For farmers
Agroforestry, Soil and Water Planning for Farms
Adding trees, cover or new water management to working fields is a long-term decision. The layout has to fit equipment, keep fields productive and respond to how water actually moves across the farm.
From EarthDesign, the land-design practice of David Sussberg
Common needs
Tree rows that fit the field and the machinery
Alley cropping and windbreaks work best when row spacing matches your equipment and rows follow the land. On sloping ground, rows that run along the contour can slow runoff; rows straight downhill can speed it up.
Runoff and erosion across fields
Gullies, washed headlands and wet low spots cost yield. A whole-farm view of catchments and flow paths shows where water concentrates, which helps decide where cover, grassed waterways or conditional earthworks might be worth investigating.
Soils that differ across the farm
Public soil surveys describe typical conditions for mapped units, and those units can change within one field. Knowing where they change helps decide where to sample and where different crops or trees may suit.
Production-scale food forests and orchards
An orchard or food forest block meant to sell fruit needs access, frost drainage, water and harvest logistics designed in from the start, not added later.
Learn first
Guides that answer these questions
Questions worth asking before planting
Which way do your fields drain, and where does water leave the property? Where does cold air settle on frosty nights? How wide does an alley need to be for your sprayer, mower or harvester? Which fields could tolerate a few years of reduced cropping while trees establish?
These are planning prompts, not results from any particular farm.
Explore a service
Services that fit this kind of property
Each service page explains scope, limitations and published pricing before any checkout or application.
- LiDAR Topographic Maps for Land PlanningBare-earth terrain, contours, slope and mapped soils across every field.View service
- Water Flow and Erosion Planning for Your LandFlow accumulation, catchments and storm-runoff estimates to understand erosion risk before choosing a fix.View service
- Earthworks and Keyline PlanningPlanning-level keyline, swale, pond or check-dam layouts, proposed only where analysis supports them.View service
- Focused Food Forest and Agroforestry DesignCustom-quoted design for orchards, alley cropping, on-contour production or silvopasture, by application.View service
- Regenerative Land Design for Homesteads, Farms and RanchesA whole-farm plan placing trees, cropping and grazing on the mapped terrain and water.View service
Limitations
- Farm program, conservation-practice and certification requirements are separate from a design plan and are not guaranteed by it.
- Earthworks near streams, wetlands or shared drainage may need permits and licensed professional review.
Not sure where to start?
See a reviewed contour map of your land first, or talk with David about which step suits your property.
EarthDesign is a digital design and visualization platform. Outputs are advisory; site execution, regulatory permits, and licensed professional sign-offs remain the responsibility of the client and their licensed contractors. No warranty of fitness for a particular purpose is made, expressed, or implied.
Read the full Terms of Service & Disclaimers.