Cold and Clay

Discussion in 'Introduce Yourself Here' started by hendrik, Mar 3, 2017.

  1. hendrik

    hendrik New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2017
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    3
    Gender:
    Male
    Climate:
    zone #5
    Hello my name is Hendrik T. I live in the northern part of the Idaho panhandle. I have 10.04 acres that is mostly clay and the winters are cold, wet, and long. I have developed a small raised bed garden with some successes but mostly challenges. I would like to know if anybody else lives in the same kind of climate i do and if i could get some feedback on developing my land towards the permaculture philosophy.
     
    9anda1f likes this.
  2. songbird

    songbird Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 12, 2013
    Messages:
    1,791
    Likes Received:
    148
    Trophy Points:
    63
    Occupation:
    gardening, reading, etc
    Location:
    near St. Charles, MI, USoA
    Home Page:
    Climate:
    -15C-35C, 10cm rain/mo, clay, full sun, K-G Dfa=x=Dfb
    i doubt we have as cold a season as you, but we do get by
    on mostly clay. we have a fair amount of rain so drainage is
    an important consideration for us.

    is it wooded? cleared? farm field?

    what are you going to do with that much space? do you
    get enough rains to support grasslands? are you planning
    on putting in fruit trees or having animals or both?

    i'm not a big fan of raised beds, but use them for some gardens
    as needed due to risks of flash flooding. as the years have gone
    on i've been combining smaller gardens into larger ones so there
    are fewer edges to keep up. it is much easier for me to work in
    a larger garden than the smaller ones.

    for a larger area what i would consider doing is reshaping over
    the broad contours to create gently sloped high areas which
    will dry out and warm up more quickly and then let the neighboring
    lower areas gather the extra water and soak it in (broad swales).

    when it comes down to it you need patience with clay, you can't
    walk in it or run animals when it gets too wet or you end up with
    a mess. once it is well planted and covered it's fertile and the
    water and nutrient holding capacity is much better than sandy
    soils (people we know in this area who garden on more sandy
    soils often have crop failures and/or have to irrigate a lot more
    than we do - we do well in comparison) the more organic stuff
    i can keep on top of it the better.

    if your area has a healthy night crawler population they will help
    with the drainage. if you don't have any locally you may not want
    to introduce them but if they are already around you can add
    them.

    for just starting out i would try to focus on the area close to the
    house and getting that into production. so making sure the house
    has good drainage and then working those gardens into shape.
    i wouldn't do too many swales close to the house if you have footings,
    drains, or a basement. also there are the considerations of where
    the septic system and well might be at and how the water flows in
    the ground there so that you don't encourage cross-contamination.

    for cooler climates Sepp Holzer has interesting ideas on using rocks
    and water features to reflect and gather sunlight/heat, but i don't have
    his kind of hillsides or large equipment to move large rocks so i've not
    done much along those lines.

    using trees as wind-breaks and protection can help, but in the more
    arid western states i think there is more fire danger so that is an issue
    to consider in any design. i.e. the wind break needs to be some distance
    from the house or any structures and structures should be designed
    with fireproof materials and set up to shed any embers or keep them
    from igniting the roofs/window-sills, doors, etc...
     
  3. hendrik

    hendrik New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2017
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    3
    Gender:
    Male
    Climate:
    zone #5
     
  4. hendrik

    hendrik New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2017
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    3
    Gender:
    Male
    Climate:
    zone #5
    My land has 9 acres of pine trees and the cottonwoods have started cropping up around the house. The building pad is a little over an acre and is sloping. Our raised beds are behind the house and drain well. We built these because of the challenges with clay, bringing in topsoil, 50 year old compost, all of our own compost, tilling, fish emulsion, and other things. We want fruit trees, chickens, ducks, geese, and some cash crop to sell at our Saturday farmers market. Also our own community has around 350 residents so we could probably develop some sort of a community market. We have a lot of rainfall even in the summer we have quite a few wet days so grasslands are no problem. We have thought about grass and want only a minimal amount due to the maintenance and the water runoff leaving us with the feeling of wasted resources. We want to work with the suns radiation with rocks and walls, wind power for it gets pretty windy, hydro would be challenging but not giving up on it. Our elevation is right around 2,800' and we are on the south side of some foothills off the bitteroot mountains. Our property is beautiful with a view of Lake Coeur d' Alene, and Fernan Lake so we would love to develop all of our gardens so they flow into what is already here. By the way we do have night crawlers here and I have brought more in to help with the raised beds.Our house is made of concrete (ICF blocks), with a 70 year metal roof, dual pane windows, greywater system, had composting toilets(a nightmare), just a little history to let you know that we are serious about working with alternative ways. We are committed so I want to thank you for your reply and we are reading Bill Mollisons and Rosemary Morrows books on permaculture and hoping to purchase a 45 hp ford tractor soon and chomping at the bit to get started . You are right about clay so with our melt going on right now it can be quite a mess getting on top of it.
     

Share This Page

-->