permaculture

[Mark Ludwig <mpludwig@facstaff.wisc.edu>]

At 10:35 AM 11/18/02 -0700, you wrote:
> I don't think that strawbale is a good idea for moveable structures, you 
> won't be doing much pasturing in winter in Kansas anyway I don't believe 
> so why strawbale.  Strawbale is really only good for insulation if you are 
> looking to cut costs strawbale is comparable to wood frame.  We build 
> moveable "chicken tractors out of pvc and chicken wire so one person can 
> move it.  At night we open these tractors and the chickens race back to 
> the chicken house.  In the morning we troll them with a bucket of grain, 
> they follow us to the tractors and spend the day eating alfalfa, and 
> austrian pea.
>
> Good luck Meg,
> Scott Pittman

I doubt you really need any kind of insulated building for cattle or sheep 
anyway.  Just keep them out of the wind with either natural shelters like 
trees and valleys or with simple towable three sides shelters on 
skids.  Other folks build shelters from stacks of large bales of corn 
stalks or soybean stubble piled to make a kind of cow courtyard.  Even well 
adapted hogs should be OK if they can get into well bedded areas sheltered 
from wind , might want to look for Hereford hogs, this was a well adapted 
Northern pasture breed.  It might be nice to have skid mounted buildings 
for cattle if they grow corn in your area, beef do fine eating corn stalks, 
especially if interseeded with rye, annual rye grass, brassicas etc.
M