Regrarians Refinements to Management Layers for Soils and Economy

A Misunderstanding About Land Management Priorities

There's a misunderstanding about how to prioritize the different layers involved in land design and management. Many of us start by drawing artificial lines on the landscape based on our implements, aesthetics, or the views we want from our front porches. P.A. Yeomans developed what he called Keyline, or the Keyline Plan, more than 50 years ago for the development of agricultural land. It was based first on his conception of what soil is, how it developed naturally, and how it can be further developed by applying the scale of permanence to the overall design of the landscape.

Regrarians' Expansion and Refinement of the Scale

Regrarians, developed by Darren Doherty, adopted the work of Yeomans, expanding and refining it to work in different contexts in any landscape. The layers are in order of permanence. Some things like climate can hardly be manipulated at all, other than microclimates. Geography can be manipulated only slightly. All designs should embrace these foundational layers and strive to work within the given framework rather than fighting it.

The infrastructure and development layers come first: water, access, forestry, buildings, fencing, energy. The management layers follow: soils, economy. This refined approach helps ensure we consider each element according to how readily it can be changed.

Soils and Economy as Management Layers

Soils and economy make up the management layers in the Regrarians refinement of Yeomans' Scale of Permanence. Because these sit here in the order of permanence, they are more readily manipulated than infrastructure or climate. This placement flows from Yeomans' focus on understanding natural soil development and how it can be further developed within the overall design.

The economy layer integrates the financial realities of land management with the physical landscape. Every situation is different, so these layers must be considered in light of your complete context rather than in isolation. It depends on the specific challenges and opportunities on your own operation.

Building Resilient Landscapes with Greater Production and Carrying Capacity

By taking this approach to land management, we strive to work in harmony with what we're given instead of forcing preferences over the natural use and flow of the landscape. The best designs take the complete context into account before the blade starts cutting up the landscape, before the first fence post is driven, and before the first foundation is laid for a building.

Few of us can start with a clean slate. But we can all start somewhere, and changing the way we do things by accounting for these management layers can result in a much more resilient landscape, greater production, higher carrying capacities, and healthier animals. This healthier landscape tends to smooth out the highs and lows of weather as it adapts the land to take the greatest advantage of the climate.