In this video Nicholas Burtner explains when the best possible time to install and implement earthworks such as keyline plowing,
Soils is a massive subject that, as a species, we have barely scratched the surface of. Like permaculture, it is a study that once a door is opened, 16 more doors appear – take one of those – 32 more doors and the rabbit hole becomes apparent. When getting into farming, gardening, pasturing, and food […]
When making soil pro-biotics such as compost tea, it is easy to get bogged down in the “chemistry” of compost tea preparation. Often we learn very precise measurements, time and infiltration for air inoculation, and a host of different ingredients to add. And on a large farm or broad acre site, I will recommend to stick […]
What is often left out in much of permaculture teaching is the “how to install the design”. And not only what that entails, but steps in how to do it. It is most manageable when the design is implemented in stages and each stage should build upon the previous (an the electrical system works better and installs […]
Not widely known is that most prairies and forests start as water retention pools also known as ponds. When a water filled hole in a landscape fills, the “4 layers of life” balance the pond and maintain it for several hundred years (learn more). After many years silts from decaying organic matter start to fill the pond. If […]
Nitrogen fixation, to say the least, is COOL! The design of nature that allows for bacteria to symbiotically align with legumes, and some other species, to deliver atmospheric nitrogen into the soil is a blueprint for the next phase of the long term food supply for humans. When we combine a technique called chop and […]
Written by Nicholas Burtner, published by permaculturenews.org Many farmers and growers are in massive amounts of debt. Many still want to go organic but the time and red tape needed to do so will deliver them into bankruptcy. I have outlined a few steps a farmer/grower can take to move around the red tape and speed […]
A good p.H. for a permaculture garden (or any garden that has food as it’s primary) is 6.2 to 6.8 on the p.H. scale. Many gardeners spend quite a bit of time and money attempting to adjust soils to just the right p.H. for growing annual and perennial fruit and vegetables. It is true that blueberries (which […]
Permaculture has a principle that states: the problem is the solution. When planting trees in areas where soil is almost all sand (especially in arid climates where evaporation exceeds precipitation and the soil is almost all alkaline) we can use the sand as water storage. Two holes are dug in sequence: -First a hole of 5-10 feet (apprx.) is dug and […]
In permaculture we learn a truly remarkable arsenal of techniques, strategies, and patterning that is at our disposal for permaculture consulting and design. It would probably lift a few eyebrows if I said that if a farmer truly needed a chemical such as fungicide to save a crop which will provide money and food for his […]