Research

The Agricultural Research Station was established at Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture in 1990. Research is conducted to understand the nutrient circulation and ecosystem of Nature Farming. We study and develop practical technologies to improve crop yields and to enrich the soil ecosystem for producing healthy crops. In addition, we develop new crop cultivars suited for organic farming.

We focus on the following five research themes.

1. Crop cultivation
2. Plant nutrition and soil microbiology
3. Agroecosystem management
4. Plant breeding
5. Seed production

Agricultural Research Station

The Agricultural Research Station was opened in 1990 as the center for conducting research on and developing technologies of Nature Farming, which was advocated by Mokichi Okada in 1935. Upon the approval of the organization as a public interest incorporated foundation in 2012, the headquarters of the International Nature Farming Research Center was placed at the research station, including the departments of administration, research and organic agriculture support.

The Research Department consists of three sections:
Research Section: the development of practical cultivation systems useful for Nature Farming practitioners.
Plant Breeding Section: the development of new cultivars suitable for Nature Farming and organic seed production.
Education Section: the training of farmers who would practice Nature Farming in the future.

The Research Section aims to develop stable cultivation systems of healthy and high-quality organic crops. We run several research projects to clarify the agroecosystem of Nature Farming and to improve cropping systems for organic farming.

The station also functions as the office of the Organic Farming Promotion Council to support people who wish to learn organic farming.

Okada advocated “allowing the soil to exhibit its power” as the principle of Nature Farming. Our organization aims to develop Nature Farming cultivation technologies conforming to the principle and to scientifically prove the theory of the farming method.

Field area

297 a (80 a paddy fields, 212 a crop land including fields for breeding experiment)

Climate

A humid continental climate bordering on a humid subtropical climate, with hot summers and cold winters. Annual precipitation is about 1,000 mm, which is half the average precipitation in Japan. The weather is drier in winter because of winds coming through the high mountain range of the Northern Japan Alps. Frosting begins in early October and lasts until late May.

Elevation

695 m

Soil type

Andosol

Chita-Kusagi Farm

The roles of the farm are as follows.
– Exhibition of research outcomes and the test and trial cultivation of new cultivars
– Cultivation experiments of crop land and paddy fields in a temperate environment
– Promotion of Nature Farming through filed tours

Established on

April 1, 2011

Farming area

1.75 ha (6 paddy fields, 4 crop fields and a greenhouse)

Elevation:

35 m

Annual average temperature

15.7 °C

Annual precipitation

1,498 mm

Annual hours of sunlight

2,051 hours

Soil type

Gley soil