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Make your own Integral Planting System  




Are you interested to develop your own Integral Planting System (IPS),
similar to the ones we use in Operation C02?


Then these webpages will help you to select potential species and show you examples of potential crop plans.



For who?

Farmers or other land owners that are interested to try something new and different.
Your land should be located in the following areas in Spain:



For the moment this website is not applicable for other regions because there is only project data available from our three project sites, which are located in these three regions (Area A; Alinyŕ, Area B; Ayoó de Vidriales and Area C; San Mateo de Gállego.



What should I need to know before I enter the next pages?

Our system will select potential species for you, based on your answers on 3 questions.




Question 1: The pH level of your soils.

You will be asked to enter the average pH level of your soils. Most plants favour soils with a pH between 5.0 and 7.5. If your soils are outside this range you might try to increase or decrease your levels (and fill in your ‘potential or future’ value in our system if you want).

The most common amendment to increase soil pH is lime (CaCO3 or MgCO3), usually in the form of finely ground agricultural lime. Organic matter in the form of plant litter, compost, and manure will decrease soil pH through the decomposition process. Certain acid organic matter such as pine needles, pine sawdust and acid peat are effective at reducing pH as well. Read more about pH --->
Soil acidity is measured in pH units. Soil pH is a measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions in the soil solution.
The lower the pH of soil, the greater the acidity.
pH is measured on a logarithmic scale from 1 to 14, with 7 being neutral.
A soil with a pH of 4 has 10 times more acid than a soil with a pH of 5 and 100 times more acid than a soil with a pH of 6.

Each plant species achieves maximum growth in a particular pH range, yet the vast majority of edible plants can grow in soil pH between 5.0 and 7.5. Plant growth and most soil processes, including nutrient availability and microbial activity, are favoured by a soil pH range of 5.5 – 8. Acid soil, particularly in the subsurface, will also restrict root access to water and nutrients. A pH below 7 is acidic and above 7 is alkaline.
Soil pH is considered a master variable in soils as it controls many chemical processes that take place. It specifically affects plant nutrient availability by controlling the chemical forms of the nutrient.



Question 2: Available water

We are going to ask you how much water there is available, in an average year. We assume that water only comes from rainfall as we do not promote the frequent use of irrigation systems.

Nevertheless it is sometimes needed to water newly planted trees in long lasting dry periods. This can happen 1-2 times per year and you might add this to your ‘available water’ if you want.





Question 3: Type of soil. We are going to ask you which type of soil you have.

We use the so called ‘UK-ADAS’ triangle for this. What soil do you have? Read more about soils --->

Soils are composed of solid particles of various sizes. In decreasing order, these particles are sand, silt and clay. Every soil can be classified according to the relative percentage of sand, silt and clay it contains. Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Loam soils generally contain more nutrients, moisture, and humus than sandy soils, have better drainage and infiltration of water and air than silty soils, and are easier to till than clay soils.
Tillage, monoculture, pesticide use, erosion and soil contamination or pollution generally have negative effects on most soil organisms, reducing the soil's capacity to maintain its function.
In most soils minerals represent around 45% of the total volume, water and air about 25% each, and organic matter from 2% to 5%. Ultimately, building organic matter and humus in the soil is a matter of managing the living organisms in the soil. For example in a loamy sand soil where organic matter reduces from 2% to 1.5% the nutrient holding capacity may decrease by 14%! Check this link to read more.


In Operation C02 we take all kind of measures to increase the Soil Organic Matter as this is crucial for soil restoration.