Soil and Water for Every Farm - Keyline Design Course
Courses/Workshops — by Craig Mackintosh
December 1st – 3rd 2008
Malanda • Atherton Tablelands • Far North Queensland
Don’t miss this rare opportunity to learn practical, hands-on Keyline Design with the world’s most respected Keyline educator, Darren Doherty.
The Keyline System of farming has been one of the pillars of sustainable farming and hydrology, with the first book “Water for Every Farm” published in 1954. In it, P.A. Yeomans exploded the myth that it takes 1,000 years to produce an inch of topsoil. Keyline Design is a design system that restores and regenerates landscapes, applicable to both rural and urban areas.
It is a unique combination of water conservation and soil building, with great appeal to both farmers and pastoralists as it has the ability to build and regenerate degraded soils rapidly, and sees the use of grazing animals as beneficial to this process.
The term Keyline comes from the reference to a “keypoint” on the watershed, which is the interface between collection and distribution of water on the landscape, where ridge meets the valley. Keyline is a philosophy and technique that doesn’t pit the needs of farmers against environmentalists trying to protect wildlife and fish habitat, and with carbon sequestering techniques used, helps to address aspects of global warming and climate change.
Water harvesting strategies employed by Keyline Design provide drought-proofing for farms. Keyline principles and techniques are based on a holistic approach that works with natural patterns to restore and increase the depth and fertility of the soil, while increasing its water holding capabilities. The Keyline plow utilizes a special cultivation technique to infiltrate water into the soil efficiently and hold it on the land as long as possible.
Who is this course for?
The Keyline Design Course is an intensive blend of technical & practical sessions targeted at would-be carbon farmers, professional land managers, consultants, Permaculture designers, earthmovers, farmers and anyone with a strong interest in sustainable land management and soil creation. This 3-day on-site course will fully outline all of the principles and techniques involved with the modern application of Keyline Design. We will have the use of Keyline’s central tool, the multi-award winning, Yeomans Keyline Plow for demonstration at this course.
Topics covered include:
-
Keyline™ Design - Carbon sequestration
- Cost effective soil creation
- Water harvesting & reticulation
- Designing water into a property
- Dam placement
- Pasture improvement
- Holistic Management™
and much more….
About the Teacher
Darren Doherty has extensive experience across the world in Permaculture project design, development & management. A focus on retrofitting broad acre agricultural systems has seen Darren acclaimed as a pioneer in this important & often overlooked field. He is a registered teacher of The Permaculture Institute, a qualified Whole Farm Planner (University of Melbourne), Approved Keyline Designer, & Accredited Permaculture Training (APT) Trainer
Back in Australia after a year travelling the world, teaching extensively in a huge variety of bioregions, students can expect a swag of new and updated ideas, techniques and information added to Darren’s already large array.. GIS, Consulting Processes, Keyline Design, Holistic Management™ and Carbon Farming plus a lot more…
Location and travel
The course will be held on a 300 acre Hereford cattle property just outside Malanda, an easy 1.5hrs drive from Cairns International Airport or 15 minutes from Atherton, the largest township on the majestic Atherton Tablelands. The property is o
wned and run by the proprietors of the award winning and well respected local business Marsh Butcheries in Stratford, Cairns. The site provides an excellent venue for learning about the application of Keyline Design systems.
This site has the potential to include Managed Forestry, Tree Crop & Fodder species all on a Keyline Design layout, integrated into the pastoral systems of the property.
Please visit our map for the exact location
Bus services are available from Cairns to Atherton and Malanda. Pickups can be provided for a small fee. Please contact us to arrange a pick up.
Bookings
The course fee is $485. This fee includes morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea on each of the three days. A field analysis kit bag containing farmer’s level, compass, topographical maps of course site, soil analysis kit and other essential objects will also be available for purchase prior to the course. This kit bag is recommended as it contains the essential tools for this course. Please notify us when booking if you would like to purchase any of these items.
To book your place or for more information contact Kym on 0407 243 298 or Georgie on 0437 267 323 or email us. To ensure that all participants get the most from this course positions are limited, so please book early to ensure your place.
Accommodation
Convenient accommodation for this course can be booked at Malanda Falls Caravan Park which is situated in Malanda, 10 minutes from the site. Options include cabins, powered and unpowered caravan sites and camping. For participants willing to share a cabin, special rates apply. Contact them on 07 4096 5314
Other accommodation options in the area include:
Visit athertontablelands.com for further information on the wide range of accommodation available throughout the region.
For those attending both the KDC and the PDC (that runs just prior)
If you are planning to attend both the Keyline Design course and the Permaculture Design Course that runs just prior (taught by Geoff Lawton and Darren Doherty, and finsihing the day before the Keyline course), there is an additional accommodation option. For a small additional fee of $30, you can camp on-site at Rosella Waters during the Keyline Course. Our camping area includes basic facilities such as composting toilet and shower. This accommodation option includes breakfast and dinner on each day during the Keyline course, as well as the night before and the morning following.
To take up this accommodation option, contact us once you have booked your course.
About FreeRange Permaculture
FreeRange Permaculture provides world-class courses and workshops in a range of sustainable practices. We have become a leader in sustainability education for future generations in the Far North through our Healthy Educational Living Permaculture (H.E.L.P.) School Garden program.
Our Permaculture demonstration site is “Rosella Waters” near Cairns in Far North Queensland. The 2.38H property is located in Walkamin near what is locally known as the “jump-up”, the edge of an ancient lava flow. At an elevation of close to 600 meters above sea level and with over 1000mm of rainfall per year, it is a unique climate suited to a wide range of produce. The property is fronted by 194 meters of the Barron River, which flows year round and is the major river in the region. Any questions, just call Kym on 0407243298 or Georgie on 0437267323. Alternatively you can Email us.
This sounds excellent. I would like to attend, though not sure if my schedule then will permit. Thank you for sharing the details — and if ever visiting Seattle / Pacific Northwest of US, please contact and we can meet — perhaps schedule a talk. Best regards, Jonathan Scherch
Comment by Jonathan Scherch — July 9, 2008 @ 1:51 am
My name is caleb Omolo, Iwould like to perner permaculture research institute so that we can my village in rongo district in Nyanza province in Kenya can learn how to solve the soil erosion problems and poverty erradication through permaculture practice of sustainable agriculture.We are losing allot of soil to soil erosion and our soil can not grow much, our rivers streams are trying up very fast and the remaining river streams are very much polluted with nitrogen phosphate chemical fertiliser.
Comment by caleb omolo — July 23, 2008 @ 12:32 pm
can you visit my village in kenya ?let me know if any of your students is willing to come to kenya to train my village on permaculture type of farming.
Comment by caleb omolo — July 23, 2008 @ 12:38 pm
interested to join the course but do not have the financial means since i am coming from developing country the philippines. would like to do work exchange and conduct seminar/workshop sharing indigenous microorganisms technology i did in california when i took the permaculture class. am currently heavily involved in organic agriculture training here in the philippines with special focus on intensive and microbial organic farming technologies. you may want to visit my website and click new farm where an article was made on me on indigenous microorganisms. hope i can get train and attend your workshop exchange deal.
many thanks!
gil carandang
herbana farms philippines
Comment by gil carandang — October 12, 2008 @ 9:47 pm
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