Jack Browne from Co. Carlow is the newest Farming for Nature Ambassador
Jack Browne, a third-generation farmer from the heart of Co. Carlow, is redefining what it means to farm with nature. Since taking over his family’s 40-hectare (100-acre) farm in 2020, the young organic tillage farmer has transformed the once monocropped land into a thriving, biodiverse system that integrates agroforestry, permaculture, and organic practices.
Jack’s most ambitious move came through his participation in an EIP (European Innovation Partnership) project with Trees On The Land, which established his farm as a demonstration site for Silvo arable systems, a pioneering agroforestry practice in Ireland. He has since integrated over 3,000 trees into his tillage system across a 27-hectare field, creating structured alleyways of crops flanked by rows of fruit, nut, and native trees including walnut, hazel, sweet chestnut, apple, plum, and elder.
Jack has a full-time job off-farm and he’s keen to experiment as a result, he says ‘At this stage of my life I was willing to let the farm be less profitable in the hope I could figure out a system that will be sustainable. I want to add diversity and complexity to the farm to help mitigate against climate change’.
His approach, described as ‘low input, premium output’, places a strong emphasis on soil health, cover cropping, and minimum tillage, now being trialled as part of the ACRES Agri-environment scheme.
Jack has also committed around 3 hectares (7 acres) to native woodland, with species such as oak, birch, alder, and Scots pine contributing to a rich ecological habitat ‘I love the biodiversity that comes with farming for nature, so much life and growth, it means there is always much to look at when we go for our daily walks here’.
Nominated by Stephen Meredith of the Irish Organic Association, Jack has recently been awarded the prestigious Farming for Nature Ambassador Award and is now a part of their network, a community of leading farmers who exemplify the balance between productive agriculture and nature conservation. ‘The Farming for Nature Ambassadors were part of the motivation for me to try something different but more important was seeing other Irish farmers doing things differently gave me the confidence to make changes on my farm. Research and ideas are available from all over the world but the physical and legislative environments are very different, so importing ideas can seem risky but seeing other Irish farmers exploring non-conventional ideas gave me the confidence. I am proud to be part of a network that is doing so much good stuff’.
A view of Jack’s silvo-arable alleys on a recent farm walk for Farming for Nature
In addition to managing his own farm, Jack has opened his gates to others – hosting farm walks, sharing knowledge through media interviews, and inspiring fellow farmers with his passion for working with nature. Since starting this journey five years ago Jack understands ‘the difficulties of moving away from mainstream agriculture a bit better. At the start of the journey, I told myself that I didn’t want to memorise the names of pesticides but rather I wanted my head to be filled with information about trees and plants instead. I know a bit more about birds too because the farm has exploded with life, there are buzzards, owls and kestrels around now indication a thriving ecosystem. Visually it is very different with greenery all year round with lots of trees are now 2 metres tall or more.
As Ireland faces the challenges of climate change, soil degradation, and biodiversity loss, innovative farmers like Jack Browne are proving that there is a resilient, regenerative path forward.
Jack will be taking part in ‘Ask the Farmer’ an online Q&A – on the 15th July at 8pm – register here
A short video about Jack’s farm is on our Youtube channel
