MOM's Self-Reliant Homestead

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Catchment Pond: Ever since MOTHER has owned the Eco-Village property, there's been an erosion problem to the east of the selfreliant homestead. A ditch has long carried of the precious little topsoil that exists on the embankments. We plan to dam this ditch at the northeast corner of the south sun-trap and allow the sediment to settle before it's carried away. This pond will be an important source of sand and soil for further bed building and will provide storage for water that'can be used to irrigate the experimental cover-crop area when the need arises.

South Sun-Trap: The southern arch of trees, consisting of clipped hemlock and glauca (as well as various other junipers), shields the experimental cover-cropping area and bends breezes around and down the walkway area. Because this sun-trap could block solar gain to the house if allowed :o grow freely, it'll be controlled at a 12-foot height.

Experimental Cover Crop: The beds shown at the south end of the property will be used for an experiment in which food crops will be interplanted with cover crops. Beds will be sown in a cover—such as alfalfa—in threeyear cycles, and food plants will be cut into the existing growth.

There are many different ways this is likely to be done-we'll be trying a variety of methods to determine which work well-but an example may help explain the concept. Let's say that alfalfa is grown for three years in a 5'-wide bed. In the spring, carrots might be interplanted after the alfalfa has been skimmed and tilthed in a strip 8" wide. Companion plants might be introduced at wide spacings, as well, by cutting out circles. The carrots will grow in a soil loose with fibrous roots and full of nitrogen from the nitrogen—fixing alfalfa—we hope they'll grow very well indeed. Once the carrots are harvested, the area will be resown in alfalfa. And the next spring, perhaps peppers will be grown in a different 8" strip. After the third year, the entire cover crop will be turned in, and beans and potatoes will be planted during the fourth year. Then the cycle will begin anew. Our experiment is on a very small scale, but we hope that eventually it can be applied to larger tractor gardens.

We could go on and on with the details that we have in mind for the different areas of the self-reliant homestead, but we've already listed far more than can be accomplished in the coming year. And by New Year's Day of 1986, many of the ideas we're so fond of now will probably have been abandoned, replaced, or refined. Better that we should get back to work now and report again when we've learned from yet another year (or so) of experience. Meanwhile, look for a detailed report on our bioshelter greenhouse in the next issue.

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print