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starter trees

2017/01/10 Danielle 0

We’ve hit the new year with all the right energy, planting trees. There are all these sayings about trees, like “the best time to plant a tree is ten years ago; the second best time is now” and “a society grows wise when [people] plant trees in whose shade they will never sit” (implying planting trees for the benefit of future generations), and it all boils down to: trees taker a long time to get established. Start them as soon as you can.   Trees (and shrubs, and other deep-rooted perennial plants) are essential for a food forst, or any […]

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tree cover

2016/02/19 Danielle 0

Not every landscape “wants” to be a forest. Although forest gardens are a staple in the planning diets of many permaculture enthusiasts, there are (or were) lots of other complex, balanced ecosystems. For example, there are savannahs, based around perennial grasslands and large herds of grazing animals, as well as shrub and wetland ecosystems. Forest gardening is actually a slightly controversial topic in sustainability/ regenerative agriculture/permaculture circles because so many people simply pick it up as a default without looking at what works best for their location. It’s important, I think, to keep that in mind and to challenge your biases […]

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Pasture

2015/12/03 Danielle 1

I’m sure anyone who reads these posts regularly knows that we’re pretty keen to increase our menagerie, but I don’t think I’ve explained clearly why that is. It isn’t just for the milk and meat that we want to get goats and a cow, although they are part of the reason. It’s for the soil. Soil is the heart and the root of any ecosystem, including farm ecosystems. Healthy soil is absolutely essential if you want to grow healthy plants, and produce any sort of yield from the ground. The modern methods of land management call for huge inputs of […]

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Pasture Plans

2015/09/21 Danielle 0

The house is finished, except for a few minor items like the concrete for the verandah which hasn’t been poured yet, and only 2 of the 5 water tanks being in place as yet. We are days away from being able to move in. Days! The valuer is booked for Wednesday morning, to come and verify for the bank that the house is actually there, complete, and connected to the power and water. Then (so the theory goes) the bank pays the builder, the builder hands over the keys, and we move in. Very exciting. But being here in this […]