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How are you incorporating PC into your lifestyle?

Sunny_Sky
21 years ago

Hello fellow permaculturalists:

Since this is a new forum, I thought that we might introduce ourselves and tell how we each use permaculture. Some are beginners, like myself, who dont know much and others of you are very educated. Perhaps we can all share something of ourselves which will bring value to each other.

So, IÂll go first. Although IÂm new to the term Âpermaculture I guess itÂs been my philosophy for many years. The little bit that I incorporate into my own environment (a little house on a tiny 60 x 148 lot in a Chicago suburb) is that when I moved here a while back I decided to work with the environment which already exists, which is: 5 mature trees--walnut, 2 maples, 2 giant elms. Also a large pussywillow, crabapple--and now the city decided I didnÂt have enough shade and they planted a hackberry in the front of my house where the sun shines. Since I principally have shade, IÂve been landscaping my lawn to give the feel of being on a hike in the woods. It is turning out well. The trees are wonderful, they add oxygen and cool, moist shade in the summer. In the fall, I have all the free compost that I could wish for. I rarely turn on the air-conditioner in the summer.

IÂm just beginning to work on my sunny spot which is about 20Â long x 6Â wide. After reading the link on permaculture, I see that I need to incorporate food plants with the perennials. IÂve decided to use as many heirloom plants as possible, and save the seeds from year to year on the annual vegetables and edible flowers.

I also have 3 rainbarrels which IÂve placed strategically.

In my sunny front yard, IÂve put 2 beautiful, large island beds which have drought tolerant perennials. ItÂs a wonderful splash of color!

IÂm seriously considering doing away with my grassy lawn and putting in clover: it never needs cut, attracts bees, doesnÂt need watering, and the roots make the soil nitrogen rich. No chemicals, no noise-polluting equipment to care for it. Do any of you have an opinion on this?

As far as incorporating animals into my ecology system, well, I have birds which eat the bugs and squirrels which really donÂt bother things--is it because of my two cats or is it because IÂve got mostly native plantings? The cats stop the rabbits from doing damage. I havenÂt figured out how the squirrels are valuable except for the entertainment they provide.

And I need to work on new ways to make my home more energy efficient.

Well, IÂd love to learn more and hear what you all are doing in permaculture.

Comments (17)

  • gardenlen
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    g'day sunny,

    we use pc to guide our actions as we set up our new rural block so that we can be as self sufficient as we can as far as vegetables and food trees goes. don't know what you mean by educated we haven't done a pc course apart from i attended a 2 day pc intro' course at a TAFE college only to find out that i was doing nearly all of that anyway (we started as organic gardeners). i reckon money spent on a course might be better spent just buying bill mollensons 'intro' to pc' i reckon it spells the methods out pretty clearly.

    at present we have planted around 200+ trees about equal food trees and windbreak trees (native species ie.,. eucalypts, callistemons and melaleuca's etc.,.). all plantings are along the contours of the block. all food trees are heavily mulched and we have created swales between them by using slashed grass as mulch rows.

    we recycle all paper, water, metal cans and re-use some plastic bottles as fly traps, aluminium cans get sold to the scrap yard. we have been doing some ripping with the tractor these rip lines will act as swales and they also give the water easier access to going underground where it is needed most.

    we have constructed our house on a warm-house cool-house principal, so it is very bright and can be very airy and works on thermal capacity to keep warmth and cool when the season dictates. we have dogs, chooks and geese no room for cats as they are too damaging to the native wildlife. later on we will grass fatten our own beef and maybe a couple of pigs or goats or sheep not sure yet.

    mail len

    lens garden page

  • Fireraven9
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We are "working on" growing as much of our own food as possible. I am enthralled with the Four Seasons Harvest book by Eliot Coleman. This was just what we needed! We have a short season because of altitude, but we have plenty of sunshine. We can eat fresh food in winter! I am really excited by that.

    We recycle and grow using organic methods. We hope to have a solar house - most windows on the south side to catch the winter sun and exclude the summer sun. The floor can serve as thermal mass. Little heating and cooling will be needed.

    There are other things that I will remember later.

    Fireraven9
    What potent blood hath modest May. - Ralph W. Emerson

  • Rosalie
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    hello all and thanks to spike for this new forum!

    i am rosalie; i live in salt lake city utah, in an urban/residential neighborhood. however, i was raised in dairy farm country in upstate new york and will someday return to a rural life. for now i am trying to live as consciously, sustainably and lightly as possible in the city.

    i guess growing up in rural lands -- but ones where most people were, in some ways, not particularly conscious of their effects on and dependency on the natural world and yet in other ways totally absorbed by it -- milking cows, cutting firewood, can we get the car stared at 40 below zero? -- made me aware of what is known as permaculture. i never heard the teerm until the early 90s when i started growing vegetables seriously and began looking into leaving the city life -- bill mollison is a big hero of mine, for the incorportation of systemic thought into what seems like a very simple thing -- that is gardening.

    but i like that there is so much more -- architecture, engineering, and long term planning for the betterment of everyone.

    incorporation of the permaculture concepts is not terribly straightforward in my current living arrangement -- we compost, have xeric plants throughout, buy locally (that is not as easy in SLC as it should be) walk and take transit. can't really change the house layout at the moment, although it is a bungalow and well designed for airflow and coolness in summer.

    it is great to see all of you here -- i look forward to learning and sharing on this site.

    rosalie.

  • seraphima
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi! Thanks, Spike!
    I am developing a Pc garden, or rather, series of gardens in the various household and garden zones, with the idea of making it a teaching vehicle for this climate. There are no other permaculture gardeners on the island, so this forum is very valuable to me.

    The climate here is like a cool version of the Northwest; usually rainy (but not this year!) and quite cool by most standards. A really hot temperature in summer is 70 degrees F. At 60 many wear shorts and summer dresses.

    Am trying to expand the number of cultivars grown , and expand the biodiversity of a fairly simple Sitka spruce-alder-salmonberry- fern and moss ecosystem. Very acidic soil and an 8inch layer of volcanic sand just under the surface. Am interested in multiple connections between elements of the homestead, creative reuse and recycling, and planting of propagating stock to expand the whole system.

    This spring I actually graduated from a Permaculture Design Course ( it took a year by distance ed)from Permaculture visions in Australia.

  • DanaHealer
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hello,
    PC is a new word to things that I have valued and practiced before I knew the word exist. We currently live on over 1 acre which used to be an orchard 50 years ago. this is our first year here. We recycle almost all our garbage looking at a modified greywater system, and organic garden. We are becoming more alert to local buying of foods. We have pecan, black walnut, hickory, peach, plum and pawpaw trees among may others. We have wild grown rasberries, dewberry, blackberry, and blueberries. We have woodland areas that surround us that we can forage. I put in a small herb garden by the house, and a 30 feet by 70 feet full sun garden with veggies, more herbs, and lots of flowers. i still am working on putting it all in. I am also working on a moss and rock garden in the front part of my house. I am also planning year round gardening this year.
    I plan in the next 2 years to move unto a much larger land to establish an eco-village. This will have a progreesive plan to be off the grid with solar power, compost toilets, full greywater, and most food grown or forged locally. This intentional community with sustainable resources and responsibility of the earth, sense of community, balanced economics, and investment in those thing in for future sustainablilty. Planned cob housing, straw bale, superadobe, yurts and tipis. Also a permaculture demo and teaching site.

    Wow, this is getting long... you get the idea. Lots of work ahead of me. I look forward to learning with you and from you as we journey thru the world of permaculture.
    Dana

  • Sunny_Sky
    Original Author
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have enjoyed SO MUCH reading each of your responses, trying to picture in my mind what your place looks like. We've got a wide diversity of zones, climates and culture here. It's going be great getting to know all of you.

    I'm driving to Iowa this weekend to help my aging yet ageless mother with her garden. She's the one responsible for getting me so involved with the good life! I'm also stopping in Iowa to meet a fellow GardenWeb gardener, do some plant swaps, and enjoy her garden.

    Talk to you later, SUNNY

  • Pookiesmom
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Sunny Sky, I know it is a big state but Seed Savers is based in Decorah, IA. I have never been but saw photos and it looked like an awesome garden.

    Anyway, I live on 1/3 acre, nost of the growing land uphill form our house so I am in the process of figuring out haow to use greywater efficiently. We are just starting a small addition...green building, solar, as earth friendly as we could afford and manage. Since greywater plumbing is difficult to get signed off for in our county we hope to retrofit the greywater ABS after the inspectors visit....to start just the laundry effluent to water three dwarf cherries. Then the bathroom shower and sink to water an avocado.

    We grow presently fig, pomegranate, apples and pears. Once the construction is over we will plant kiwi and grapes on trellis. We have a good sized veggie plots raised beds intensveily planted and another area dedicated to corn squash bean guilds. I am reworking our fruit trees to be an apple centered guild. I throw cooking water and dishwater on plants in our dry season. We cOmpost, recycle religiously. Flush the toilet infrequently and have been known to use urine as compost activator. We had rabbits but now have chickens and boy are they great tractors (and egg layers)! Always trying to do more ...mu latest experiment is a Chinese Hawthorne which is grown commercially in China for use in hawthorne candy and is medicinal as well. Makes good jams and cordials.

    All in all I find PC a very challenging and interesting hobby, we will never be totally self sufficeint but it is fun trying.

    Claire

  • permafrog
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Greetings, Bob here Thunder Bay , Ontario. I do my best to live by the ethics of permauclture in all that I do. Indoors or zone zero, I grow cherry tomatoes, bay laurel, eggplant and basil. On the balcony which is off the kitchen, I have a compost bin for kitchen scraps, a herb garden as well as cucumbers, zuchinni and a variety of lettuces, easy picking for meals. I also have a community garden plot fairly close to home and two raised beds in the backyard. I use interplanting and companion planting techniques as well as a living mulch, creeping thyme, roman chamomile to reduce the work that I need to do.

  • Modjadje
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We live on 5 acres of land. I grow stuff that will boost our survivability in the case of "the world going to hell in a handbasket". In such a case, I'd like to have protein and oil from my nut trees, in addition to the carbs and sugars from the various fruits and berries, and nutrients and minerals from vegetables. I want to add olive trees so that I can make my own olive oil, which is also good for one's skin.
    We compost instead of burn the leaves. We hardly ever use the airconditioner, instead we do the oldfashioned thing of drawing the curtains in the day and opening windows in the evening. Every time I have moved, the first thing I did was plant deciduous trees on the west and southwest for shade in summertime. We are in the process of installing solar panels, and use propane as a fuel for heating.
    We buy amazingly little as new items, my hubby is an excellent mechanic/fixer of cars, machinery, appliances. I think all-in-all we have a homesteading approach, except we do not keep animals. We have great respect for earth.
    I am enjoying reading what you guys wrote, and I think Permaculture is going to become my overall favorite forum, with Growing Edibles as the second. It seems that Permaculture is the philosophy in the spirit of which I grow my edibles.

  • Cady
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My home is on a tiny piece of land, only 1/10th acre, but on it I keep chooks, ducks and geese for eggs, dwarf goats for manure compost, and grow herbs and vegetables (including winter keepers such as winter squash that gets stored in the cellar for the winter months).

    I use low-wattage energy-saver lightbulbs, and then only where I am working or staying in the house. Everything gets recycled -- metal, plastic, newspaper and other paper (junk mail especially). Table scraps and veggie peelings, etc. go to the compost heap. My house itself is an old Yankee cottage that was built of yellow pine and cedar on a fieldstone foundation and cellar, slung low to keep summer sun out and let winter sun in. It's well insulated but not airtight, so it stays comfortable year-round and is never stuffy. My small woodstove can heat the entire house, although I have natural gas heat available.

    The yard is full of native plants (although I love bamboo and have quite a bit worked into the landscape) and small water features that attract the local birds and wildlife. A small patch of woods between me and my neighbors harbors woodpeckers, owls, foxes, raccoons, oppossums, skunks, rabbits and other critters.

    Not bad for living in the thick of civilization, although I'd like to be able to do better.

  • Kathy_KY
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I only just heard about PC yesterday when I looked into this forum after straying from the soil forum.

    I hate to admit it, but I don't really do any of these things (at least that I'm aware of). What I do know is that I have been racking my brain for quite some time about what to do with our yard (and to a great extent our lifestyle). I'm thinking that there could be much I could gain from this forum.

    We have a new construction home, no trees, no "soil" (only the clay left after the dozers finished skimming away any good stuff that might have been there before they built the house). I'm honestly not sure what out lot size is (maybe between 1/4 and 1/2 acre).

    We recycle all our cans, and plastic and any paper that isn't appropriate for the compost pile.

    I keep trying to envision what I want our yard(s) to look like 5 years from now and it's been a tremendous struggle for me. I've told my husband that I want our own little garden of Eden but I don't feel that I know enough about gardening to plan it all out. We definately need a wind-break on the west side of our backyard but we don't have a lot of space between the patio and fence (maybe 15') and I want to make sure that whatever we plant doesn't over-shade the rest of the yard. Whatever I plan, I want there to be harmony and purpose above all else.

    I was all gung-ho about getting a start on the garden(s) this spring but have opted to wait until next year so that I can plan, plan, plan. I have started composting, however and plan to do some lasgnaing to prepare the beds for whatever I do decide to plant next year.

    I'm looking forward to lurking here and asking a question or two from time-to-time (if you'll bare with me).

    Kat

  • haller
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    YEAH!!!! I am so excited to see Permaculture as a forum topic here!!! And it comes at such a wonderful time for me, I have just moved to a rural fixer-upper home and am dying for inspiration on how to approach my new place.

    Formerly, I lived in the city with a small lot and did what I could to incorporate permaculture over the past four years or so. But now I have over an acre... mature trees and plenty of space to spread out. A huge stand of old growth doug firs shades our home. We have our own well and septic. Ok, so we are still hooked up to electric but it's nice to be semi off-the-grid!

    Food sources already in place... two hazelnut trees and four apple trees, all mature. A fig tree, several plums, berries of several kinds (blue, rasp, straw, currents). Got my herbs mixed into the perennial beds around the house. Plenty of bird baths and habitat, and the birds are rewarding us by singing up a storm. Frogs and snakes are everywhere. The hammock is up and the umbrella clotheline will be up after a few repairs.

    Mostly, it's just overwhelming. Where to start? I am grateful for the elements already in place... at least I am not starting off with a bare naked cow pasture.

  • mtn_gardener
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hello,

    I haven't read all of your intros yet, but I thought I'd ad mine.

    I am relatively new to permaculture. I took a 6 month long permaculture course online last fall/winter, but didn't complete my own design for my property here. I know a lot of permaculture theory but haven't very much experience at all in putting that theory to good use. I feel that I have a good understandign of the htought process behind it though.

    We moved into our house last december and the permaculture course definitley informed how I am thinking about the best way to utilize our house and land. We live in a mountain community and have about 1/5 of an acre of pretty steeply sloped land. THe back half has the hosue and is wooded, but the front is pretty bare and gets full sun. THe house is in good shape, but with the front yard so bare (and yes, erosion is an issue) it is UGLY. There are no trees to the south so we get the full force of the sun on our house, something I hope to take advantage of, someday.

    Mostly what I like about permaculture is how it is based in reality, and my reality is that I am quite lazy. I like phrases like "do nothing", I love the idea that doing nothing is sometimes best, cuase I like to do a whole lot of nothing! LOL. I also like that permaculture looks at the whole picture, and moves slowly, and warns against situations like building yourself a wonderful off the grid eco palace which you then have to commute an hour from in order to pay for the loan you needed to build it, thus cancellign out any benefit to the environment.

    The challenge for me is that my husband, while supportive of me learnign about permaculute, is not as into as I am. I base a lot of my decisions on what to do with the house on permaculture, but he doesn't, so we clash soemtiems in that regard. This has taught me to be patient (well not really, but it sure has taught me the IMPORTANCE of patience!) and I have to really explain all of the reasoning behind why I want to do it a certain way, in a way that makes sense to him.

    Our first major project is going to be rebuilding a route from our driveway to the house. On one side of the proposed route is the best place for growing full sun veggies, so eventually I want to terace a part of it for less frequently visited full sun vegetables. THis will be a challenge, because it also the most steeply sloped and currently not very accessible at all. On the other side of the proposed route we get full sun also, but not as much as the other side, whcih gets full southern exposre. This part will not be terraced, it will be developed just enough to be accessible. The areas closest to the entrance of the house get part sun, but it is lovely, filtered light, so i will experiment with growing shade tolerant edibles there. We also have a nice large balcony that I will use to grow salad stuff and other things that should be as close as possible to the kitchen.

    Well, although I never turned it in, I did work on my permaculture design report, whcih is curently 23 pages long, so before i repeat the whole thing here....

    Glad to have this forum!

  • Kathy_KY
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    mtn gardner,

    Glad to read your post. In some ways we have very similar situations, in others, there's no similarity at all.

    My husband is a convenience creature. He loves the idea of my designing the gardens to provide food and herbs, but he's a rather 20th century guy when it comes to issues about the house (i.e., water, electric, central air, convenience appliances, etc.). I haven't broached him on my ideas about cutting back in those areas.

    Also, like you, I have a lot of work ahead of me. The good news for you is that you've taken a course and are 23 pages into your planning. I haven't even started page one and feel a little overwhelmed because I know so little about gardening, let alone PC.

    I have what Haller refers to as "a bare naked cow (pasture)" in the above post and feel daunted by the task before me.

    My hope is that the more experienced folks on this forum will have pity on me and help teach me some stuff. I've spent a lot of time on the Soil, Compost and Mulch forum because I felt that the best place to begin a good garden is in the dirt (also because I just love that forum, those folks are nuts and my kinda people!). I started my first compost pile (dh built me a killer double bin) and that's really all I have in my yard except a fence, a lawn, and a swing.

    Kat

  • jessiecarole
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Saw your pictures Kat and your place is grand! At least you dont have to do a lot of cleaning up before you start. Make a list and start asking for gifts of trees and bushes on birthdays and special occasions. Do you get nursery catalogs? they are fun to read and will help you learn to recognize plants and if you order one thing you will get bunches of catalogs. My place really was a cow pasture-- now its a jungle!

    LOL please dont think I am stalking you-- I would really like to see this forum take off ( and it is so nice not to have to worry about my spelling)

  • mtn_gardener
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Kat,

    My father and his wife bought this house on 3.5 acres of old pasture, very damaged. THis was outside sacramento where it gets really hot in the summer. Everyone thought they'd lost their minds. It was just this ranch style house on this rectangle of dead grass. Oh I think there was a rose bush.

    They don't live there anymore but they did for almost 15 years and when they left it was a paradise! THey did a lot of more traditional landscaping than I would do, and that's where they put most of their energy. But to me, what was best about the property were the parts they let go back to nature. They just let the 'weeds' grow tall, did nothing. But those weeds seemed to be mostly native grasses and wildflowers, beautiful! and with them came all sorts of very happy wildlife, especailly quails, which had big families in the tall grass. The only thing they did with this part of the yard, which was a good 75% of their property, was to maintained some paths and planted some native oaks that my father started from acorn for fun. Maybe they planted some taller, more mature trees as well, and had drip lines out to them for water. But that was it!

    The other thing they did that seemed to make a big impact was to put in a small pond. It was very plain, literally just a hole in the ground with a pump to circulate the water, not one of these fancy yard ponds. Thye put it where they could see it from the house, but it was in the wild part of the yard. It made a huge difference in the amount of animals they had. This was one of their last projects at this house, and when they moved, the first thing they did at their new place was let the grass in the yard grow tall and put in a pond!

    I don't know if this will work for you, as the soil has been far more disturbed, maybe stripped completley, but weeds and wildflowers are great healers! That's what nature does to mend bare soil, so if I were you, I'd plant the prettiest (perhaps edible) weeds I could while you work out what to do next.

  • paul_m
    21 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi ,Ilive in England.I have been a PC gardener for 10 years.Ikeep hens ,canariesand when i feel like it ,rabbits.All great for the compost.My family recycle the usual stuff,but i will re-use everything if i can.Energy conservation is the key.Plan your garden on paper,don`t sweat!put things near to hand everything you do should ideally have more than one use.All our actions as humans have consequences.Here in England our environmentalists say we should Think Global Act Local.Your gardens should be practical ,beautiful,and work-free.

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