In Huesca, Spain, farmer Carlos Santolaria is experimenting with a different way of growing cereals. Together with his brother, Carlos runs their third-generation family farm and is taking part in the LEGUMINOSE on-farm living labs, testing whether growing cereals and legumes together can offer practical benefits under real farming conditions.
Last year, Carlos tested oats grown together with vetch. This year, he is trying a different combination: barley with vetch, using a mixture of 85% cereal and 15% legume.
The trial is part of the wider LEGUMINOSE network, which brings intercropping research directly onto farms across Europe and beyond. By testing different cereal–legume combinations under different growing conditions, we aim to understand how intercropping can affect soil fertility, crop production and the need for agricultural inputs.
For Carlos, however, environmental benefits are only part of the equation. Any new farming practice also needs to make economic sense. Ultimately, one question matters in particular: can intercropping deliver a better result at harvest?
Watch the video below to follow Carlos’s intercropping trial in Huesca and about his thoughts on and experience with intercropping.