United Colors of Ho avy: Growing Trees and Growing with Them, Madagascar
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Developments, Education Centres, Energy Systems, Food Forests, Nurseries & Propogation, Social Gatherings, Trees, Village Development — by Martina Petru September 2, 2010
Editor’s Note: This is an update for the ho avy project in Madagascar. Previous updates here and here.
EcoExplorers Madagascar 2010 from Shannon Kohlitz on Vimeo.
Here we are past July’s time for fleece, hat and socks, wouldn’t you believe! Manintsy – cold (25/16 °C day/night or less) was the semiarid southwest Madagascar in winter; winter in the dry southwest where ‘it never rains’. Well, never say ‘never’ and/or be prepared for rain in the no rain season and for beautiful double rainbows arching gently over the glowing morning skies….
Since our last update in February, ho avy has been on a ‘high season rainbow ride’ – exciting in a way, admittedly speedy and bumpy some of the time – more like a downhill slalom race against time, where falling over exposed tree roots is unavoidable. Retrospectively, it’s been a valuable growing time: our trees are growing and we are growing with them.
We especially enjoyed the rainbow of colors left behind the pens, pencils and brushes of Eco-Explorers – talented undergraduate students of the University of Michigan’s School of Art and Design. These young students overflowing with creativity came to Madagascar expecting no rain. Although they got some, they seemed to greatly enjoy this mad ride, and so did we on ho avy & Madagascar Eco-Explorers’ tour and project service work in Ranobe.
Comments (2)Clever Rocky Mountain Greenhouses Give Major Season Extension
Building, Energy Systems, Food Forests, Food Plants - Annual, Food Plants - Perennial, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems — by Mari Korhonen August 16, 2010
In cool and cold areas the length of the growing season and the cold temperatures are the main challenge for growing things and supporting oneself. As part of the search for cold climate permaculture strategies I came across integrated greenhouse designs that seem to have a lot to offer to us in the cool climates. This is a little report from a trip to the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute’s solar greenhouse workshop in Basalt, Colorado. There, during his thirty five years of living on the site, Jerome Osentowski the director at CRMPI, has overcome the challenges of his steep sloping land at 2,200 meters above sea level with advanced integrated greenhouse designs as a feature in the overall system. They have stretched his climatic zones all the way to the subtropic – all year round, with no fossil fuels used.
Solving All the Problems of the World – in a Garden
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Conservation, Demonstration Sites, Developments, Education Centres, Food Forests, Food Plants - Annual, Food Plants - Perennial, Food Shortages, Global Warming/Climate Change, Land, News, Nurseries & Propogation, People Systems, Plant Systems, Rehabilitation, Salination, Society, Soil Conservation, Trees, Urban Projects, Village Development, Water Harvesting — by Craig Mackintosh July 23, 2010
This video can be downloaded in high resolution from Vimeo (see ‘About this video’ section on lower right side’).
I hope you’ll enjoy this clip. More, I hope it encourages you to dare to be different, and dare to have your work noticed. The garden we profile in the video above, as you’ll discover after watching it, has just won a national competition held by the Jordanian Department of Education – for schools who incorporate environmental projects into their curriculum. This means that thousands of schools, in what is arguably the most water-stressed country on the planet, now have the possibility to learn from this humble example of permaculture in action – and get inspired to do similar.
Special thanks to Lesley Byrne for her enthusiastic support, and to Nadia Lawton for her vision and determination to help her own people – and in so doing setting such an excellent example for us all.
International Clayballs for Peace Meeting in Haiti
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Deforestation, Food Forests, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems, Rehabilitation, Seeds, Trees, Village Development — by Francesco Trio June 29, 2010
“Seeds after the earthquake” –
an international gathering event for solidarity and peace.
From October 26th to November 5th, 2010
After the earthquake that severely damaged Haiti in January 2010, we have the opportunity of acting in a concrete way to show solidarity with our Haitian sisters and brothers. We firmly believe that the real richness we can bring is in the improvement of the fertility of the soil, creating biodiversity and providing an ecosystem that will raise the amount of water in the environment as well as creating a food forest for the people to enjoy. Haiti suffers from extremely arid conditions. As a result, food production is low and the country is forced to import approximately 70% of its food. [Editor's addition - there are other factors too!] After the recent disaster Haitian people are even more dependent on foreign aid and imports.
From the 26th October to the 5th of November 2010 people from different parts of the world, together with local people from Haiti, will meet at the international ecovillage community of Sadhana Forest Haiti (www.sadhanaforesthaiti.org) in Anse a Pitre, Haiti, to learn how to make different types of seed-clayballs and throw them together on the land. We will all contribute to the recreation of an indigenous forest that will bring life and fertility as well as human solidarity. We will all live together as a big community.
Comments (2)Flying Blind with Four Photos and an Outdated Google Map
Commercial Farm Projects, Demonstration Sites, Land, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems, Podcasts, Rehabilitation, Trees — by Nick Huggins May 19, 2010
It can be hard making the leap from studying Permaculture to actually working it so I thought I’d share my first experience on making that leap.
Flying Blind with Four Photos and an Outdated Google MapHop in my shoes – I was asked to consult and work on a property in inland New South Wales, with some of the worst drought conditions in Australia, after some of the world’s leading consultants on land hydration and rehabilitation had been there.
Comments (10)Permaculture Indigenous Tree Project in Ghana
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Deforestation, Developments, Nurseries & Propogation, Potable Water, Regional Water Cycle, Trees, Village Development — by Paul Yeboah May 14, 2010
The Ghanian branch of the Australian Edge 5 Permaculture company, in partnership with the permaculture network in Ghana, has, since the year 2006, been supporting indigenous tree seed collection, communities tree nursery and forestation, tree plantings in schools and planting trees along rivers in Ghana.
Comments (2)CERES Environment Park Melbourne
Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems — by Patrick Blampied May 12, 2010
I visited CERES in Brunswick, Melbourne while on a mission for seeds and compost worms.
It’s a great place with many aspects of permaculture principles and sustainability on display. I was lucky enough to chat to Matt about what happens in propagation and also Greg from the CERES Cafe.
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Peters Lawton’s Rocket Pot and Rocket Rack System
Conservation, Deforestation, Food Forests, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems, Trees, Waste Water — by Geoff Lawton April 27, 2010
Peter’s Lawton’s Rocket Pot and Rocket Rack system is an incredible new innovation in nursery systems.
I believe the Rocket Pot system is incredibly innovative, and the best nursery tree growing system that I have ever come across anywhere in the world. This system is something that I support because the trees grow healthier and more quickly, and with an abundant root zone. The roots actually grow in an untangled form, rapidly, in full sun, without the need for shade cloth or extra irrigation systems.
Comments (0)Indoor Vegetable Garden with Topsy Turvy Planters and Window Boxes
Food Plants - Annual, Food Shortages, Nurseries & Propogation, Urban Projects — by Matthew Trotter March 10, 2010
One cool product that I’ve had the pleasure of using is the Topsy Turvy Upside-Down Tomato Planter. (Note: I’ve since stumbled up on DIY version of this product made with 5-gallon buckets. How cool is that?) It’s kind of an experimental product as is, and I was using it in an even more experimental way. I got the Topsy Turvy so that I could utilize the vertical space in my indoor container garden. Not being able to grow a garden would have been the bane of my college dorm room existence…. but I wasn’t about to let someone tell me that I couldn’t do it.
Comments (4)Jawaseri School Garden Project, Jordan
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Conservation, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Developments, Eco-Villages, Education Centres, Food Forests, Food Plants - Annual, Food Plants - Perennial, Food Shortages, Irrigation, Land, Nurseries & Propogation, People Systems, Plant Systems, Rehabilitation, Trees, Urban Projects, Village Development, Water Harvesting — by Craig Mackintosh February 6, 2010
Just as I was leaving Jordan, after making the Greening the Desert II update video, another little project was just getting underway – the Jawaseri School Garden project. A few people have emailed pictures of progress over the last few months and I’ve combined these with Geoff’s narration from the PRI home base in Australia, to give you all a bit of an idea what’s happening there. May it inspire you to do similar where you are!
Permaculture education should be in every school, everywhere. If it was, I believe most of the world’s problems could be solved within a decade.
Comments (6)Ho avy: Growing a Future for Madagascar
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Eco-Villages, Education Centres, Energy Systems, Food Forests, Land, Nurseries & Propogation, Trees, Village Development — by Martina Petru January 25, 2010
Editor’s Note: This is an update for the Ho avy project.
A gentle slice of moon on the star crowded sky of southwestern Madagascar just set gracefully and yet another day is over; we are now in the second half of January 2010.
And what day is today: Monday, Wednesday or perhaps Sunday? We easily lose track when in the field, especially during our prolonged stays – keeping busy in the nursery, forest and the village of Ranobe with several community participatory projects – keeping the momentum of excitement and action. The dynamics are encouraging and there is wonderful energy flowing. Every day is somewhat special; ups and downs along the journey to the ultimate balance. Capacity building is about trust building and about generosity, patience, humbleness as well as discipline. It’s a wonderful lesson for all of us, for ho avy team and for FIMPAHARA.
Comments (3)Dalpura Farm – Experiments in Permaculture Forestry
Conservation, Deforestation, Demonstration Sites, Land, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems, Regional Water Cycle, Rehabilitation, Trees, Water Harvesting — by Craig Mackintosh November 9, 2009
Photographs © Craig Mackintosh
 Inter-row Eucalyptus saligna (Sydney blue gum) & Casuarina cunninghamiana (river she oak) planted in 2000 |
I recently had opportunity to visit a Permaculture site called ‘Dalpura Farm’, near Geelong, outside of Melbourne. Although (or perhaps, because) designed by Darren Doherty, the very well known Permaculture designer and teacher, it was dramatically different than your average Permaculture site. Rather than an urban edible garden, or a fruit-/veg-/livestock-oriented rural block, this 140-acre property was all about trees.
It’s an experimental agro-forestry project, aimed at finding the best way to produce a range of commercial products and ecological benefits from trees, with timber production being the primary focus.
I contacted Darren, the designer, and George Howson, the owner of the property, to see what it was all about.
Comments (3)A Man of a Thousand Trees
Biodiversity, Deforestation, Demonstration Sites, Food Forests, Global Warming/Climate Change, Nurseries & Propogation, Trees — by Ecofilms October 2, 2009
by Frank Gapinski
Recently whilst filming at Mulloon Creek Natural Farms near Canberra we spotted a lone figure in the barren landscape quietly digging a series of holes on a 2 kilometer stretch of swales that were designed by Geoff Lawton. Matt Kilby has been on the farm now for 12 months and in that time has developed a system of giving the trees he plants a successful start to life. Planting trees in heavily compacted soil is not easy as Matt will tell you, but it can be done if you follow some basic tips. In this video Matt explains the right way to plant a tree on a swale, especially if it’s located in a fairly inhospitable landscape and how to make sure that the trees you plant have a high success rate. The pink tree guards that Matt created are not cosmetic. They have a particular part to play in speeding plant growth as Matt explains.
Life at Zaytuna – Trees, Trees, and More Trees
Food Forests, Food Plants - Perennial, Nurseries & Propogation, Trees — by Craig Mackintosh July 24, 2009
Clearing grass prior to planting a tree
Over the last week the team have planted around 400 trees up on the top section of the property. And, of course, this is not a monocrop planting – but a mix of 18 different types of trees, all planted in an area of about 15 x 100 metres.
For your interest, here’s a list of what’s been planted:
Comments (10)Efficient Glasshouse Design
Building, Energy Systems, Nurseries & Propogation — by Les Anwyl July 14, 2008
A well designed glasshouse can serve many functions and be an extremely productive element in a permaculture system. It creates a self-contained environment in which the designer can modify conditions of heat, light, water and air for a variety of benefits. High value crops can be grown out of their normal climatic range or produced out of season, growing seasons can be extended by starting seedlings of annual plants early, and plants can be propagated and grown in an ideal environment free of many pests, predators and adverse weather conditions.
As part of or attached to another structure, such as a dwelling, workplace or animal housing, a glasshouse can provide a temperature buffer and insulation between indoors and outdoors as well as provide heating and induce airflow to assist cooling. A glasshouse is also a warm, sunny, peaceful and beautiful environment to sit in, observe and enjoy.
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