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rainbowgardener
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Location: TN/GA 7b

Re: Self-Sufficient, Independence, Permaculture, Polyculure,

DoubleDogFarm wrote:
My water situation is pretty OK because my whole property is basically a long steep hill, with a storage pond at the bottom.
Watching the videos and reading you will notice most recommend water storage at the top and or berms and swales all the way down. You could also pump water from the lower pond back up.

Eric
What I would be mainly concerned about, as applestar suggested, is having rainwater going in to the sewer system, just because that is so wasteful. I don't have a big concern about keeping it all in my garden, because we get 40" of rain a year, spread pretty evenly over the months, with no dry months. I have 150 gallons of rain barrels in case of dry spells, but they don't get used real often.

I have put up retaining walls down the hill with dirt paths next to them. I didn't terrace (I.e. it is not flat behind the retaining walls), but still the retaining walls and the dirt paths do help to slow the water down from rushing down the hill and give it some places to soak in. Also as I am adding lots of trees and plants and mulch, the soil is better at soaking some water up.

That pond is a LONG way from any electricity. I know what it cost us to run electricity out to the small artificial pond close behind the house, so there's never going to be electricity down there. But I'm ok with how it is. I do use (some of) the duckweed the pond generates, which is a really good N source for my compost pile. I could use more of it, to add directly to gardens, except it is really hard and heavy straining it out and then carrying buckets of wet duckweed back up the long steep hill. Anyway using the duckweed makes the pond useful in the system.

DoubleDogFarm
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Here's a example of polyculture in dry climate. Tonasket Wa. located in eastern washington near the Canada border. If you look in the background it's barren hills. https://www.primetab.com/flying/flying.p ... ml#Photo15

[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/ESyCbN7Psps[/youtudotbe]


Eric

DoubleDogFarm
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Learn how to Make a Bunyip Water Level with Brad Lancaster

[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/pRjNA0DZZb4[/youtudotbe]

Building berms and basins with a water level.

[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/xNnFknvSaMc[/youtudotbe]

Rainwater Harvesting basics 1
[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/2iQ-FBAmvBw[/youtudotbe]

Rainwater Harvesting basics 2
[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/xS-XQUkSGvU[/youtudotbe]

Rainwater Harvesting basics 3
[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/1ib0drunwTw[/youtudotbe]

Eric

DoubleDogFarm
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Another tool for contour swales. "A" frame level.

[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/wlu66Pombuo[/youtudotbe]

Eric

DoubleDogFarm
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Old Helpful Gardener "Food Forest" threads

Food forest on 1/4 acre in NE Ohio
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=32043

Just ordered the last of the trees and shrubs for my food forest
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=25657

Calling it finished, my final order arrived, but short
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=26504

My Forest Garden
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=25019

Food Forests
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=10891

Permaculture - Food Forests
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... sc&start=0

Hello from Northern GA Forests
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=22369

Would like some suggestions on a hedgerow
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=26032

Eric

valley
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Location: ranches in sierra nevada mountains California & Navada high desert

I've seen a few of Geoff Lawton's videos. In New south Wales where where the one above is: When they get rain, they get rain. We had a property in Queensland between Brisbane and Toowomba. It was in a drier area, but when it rained it rained like you would find it hard to believe.

Having said that, we have a high desert property. Last year I dug catchments. I plan to bring the tractor down and build Swales.

I have hand dug a small swale but plan a system easier done with the tractor. I do need a great deal of mulch, I'll bring mulch down from the mountains. Hay will work, we do have to deal with rabbits that are worse than locus.

We arranged grey water from the house but haven't yet set up distribution.

I'm hoping that the Lord will provide a bit more moisture from now on.

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rainbowgardener
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Location: TN/GA 7b

valley - I have read your posts and picked up bits and pieces of what you are doing and it sounds really interesting. Why don't you make your own thread and really describe your two pieces of land and what you are doing and what your goals are - reducing footprint, grow most of your own food, self - sufficiency, off the grid, etc?

How did you work the grey water and what distribution system are you planning?

DoubleDogFarm
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valley wrote:I've seen a few of Geoff Lawton's videos. In New south Wales where where the one above is: When they get rain, they get rain. We had a property in Queensland between Brisbane and Toowomba. It was in a drier area, but when it rained it rained like you would find it hard to believe.

Having said that, we have a high desert property. Last year I dug catchments. I plan to bring the tractor down and build Swales.

I have hand dug a small swale but plan a system easier done with the tractor. I do need a great deal of mulch, I'll bring mulch down from the mountains. Hay will work, we do have to deal with rabbits that are worse than locus.

We arranged grey water from the house but haven't yet set up distribution.

I'm hoping that the Lord will provide a bit more moisture from now on.
I'm interested in your projects Valley. I'm a visual hands on kind of guy. Can you post some pictures or better yet video. Not that I don't trust people, but I sometimes wonder if members live in a apartment and just make up stuff. Great writing skills, no real experience.

Valley, Post your projects here or start a new. Either way works for me.

Last saturday I hand dug a small swale. The surface was very fluid from the freezing and thawing. Water is self leveling so I used it as a gauge to move up or down the slope. Take a look at the pictures. Looks like I'm pretty close to being on contour. This swales final postition will be moved down slope so that I can use the spoils to cover the stumps.
Image
Image

Eric
Last edited by DoubleDogFarm on Wed Dec 18, 2013 9:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.

DoubleDogFarm
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6,000 lbs of food on 1/10th acre - Urban Farm - Urban Homestead

This family sells $20,000. worth of produce off their front porch. They pay a $12. electrical bill and make home made biodiesel. They buy wheat, rice and oats.

[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/7IbODJiEM5A[/youtudotbe]
[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/NCmTJkZy0rM[/youtudotbe]

Eric
Last edited by DoubleDogFarm on Wed Dec 18, 2013 10:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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applestar
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Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

I can't watch flash-based videos like the last one on the iPad unless I use a special browser called Photon.

Funnily, the blank space where the video is supposed to be drive me nuts so I go plug the link in Photon, and end up watching the video -- more so than some of the others which I haven't seen yet. :roll:

Thanks! This one was intriguing -- it CAN be done... Small lot is no excuse :P

...having written the above, I had to laugh when I realized it was just me being impatient -- the video loaded fine in Safari after all.... :oops:

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rainbowgardener
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I also hope Valley will make a thread with pix and descriptions.

In the meantime, you nailed me Eric - I live in a studio apt and have never grown anything! :D :wink: :wink:

DoubleDogFarm
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Ben Falk at NOFA VT 2013: Homestead and Farm Resiliency - Principles in Practice
[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/FxPlrTJf1Oc[/youtudotbe]


Eric

SunBakedParadise
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Location: Southern California

Geoff Lawton's quickie video on greening the desert

[youtudotbe]https://youtu.be/ZvHkieDwnJo[/youtudotbe]


A free full version is available through his website.



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