permaculture

["Robert Waldrop" <bwaldrop@cox.net>]

I live close to downtown Oklahoma City, on 1/7th 
of an acre, on which there is a duplex (1500 sq 
ft), a small house (900 sq ft), sidewalks and a 
driveway.    We have about 70 different varieties 
of edible perennials growing on our former lawns.

Since we can't be self-sufficient in food here, we 
concentrate on food items which have high value to 
us and which are hard to get or are very expensive 
from other local sources.  So we raise a lot of 
fruit (organic fruit is next to impossible to get 
in Oklahoma), aliums, hot peppers, herbs(culinary 
and medicinal), greens, peas, tomatoes, and 
potatoes.

We get most of the rest of our food (including all 
of our meats and eggs and dairy) from the Oklahoma 
Food Cooperative, which we had a hand in starting, 
and which only sells foods and non-food items that 
are produced in the state of Oklahoma. 
http://www.oklahomafood.coop .

One thing to remember about permaculture is that 
it is not just about gardening class, although it 
certainly has a lot to say about food production. 
Permaculture encompasses not only what you grow, 
but also where you live, i.e., the household's 
dwelling is an important aspect of a permaculture 
lifestyle.  Our house (we live in the duplex) was 
built in 1929, and our goal with that dwelling is 
to renovate it so that it will be a comfortable 
place to live in even if the electrical grid goes 
down and piped in natural gas is no available.  So 
we chased air leaks with 90 tubes of caulk and 20 
cans of foam, then we superinsulated the walls 
(R-33) and attic (R-50 on our way to R-75 when we 
get some more money), tore off the south wall and 
installed glass to make a sunporch heat-grabber, 
put in a low flow shower and 1.5 gallon flush 
toilet.  We have plans to build a composting 
toilet.  We put a switch on the electric water 
heater so we could turn it off when hot water 
wasn't needed, and we wrapped it with insulation. 
On the drawing board is a greywater recycling 
system, a rainwater harvesting system, a tornado 
shelter/root cellar, and several more projects.

This winter, on any day the sun was shining all 
day, we accumulated enough solar gain to not need 
any backup heat (our only backup heat is a 
woodburning stove).  If it was cloudy, we needed a 
fire, but we only burned 1/2 cord of wood all 
winter.

Now it is summer, and our efforts are still paying 
off.  We don't use air conditioning, instead we 
installed a low power whole house fan and ceiling 
fans in all the room.  We are generally about 20 
degrees cooler inside than the outside air 
temperature at the hottest time of the day (late 
afternoon).  Our electrical bill hasn't been more 
than $55 since last November, for typically 
450-500 kilowatt hours/month -- for lighting, 
heating, cooking, hot water, 
computer/entertainment, and fans.

Another big area of concern to permaculture is 
transportation.  I used to drive to work five or 
six days a week, 24 miles round trip.  Now I take 
the bus at least 3 days a week.  We are trying to 
walk more and drive less.

While much more could be mentioned, the final 
thing I would say is that urban permaculturists 
need to work hard on establishing permaculture 
communities in cities.  I consider the Oklahoma 
Food Cooperative to be a type of permaculture 
community.   We have a local permaculture internet 
discussion group, okperma@yahoogroups.com .  Each 
spring we do a bulk purchase of fruit/nut trees 
and berry bushes, so we are able to get these 
bare-root plants at wholesale prices ($1-$2 each 
for 2'-4' plants).   We also do a LOT of 
"permaculture propaganda work".  for example, see 
http://www.bettertimesinfo.org/2004index.htm , 
which is the online version of a print publication 
we distribute here locally.

In cities, permaculture is all about community. 
Perhaps the need for community is more obvious in 
the city, since our little 1/7th of an acre is not 
going to be enough land to produce food for our 
houseold (presently 3 people).  So we have to be 
involved with others.  It's not optional.

Bob Waldrop, Oklahoma City
tadpole in training with Barking Frogs 
Permaculture, 
http://www.barkingfrogspermaculture.org


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kathy Evans" <evansdk@earthlink.net>
> Thank you all for your kind and welcoming 
> responses to my earlier question,
> am I at the right party. I live on less than 
> half an acre in the city. I
> have been organic gardening for over twenty 
> years, raised beds and
> trellises, about a thousand square feet, letting 
> the edible weeds go and
> eating them, and I have a small flock of hens, 
> for eggs, and use the manure
> on the garden. I know and use wild edibles. The 
> rest of my yard is shaded
> and has clay soil. Five people to feed. What are 
> some next steps I can take
> to move in this permaculture direction under 
> these conditions, given that I
> won't be moving out to the country any time 
> soon? What's the difference
> between what I've been doing and permaculture? 
> What form does permaculture
> take in the city, if any, when self-subsistence 
> is not possible, not even
> close? Kathy