[northstarpermie]

Just thought I'd share a link sent to me. Great pics of a beautiful Permaculture Farm. http://www.midwestpermaculture.com/June07PhotoSummary.php

I posted this in the Garden Section as well.

 

[A'sta at Hofstead]

Authorization required, can't open the site.

 

[northstarpermie]

Authorization required, can't open the site.

Fixed it.

 

[MountAiry]

Very nice link. Thanks!

 

[AR Cattails]

Fascinating! Thanks!

 

[A'sta at Hofstead]

Thanks Permie! What a life. I kind of like the tire wall....

 

[seedspreader]

hmmm... now I wonder who this is:

“Wayne and Mark were outstanding in what they shared and how it was offered.”
Barbara S. – Medina, OH

That's were I live.

 

[YounGrey]

Very cool, I like the idea.

 

[MicheleMomof4]

Wow! Amazing!
God Bless,
Michele

 

[HomesteadBaker]

Northstarpermie, that was a great site. Can I take it from your username that you are into permaculture, too? Would love to see/read about it if you are. Always looking for ideas.

My husband and I are starting our own permaculture paradise here on our 7 1/2 acres. Some of the fruit trees and berry brambles and bushes are already in. We have to do a bit every year because of the cost of trees. Some of our trees are purchased, some are seedlings.

I wish I knew of some place closer that is established so we could visit. Maybe a search is in order... LOL

Kitty

 

[northstarpermie]

Northstarpermie, that was a great site. Can I take it from your username that you are into permaculture, too? Would love to see/read about it if you are. Always looking for ideas.

My husband and I are starting our own permaculture paradise here on our 7 1/2 acres. Some of the fruit trees and berry brambles and bushes are already in. We have to do a bit every year because of the cost of trees. Some of our trees are purchased, some are seedlings.

I wish I knew of some place closer that is established so we could visit. Maybe a search is in order... LOL

Kitty

Yes, I'm a permie...permaculturist. I was certified in 2004 taught by David Blume. Midwest Permaculture started from this class. There are permies all over. Most are just busy working on their place to really tell others about it. I thought I would post something to see if anyone here is interested or is a permie themselves.

We have a little under 20 acres we have been on for 6 years. It will always be a work in progress. I want to get a CSA going up here. We just took our first step this year towards that goal and started a Farmers Market. It's doing very well and was very needed. Mark Shephard had lived in Alaska doing permaculture, so it inspired me to do it here. Eventually, I would like to teach it, but that will take some time before I am ready to teach. I still have a lot to learn & more experience to give me the confidence to do so.

My garden has gotten bigger every year with tons of food coming out of a small space. We have goats, & chickens as well. I have carpet & plastic down killing off more of our lawn to make more garden & herb space. We plant a few fruit & berry trees every year, too. A work in progress and only been working on it for 4 years.

 

[Dahc]

Good Permie! I got questions:

Important to remember is that Mark's permaculture farm will continue to increase in production for about 30 years at which time it will level off for one or two generations.

No plowing, fertilizing, watering, herbicides or pesticides. Bigger and bigger harvests each year.

That's a permaculture design.

Are chicken and goat dung considered "fertilizers" to a permaculturist? I ask this because there are 8 acres of pines on my property and about 70% have a common (in this area) but deadly disease. I am digging them out one at a time and burning them and when I'm done, all I'll have left is an 8 acre patch of white field sand.

I need to do something with this 8 acres that is natural, will amend the soil and will produce income but the income doesn't need to be immediate. Any comments?

Cool link by the way.

 

[Shinsan]

Are chicken and goat dung considered "fertilizers" to a permaculturist?

They sure are, Dahc. And when you're done burning those trees, spread and dig the ash in too.

What can you do with the 8 acres? ....... What would you be like to do with them? There's plenty of ways to earn an income from that much space, especially if you want to go into organic gardening, but you have to be interested in doing that.

 

[Dahc]

Are chicken and goat dung considered "fertilizers" to a permaculturist?

They sure are, Dahc. And when you're done burning those trees, spread and dig the ash in too.

What can you do with the 8 acres? ....... What would you be like to do with them? There's plenty of ways to earn an income from that much space, especially if you want to go into organic gardening, but you have to be interested in doing that.

I have actually been entertaining the idea of growing passion flower (Passiflora incarnata) there. It's a decent plant for dealing with insomnia when a tea is made from the leaves. They do very well in white field sand and full sun. I already have about 20 of them established and they produce enough seed in one season to seed the entire 8 acres if that's what I chose to do.

The only downfall is that passion flower patches will overgrow themselves and create a haven for rodents and therefore, snakes. We have a large variety of venomous snakes down here and this is a valid concern.

They are vining so they would need trellising and also need to be pruned regularly but what is pruned is part of the product that is sold so it's not just maintenance.

I see a lot of passion flower producers include the stems in their products (for tea)but the stems are an inferior source for the alkaloids that actually help with insomnia. I believe I could produce a superior product (only leaves) and still earn a meager living from it. I have the plants and I have the knowhow, I just don't know much about the governmental standpoint of it and business related issues. I see folks selling this stuff on ebay and you can see the large chunks of stem right through the bag in their photos. lol.

The soil there now doesn't need amending for this plant to thrive but I imagine it will if harvesting the leaves of the plant were to be a steady thing.