Planting a diversity of crops also means that when one crop is overcome by pests, there are plenty of others to fall back on. Even if no artificial plant feeds are used composted wastes provide a rich base for plants to grow on, producing bumper harvests. Even human waste is not thrown away, but rather turned into compost in specially designed dry toilets. Plant matter is added, and the waste decomposes into innocuous, nutrient rich material in a chamber under the toilet. All rain falling on the site is routed to a large storage tank at the bottom end of the plot through dug channels.
Rain falling on roofs is collected in barrels for later use.
Precious water is also saved by planting vegetables in sealed raised beds which allows practically no liquid to escape. The mere fact that the vegetables grown in the beds are a foot or so above the general ground level means the seeds of many pest species, which are dispersed by tumbling along the ground, never get in among the crop. An assortment of pots and barrels also serves as raised beds. Another way to keep weeds at bay without resorting to herbicide is sheet-mulching. The weeds and their seeds die off and vegetables are then planted through holes made in the covering layer.