At the beginning of December 2024, we implemented a keyline system in the garden of the 21st century in Senan. Keylines are plow lines or small trenches that are oriented along contour lines and aim to increase soil health by storing and distributing rainwater. The keyline system was originally developed by the Australian mining engineer Percival Alfred Yeomans to make his agricultural land more resistant to drought.

Our Keyline system in Senan was designed by experts with experience in Mediterranean areas. In Senan, it usually rains in the winter months and there is a pronounced drought in summer. First, the natural topography was studied. How does the rainwater flow after a rainfall event? Where does it collect and where does it run off quickly? The new key lines are intended to ensure that the rainwater seeps away along the plough lines on the one hand and, on the other, that it is directed from the wetter to the drier areas at a gradient of around 3 %, thus distributing it evenly over the surface. The result is a system of parallel plough lines, each 6 meters apart. 6 meters allows the areas between the lines to be worked by machine.

What was first planned on the computer was then transferred to the landscape using a precise GPS device. Over the course of two days, hundreds of points were marked with small wooden poles. The tractor then drove along the keylines and plowed a plow line about 30 cm deep into the ground.

It remains to be seen exactly what the system will look like in the coming years and what will be planted. In the past, grapes were grown industrially for decades on the rather clayey and therefore very hard soil in dry periods. The idea is to combine grape cultivation with pastures for horses - grapes along the keylines and rotational grazing with horses in between.