Update, Meeting, Permaculture in Action #2

On September 3rd we planted trees and shrubs which is the beginning of a guild and a forest garden.  We also planted a few perennials in the raised beds, finished the spiral herb garden, and mulched some of the path.  We are almost done with what we are going to do this year except for any donated perennials that come forward.  We will move into another planning and plant ordering phase.  We will buy local as much as possible form vendors like Cherry Greenhouse and Seppi Bros. Concrete that support our project but there are some less common items that we will need to order. 

We will have a short meeting in C157 on Monday, Sept 15 to give an update, share the harvest and walk the trail.  We are hoping to move the meeting out to the garden so bring your walking shoes.  If you can't make the meeting but are interested send Kim an e-mail.  I sent out a list of topics to those who have expressed interest.

I have updated the blog and plan to add a few more permaculture in action posts in the coming weeks.  Each time I add one, I will also put it in the tab across the top so that they are all on one place.  Please check out the lists under the ways to get involved on the right hand side, the thank yous and dedications, both across the top and please add your e-mail at the bottom of the blog so that you get an automatic message when I post.

Permaculture In Action #2

Spiral Herb Garden

Permaculture principles say to put what you need to access, closest to you.  If our garden were at home, we would want to access our herbs often.  We can simulate that by having our spiral herb garden close to the entrance of our garden.  A spiral folds up the garden into a smaller space keeping the herbs yet closer.  In our garden instead of using 25  linear feet, we have a mound that is about 5 feet across and about three feet high. In addition, the spiral creates microclimates because it has slopes that face all directions.  The sunny south will be hotter than the north, the east side with morning sun will dry out faster than the west.  We can plant accordingly to take advantage of the miroclimates for each plant.  Examples would be plants that thrive in hot, dry climates like oregano, rosemary, and thyme would prefer the south side while parsley and chive may prefer the north side because they grow in cooler, moister conditions.  In nature spirals are a repeating pattern, often the result of growth or expansion.  My source for this information is Gaia's Garden by Toby Hemenway.  I recommend this book to anyone interested in permaculture.  The Mesabi library has the book.  I will return it next week so it will be available.

Planting trees

On Wednesday, September 3rd we are planning to plant trees.  We will need about 11 holes.  It is tough digging out there so if anyone can help dig it would be much appreciated.  It is rocky so each hole takes several attempts.  We have pears, plums, chokeberry, chokecherry, currant, Siberian pea shrubs, and a few perennials all purchased from Cherry Greenhouse. We also have a few donated transplants.  Notice the thank you heading on this blog.  I try to acknowledge people who have been helpful in moving this project forward.  Please let me know if I have accidentally missed you.  Also please subscribe to the blog so that you get automatic updates when I post.