Water Harvesting

Water is one of the most important factors when considering any type of growing food system.As the earth is getting warmer due to the effect of Global Warming,we as Permaculturists and citizens of the world have to look at water as a gift not a right and preserve it as much as possible.In Permaculture we harvest water from the landscape and use it as many times as possible before it leaves our properties.We need to design our systems to be drought proof so we have water stored for extended periods when there is low or no rain events.

One way is to store water is in the soil through designing into the the landscape swale systems,which are differently constructed depending on climate and soil type.The other way is to harvest water from catchment areas and store it in containers.Now containers can vary from dams,ponds,lakes,tanks and even as small as sauce pan catching water from a leaking roof.

Whilst driving to a local village recently I noticed 3 X 1000 liter tanks sitting in a farmers field and wondered if it was possible to get hold of some like that to use on the farm.I asked Toshi to inquire to the near by home owners to who owns the tanks and if he could tell us the supplier.He was able to get the phone number of the farmer and upon calling him he said we could have these tanks for free.I promptly jumped into the truck as to not miss this opportunity.

We took a dozen eggs from the farm and a leg of deer someone had just given us (Toshi didn't know how to cook it anyway) and headed off.On closer inspection we found the tanks needed minor repairs but they were easy fixed.The farmer was shocked to receive the eggs and deer and pointed out there was a fourth tank we could also take.He happened to be a strawberry farmer and gave us two tubs of strawberry jam into the deal.In a matter of minutes we had the capacity to store 4000 liters of water.

The farm doesn't have a irrigation system and the guys here have usually used a 500 liter tank to water crops.This is a very time consuming task and this year we are growing more vegetables than before so we have to think seriously about where we can collect and store water so we can use gravity to transport the water to the crops.It does rain alot here but there will definitely be periods when we can't rely on rain to service our crops.

Firstly as we didn't have a hose to reach the crop area,we designed a tank stand out of railway timber easily and transported the 500 liter tank of water to the stand.Getting it off the truck was a mission as now it weighed at least 500kg.

We thought more and redesigned the tank stand to be located under the roof of a small structure that houses worms.We put guttering on the edge of the roof and now catch water off the roof.The tank now stands about 1 meter higher than the cropping area so when we can afford drip irrigation there will be enough head pressure to be functional.

As this garden system is set out on contour we can easily fill each path with water to filter slowly through the soil.I have also installed one of the 1000 liter tanks onto the tank stand and filled it with a comfrey and water solution.Comfrey is a dynamic accumulator of silica,nitrogen,magnesium,potassium,calcium and iron and it grows wild around here so it can be used as a compost tea.I am just letting the comfrey rot down and the use the water on the crops.The minerals will be the returned to the soil more efficiently.The simple observation of plant and season cycles can produce free fertilizer.A bit of research can find this information and a bit of networking and being resourceful can come up with the materials for it to happen.Imagination can move mountains.

I also have a 200 liter barrel on the tank stand with dandelion rotting down for a similar purpose also filled from the roof.All this water and fertilizer located really close to the crops.So much time and effort saved.Clever design.Things need to be redesigned again as funding allows but we can see a clear path to the potential of our ideas.

Patterns in Permaculture

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Permaculture v Agriculture

Recently we had 140 students from an Agriculture school in Tokyo to the farm for a visit to get an understanding of Permaculture and sustainable living.

The night before the visit,staff and wwoofers as well as Masa and his wife were busy cutting vegetables and other ingredients for the lunch that was going to be served on the day.

We were making curry and rice to a measured quantity prepared by Kayco (Masa's wife).It included mushrooms,potato,carrot,onion,garlic,pork,cabbage,broccoli and Japanese curry stock.We had we very large pots in the kitchen on burners and it resembled a back alley soup kitchen.Kayco had everything very well planned though.Masa bought a plank of pine wood and Waka san and I cut it in half and carved out two paddles to use as stirring paddles for the curry.

Also we prepared apples, milk and rice for the lunch which is fairly typical of the package for a group visit.

The students arrived at the farm and Masa introduced himself and I and set about explaining a bit about sustainability including his pet harvesting solar and wind energy.They were told about worm farming and were able to inspect a couple of worm farms up close to see how soil can be built the natural way.The kids were also shown the composting toilet system and how the cycling of a waste product can be useful in a Permaculture system.

What we grow we eat and what we eat goes back to the soil as compost to grow the food we eat.A closed loop rather than the mainstream system of flushing wastes out to sea.

Throughout the farm is a series of reference boards that pose questions about the environment with a multiple choice answer key.The visitors here wander the grounds reading and answering the questions to get an understanding of our systems and the correct answers read out at the end.The winner receives an eco gift from the farm.

I did a small talk on Permaculture and an explanation on how we use the system to harvest water into the soil and grow with companion plants to help with pest control.I explained to the students that it was important to challenge the system they are learning and asked them to look for alternative and more sustainable ways to look after the soil as modern agriculture is responsible for so much pollution and soil loss.

As Masa is an electrical engineer and builds electric cars,he has been able to get 30 electric scooters donated to the farm for educational purposes.We charged the scooters before the visit and parked them out in the field for the students to ride.There were some pretty close calls as most of the kids have never ridden a scooter before.Toshi had given them a crash course in how to ride but he is blood type 'O' so anything could have happened.

The students had the curry lunch that we prepared and must have liked it as they mostly all went back for seconds.We had so much left over though,we were eating curry and rice for days after.

Permaculture Key Hole Garden

At Fuji Eco Park there are so many systems that need maintenance as any evolving system does.In Permaculture we say,from new something can deteriorate a 1/3 then it needs repair or maintenance to bring it to a manageable condition then down a 1/3.Like the pattern of a saw blade,wwwwww.

I notice things and think of ways to make them maintenance free where possible.

Which brought my attention the this following project.A key hole garden bed that was unlevel,very poor access and a border that needed alot of maintenance.After some discussion with the staff at the farm and a design brain storm we decided to put our rock wall building skill we used on the Glass House Garden to good use again.

We were going to need rocks,so we fired up the old Komatsu and loaded some rocks into our truck.We were looking for rocks that were large enough with a flat face and hopefully a flat bottom.We needed about 3 truck loads most hand picked.We also went to town to get sand and cement.Ending up we needed 10 bags of cement and a meter of sand.Relatively inexpensive,about $3.50 a bag and $40.00 for the sand.All our rocks are free and we have wwoofers for all the hard work,ha ha.

We disassembled the old border of the garden which was made from clay tiles.Not really working that well in this application as they weren't really retaining the soil.The shape was also running down a slope and so too the dirt behind the border making the tiles collapse.

Next we dug a trench for the rocks to sit in so they wouldn't slip from the bottom.As we were going to level the garden,the end of the wall was going to be raised 1 meter to give easy access without bending.The design also will make the paths wider for access and reachable at arms length from anywhere you stand.Very ergonomically friendly and no need to stand on the soil.
I used my string line bubble level to determine the wall height and pegged out the area.Things started to look a lot bigger than we had anticipated but we progressed.In went the largest rocks to marry in with an existing boulder formation and to take up some bulk height.Foundation rocks should be solid as possible to avoid movement of rocks that will be positioned higher.Selection of rocks is critical to get a nice display face and a firm footing.This is one thing I had to explain to Toshi several times.He just put any old rock down and hoped for the best.I explained that if he was going to carry a heavy rock for placement,make it count so he wouldn't have to move it again.Work smart not hard.Toshi is blood type 'O'.The joke here is that people with blood type 'O' forget easy or they don't really care about the end result.I'm working on him.

Lots and lots of small rock were needed to fill gaps behind the foundation rock and to make level platforms for the second,third and so on layers.We mixed cement, 3 sand to 1 cement for our morter a used it to set rocks into position for strength and to fill any gaps.Slowly the wall was taking shape.We had all hands on deck gathering rocks,mixing cement and placing rocks to get the job completed on schedule.It was starting to look really good and worth the effort.A good amount of effort now and a lot less later is the plan.

When we finally completed the wall,the garden bed needed topping up with soil and compost so we scoured the farm for some good soil and put in 2 truck loads.

Next we had to put in areas to walk that we could reach the garden bed center from anywhere in the garden.We have a heap of timber blocks about 30cm X 20cm which were perfect for the design.We dug them in so they are same height as the soil with about 100mm gap between each.Previously the old paths were at ground level,but making them at bed level we gain more surface area for plant.A trick I picked up from a colleague mate Cam Wilson.On ya Cam.Now we can access anywhere in the garden easily,not compact the soil and once everything is grown we can sit in amongst the beautiful herbs.



















Next we mulched heavily with straw and put in 120 vegetables and herbs that will companion each other.The main veg being lettuce,we companioned it with cucumber,dill,basil,beans,oregano and strawberries.There are so many more things in there as well.



The last thing to do was make a set of stepping blocks onto a rocky outcrop and fill the gaps between the blocks with vegetation to stabilize them.
The pond that the garden is near will reflect the suns heat and warm the garden so we will be able to grow warmer climate plans for longer when it get cooler.Mediterranean type herds like thyme,oregano and basil have been planted on the south facing wall to capture the heat from the rocks and tall herbs have been positioned so they will protect the lettuces from the hot summer sun.

A really good job buy all involved and I am happy with the finished result.It suits the rocky outcrop at the pond like it was meant to be there.

Here is a diagram and plant list for a garden.Change the plants to suit your own area.Don't be afraid to experiment.Have fun,live a little.

A. Snap peas, pole-type 'Sugar Snap', 1 seed packet B. Edible flowers (calendulas, pansies, violas) C. Cabbage, 'Ruby Perfection', 6 plants D. Cauliflower, 'Amazing', 9 plants E. Spinach, 'Tyee', 6 plants F. Garlic, 'Chesnok Red' and 'Spanish Roja' G. Broccoli, 'Premium Crop', 8 plants, and Romanesco, 12 plants H. Mustard, 'Giant Red', 6 plants, and 'Green Wave', 3 plants I. Carrots, 'Babette' and 'Bolero', 1 seed packet each J. Onions, 'Walla Walla Sweet' K. Radishes, 'Cherry Belle' and 'Crimson Giant', 1 seed packet each L. Swiss chard, 'Rainbow', 9 plants, and 'Ruby', 2 plants M. Kale, 'Winterbor', 6 plants N. Lettuce, curly endive, 'Dark Lollo Rossa', 'Lollo Rossa', 'Sierra', and 'Tom Thumb', 6 plants each O. Ornamental kale, 26 plants P. Herbs (assorted)

Glass House Garden

19/04/08

With the further transformation and development of the systems here at Fuji Eco Park there is always opportunity to make a garden.On the farm there are several small cabins to house wwoofers when they are here.One particular cabin has bottles built into the walls as a decorative effect as well as a heating quality.The sun heats the bottles and the air in them and creates stored heat energy and acts as a thermal mass.

This is not the first time I have seen bottles as walls.I first encountered the concept at Rainbow Vally Farm in New Zealand.Joe Polaisher and Trish Allen use the technique through out their home and outside compost toilets.The system could be used anywhere really and the construction can really get the creative juices flowing.

The cabin here is next to a huge hot tub set amongst rock walls and looks fantastic.It is south facing and during summer I expect it would get quite warm inside but it could be used as a sauna also.Some trees can be planted to shade it a little during the hotter period though.

Masa asked me to design a garden utilizing the unused spaces around the hot tub and cabin that would be beautiful with herbs and vegetables.

We took a look at the work area in question and as it is south facing it is protected from the northerly winds.Alot of rock has previously been used around the area so we kept with that theme and put in a small wall at the bottom of an excavated slope to retain the dirt from the excavation.The wall was to be about 600mm high so it was comfortable to reach over into a garden area behind it.We dug a small channel in the soil to keep the rocks from slipping out from the bottom and packed smaller rocks around the bottom layer of rocks to support them.
I learned this type of wall making when I was studying in Australia at the Permaforest Trust.We had a guy come in to do a workshop on one of our activity based training days and built several walls after that.

A young Japanese wwoofer was staying with us at the time and he was great at lifting the rocks and putting them into place.Where possible,we looked for nice flat rocks for the face of the wall and that they sloped back at the top.A lot of positioning of the rocks is needed to find the best way for the rock to sit.The wall was continued to meet an existing wall and a series of different levels has added some dimension to the whole garden.

At the bottom of the newly constructed wall a path was added and a lower level garden bed was created using a railway timber as the border.In areas where the reaching distance to the center of the garden was uncomfortable,we added a small flat timber as a stepping plate..

Now we have a nice terraced garden full of herbs to lookat when we are in the hot tub and a heap of vegetables mixed in there also.It took 3 guys to construct this garden in 1 day.A lot of material had to he bucketed to the site as we couldn't get a wheel barrow in.A lot of rocks also had to be carried into the area and they weren't light.But we managed.

The most enjoyable part is putting in the plants and watching their progress.I know the wwoofers helping do the work like planting because it is easier than carrying rocks.When each of these jobs are complete,Waka san(an older Japanese worker) stands back and says in a rough English 'beautiful'

Three Sisters Permaculture Garden

22/04/08

We noticed a underutilized resource at the chicken house recently so I put on my thinking cap and came up with a solution to the problem.

The chook house sits on the west of the property boarder and has a fairly good flow of water running thru or near it when it rains.The chickens are fenced with a dog run around the outside to protect them from foxes.They don't get to free range as the neighbors are concerned about influenza spread by birds so they stay in the pen always.I am designing a tractoring system to get them into the gardens,but more on that later.

Because they have been housed there for so long,manure has built up in the soil and gets washed thru the soil when it rains.I saw this as an opportunity to look at using the Three Sisters technique (corn,beans,squash) here as corn requires chicken manure and is a heavy feeder.We can get our fertilizing done with little or no energy from us.It will be all done by the chickens and the rain(nature).This is using "Relative Location",a principle of Permaculture where we locate things at the best appropriate place for utilizing energies.It also lets us use elements of the system to do more than one function for the system.Here is a quick run down of how I see it working.

The chickens will shit and the rain will wash it thru the soil making it available for the corn,beans,squash and other plants.The fence protects the chickens from the fox and is a trellis for cucumbers and beans that will also shade the dog in his run.The dog will protect the chickens from the fox and protect the corn from the deer that usually eat it.The corn will act as a trellis for the beans and protect the chickens from the wind.The position of the garden is also good as the corn will get good afternoon sun which it likes.There are heaps of other functions happening in the system and we are always coming up with more ideas.

So we started building the garden after Masa was so excited with the conceptual plan.We got the resources we needed in the form of compost and straw from a nearby dairy farm.There was a large pile of rocks in the way so I attacked them with the excavator we have on site to give us plenty of room for wandering pumpkin vines.Next saw me leveling the area as it have a bit of slope and I wanted to create beds that would hold water when it rained.Once we leveled the area we found that we had a stepped area separating what was going to be one big garden.A quick redesign and we put in a small rock wall utilizing the rocks from the pile and adding a feature to the garden.We added the compost into where the rows of the garden and rotary hoed it into the soil.A little bit of work saw the bed separated into rows that the corm will grow and then finally straw to mulch the beds to retain moisture.And there it is completed and ready to plant.

We had seeded up lots of the required plants for the garden and wait for them to br ready for transplanting into the garden.We will consecutively plant the crops so we have a continual supply to the kitchen over the harvest period and it will also look nice with the crops at different growing stages.

Borage has also been introduced to the garden as a companion ,as has German chamomile.Some flowering herbs like cosmos and marigold or calendula will also be added for color and to attract bees to pollinate the fruiting vegies.So we will have a very mixed garden that will function well and all the plants will help each other in some way.Some small rock structures will be made amongst the garden to attract lizards and frogs to live and they will be predators for the insects that come to munch on the plants.

A recent clean out of the chook house has created a surplus of chook poo which we will keep stored for compost making and then feed the plants with that compost.All the resources are very close to the chook house so we can make it right there and use it right there with minimal travel to the garden.The nutrient from the compost pile will go into the soil also and feed plants that are up slope from the chickens.

According to Iroquois legend, corn, beans, and squash are three inseparable sisters who only grow and thrive together. This tradition of interplanting corn, beans and squash in the same mounds, widespread among Native American farming societies, is a sophisticated, sustainable system that provided long-term soil fertility and a healthy diet to generations. Growing a Three Sisters garden is a wonderful way to feel more connected to the history of this land, regardless of our ancestry.

Corn, beans and squash were among the first important crops domesticated by ancient Mesoamerican societies. Corn was the primary crop, providing more calories or energy per acre than any other. According to Three Sisters legends corn must grow in community with other crops rather than on its own - it needs the beneficial company and aide of its companions.

The Iroquois believe corn, beans and squash are precious gifts from the Great Spirit, each watched over by one of three sisters spirits, called the De-o-ha-ko, or “Our Sustainers". The planting season is marked by ceremonies to honor them, and a festival commemorates the first harvest of “green” corn on the cob. By retelling the stories and performing annual rituals, Native Americans passed down the knowledge of growing, using and preserving the Three Sisters through generations.

Corn provides a natural pole for bean vines to climb. Beans fix nitrogen on their roots, improving the overall fertility of the plot by providing nitrogen to the following years’ corn. Bean vines also help stabilize the corn plants, making them less vulnerable to blowing over in the wind. Shallow-rooted squash vines become a living mulch, shading emerging weeds and preventing soil moisture from evaporating, thereby improving the overall crops’ chances of survival in dry years. Spiny squash plants also help discourage predators from approaching the corn and beans. The large amount of crop residue from this planting combination can be incorporated back into the mound at the end of the season, to build up the organic matter in the soil and improve its structure.

Corn, beans and squash also complement each other nutritionally. Corn provides carbohydrates, the dried beans are rich in protein, balancing the lack of necessary amino acids found in corn. Finally, squash yields both vitamins from the fruit and healthful, delicious oil from the seeds.

Native Americans kept this system in practice for centuries without the modern conceptual vocabulary we use today, i.e. soil nitrogen, vitamins, etc. They often look for signs in their environment that indicate the right soil temperature and weather for planting corn, i.e. when the Canada geese return or the dogwood leaves reach the size of a squirrel’s ear. You may wish to record such signs as you observe in your garden and neighborhood so that, depending on how well you judged the timing, you can watch for them again next season!

Early European settlers would certainly never have survived without the gift of the Three Sisters from the Native Americans, the story behind our Thanksgiving celebration. Celebrating the importance of these gifts, not only to the Pilgrims but also to civilizations around the globe that readily adopted these New World crops, adds meaning to modern garden practices

Success with a Three Sisters garden involves careful attention to timing, seed spacing, and varieties. In many areas, if you simply plant all three in the same hole at the same time, the result will be a snarl of vines in which the corn gets overwhelmed.

Training a Sheep

At Fuji Eco Park there are about 40 chooks, 2 ducks, also 2 wild ones that fly in each day and swim in the ponds, a dog, a couple thousand compost and earth worms and one sheep.

Before I arrived, 3 wwoofers spent about an hour cutting grass and weeds for the sheep.This didn't make sense to me as am a logical and creative being. It took these peoples energy to walk to the other side of the farm with a wheel barrow and then the time to cut the grass and talk about whatever crisis the world is in and then walk to the pen where the sheep is housed as part of a crop rotation.

I saw an opportunity to reduce the time to get the grass cut and use the extra energy saved buy the wwoofers to do other more constructive tasks.I figured that the area the grass was being cut could also do with being fertilized and as it is on a ridge,if it were fertilized and it rained the nutrient would wash down the slope into the soil and enrich a lot more area and we would save even alot more energy.Letting a natural energy cycle do the work for us is what we are trying to replicate using Permaculture."Relative Location".

This is where the sheep come into play as an element having many functions.

I also figured that if I trained the sheep to be caught and walked to the grass cutting location it would save time, energy, get the field fertilized, get the grass cut, bring people closer to the animal and teach the sheep something new also.So we tried it out.

At first the sheep was shit scared of people.She didn't mind the wwoof girls because they brought the food to her daily.But when anybogy else got in the pen it was on for young and old.It took 5 of us at first to corner the sheep and get a rope around her neck and then quickly get a chain around her neck.When the walking started she wanted to run straight off,then get stubborn and not want to move at all.She learnt quickly that if she pulled on the chain it would be a little unpleasant.

We have several electric golf buggies here as Masa has a business maintaining them for golf courses about the place and we get the 'hand me downs'.They are great as we charge them from the solar powered house and the batteries last ages.Great for carrying things quickly around the farm.Anyway,we use one of these as the anchoring point for the 10 meter long chain as it is very easy to relocate and to also carry the water bucket each day and the sheep can't tow it away.Perfect.

So each day it became easier and the sheep seems to like going for the walk.She seems to know that the good grass is at the end of the trip.Now it takes one person to move the sheep in the morning and return at night.I love working with animals and take her most days and she comes now when I call her.She just needs a big scratch behind the ears and to be talked to calmly and she walks without getting skittish.

A wwoofer 'Ayako' was putting her away recently and she got away on her.When we cornered the sheep Ayako dived on the chain in the dirt to catch her again.She had just arrived on the farm and I don't think she wanted the sheep getting the best of her.What a gem of a lady.

This system will only be used short term until we rotate the sheep to another pen with more food for all those wondering about sheep's rights.It is a solution to the problem until we can get the system right.With all the time saved we been able to do so much more constructive jobs and the wwoofers get to do less mundane tasks.

And no, I'm not a Kiwi.

Permaculture in Action

11/04/08

The sun was out in force today. I got a look at the majestic Mt Fuji to the east of the farm for the first time. Still covered in snow, it looks so beautiful.

Waka san and I went to his sisters dairy farm to collect cow shit (manure) also. The cows are all kept indoors and their shit is cleaned out and stockpiled to rot down in time naturally.

When Waka san turned the pile with the loader, it was very alive with life. Lots of worms and bugs. This is a great resource to have so close and it is free.We will take eggs and produce to the sister in exchange for the shit. We also can get bales of straw from her. The ones that are old and wet the cows won’t eat it and they can get sick if they eat the rotting material.

We were planting potatoes today. Waka san had prepared the beds and was putting out the seed potatoes when I noticed the row spacing’s. We all had a discussion on how things are usually done and I offered some advice to utilize less space.

Waka was using 4 rows of space for one row of crop. I redesigned the bed spacing’s so we used two rows wide of crop and one row wide of path. We put extra shit into the required rows for planting to aid in the growth of the plants. We have 3 wwoofers on the farm at the moment, so it makes light work of getting a lot done.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potato

We will mound as per the normal way but will use straw also to cover the plants as they are growing. This will add organic matter to the soil as the plants are growing and is less laborious as apposed to digging. The potatoes will be cleaner also saving labor on cleaning.

I had found yarrow growing in a part of the farm so we transplanted some at the ends of the garden beds to act as companions to the potatoes. Yarrow is also a good compost activator and it will be closer now to the compost making area.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yarrow

These three ladies were wwoofing from Thailand and did a wonderful job helping out. Hopefully their experiences will have taught them something about sustainable living.

26/05/08

Well it has been about 5 weeks since all the above action happened.Since then we have had other wwoofers in and they have helped with mulching the potatoes and planting other veges as well as a ton of weeding.The potatoes have been mulched in a way that it is mounded rather than using soil.Sort of like a volcano then inside filled with compost.

We planted a heap of lettuce and companioned it with radish,beans,carrot,dill and cucumber growing up a teepee. We have also direct sowed spinach and companioned them with spring onion.Corn has just been introduce along with lettuce and chamomile and zucchini.Beans will be seeded in a few weeks as the corn takes off.

The yarrow is really taking off at the end of the beds and the potatoes seem to like it being there.We have also planted another two rows of two different types of potatoes to have a good supply after the first batch have been harvested.More corn is waiting to also be planted.We will wait two weeks before continual plantings.
13/06/08
Progress is being made and all the crops are doing well.The potatoes have been continually heaped up with straw and got a good fertilize with compost recently.As of today(13/06/08)the potatoes are flowering and look so beautiful and healthy.I have been making fertilizer for dynamic accumulating weeds from the garden and the first batch was 100kg of comfrey into 1000 liters of water.It took about two week to break down and I am expecting the nitrogen to be released to the plant more readily than normal composting.

The paths have been doing a great job harvesting water when it rains.I trimmed them up a little to make them more level and they look great.I have said previously about the yarrow at the ends of the paths and how well they are working.Now after a few more weeks have passed,they look fantastic and are starting to flower.Not much sign of pest insects yet but I am keeping a watchful eye.I have the charcoal spray at hand.

We have also been making garlic spray as well as soap spray.Some others Wakasan has used in the past are coffee and milk sprays.I have done some research also and found that animal urine is good for deterring pests.I can't seem to catch the sheep when she is having a piss or keep up with her,so I am trying human urine.

Another thing I am trying is 'potato towers' using old car tires.It is another way to demonstrate growing potatoes and also recycling in Permaculture.The tires should produce more potatoes that the conventional method as the stem of the plant is continually covered promoting root growth from it.It is a means of growing vertically by stacking the tires.We will use less growing surface area for hopefully a higher yield.No pun intended.
The second batch of corn went in yesterday and was in-filled with lettuce as we have so much of it and the corn will do a good job of shading it as the weather is getting hotter.In the first bed of corn I have planted chamomile,parsley,lettuce and zucchini.The lettuce has been planted on the shadier side of the corn,while the zucchini is on the sunnier side.The chamomile in the middle.I am waiting a while longer till I plant beans.
As I am always looking to recycle anything I find and resourcing is my hobby, I saw an opportunity to salvage some timber from a tractor/machinery repair place.This garden above gets a real hammering from the sth and nth winds on a regular basis.I had noticed the timber every time I passed by that business and kept on thinking of ways to use it rather than just picking it up and just keeping it for a rainy day

The most viable and easy way that would serve both the wind and the recycle issue was to use the timber for a wind break.Because we are growing corn in this garden I want to protect it as much as possible.The timber is positioned in a way that the sth wind will hit it and be slowed down and then deflected around to the left where it meets a smaller panel and so forth.I am searching for more timber for the nth side to complete the design.I still have a while as the corn is still young.I think it looks great and we will also use it as a vertical growing space for peas and beans and anything else I can fit into the space.The fence will also act as an accumulator of resources at its base.Any leaves or straw will build up there and act as a mulch,saving us work.