Project group: Vegetable growing 2
Practical research companies
Birkenhof
Naturally GbR
Research partners
University of Kassel
CONSULTING
Project duration
May 2025 to April 2028
Undersown crops and catch crops as natural soil optimizers
Goals and approach
The aim of the GROUND2LIVE project is to improve soil quality, promote biodiversity and make agriculture more resilient to climate change by integrating cover crops in the form of undersown or catch crops and ploughless tillage in vegetable cultivation systems.
GROUND2LIVE pursues a “living lab” approach in which farmers, advisors and scientists from seven European countries work together in a practical collaboration to develop solutions for integrating cover crops into agricultural systems. By promoting sustainable solutions and active exchange between farmers and researchers, GROUND2LIVE aims to contribute to climate-resilient production systems in the long term and thus support the transformation of European agriculture.
Role of the PFN in the project
The Practice Research Network Hesse plays a central role in the GROUND2LIVE project in anchoring the project in agricultural practice. The PFN-Hessen coordinates the participation of Hessian vegetable farms and thus enables close cooperation between science and practice. Together with the University of Kassel, the PFN-Hessen is shaping the implementation of the project objectives in Germany and ensuring that the agroecological methods developed are adapted to the specific needs and challenges of regional agriculture.
Through field trials and the involvement of farmers in all phases of the project, PFN-Hessen is helping to transfer the project’s practical solutions directly to the farms and thus promote a sustainable transformation of vegetable production.
