French Guiana: agroforestry in the Amazonian forest

Brut America

This farmer in the Amazonian forest uses a mix of modern agricultural techniques and ancient Amerindian know-how.   Brut Nature went to French Guiana to meet him.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to my plot. I'm going to show you what exactly agroforestry is.

00:30As you can see, there is a lot of plant diversity.

00:36Here you have the ruku, which is used in traditional culinary meals.

00:42We have papaya and banana.

00:45We keep as many wild plants as possible, such as the guava tree,

00:49which can bring phosphorus and phosphate.

00:52We're going to let it grow for a while.

00:54Then we're going to cut it and put it at the feet of the bananas, for example.

00:58This is a very precious tree for us.

01:02It's called a sweet pepper.

01:04It's a tree that fixes the nitrogen from the air and restores it to the ground.

01:08It allows the plant to develop.

01:10It's also a nitrogen-fixing tree.

01:14Working like this allows the plant to have good health.

01:18No need for phytosanitary supplements.

01:23The plant grows on its own.

01:26Today, we know that there is a kind of cooperation between the plants.

01:33There are no bad herbs.

01:49An abatis is a cut area that will be transformed into an agricultural plot.

01:54We're going to cut the wood and let it dry for about a month or two.

01:59After that, we're going to burn it so that the plants can feed on the ashes.

02:03It's a very specific technique in the Amazon.

02:07Our ancestors used it.

02:09As you can see, the soil is full of coal.

02:11It allows us to have good soil.

02:14It gives phenomenal results.

02:17This tree is an avocado tree.

02:20It's less than two years old.

02:22Here we have a small plot of yam.

02:26You can see the earthworms.

02:29It's excellent for the soil.

02:31These are our friends.

02:33They're our helpers.

02:35When we see them, we're happy.

02:37We use chemical products in this soil.

02:40I used it.

02:42The soil doesn't look like this.

02:45The soil becomes very pale.

02:49There are no microorganisms.

02:56With phytosanitary products, we get great results in the beginning.

03:01But then it percolates.

03:03When you look closely, the alternative method is much better in the long run.

03:20This is a country rose.

03:24We use it to make juice, jam and syrup.

03:28It's a shame to consume things that have traveled thousands of miles by plane or boat.

03:35We are an Amerindian people.

03:37We are the first native people.

03:39We have a lot of products in the world,

03:42including potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and beans.

03:46I think we have to preserve this pride,

03:49rediscover it, develop it

03:52and start producing our own local products again.

04:09I think that all over the world today,

04:12there are farmers who have realized

04:15that they don't have to exploit the soil,

04:18but they have to work with it.

04:21The soil is alive.

04:23As we say, the soil is our mother.

04:26It's extraordinary what nature can bring.

04:29Extraordinary.

04:31I'm almost moved by saying that,

04:33because we're nothing compared to that.

04:36We only ask the soil to work with it.

04:39The pride and humility of being able to harvest everything we've done

04:43is phenomenal.

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