permaculture

["Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lfl@intrex.net>]

FranksFarm@aol.com wrote:

> Just bought a used disk harrow at an auction a few weeks ago. Haven't used it 
> yet -- but there's some ground I need to go over this fall.
>
> Larry, after 5 years I can see a huge improvement in my pastures form when I 
> first took over the farm. My bottom fields pH is close to 7.0 and the soils 
> are also high in some minerals, and have adequate values for most tested.
>
> Those bottoms appear fairly flat, but in reality there are quite a few spots 
> where there are dips and swales that often have standing water. Plus there are 
> ridges where corn used to be planted.
>
>  
What about trying corn there again? Or - rye grain + sudex + tall sweet 
clover to build soil and a more favorable environment for
bneficial insects and microorganisms. - alternate with winter pea and 
crimson clover - maybe buckwheat. and winter rye (really builds soil tilth
when plowed under the following Spring - B4 it goes to seed.

> I've no tilled Alice white clover, orchard grass, and fescue. The white 
> clover really seems to thrive so the clovers could make up nearly 50% of the 
> acreage in the bottoms.
>  
Great. If you have land that grows good clover keep it in that crop and 
keep it limed sparingly.
}{}{}{  Here's a great idea:  clover loves rock dusts and in high ratio 
to native soil - never mind lime or fertilizer/nutrients -
just rock dust. If you can get some delivered apply it over as much of 
your land as possible and by the hundreds of tons if possible.
Case closed, the jury is in: Rock dusts greatly enhance plant growth (as 
I have seen: rattlesnake plantain, clovers of all sorts, fescue grass,
burdock, blackberries and more) and the flavor of food crops.

> I'm reluctant to tear all this up and start anew. Of course I could only do 
>  
Don't. Just build on what you have.

> this in stages over time if I decided to do it at all. Any suggestions?
>
> Now my back pastures are a different story. Soils are not as good. Clay is 
> tight, and almost impenetrable when dry. They are improving though, but more 
> slowly.
>
> I'm thinking of sub soiling them this fall with an old sub soiler I bought at 
> auction cheaply. Whether it works well or not is another matter.
>  
Subsoil when the subsoil moisture is just right and then, a week later, 
bottom plow the land and leave it for the winter's duration.

> My biggest problem on the farm is drainage. I have high hills on all sides 
> except for the western boundary which is along the creek. Heavy rains follow 
> drainages built up over time. However, some of the drainages do NOT empty into 
> creeks and thus just dump all sorts of water onto some areas, which become 
> boggy. Some of this land was former pasture, but the previous owner let it go, and 
> scrub trees, willows, and multiflora roses took over.
>
> Little by little I've been opening up some of this land to the sun, by taking 
> out dying trees, and lesser value trees. But since these areas are also lower 
> than surrounding areas water just tends to sit on the surface.
>
> I sure wish I could find an inexpensive way to put the water where I want it. 
> It's hard slogging through such land that grows very little forage.
>
>  
Have you considered vegetable, herb, flower and fruit market farming? 
You'll need irrigation water. Build a large pond in
the best lowland location and channel water from other low areas into it 
(use a subsoiler, bottom plow, trencher or backhow to
dig the channels).

> Look forward to your pictures, and hearing your ideas. Cheers. Frank   
>  
Pix soon, ideas now.

Cheers,

LL