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  • From: Paul Cereghino <paul.cereghino@comcast.net>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [permaculture] case study anyone?
  • Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2006 00:04:46 -0700

I am starting up some initial plantings of mixed trees and shrub -- a zone 2 fruit savanna on a 1 acre lot. These are in areas just outside more detailed cottage garden/raised bed/chicken rotation/cane fruit system, and will encompass some existing poorly managed fruit trees (2 apples and 2 peaches). I have copious local sources of grass clippings, good quality horse manure, pasture cuttings, maple and alder leaves, and arborist chips for organics.

SOIL dry silt loam, largely stripped of topsoil during clearing, currently supporting 1.5 feet of hairy cat's ear (Hypocharis radicata), Queen Anne's lace (Daucus carota), and bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera).
CLIMATE: ~47 deg N, low elevation maritime temperate, wet winter with 45 inches rain, with dry summer <5 inches rain.
EXPOSURE: rolling topography <3% slopes, full blazing sun on these microsites, fair frost drainage

# I am primarily looking for interesting strategies for maximizing soil development for these impatient early plantings?
# I am interested in suggestions for low tech water distribution on a pretty flat site other than thickwall drip tape http://www.netafim-usa-agriculture.com/Agriculture/index-heavywall.php or like. I'll use well water until I retrofit to greywater or catchment? I don't like the plastic solution, but I know it well and it works efficiently.
# Any recommendations for a free blog service where I can upload images and further expose my exploits?
# Is this list interested in kibitzing on incremental site development? Just writing this email has been useful to me even the parts I've deleted.

Here's a thumbnail. I'd appreciate any critiques or ideas or cautions.

It's October, the ground is just getting moist, I'll lay a layer of rock phosphate and greensand, than ~2" mature horse manure and grass clippings, than ~3" arborist chips (primarily douglas-fir pseudotsuga menzeisii). followed by manual fracturing (stab and lever) with a large turning fork.

Come January I'll buy in and plant bareroot trees and shrubs (that's when they'll become available).

Here are my ideas for more enthusiastic soil building following sheet mulching, any additional suggestions would be fun.

1) Reintroduce some Queen Annes lace (Daucus carota) for the tap root and insect values.
2) Chicken poop and human urination. I am trying to figure easy approach to chicken containment as the woody planting will interfere with a good sized chicken tractor, and I don't want to build fencing. There may be no way around fencing.
3) Rake back woody mulch and build micro compost heaps. I can use them as future planting sites (thanks Eric Johnson).
4) Patches of legumes (favas this winter, native lupines in the future -- I can use the seed to beautify my neighborhood)
5) Intercrop with short rotation woody nitrogen fixer. I can pull bareroot alder (Alnus rubra) from local roadsides and drainage ponds and plant them 'hodad style'. I can cut them as mulch after 2-4 years before they get unmanageable. I like the feel of woody tap roots for building soil structure.
6) Dig and fill mulch pits (ala Fukuoka-san but with some horse manure, food scraps, or grass clippings to boot -- it's just so much work and I don't think I need to build that much character -- maybe my daughter...:)
7) Drive quick rotting wooden stakes into the ground around precious plantings to create vertical structure (thanks John Browne)

Paul Cereghino
Olympia, Washington, USA

Here's the initial plant list for principle species if anyone has specific reactions, or a particular favorite I've forgotten -- I'm trying to stay away from things like blueberries that need moist soils.

Corylus avellana 'Gem' Hazelnut
Corylus avellana 'Santiam' Hazelnut
Corylus avellana 'Barcelona' Hazelnut
Corylus avellana 'Lewis' Hazelnut
Asimina triloba 'Pennsylvania Golden' paw paw, pennsylvania golden
Asimina triloba 'Davis' paw paw, davis
Diospyrus kaki 'Izu' persimmon, Izu
Prunus domestica x 'Golden Nectar' plum, golden nectar
Malus domestica 'Akane' apple, akane
Malus domestica 'Liberty' apple, liberty
Malus domestica 'Enterprise' apple, enterprise
Pyrus communis 'Comice pear, Comice
Pyrus communis 'Bosc' pear, Bosc
Armeniaca vulgaris 'Puget Gold' apricot, Puget Gold
Amelanchier alnifolia 'Smokey'
serviceberry, Smokey
Aronia melanocarpa aronia
Ribes nigrum x 'Jostaberry' jostaberry
Ribes sativum 'Johnkeer Von Tets currant, 'Johnkeer von Tets'
Ribes sativum 'White Imperial' currant, 'white imperial'
Eleagnus multiflora 'sweet scarlet' goumi, Sweet Scarlet
Crataegus pinnatifida Chinese edible hawthorne
Vaccinium ovatum
Evergreen huckleberry









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