Exploring Vitality in Sustainable Agriculture
: The Effectiveness of a Multi-Method Approach on Strawberry Crop Systems

Student thesis: Doctoral ThesisDoctor of Philosophy

Abstract

Agriculture is among the most important activities for humanity to thrive. However, the dominant practices employed in agriculture today are derived from Cartesian and mechanistic ontology. This approach to agriculture ended up threatening farmers' livelihoods and food security in general. Such practices had deleterious effects on ecosystems, significantly reducing biodiversity, contaminating soil, water and food with soluble fertilizers and pesticides. In contrast, agroecology offers a holistic model of agriculture based on the interactions of biodiversity and society, from methods that stimulate ecosystem homeostasis and the use of less toxic products to eliminate the food system's dependence on the use of pesticides and non-renewable soluble fertilizers. This study analyses the potential use of the agroecological method of Homeopathy and dynamized high dilutions (DHDs) in agriculture, investigating its bio-stimulating effect on plants and its contribution to the development of sustainable agricultural systems. This study explores through a multidisciplinary approach how understanding the vitality of the agroecosystem can contribute to the development of agricultural practices and research strategies towards sustainability. The thesis is presented in 6 chapters. Chapter 1: General introduction of the thesis; Chapter 2: The systematic review identifies and collates data on vitality in agricultural research over the past 20 years; Chapter 3: Presents the results of two-year agronomic experiments testing DHDs and their biostimulatory effect in strawberry plants (Fragaria × ananassa); Chapter 4: Presents and explores questionnaire data surveyed with farmers using Homeopathy and DHDs in agriculture, examining the impact that the method has had on their farming practices and how it promotes the agroecosystem vitality; Chapter 5: Discuss and presents the results of interviews with international stakeholders working with Homeopathy and dynamized high dilutions (DHDs) as a way to promote the vitality of the agroecosystem. Chapter 6: General conclusion of the thesis. The systematic review identified 21 scientific terms that address vitality in agricultural research, found an increase of 79.72% in the number of publications related to the topic since 2017. China, India, France, Germany, Poland and Brazil stood out as the countries with multiple publications on the subject. The results of agronomic experiments testing the bio-stimulating potential of DHDs in the Fragaria × ananassa crop, showed that mineral dynamized high dilutions (DHDs) stimulated production, growth and development of strawberry plants. The questionnaire revealed that farmers use homeopathy and DHDs because they have noticed improvements in crop quality (80%), livestock growth (40%), ecosystem development (77%) and human health (67%). Additionally, farmers reported reduced production costs (49%) and higher yields (46%) when using Homeopathy and dynamized high dilutions as a farming method. The interviews with international researchers, consultants and farmers highlighted how different professional backgrounds can benefit from learning and using Homeopathy and DHDs in agriculture. Furthermore, the interviews corroborate the contributions of Homeopathy and the high dynamized dilutions (DHDs) in agriculture, as well as conglomerate important information on Homeopathy as a scientific discipline with transdisciplinary potential. The results of this study stimulate the creation of dialogue and shared construction of knowledge, helping to develop knowledge aligned with the interests of environmental and agricultural sustainability and social equity. This study verified how Homeopathy and the use of dynamized high dilutions (DHDs) can constitute a viable methodology to promote the vitality of agroecosystems, assisting in the successful advancement of agroecological practice and research.
Date of AwardSept 2023
Original languageEnglish
Awarding Institution
  • Coventry University
  • Santa Catarina State University
SupervisorAike A. Kretzschmar (Supervisor), Julia Wright (Supervisor) & Francis Rayns (Supervisor)

Keywords

  • Agroecology
  • Homeopathy
  • Dynamized High Dilutions
  • Vitality
  • Fragaria × ananassa
  • Interdisciplinarity

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