Agroforestry on contour swales in Flanders: Venturing into Aquaculture? (Belgium)

On the hillside of the Rodeberg in Westouter the organic cattle farmer Rik Delhaye started establishing swales on his pasture land. Swales combine an on-contour ditch with a downslope berm. On the ditches he installs a polyculture system consisting of different storeys, from vegetables to berries to high-stem fruit trees. The swales reduce erosion to zero: the landscape can rehydrate again and nutrients stay on the land. The water retention capacity on the landscape increases which enables venturing into land-based aquaculture.