The answer to the question “What is Agrokruh?” isn’t simple. Agrokruh is not just a product or a technology. It is a philosophy of going back to our roots – to a sustainable way of life and to food that nourishes and sometimes even heals.
A solution that brings soil back to life
Agrokruh is a return to healthy soil, but with the technology of the future. It is a system that works in harmony with nature, not against it. It regenerates the soil, helps preserve its fertility and makes it possible to grow vegetables without chemical sprays, excessive machinery or needless drudgery.
The inventor of the system is Ing. Ján Šlinský from Pavlovce nad Uhom. He knew he wanted to grow vegetables from the 6th grade of primary school. He studied horticulture at the secondary agricultural school in Čaklov and at the University of Agriculture in Brno. He then joined the agricultural cooperative in Pavlovce nad Uhom as head of its vegetable-growing unit.
He quickly realised that industrialised agriculture was not for him and became the first officially certified organic vegetable grower in Slovakia. He is convinced that “organic vegetables” is a myth – we should distinguish between vegetables and chemical substitutes.
Technology that regenerates rather than destroys
Without heavy machinery that compacts the soil, and without chemicals, yields on degraded soil are uncertain and the manual work far exceeds what a farmer can manage. That is how Agrokruh came about – a technology that removes the hard drudgery, doesn’t burden the soil with passes of multi-tonne machines and doesn’t destroy it with deep ploughing.
More than twenty years of development, field trials and dearly paid-for experience led to today’s system: an arm acting as a bridge tool carrier, mounted tools for almost all vegetable-growing work, and a paternoster for raising seedlings.
Together for healthy soil and the future
Agrokruh also includes complete agronomic and business know-how for the small farmer: growing methods for more than 50 kinds of vegetables and herbs in the strictest organic quality, and a method for selling within a closed circle of regular customers. We want to support many small family farms that don’t compete with each other.
A small family farm with a big impact
According to Janko Šlinský, the ideal farm is just over 2 hectares and can feed up to 60 families of four. It consists of 15 circles, each 36 metres in diameter, worked by 5 arms. One arm moves between three circles on a transfer trolley. Depending on the job, a tool is attached – a rotary digger, a planter, a hoe – and every arm also has irrigation. The tool moves along the rotating arm, creating a spiral-shaped row.
The triangles between the circles are eco-stabilising zones. They support biodiversity – they can stay wild or host flowers and nectar plants for pollinators. Crop rotation between the circles gradually regenerates the soil and increases both its fertility and the nutritional value of the vegetables.
Selling is as important as growing. That’s why Janko advises every new farmer to build a circle of regular customers and grow according to their needs.
Agrokruh is a tool for change. It lets people start farming organically even without large plots, heavy machinery or years of experience. All it takes is will and respect for the land.
MUDr. Zuzana Vetešková Andreánska
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