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  • From: Paul Cereghino <paul.cereghino@comcast.net>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] Another poll
  • Date: Thu, 12 Oct 2006 21:43:31 -0700

Keith:
At least you didn't use red font. That'll be the last time I try that 'stream of consciousness' thing... when I take the time to make a digestible copy I'll be sure to send it your way.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/Pricing.asp
The preceding site provides a free service where subscribers can create a web accessible survey. The free service is limited to 10 questions and 100 respondents.

Do I garden? Yes.

Are you a freeholder? Yes. I recently sold a 7000 square foot urban lot and bought a 1 acre lot in 5 acre/unit rural sprawl outside Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA (pop. ~85,000).

Are you making complex polycultures?
I am in the design and site prep phase of the following systems:
4000 s.f. of irrigated and mulched mixed tree and shrub fruits.
8000 s.f. of un-irrigated hedgerow modeled after our native forest edge (Hazelnut, willow osiers, salal, cane berries, mushrooms)
6000 s.f. of un-irrigated grassland modeled after Puget Sound outwash prairie focusing on flowers, roots, and medicinals.
3000 s.f. of rotating chicken forage
4000 s.f. of row crops
8000 s.f. of pasture managed primarily to supply biomass to develop the preceding systems.
another 3000 s.f. of intensive permanent mulch kitchen garden.
The current work is mostly seed collecting, cutting propagation, cover cropping, and initial woody plantings, and finding sources of nutritious organic matter to import.

Aquaculture? No. Household greywater reuse is my priority for improving the water system.

grow for market? No, I have better options for trading labor for cash at this point. I tend to give things away.

nursery? I have around 2 years work experience in nursery management for medicinal herbs and ornamentals. I studied adventitious rooting of native shrubs for my Masters work, and so am a big fan of planting un-rooted cuttings.

landscaper? I have12 seasons of experience in ornamental horticulture and ecological restoration with just a dab of farming.

designer/consultant? I have a range of experience in landscape design, environmental consulting, and environmental education. I currently design revegetation projects focusing on wetlands and riparian systems, and provide pro bono workshops for local 'watershed steward' training programs. It could be interesting to get these folks a permaculture module.

rock powder? Mostly limestones (ag lime and dolomite blends), sedimentary greensand and rock phosphate, as commercially sold by the organic fertilizer industry.

Paul Cereghino
Olympia, WA, USA

Keith Johnson wrote:

We recently asked the 300+ members in the audience at the Peak Oil Conference in Yellow Springs, Ohio, "How many of you are actively gardening?" The total was around 90%. We were impressed. Amazing what folks will do when motivated, eh?

So, I was wondering what kind of percentages are represented by these lists?

With 700ish on ibiblio and however many on Open Oc I'm guessing that the numbers would be at least 60-70%.

I'm especially interested in hearing from those who aren't gardening, what their circumstances are, and why not (?).

As long as I'm asking questions, I might as well add a few more:

How many of you are landless (i.e. not owners of land or gardenable property)? Does this stop you from gardening?

How many are actively creating complex perennial polycultures?

How many aquaculturists?

How many are still waiting to do these things?

How many are growing for market or trade? What are your principle limiting factors?

How many in the nursery trade?

How many landscapers?

How many designer / consultants?

Can these questions be answered and quantified in a forum like this?

How many use rock dusts as fertility enhancers (for the garden)?







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