Regenerative farming: Do you really know your farm? 

How well do you know your farm – not just what you plant and where, but the soils beneath your feet, how water moves across the land and what is happening below ground? 

For Francis Yeatman of Oasis Agri, understanding your farm is the starting point for farming better. 

Speaking at a Regenerative Agriculture Landowner’s Day organised by the Overberg Renosterveld Trust in partnership with WWF South Africa in June, Yeatman shared practical principles of regenerative farming with around 20 farmers at Fairfield Farm, between Napier and Caledon. 

His message was for farmers to move away from farming according to a recipe and start understanding the natural systems that underpin their operations. 

“We are the generation of what we call the instant farmer,” he said. “These farmers seek a solution in a bag, a packet or a drum. You’ve got weeds, you spray them out. You’ve got insects, you spray them out. You’ve got a nutrient deficiency, you fertilise. We don’t really think. And that’s a problem.” 

Six principles of regenerative farming 

According to Yeatman, regenerative and smart farming can be guided by six key principles: 

• Understand all aspects of your farming operation. Know your land, soils, water, crops and livestock – and understand how they interact. 

• Minimise soil disturbance. “Everyone is moving towards minimum disturbance of the soil. And it’s a great thing. No-till works, but it has to be part of a system.” 

• Maximise crop diversity. Greater diversity can help build a more resilient farming system. 

• Keep the soil covered. Avoid leaving soil bare and vulnerable to erosion, moisture loss and temperature extremes. 

• Maintain living roots year-round, where possible. Yeatman acknowledges that this can be challenging, but living roots play an important role in supporting soil life. 

• Integrate livestock. Livestock can form part of regenerative systems, including on vineyard and orchard farms. 

For farmers starting their regenerative farming journey, Yeatman says there is no need to reinvent the wheel. “Speak to people in the industry. The knowledge is there. Don’t make those costly mistakes others have made.”

10 practical steps towards regenerative farming 

So where should a farmer start? Yeatman outlined 10 areas to consider. 

1. Map your farm

Do you really know your farm? A good farm map can help you understand the different areas you are working with and make better decisions about how they should be managed. 

2. Know your soils

Understand the texture and soil class, as well as soil depth and moisture-holding capacity. Different soils need different management. 

Yeatman warns against simply following the same fertiliser programme year after year. “I go to some farms and they haven’t done soil sampling in 20 years. They just plant wheat, or maize, or sugarcane, and they say this is the fertiliser they use. That’s recipe farming, and that’s what got everyone into trouble in the first place.” 

3. Sample your soil and leaves

Regular soil and leaf sampling gives farmers information on which to base their decisions. Yeatman encourages farmers to understand how sampling should be done and, where possible, learn to do it themselves. 

4. Understand your results

Taking a soil sample is only useful if you understand what the results are telling you. Farmers should learn how to interpret soil and leaf analyses, rather than automatically responding by adding more fertiliser. As Yeatman puts it: “Often all that happens is you add more fertiliser to the piggy bank.” 

5. Make informed fertiliser decisions

Use the information you have gathered to develop fertiliser recommendations suited to your particular soils, crops and farming system. Ultimately, Yeatman says, the farmer needs to understand the information well enough to make informed decisions for the farm. 

6. Make decisions for your farm and crops

Regenerative farming is not a fixed recipe. Decisions should be based on the conditions, needs and goals of your particular farming operation. 

7. Rebuild natural soil cycles

Healthy soil is a living system. “Many soils are so dead around the world,” Yeatman said. “They are structurally and biologically completely bankrupt.” Rebuilding soil structure, biology and natural nutrient cycles is therefore a central part of regenerative farming. 

8. Think differently about livestock and grazing

Livestock can provide more than an additional income stream. Managed correctly, animals can contribute to soil health through dung, urine and saliva, as well as through their interaction with plants. 

Grazing strategies should therefore consider what animals are doing for the farming system as a whole, rather than simply how much forage is available. 

9. Think carefully about water

The quality and location of water for irrigation and livestock matter. Yeatman gives the example of placing livestock water points in the centre of a camp, which can lead to concentrated hoof action and pressure around one small area. “Rather put your water on the outside and let the animals go out to a much bigger surface area,” he suggests. 

10. Monitor what is changing

Finally, collect data and monitor the results of the changes you make. “We use a lot of satellite imagery for monitoring and data collection,” Yeatman said.  

But monitoring can take many forms. The important point is to know whether your interventions are working and to adjust your approach when they are not. 

Look at soil differently 

Underlying all these steps is one important change in thinking. “Look at soil as a living soil, not a growing medium,” Yeatman said. And when it comes to building healthy soils, he has another simple message: carbon is king. Everything revolves around how much carbon is in the soil.” 

 What happens below ground ultimately influences what farmers see above it. Building soil carbon and improving soil structure can support healthier and more resilient farming systems. 

 “I don’t worry about what’s happening on top because downstairs is where it’s all happening,” Yeatman said. “It’s going to give you the result upstairs.”

Plant with purpose 

Yeatman also encourages farmers to be clear about why they are planting a particular crop or cover crop. “Ask yourself, what is your goal – and aim for that.” 

Crop rotations and cover crops should form part of a wider farming strategy, with healthier and more resilient soils as the goal. “You need to drought-proof and flood-proof your soils. These are the goals that we’re aiming for.” 

The same thinking applies to the physical landscape. Yeatman cautions against removing contours and waterways simply to make planting and machinery movement easier. “It’s not smart. It’s easy for the equipment and for planting, but it’s not the right thing to do.”

Even pollinators need enough food 

Regenerative thinking also extends beyond crops, soils and livestock. Yeatman raises an interesting example: overgrazing is usually associated with livestock, but a landscape can effectively be “overgrazed” by pollinators too. 

Natural veld can only support a certain number of pollinators based on the food available. Bringing additional beehives into an area without sufficient flowering plants can place pressure on this resource. 

But this could also present an opportunity. Flowering cover crops may provide additional forage for bees, potentially opening the door to partnerships between farmers and beekeepers. It is another example of looking at the farm as a connected system, rather than considering each element in isolation. 

Start somewhere 

Perhaps most importantly, Yeatman encourages farmers to experiment, learn and be patient. 

Regenerative farming is not about changing an entire farming operation overnight. It is about understanding the system better, making informed changes and learning from the results. 

“Anything in the ground is better than nothing in the ground,” he said. 

And farmers shouldn’t be afraid of getting some things wrong along the way. “If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not trying hard enough.” 

Watch Francis Yeatman’s full presentation: