permaculture

[Vicki Garland <blissv@nmhu.campus.mci.net>]

Thanks Steve!  I appreciated your reply very much.  I felt that I should
respond with something on the subject of slugs as I lived with the slimy
guys for so many years in the PNW but to tell you the truth, there just
wasn't much to say about it..simply that when I would mulch, underneath
there were always thousands of slugs hanging out waiting to munch everything
when you weren't looking. Salt and beer saloons helped some but there were
always more, it seemed. Also, I got pretty disgusted with slime all over
everything and torpid bodies floating in stale beer! Having ducks did help
alot with eating them.  Hooray for birds!
Vicki
 P.S.Do you know Bob Ginsburg in Fayettville?  A good old friend of mine!

At 01:54 PM 6/24/96 -0500, you wrote:
>> I've been reading about permaculture and Fukuoka's books and have worked
>> briefly in Aurovile, India on a farm that used these principals. I have
>> not had the opportunity to do this on my own because of conflicting ideas
>> with my gardening friends. For instance, my friend is into deep bed
>> organic gardening, digging, weeding, and relatively monocroped beds. He
>> says he read that the guy who started Territorial Seeds says that the
>> northwest is not good for things like heavy mulching due to slugs. I would
>> appreciate advice about northwest specific approaches to sustainable and
>> 'do nothing' ways of gardening/agriculture. I would love to have contacts
>> if anyone can refer me to folks out in Oregon or southern Washington who
>> may let me visit and maybe do some sort of apprenticeship. Thanx.
> 
>There is no conflict between permaculture and deep bed
>organic gardening, digging, and weeding.  Permaculture
>advocates locally adapted sustainable farming techniques.
>
>Thus, no-till and sheet mulching may work just fine in some
>situations while in others there may be a whole other set of
>circustances that call for tillage and whatnot.  
>
>It is quite important to not fall into some preset recipe
>for permaculture, rather we should create systems and
>techniques anew.  
>
>The deal about monocropping may seem hard to swallow though.
>There are so many benefits and interactions from intercropping 
>and companion planting that it is advisable in a garden. 
>
>But should we flip out if a market gardener or truck farmer 
>chooses a mono-cropped bed system?  It is quite
>logical for systematic production and equipment.  The key 
>point is to rotate beds with the result of a lot of diversity
>in one production block or field.  
>
>Permaculture has a reputation as a backyard deal but what a
>waste to limit it to small-scale food production.  Farmers use 
>permaculture and drive tractors at the same time.   
>
>The slug deal in the Northwest is a real problem.  Thus,
>cultivation instead of mulch may be preferred, especially on
>larger bits of land.  With good humus management, the tilth
>and microbial life will be just fine. 
>
>"Do Nothing" agriculture?   There are many ways to emulate 
>the Fukuoka system.  But in the end you will
>find that for productivity you will still need to add 
>time and labor and skills.  
>
>The video floating around about Emilia Hazelip's
>mulch/interseed method is a good starting point for adapting
>Fukuoka's style to the temperate zone.  
>
>Some market gardeners here in the Ozarks studied directly 
>with Fukuoka in Japan and use many methods (mulch beds first
>and then transplant, cover crops, small-scale grain
>production, hand threshing, etc) but they still work like
>crazy all season long with the help of apprentices and 
>visitors.  They have one of the nicest displays of flowers and 
>vegetables at the farmers' market.  But if you asked them about 
>their "do nothing" agriculture, what do you think they would they say?  
>
>Steve Diver
>Fayetteville, Arkansas 
>
>
>
>