In this video I talk about nitrogen fixing plants and why I plant them in my orchard. I also show how I plant them and explain where I get my nitrogen fixing plants from. Visit Practical Primate at practicalprimate.com
Really helpful piece. Thank you. . I have a small urban (Manly Sydney) patch so I was looking for low growing , mostly native nitrogen fixers for small space. What would you suggest for a small very windy westerly coastal spot? This is my food forest site in the making. On other areas of my property I have 5 x 60 meter Angophera Growing in sandstone rock. I have put mulch down and no leaves and branches leave my site. I have put in mostly birds nest ferns and other epiphytes , as there is too much root and sun competition there to grow food there. However I would like to develop a chop and drop nitrogen fixing shrub system there as it is too hard to carry any mulch up there. What would you plant there that is nitrogen fixing and looks hedge like? The visiting drinking kangaroo was absolutely awesome!
A lot of the nitrogen fixers will struggle to be hedge like in low light and the ones that might do well are a bit weedy (pigeon pea). I might try the native Senna species. Consider other fast growing/hedging plants, even if they aren’t nitrogen fixing. I use vetiver grass for this but it won’t like the shade either. If you wanted an edible star fruit does very well in dappled light and can hedge nicely. Really it depends on how shady it is. I hope you find a solution for your spot :)
Great video thanks but i have a question : the lagumes while they are alive and consuming the nitrogen from the air can feed the next plants and in the same time can fix the soil , or after the decomposition of the lagume can feed the soil and fix it with nitrogen?
If they are just left to grow they don’t do a lot but by pruning you can use the green material to feed your trees and at the same time legumes can self prune some of their roots when you prune the top. This will release some of the fixed nitrogen to be used by the surrounding trees.
I know this may be too old for comments....thanks for the useful info. Noticed you mentioned the leaf shape of moringa... it may not be a legume but i undertand it is a nitrogen source in a food forest... would that be only as a chop and drop?
Yes,,I don’t think the rhizobia releases the nitrogen into the soil, they provide nitrogen to the plant, so you have to chop and drop in order to get the nitrogen into the soil.
You said you were from the tropics. Where? Do you know anybody near the deforestation of the Amazon? I have experimented with many NO2 trees and most did well here, but I do have a bag of trees that.cant take our cold. But I hate to waste them so after seeing a video on slash and burn in the Amazon if I had someone I could send seeds too, I think they could help rebuild that area. The Amazon is notorious for having poor soul and after clearing the rain removes the topsoil. These trees would go crazy there but I just don't have a place to send them. Australia and Africa has plenty of native NO2 trees that they don't really need help...thanks!
Dwayne Melton hi Dwayne! I’m in the subtropics (I still get the odd frost) Brisbane Australia. I think it is always best to act local, find someone in your local area who could use them on their property is what I would do.
@@PracticalPrimate well I have had good luck and with internet friends I have sent seed around the world. Bit the last remaining area is getting them to the deforested areas of the Amazon. The other countries have either plenty of natives or exotics that are working well. So sending my seed locally won't get the results I am looking for. It had to be the slash and burn areas of Amazonia.
