fundamentally bad for the Earth…but working this way with natural forces, creating this kind of vibrancy, gives human life tremendous meaning…once you see the potential, the heights of health and vitality and increase of life and abundance for not only you, but all of nature around you. The Earth is actually overjoyed to have humans work with her, and are in fact the Earth’s best allies in bringing out more vibrancy and life.

Resources No-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture by Bryan O’Hara