Our second eight-day class is complete and three of us now hold certificates for the Permaculture Design Course. We're not experts yet, but we have done, as part of the course, a very extensive design for the layout of the Raccoon Creek Community.
The plan includes the location for the community center (barn), the housing areas, one east and one west on the north side of the community property, a new spur on the road to reach the west-side properties, new pond sites which will store water yet not disturb the existing wetland, orchards sited along contour lines south of the comunity center, multiple garden sites, signage locations and much, much more.
The plan includes a modern version of chinampas on a new pond, not on man-made islands as most of the Aztec chinampas were, but as fingers into the pond. One exciting revelation from defeloping the plan is the potential to water many of the gardens and most of the orchards using gravity and pond water.
I will post some sketches of the class project soon.
Showing posts with label Permaculture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Permaculture. Show all posts
Monday, May 15, 2006
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Permaculture Practicum, early May in Indiana
Plans are now set for Part 2 of our Permaculture Design course. It will begin the evening of Friday, May 5th and end on Saturday, May 13th, after lunch.
The Permaculture Practicum will be held at the Raccoon Creek Community site. Lodging will be at McCormicks Creek State Park, just up the road.
Participants who complete both parts earn a Permaculture Design Certificate. If you missed Part 1, Permaculture Fundamentals, you can take that when it is offered again in the fall.
You can read more about the course and finds links to more about permaculture at our web site. You can also download your own flyer and registration form.
This is a beautiful time to be in the woods in Indiana. Come early or stay late and camp on the site with us for a few days.
The Permaculture Practicum will be held at the Raccoon Creek Community site. Lodging will be at McCormicks Creek State Park, just up the road.
Participants who complete both parts earn a Permaculture Design Certificate. If you missed Part 1, Permaculture Fundamentals, you can take that when it is offered again in the fall.
You can read more about the course and finds links to more about permaculture at our web site. You can also download your own flyer and registration form.
This is a beautiful time to be in the woods in Indiana. Come early or stay late and camp on the site with us for a few days.
Monday, December 05, 2005
A weekend of ups and downs
Starting before dawn on Saturday morning, and ending after dark on Sunday evening, I was away from home at our Raccoon Creek Community site with our surveyor and his assistant surveying most of our property. The two of us who carried the "sticks" probably each walked about 10 miles, up and down, up and down, ...
The finished product of the survey will be a topographic map of the site with 1-foot contours. Currently, the best topo we have is the USGS 10-foot contours. That only gives a rough idea of the site, not enough detail to plan any building locations, roads or ponds and water catchment locations.
We did not survey the entire site, partly because there is a "tail" section that we aren't likely to "develop" to the extent that a 1-foot topo is needed, and partly because we wanted to take all the "shots" within two days.
The process was very instructive. Modern surveying equipment makes the job way different from when I played surveyor as a kid with a scope and a friend with a marked stick. The primary piece of equipment, the transit or theodolite, is a complex box about the size of a few bricks. It calculates direction, angle of elevation above or below, and, using infrared beams, the distance to the "stick" to within thousandths of a foot.
The "stick" is an extendable pole with a point on the top and bottom with a very precise circular mirror at a fixed height. Markings on the inside pole tell one how far from the ground the point is. These mirrors are remarkable. They are actually made of six mirrors that each are precisely 60 degrees of the circle. These are precisely set in a concave six-sided pyramid so that no matter from which direction one looks into the assembly, one sees the same picture of oneself. Move up or down, left or right, and one still sees the same part of one's face. This is very important, of course, because the mirror needs to precisely bounce the infrared beams back to the transit, and the stick holders cannot possibly get a precise 90 degree angle on the transit from sometimes hundreds of feet away.
So the process is to set up the transit on a point and take "shots" of the sticks at various points within sight of the transit. Each of these sightings are stored in a computer as data points. When all the points that can be shot from the transit are taken, the transit is moved to another point. A stick is placed where the transit was, and a shot is taken from the new point back to the previous point to verify their relationship to one another.
This process continues across the entire site, setting transit points by "backshooting" to earlier ones, and taking shots in every direction from each transit point. The more shots, the more precise the end product will be.
The trick is to take enough shots to get all the contour changes so the computer, where all the data points are processed, can place the data points on the map and interpolate between them to describe the contour lines. To get the best detail one must take shots on the center line, the "center of flow", of each stream, and the "toe" and "top of bank" on both sides. These five shots are taken at points along each stream where the route or the elevation changes. Shots are taken where there are changes in the slope, and also at scattered points across the entire area.
Again, the more shots, the better the product, but, obviously, there's a point beyond which the cost would outweigh the value of the extra precision. With two days to take the data points, we had to decide where to spend more time to get more shots and more detail, and where more detail wouldn't be all that useful, and, consequently, we could take fewer shots and still get what we need.
Within a week we should see the result of our work.
The finished product of the survey will be a topographic map of the site with 1-foot contours. Currently, the best topo we have is the USGS 10-foot contours. That only gives a rough idea of the site, not enough detail to plan any building locations, roads or ponds and water catchment locations.
We did not survey the entire site, partly because there is a "tail" section that we aren't likely to "develop" to the extent that a 1-foot topo is needed, and partly because we wanted to take all the "shots" within two days.
The process was very instructive. Modern surveying equipment makes the job way different from when I played surveyor as a kid with a scope and a friend with a marked stick. The primary piece of equipment, the transit or theodolite, is a complex box about the size of a few bricks. It calculates direction, angle of elevation above or below, and, using infrared beams, the distance to the "stick" to within thousandths of a foot.
The "stick" is an extendable pole with a point on the top and bottom with a very precise circular mirror at a fixed height. Markings on the inside pole tell one how far from the ground the point is. These mirrors are remarkable. They are actually made of six mirrors that each are precisely 60 degrees of the circle. These are precisely set in a concave six-sided pyramid so that no matter from which direction one looks into the assembly, one sees the same picture of oneself. Move up or down, left or right, and one still sees the same part of one's face. This is very important, of course, because the mirror needs to precisely bounce the infrared beams back to the transit, and the stick holders cannot possibly get a precise 90 degree angle on the transit from sometimes hundreds of feet away.
So the process is to set up the transit on a point and take "shots" of the sticks at various points within sight of the transit. Each of these sightings are stored in a computer as data points. When all the points that can be shot from the transit are taken, the transit is moved to another point. A stick is placed where the transit was, and a shot is taken from the new point back to the previous point to verify their relationship to one another.
This process continues across the entire site, setting transit points by "backshooting" to earlier ones, and taking shots in every direction from each transit point. The more shots, the more precise the end product will be.
The trick is to take enough shots to get all the contour changes so the computer, where all the data points are processed, can place the data points on the map and interpolate between them to describe the contour lines. To get the best detail one must take shots on the center line, the "center of flow", of each stream, and the "toe" and "top of bank" on both sides. These five shots are taken at points along each stream where the route or the elevation changes. Shots are taken where there are changes in the slope, and also at scattered points across the entire area.
Again, the more shots, the better the product, but, obviously, there's a point beyond which the cost would outweigh the value of the extra precision. With two days to take the data points, we had to decide where to spend more time to get more shots and more detail, and where more detail wouldn't be all that useful, and, consequently, we could take fewer shots and still get what we need.
Within a week we should see the result of our work.
Monday, October 31, 2005
We're half way there
Half way to our Permaculture Design Certificates that is.
A small but fiesty group of would-be (make that "will-be") permaculturists has completed the first half of the curriculum for permaculture design certification. Starting on October 21st and ending on the 29th we spent 8 days at the retreat center learning many aspects of permaculture. We also visited Raccoon Creek twice.
On the first visit the whole class created a swale on a steep hill on the edge of the property and planted a cherry tree. A swale is a trench that (usually) follows the contour of a hill. Its purpose is to trap water running downhill and hold it while it seeps into the hillside rather than running quickly off the hill and likely taking some top soil with it.
The soil removed from the trench is piled on the downhill side so the trench will hold more of the runoff. Over the next hours or days after a rain fall or as a result of snow melt, the captured water will seep into the ground below the swale. Gravity will cause the water to move under the swale and downhill. Over time, the soil below and downhill from the swale will retain much of the moisture making the hillside much better at supporting vegetation.
The cherry tree was planted on the downhill side of the swale. The swale was dug a bit deeper at the tree to catch a bit more water. We also nearly covered the small tree with brush to protect it from browsers, namely deer.
On our second visit, three of us took a close look at the strip of land next to the power line which is Raccoon Creek Community's west boundary. There is a fifty foot easement on each side of the property line demarked by a barbed wire fence and the power line runs above it.
We walked the length of it and found parts of the hill too steep to use, the wetland area ripe for developing, multiple eroded areas where a well pastured field drains across the easement into our woods, and a serious erosion problem at the creek on the southern end.
The entire plan had to be developed in about 3 hours, including the tour, travel each way, and drawing up the plan. Obviously, more detail would be needed later, but we took to the assignment enthusiastically. Here are our recommendations:
For the hillside: a few more swales and eventually a few terraces on the steepest side, the west. As the swales are dug, trees and companion plants would be placed along and between them. Further, we should make the tree line crenulated, that is, rippled, uneven, winding, so that more edge is created between the mowed and the untouched areas.
For the wetland: creation of chanampas -fingers of gardens protruding into a water body that are raised above the water using the soil removed from the wetland. Each of the "fingers" would have a path through the middle to allow for planting and harvesting. Along the width of the wetland area, their number would determine their width, or vice versa, and whether the path through each would be simple and straight or connect a series of "keyholes" that would enlarge the reachable area on each peninsula.
For the eroded areas: begin to slow the erosion by filling in the young gullies with fallen wood, rocks, whatever is nearby. Over time, water flow from the uphill neighbor's pasture will cause nature to fill in around the debris and make the edge along the trees more smooth. This will slow the runoff and cause it to flow into the woods along a longer edge.
For the creek bank: first, raise a ten foot long area at the base of the hill about three feet to cause the runoff to flow through the woods rather than straight into the creek. Next, plant the existing bank with whatever plants will best hold the remaining soil and absorbe the remaining flow.
Finally, along the entire length of the right-of-way we would define a path for walking and make sure it is built as necessary so it will not cause erosion on its own.
Our instructors added a few suggestions. Most significant of these was to take out a few more trees to create some micro climates along the wood's edge and to add some smaller plants along the tree line, if possible, (need to negotiate with the power company) to soften the edge between the mowed right-of-way and the treeline. The power company has trimmed the trees at almost exactly 50 feet from the center line, from the bottom of the tree all the way to the very top! They did not even make healthy cuts, with branches lopped off at fifty feet regardless of how much branch was left protruding from the tree. We hope we can take responsibility for maintenance of the right-of-way in the future.
These poor cuts should be repaired by cutting all the way back to the trunk of each tree, at least as far up the trees as we can get without the large equipment the power company uses.
(A few pictures coming soon.)
A small but fiesty group of would-be (make that "will-be") permaculturists has completed the first half of the curriculum for permaculture design certification. Starting on October 21st and ending on the 29th we spent 8 days at the retreat center learning many aspects of permaculture. We also visited Raccoon Creek twice.
On the first visit the whole class created a swale on a steep hill on the edge of the property and planted a cherry tree. A swale is a trench that (usually) follows the contour of a hill. Its purpose is to trap water running downhill and hold it while it seeps into the hillside rather than running quickly off the hill and likely taking some top soil with it.
The soil removed from the trench is piled on the downhill side so the trench will hold more of the runoff. Over the next hours or days after a rain fall or as a result of snow melt, the captured water will seep into the ground below the swale. Gravity will cause the water to move under the swale and downhill. Over time, the soil below and downhill from the swale will retain much of the moisture making the hillside much better at supporting vegetation.
The cherry tree was planted on the downhill side of the swale. The swale was dug a bit deeper at the tree to catch a bit more water. We also nearly covered the small tree with brush to protect it from browsers, namely deer.
On our second visit, three of us took a close look at the strip of land next to the power line which is Raccoon Creek Community's west boundary. There is a fifty foot easement on each side of the property line demarked by a barbed wire fence and the power line runs above it.
The assigment: How can the power line easement best be used? Develop a plan for improving the land and making it as productive as it can be.
We walked the length of it and found parts of the hill too steep to use, the wetland area ripe for developing, multiple eroded areas where a well pastured field drains across the easement into our woods, and a serious erosion problem at the creek on the southern end.
The entire plan had to be developed in about 3 hours, including the tour, travel each way, and drawing up the plan. Obviously, more detail would be needed later, but we took to the assignment enthusiastically. Here are our recommendations:
For the hillside: a few more swales and eventually a few terraces on the steepest side, the west. As the swales are dug, trees and companion plants would be placed along and between them. Further, we should make the tree line crenulated, that is, rippled, uneven, winding, so that more edge is created between the mowed and the untouched areas.
For the wetland: creation of chanampas -fingers of gardens protruding into a water body that are raised above the water using the soil removed from the wetland. Each of the "fingers" would have a path through the middle to allow for planting and harvesting. Along the width of the wetland area, their number would determine their width, or vice versa, and whether the path through each would be simple and straight or connect a series of "keyholes" that would enlarge the reachable area on each peninsula.
For the eroded areas: begin to slow the erosion by filling in the young gullies with fallen wood, rocks, whatever is nearby. Over time, water flow from the uphill neighbor's pasture will cause nature to fill in around the debris and make the edge along the trees more smooth. This will slow the runoff and cause it to flow into the woods along a longer edge.
For the creek bank: first, raise a ten foot long area at the base of the hill about three feet to cause the runoff to flow through the woods rather than straight into the creek. Next, plant the existing bank with whatever plants will best hold the remaining soil and absorbe the remaining flow.
Finally, along the entire length of the right-of-way we would define a path for walking and make sure it is built as necessary so it will not cause erosion on its own.
Our instructors added a few suggestions. Most significant of these was to take out a few more trees to create some micro climates along the wood's edge and to add some smaller plants along the tree line, if possible, (need to negotiate with the power company) to soften the edge between the mowed right-of-way and the treeline. The power company has trimmed the trees at almost exactly 50 feet from the center line, from the bottom of the tree all the way to the very top! They did not even make healthy cuts, with branches lopped off at fifty feet regardless of how much branch was left protruding from the tree. We hope we can take responsibility for maintenance of the right-of-way in the future.
These poor cuts should be repaired by cutting all the way back to the trunk of each tree, at least as far up the trees as we can get without the large equipment the power company uses.
(A few pictures coming soon.)
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Permaculture Course details - Web site
Web site
Due to a gift of DSL service for my birthday and the pending loss of my old web site that came with the soon-to-be-defunct email address, I have finally made the effort to set up a simple web site for the Raccoon Creek Community.
Our new web address is http://a.domaindlx.com/RaccoonCreek/.
It's not fancy but it should be an easier way for one to find information about us without having to scrool through "Up the Creek..." and its various monthly archives.
Over time I'll try to expand the web site to include more pictures and specific information. If there is specific information that you'd like to see there, let me know.
Permaculture Course Announcement flyer
For now, the web site's prime purpose is to provide a home for the "Permaculture Course Announcement flyer."
It would be great if you would distribute the announcemnt to anyone who might be interested. Note especially the discount offered for registration by September 21st, a month before the start of the course. Campers can save another $50.
Monday, July 25, 2005
Class fee set for Permaculture course
We have worked up our budget and determined the fee for the 8-day Permaculture Fundamentals course from October 21 through 29 to be $650, including lodging for eight nights and 24 organic meals. Those who wish to camp would save $50 off the fee. Campers would still have access to the showers, and the Solsberry Hill property will be beautiful in late October.
Remember, this is the first of a two-part program that earns one a Certificate in Permaculture. With that, one may advertise themselves as a Permaculturist. The second 8-day class will be held in the spring.
Soon we will publish details of the course, including directions and a course outline. The instructors will be Peter Bane and Keith Johnson, co-editors of "The Permaculture Activist." Peter and Keith have been the instructors for the Permaculture course that has been taught in the summer for the last few years as an Indiana University elective course. That course is scheduled for two full weeks and a weekend in a row.
This is the Raccoon Creek Community's first major public class. The budget is tight, but if we have a good enrollment, we may be able to afford to reduce the cost of the spring class for those who attend both.
Please tell anyone you think might be interested about the class.
Remember, this is the first of a two-part program that earns one a Certificate in Permaculture. With that, one may advertise themselves as a Permaculturist. The second 8-day class will be held in the spring.
Soon we will publish details of the course, including directions and a course outline. The instructors will be Peter Bane and Keith Johnson, co-editors of "The Permaculture Activist." Peter and Keith have been the instructors for the Permaculture course that has been taught in the summer for the last few years as an Indiana University elective course. That course is scheduled for two full weeks and a weekend in a row.
This is the Raccoon Creek Community's first major public class. The budget is tight, but if we have a good enrollment, we may be able to afford to reduce the cost of the spring class for those who attend both.
Please tell anyone you think might be interested about the class.
Monday, July 18, 2005
Permaculture instruction comes to Raccoon Creek
The Raccoon Creek Community proudly announces its first Permaculture Fundamentals class to be held near our Raccoon Creek Community site from the 21st through the 29th of October, 2005. Successful completion of this class and the Permaculture Practicum class soon to be scheduled for next spring will earn those who complete both a Permaculture Design Certificate.
For those who haven't heard the term "permaculture" or are unsure of its meaning, here are a few definitions as written by others:
The course cost will include lodging, meals and a permaculture manual. More information on the course, including a course outline, the cost, instructor bios and other details will be posted here soon.
Please set these dates aside. If you would like to talk about the course before the next announcement, send an email to rcc@netdirect.net.
For those who haven't heard the term "permaculture" or are unsure of its meaning, here are a few definitions as written by others:
o The design of sustainable human habitats based on the observation of natural systems and uses ecological principles to increase diversity and productivity of local human ecosystems. Permaculture designs incorporate food, energy, and shelter for people and animals while linking the needs and outputs of each element of the system. The result is a dynamic yet stable system that sustains itself. Permaculture designs can be developed for any climate and on any scale, from balconies to entire villages.
o The conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter, and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way.
o According to Bill Mollison, the creator of the Permaculture Design Concept, "Permaculture is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter and material and non-material needs in a sustainable way. Permaculture design is a system of assembling conceptual, material and strategic components in a pattern which functions to benefit life in all it's forms."
The course cost will include lodging, meals and a permaculture manual. More information on the course, including a course outline, the cost, instructor bios and other details will be posted here soon.
Please set these dates aside. If you would like to talk about the course before the next announcement, send an email to rcc@netdirect.net.
Friday, April 29, 2005
Permaculture at Raccoon Creek
Over the past few months community members have discussed permaculture as a design principle for Raccoon Creek. (Google "permaculture" for tons of definitive information.) Wednesday night some of us traveled to Bloomington to see a set of four programs on video at the library. These were arranged by Cynthia to help spread the word about permaculture. She hopes to schedule them again so if you'd like to see them, send me a note and I'll pass your name on to her.
The programs were produced by Bill Mollison in 1991, but they are timeless. Bill is one of two Aussies who coined the term "permaculture" and first wrote about it in detail.
Each program emphasized a different habitat --desert, tropics, cold climates-- and was, understandably, different in many respects from the others. But the similarities are more obvious.
Mollison showed us implementations of permaculture practices in every corner of the world other than the polar areas. One thing that struck me was how wonderful it would be to actually teach someone permaculture principles and see them create a heathy, sustainable life for themselves where previously one seemed unlikely. Perhaps someday Raccoon Creek Community members will be qualified to travel and teach permaculture to people around the world.
But back to the present...
At the start of this summer, for the third year, a permaculture course will be taught at Lazy Black Bear near Paoli, Indiana, as an elective credit class at IU. The course will be squeezed into two full weeks plus a weekend and successful participants will earn permaculture certifications. The class is full, in fact "way" full, with over 40 students!
We have discussed sending some of our members to a permaculture course, but have decided that bringing a course to us would be preferable for numerous reasons. We would be spending class time talking about our site rather than someone esle's. We would be able to train more Raccoon Creek folks for less expense, giving us more trained people to talk through site design decisions. And, by opening the classes to others, we would enable more folks from Indiana and nearby states to be trained on property more like their own. Being trained in Califoria, Oregon, Arizona, or even North Carolina cannot give as much hands-on experience for midwestern climates as can training in Indiana.
So stay tuned right here to keep informed about our progress in scheduling classes. Current thinking would be to schedule the permaculture certification in two parts: "fundamentals" later this summer or fall, and the "design practicum" about this time next spring, close to the end of spring semesters at state colleges.
If you are interested in participating, send me a note so we can keep you posted on our progress in scheduling a course.
The programs were produced by Bill Mollison in 1991, but they are timeless. Bill is one of two Aussies who coined the term "permaculture" and first wrote about it in detail.
Each program emphasized a different habitat --desert, tropics, cold climates-- and was, understandably, different in many respects from the others. But the similarities are more obvious.
Mollison showed us implementations of permaculture practices in every corner of the world other than the polar areas. One thing that struck me was how wonderful it would be to actually teach someone permaculture principles and see them create a heathy, sustainable life for themselves where previously one seemed unlikely. Perhaps someday Raccoon Creek Community members will be qualified to travel and teach permaculture to people around the world.
But back to the present...
At the start of this summer, for the third year, a permaculture course will be taught at Lazy Black Bear near Paoli, Indiana, as an elective credit class at IU. The course will be squeezed into two full weeks plus a weekend and successful participants will earn permaculture certifications. The class is full, in fact "way" full, with over 40 students!
We have discussed sending some of our members to a permaculture course, but have decided that bringing a course to us would be preferable for numerous reasons. We would be spending class time talking about our site rather than someone esle's. We would be able to train more Raccoon Creek folks for less expense, giving us more trained people to talk through site design decisions. And, by opening the classes to others, we would enable more folks from Indiana and nearby states to be trained on property more like their own. Being trained in Califoria, Oregon, Arizona, or even North Carolina cannot give as much hands-on experience for midwestern climates as can training in Indiana.
So stay tuned right here to keep informed about our progress in scheduling classes. Current thinking would be to schedule the permaculture certification in two parts: "fundamentals" later this summer or fall, and the "design practicum" about this time next spring, close to the end of spring semesters at state colleges.
If you are interested in participating, send me a note so we can keep you posted on our progress in scheduling a course.
Thursday, February 10, 2005
Using the worst will preserve the best
"What a beautiful spot; let's build here!"
That's a typical statement one might hear from a person planning to move to a property. Heck, it's something any of us might say before looking around a property in depth.
But before choosing a building site, if we truly want to be environmentally conscientious, we should look for those locations that have already been "damaged." Is there a place that had a building before? How about one that doesn't have good soil, or a spot that doesn't drain all that well?
Since we're going to do "damage" by excavating and pouring a foundation, shouldn't we do it where it's not likely to take an area out of production? Besides, if one builds on the worst spot, that spot will no longer be visible and wherever one looks will be prettier.
I hope we can keep this simple idea in mind as we designate sites for every building at Raccoon Creek.
That's a typical statement one might hear from a person planning to move to a property. Heck, it's something any of us might say before looking around a property in depth.
But before choosing a building site, if we truly want to be environmentally conscientious, we should look for those locations that have already been "damaged." Is there a place that had a building before? How about one that doesn't have good soil, or a spot that doesn't drain all that well?
Since we're going to do "damage" by excavating and pouring a foundation, shouldn't we do it where it's not likely to take an area out of production? Besides, if one builds on the worst spot, that spot will no longer be visible and wherever one looks will be prettier.
I hope we can keep this simple idea in mind as we designate sites for every building at Raccoon Creek.
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