THE LAND INSTITUTE

Salina, USA
The Land Institute

The Land Institute is a non-profit science-based research organization that works to develop an alternative to current agricultural practices by advancing perennial grain crops and polyculture farming solutions. While 70% of the planet's crops are grown as annuals, the process of cultivating annuals requires suppressing or killing weeds, which led to the development of plows and hoes to eliminate weeds before sowing annual crops. This soil disturbance causes soil carbon loss, erosion and nutrient leakage. The Institute breeds perennial crops that do not need to be reseeded or replanted every year, so they do not require annual plowing or herbicide applications to establish. The Institute breeds perennials in two ways, by domesticating wild perennial plants, and perennializing existing annual crops by crossing annual crops with a perennial cousin. The Institute focuses on legumes, oilseeds, rice, sorghum and wheat. In addition to perennial cultivation, the Land Institute researches ecological intensification by building perennial polycultures through plant communities that attract beneficial insects and and prevent plant diseases. These perennial polycultures reduce the need for management and labor. The Land Institute is located in the center of the United States on a research campus staffed by scientists, as well as a prairie and woodland area with research plots. While the in-situ work done at The Land Institute focuses on prairie species, the Land Institute's network includes 54 partner organizations across the world working with a similar mission to build resiliency against agricultural disruption by providing perennial staple foods that do not compromise the cultural and ecological systems that human beings rely on.

1976 - ongoing
650 acres
1227 feet above sea level

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