The last two weeks have brought some slow progress, but we are still a few weeks away from anything big. One of our most immediate projects is to double the size of our vegetable garden. We want to put in a new pond, at least five new 12′ by 3′ raised beds, and a 8′ [...]
It’s been two weeks since I returned to Humboldt, and I’ve been fortunate to accomplish a few new things. My experience at OAEC left me chomping at the bit to start practicing some permacultural methods, and while I realize this is a lifelong endeavor, I’m pleased to be able to start turning several small projects [...]
It depends. In the wake of my two-week Permaculture Design Course at the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (OAEC), these two words are burned into my brain. For me, they have come to represent the uncertainty and excitement that pervade the practice of environmentally responsible agriculture. Inside them resides the imperative that is fast becoming [...]
There’s always something. My friend Barry Snitkin often says this when a problem arises on his farm, and this week I found myself echoing the sentiment. It has been a week of upkeep, of varying jobs that subtly announce themselves. It’s not like the plants can holler at me to come help them out, so [...]
Life is full of gophers. This thought occurred to me shortly after watching a sturdy stalk of purple kale rock back and forth several times, seemingly of its own volition, before falling into a decidedly inharmonious horizontality. As I rushed over to save the plant from being dragged into the soil, I was pleased to [...]