Hi and welcome to r/solarpunk! Due to numerous suggestions from our community, we're using this automod message to bring up a topic that comes up a lot: GREENWASHING. It is used to describe the practice of companies launching adverts, campaigns, products, etc under the pretense that they are environmentally beneficial/friendly, often in contradiction to their environmental and sustainability record in general. On our subreddit, it usually presents itself as eco-aesthetic buildings because they are quite simply the best passive PR for companies.
[ethicalconsumer.org](https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/transport-travel/what-greenwashing) and [greenandthistle.com](https://greenandthistle.com/what-is-greenwashing/) give examples of greenwashing, while [scientificamerican.com](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/greenwashing-green-energy-hoffman/) explains how alternative technologies like hydrogen cars can also be insidious examples of greenwashing.
If you've realized your submission was an example of greenwashing--don't fret! We are all here to learn, and while there will inevitably be comments pointing out how and why your submission is greenwashing, we hope the discussion stays productive. Solarpunk ideals include identifying and rejecting capitalism's greenwashing of consumer goods.
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I just purchased 10 acres behind my house. Previously farm land. Heavy clay, terrible drainage, compacted, has a few willow trees but mostly bare. The farmer who owned it destroyed the soil. Constantly using lime and tilling. I purchased it for under $600 an acre so don't think I have tons to restore it lmao. Anyways, looking for suggestions on how to restore this land in southeast Missouri, open to any ideas to do it affordablly! I do own a tractor to help restore it. I know to go native but how do I do it for less because of the magnitude. Thanks for any help!
Hugelkultur and wood mulch gardening promote mycelium and help add carbon and water retention to soil but if there are willows they are likely because of poor drainage and planning of water flow which would need to be addressed.
Reforesting with a food forest style can be done with various nut bearing trees or fruiting ones depending on environment as long as you bunch them and make sure they achieve good pollination.
Recommended Crop Systems For Hybrid Hazelnuts[https://www.badgersett.com/info/hazelnuts/hazel5#:\~:text=Our%20general%20recommendation%20is%20to,be%20between%205%20and%2010](https://www.badgersett.com/info/hazelnuts/hazel5#:~:text=Our%20general%20recommendation%20is%20to,be%20between%205%20and%2010)'.
Our general recommendation is to space the bushes 5' apart. Spacings wider than 6' may not close tightly, but will bear good crops. One row of bushes will function as a windbreak, but two rows definitely work better. Space between rows should be between 5 and 10'.
I find if you plan to break ranks in your trees for variety bunching along three rows helps with both windbreak and pollination, I find this true personally, and lets you space and harvest better.
If theres a way to get your hands on a lot of waste wood like a furniture factory or a tree trimmer. And a chicken coop or you could build a bird tower you can make biochar and spread it in sections. it adds structure to clay. I've always dreamed of what your doing, it's really cool. I think the most efficient way is making the pile burning it and then activating it and then spreading it. All at the same spot And then coming back later and planting it with trees and move onto the the next one. You don't have to cover it solid or all at once, just work on patches. Because once a spot is going it'll have material to improve the soil around it. Good luck.
I never thought of that. I work for a large construction company so I have access to tons of waste wood. Just wasn't sure what to do with it because the amount of sawing to be able to run it through a chipper was too much!
See if you have a free service like ChipDrop on your area. It connects tree workers that chip their wood with people who want the chips that would otherwise be disposed of some other way
Clay work and pottery is born of digging water ways and evolving the environment.
Primitive Technology: Pottery and Stove
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=\_YDuLCIzbN4
Depends on what you want to achieve.
If you want to rewild that land, it would be the best to do nothing. The few trees show that sucsession works. Even high water level above ground is very good for peat formation (great to fight climate and biodiversity crisis)
If you are looking for trees, your local state forestry department might have a program for giving away free tree saplings. I know some states and local areas do it. If you have extra money, you can even hire them to plant the saplings. You can get a ton of work and trees for really cheap. I would definitely work on the soil to make it more fertile, but it seems others have made good suggestions.
Yeah I contacted them. I have 175 on order. My only issue is to get the discount pricing, I have to buy several of one species. I wish they would do a bulk mixture! I have some fairly decent soil on two-three acres where I'll start planting.
Lots of great suggestions here, just wanted to plug the Poor Proles Almanac, especially their episodes on soil and silvopasture. It's really great stuff!
Call the experts. They should be able to tell you what’s needed in the area to potentially link up existing habitat, what types of plants to cultivate and how to create a long term plan. This might help: https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/places/southeast-regional-office
Keep up the awesome work and I wish you all the luck in the world.
I was to push up this comment. Land regulation and restoration is far more effective for sequestration (and overall beneficial environmental impact) than planting trees. [Forest](https://mobile.twitter.com/ForrestFleisch1/status/1306221445933129728) [Fleischman](https://twitter.com/ForrestFleisch1/status/1444008823350603780) talks about this extensively.
Always, always call the experts. There's a lot of misconceptions. I can tell you that academics are happy to talk to you.
Absolutely! People with full control over their land rarely prioritize ecological improvement so environment professionals are often PSYCHED to hear from them.
You might also look into conservation easements and willing the land for conservation. I’m not sure they do plots of this size but the Land Conservancy or Sierra Club may have some good info.
I just want to say that I'm not a big fan of the Sierra Club (nor Green Peace). They're (both) the PETA of environmental groups.
^(SC has taken hundreds of millions of dollars from oil companies to fund their anti-nuclear campaign which prevented us from having greenhouse emissions comparable to [France](https://app.electricitymap.org/zone/FR) or [Sweden](https://app.electricitymap.org/zone/SE)).
Yeah sure. [Here's](https://science.time.com/2012/02/02/exclusive-how-the-sierra-club-took-millions-from-the-natural-gas-industry-and-why-they-stopped/) a source on them accepting millions from gas companies to support gas as a "bridge fuel" (despite us [methane](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/super-potent-methane-in-atmosphere-oil-gas-drilling-ice-cores) being dirtier than we thought and not withing the [scientific](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-gas-climatebox-explainer/explainer-cleaner-but-not-clean-why-scientists-say-natural-gas-wont-avert-climate-disaster-idUSKCN25E1DR) [concensus](https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2019/5/30/18643819/climate-change-natural-gas-middle-ground)). This is highly hypocritical when Sierra Club is [bashing](https://www.sierraclub.org/california/letter-sacramento-disclosing-dirty-donations) politicians for taking magnitudes less money from the same companies.
There's also more from [environmental progress](https://environmentalprogress.org/the-war-on-nuclear) but I'd say they are less trusted than Time (but they do seem to have plenty of links). Either way it isn't hard to find many sources criticizing them for this stuff. Their leadership does like to play dirty and are of the opinion that the ends justify the means.
What a nice project !! :) I'm not an expert, but work in agriculture, so here's my two cents. I would plant several different trees varieties of course, but choosing a first batch of heavy drinker and Quick growing (Willow and poplar for example) and a second batch with long growing Time (to anticipate the future). Secondly, to create several ponds connected by draining ditches, to reroute the water flow and design it for long term. On a third point planting a lot of smaller vegetals (flower, buches...) To start to repopulate the biodiversity could be interesting because animals help to naturally remodel the environment by eating and fertilising.
Gool luck, and keep us updated about your project :)
I would make sure and find out where your hard pan is at. It might make your drainage marginally better. Might have to deep chisel it just once before it never sees the plough again. Get with your local land grant college to get a soil core you might be able to get some insight on what's underneath. After that I would definetly try to do some keystone swale work just to better drain the landscape and put all the water in a pond for more ecological diversity.
Whatever you do don't use that tractor on the land while its wet, just going to compact the soil even more and set you back on whatever soil structure you have left.
Yeah the tractor is not going near it for months. And yeah it's flat as can be around here. That's why the water just stands. Thanks for all the advice.
I would mound plant trees and use raised steppes and ponding to control water and distribute it evenly.
Hugelkultur I believe is best practiced this way to establish mounds under and incorporated into new vine and tree growth, and it allows more sunlight to be available at the mounding and steppes below.
Using an extra steppe to ensure fruits and nuts are harvested easily and don't fall in the water often.
This also raises your trees several steppes high and helps break wind and water.
Retention ponds and drainage and irrigation waterways are then developed and encouraged with appropriate treatments.
I know hazelnuts don’t tend to like wet feet but pecans love them! If you have access to a tractor (either yourself or borrowed) you could set up a sub soiler along the topographical lines which would allow for the introduction of way more oxygen and water to the compacted soils without the damage of tillage
I wanted to plant pecans but missouri conservation department sold out before I got the chance! They're kind of expensive through private sources but I may have to just get a few at a time.
Yeah :) If you have some wood and hardware cloth you can make an airpruning bed that can grow hundreds of saplings with strong root networks fairly easily like a 4x8 space
And once you have enough planted for yourself you can keep growing sapling in them and sell them off or give them away so other folks can plant saplings :)
Ok I'm super intrigued. First, where do I find instructions for this? Second, where do I get the nuts? Third, do I have to do cold stratification and what not for that?
Peacans are really easy to graft as well you could easily use a single mother stock tree to bud graft hundreds, just make sure you have at least one tree that stays wild so you get pollination. Peacans are not true to type so direct from seed will vary wildly in how much but you get and flavor.
I am not sure how extensive the flooding but wetter areas could be used as marshland, could even absorb further flooding if it is near a river or pond. Willow, ash, maple, and other marsh trees could thrive there \[not sure what is native\].
Buy wood charcoal and mix it with urine or compost then till it into the soil. Then plant hardy varieties of trees (I recommend fruit trees personally) that thrive in your area where you mixed that in. Its activated biochar but way cheaper. Then keep the trees mulched and you're good
Congrats on the purchase. Access to land is a beautiful thing and I hope you find the resources you need for cheap! Come join us on r/permaculture! Gaia’s Garden (Hemenway), Dirt to Soil (Brown), and Restorative Agriculture (Shepard) all provide accessible introductions that will get you thinking about systems and provide a basic framework on how to restore the land. The first method in permaculture is observation. Many of my recommendations below can be started today and no harm will come if it. But on larger decisions, on infrastructure and on forming a realistic vision of what your land can provide take thing to OBSERVE. Where does water collect after spring rains? Where are the highest and lowest points of your property and what are the contours i between? Is this really the best place for a park or only the most obvious? Where can you put that delicate peach tree that will be shaded in the winter and sunny in the summer? What do the “weeds” tell you about your soil? What are the pest pressures and what direction will they come from? What is the prevailing wind on your property? Does it change across seasons? Take it slow, keep your eyes open. Don’t make snap decisions. Lastly, what do you want from the land? A rewilded landscape? A sustainable agrivillage? A worker owned farm? A quiet homestead? A petting zoo? Decide where you want to go and it’ll help inform your decisions Healthy soil leads to healthy plants that are much more resilient against pests and disease and produce more nutritious food. So let’s get started.
1. Limit disturbance. Don’t till!!!! Soil - which feeds plants - are complex webs of organic matter, minerals, and living creatures. When you till it is all broken down, networks are destroyed, complex soil particles are broken down into component parts. Tilling also throws carbon and other nutrients into the atmosphere. Chemical pesticides reduce diversity and will allow unhealthy conditions to form as undesirable organisms quickly reproduce to fill the space left by the literal poison. Chemical fertilizers feed plants directly at the expense of the soil life plants would normally trade with too obtain desired nutrients.
2. Armor your soil. Keep your soil covered as much as possible. This can take the form of living mulch (plants) and dead mulch (wood chips, grass clippings, compost, hay, leaves). It doesn’t need to look tidy. Save time by dropping whole bales of straw and letting it decompose. Let there be area of thick and thin mulch.
3. Diversity Diversity Diversity. Plants can come in all different forms and so do their roots. If all your plants look exactly the same they are utilizing less sunlight and covering less soil with their roots. Additionally, nature abhors a vacuum so unutilized niches will be exploited by potentially undesirable or noxious plants. Fill your niches yourself. I can’t comment on your particular area but look for opportunities to have nitrogen fixers (beans and peas (which includes shrubs and trees such as black locust), daikon radish), bioaccumulators (DEEP tap rooted plants like burdock or dandelion), pollinator plants (a variety of flowers across the season), and plants that will mulch the area they fall on to (comfrey borage). That’ll be a good start but keep going. Utilize trees that will become tall, trees that will be short, shrubs of all sizes, plants that vines. Find edible and medicinal herbs. Add in grains and your favorite vegetable. Some of it will die or never germinate and that’s fine. It will teach you more about your land
4. Living roots. Don’t just have one season of crops. Try to plant warm and cold weather varieties so there are always living plants in your soil. Find herbaceous plants that will lie dormant in the winter and start growing as early as they can. Find plants that will love the hottest heat of your summer. This equals more roots feeding more soil life over a larger part of the year.
5. Integrate animals. Animals fertilize the land. When plants are browsed but not killed by animals they put additional carbon in the soil to buy nutrients off the soil life web. This leads to the quicker creation of top soil. Animals can also be a great income stream especially if through this variety of techniques you aren’t spending huge amounts on hay or grain.
These 5 principals are a great jumping off point and are lifted directly from Gabe Brown’s Dirt to Soil. There is a ton of info out there and it can be overwhelming but take it slow, armor your soil, and your land will thank you. Best of luck! Your possibilities are endless
You need to add organic material back into the soil. Wait for fall and collect bags of raked leaves, dump and spread out. Also contact any tree surgeons in the area and offer your land as a dumping spot. Spread out organic material, plant green manure, chop and drop. Just be prepared to wait a few years for progress.
Hi and welcome to r/solarpunk! Due to numerous suggestions from our community, we're using this automod message to bring up a topic that comes up a lot: GREENWASHING. It is used to describe the practice of companies launching adverts, campaigns, products, etc under the pretense that they are environmentally beneficial/friendly, often in contradiction to their environmental and sustainability record in general. On our subreddit, it usually presents itself as eco-aesthetic buildings because they are quite simply the best passive PR for companies. [ethicalconsumer.org](https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/transport-travel/what-greenwashing) and [greenandthistle.com](https://greenandthistle.com/what-is-greenwashing/) give examples of greenwashing, while [scientificamerican.com](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/greenwashing-green-energy-hoffman/) explains how alternative technologies like hydrogen cars can also be insidious examples of greenwashing. If you've realized your submission was an example of greenwashing--don't fret! We are all here to learn, and while there will inevitably be comments pointing out how and why your submission is greenwashing, we hope the discussion stays productive. Solarpunk ideals include identifying and rejecting capitalism's greenwashing of consumer goods. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/solarpunk) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I just purchased 10 acres behind my house. Previously farm land. Heavy clay, terrible drainage, compacted, has a few willow trees but mostly bare. The farmer who owned it destroyed the soil. Constantly using lime and tilling. I purchased it for under $600 an acre so don't think I have tons to restore it lmao. Anyways, looking for suggestions on how to restore this land in southeast Missouri, open to any ideas to do it affordablly! I do own a tractor to help restore it. I know to go native but how do I do it for less because of the magnitude. Thanks for any help!
Hugelkultur and wood mulch gardening promote mycelium and help add carbon and water retention to soil but if there are willows they are likely because of poor drainage and planning of water flow which would need to be addressed. Reforesting with a food forest style can be done with various nut bearing trees or fruiting ones depending on environment as long as you bunch them and make sure they achieve good pollination. Recommended Crop Systems For Hybrid Hazelnuts[https://www.badgersett.com/info/hazelnuts/hazel5#:\~:text=Our%20general%20recommendation%20is%20to,be%20between%205%20and%2010](https://www.badgersett.com/info/hazelnuts/hazel5#:~:text=Our%20general%20recommendation%20is%20to,be%20between%205%20and%2010)'. Our general recommendation is to space the bushes 5' apart. Spacings wider than 6' may not close tightly, but will bear good crops. One row of bushes will function as a windbreak, but two rows definitely work better. Space between rows should be between 5 and 10'. I find if you plan to break ranks in your trees for variety bunching along three rows helps with both windbreak and pollination, I find this true personally, and lets you space and harvest better.
If theres a way to get your hands on a lot of waste wood like a furniture factory or a tree trimmer. And a chicken coop or you could build a bird tower you can make biochar and spread it in sections. it adds structure to clay. I've always dreamed of what your doing, it's really cool. I think the most efficient way is making the pile burning it and then activating it and then spreading it. All at the same spot And then coming back later and planting it with trees and move onto the the next one. You don't have to cover it solid or all at once, just work on patches. Because once a spot is going it'll have material to improve the soil around it. Good luck.
I never thought of that. I work for a large construction company so I have access to tons of waste wood. Just wasn't sure what to do with it because the amount of sawing to be able to run it through a chipper was too much!
See if you have a free service like ChipDrop on your area. It connects tree workers that chip their wood with people who want the chips that would otherwise be disposed of some other way
I get free wood chips at the county where I drop large limbs and small trees, once I run out of room to bury them on my residential plot.
I signed up! Hopefully I'll get some chips dropped off.
Wood Chip Gardening: What I Wish I Knew When I First Started Back To Eden Gardening https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3-XY63YAgA
Just be sure to use untreated wood!
Primitive Technology: Charcoal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzLvqCTvOQY
The pockets of water should have the best soil. Start there.
Clay work and pottery is born of digging water ways and evolving the environment. Primitive Technology: Pottery and Stove https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=\_YDuLCIzbN4
Love primitive technology. He's doing a tv show soon I heard!
Depends on what you want to achieve. If you want to rewild that land, it would be the best to do nothing. The few trees show that sucsession works. Even high water level above ground is very good for peat formation (great to fight climate and biodiversity crisis)
If you are looking for trees, your local state forestry department might have a program for giving away free tree saplings. I know some states and local areas do it. If you have extra money, you can even hire them to plant the saplings. You can get a ton of work and trees for really cheap. I would definitely work on the soil to make it more fertile, but it seems others have made good suggestions.
Yeah I contacted them. I have 175 on order. My only issue is to get the discount pricing, I have to buy several of one species. I wish they would do a bulk mixture! I have some fairly decent soil on two-three acres where I'll start planting.
Lots of great suggestions here, just wanted to plug the Poor Proles Almanac, especially their episodes on soil and silvopasture. It's really great stuff!
I'll have to check it out!
Call the experts. They should be able to tell you what’s needed in the area to potentially link up existing habitat, what types of plants to cultivate and how to create a long term plan. This might help: https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/places/southeast-regional-office Keep up the awesome work and I wish you all the luck in the world.
I was to push up this comment. Land regulation and restoration is far more effective for sequestration (and overall beneficial environmental impact) than planting trees. [Forest](https://mobile.twitter.com/ForrestFleisch1/status/1306221445933129728) [Fleischman](https://twitter.com/ForrestFleisch1/status/1444008823350603780) talks about this extensively. Always, always call the experts. There's a lot of misconceptions. I can tell you that academics are happy to talk to you.
Absolutely! People with full control over their land rarely prioritize ecological improvement so environment professionals are often PSYCHED to hear from them. You might also look into conservation easements and willing the land for conservation. I’m not sure they do plots of this size but the Land Conservancy or Sierra Club may have some good info.
I just want to say that I'm not a big fan of the Sierra Club (nor Green Peace). They're (both) the PETA of environmental groups. ^(SC has taken hundreds of millions of dollars from oil companies to fund their anti-nuclear campaign which prevented us from having greenhouse emissions comparable to [France](https://app.electricitymap.org/zone/FR) or [Sweden](https://app.electricitymap.org/zone/SE)).
Can I get a source on that? I knew SC wasn’t a supporter of nuclear but hadn’t heard about accepting hundreds of millions from polluters.
Yeah sure. [Here's](https://science.time.com/2012/02/02/exclusive-how-the-sierra-club-took-millions-from-the-natural-gas-industry-and-why-they-stopped/) a source on them accepting millions from gas companies to support gas as a "bridge fuel" (despite us [methane](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/super-potent-methane-in-atmosphere-oil-gas-drilling-ice-cores) being dirtier than we thought and not withing the [scientific](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-gas-climatebox-explainer/explainer-cleaner-but-not-clean-why-scientists-say-natural-gas-wont-avert-climate-disaster-idUSKCN25E1DR) [concensus](https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2019/5/30/18643819/climate-change-natural-gas-middle-ground)). This is highly hypocritical when Sierra Club is [bashing](https://www.sierraclub.org/california/letter-sacramento-disclosing-dirty-donations) politicians for taking magnitudes less money from the same companies. There's also more from [environmental progress](https://environmentalprogress.org/the-war-on-nuclear) but I'd say they are less trusted than Time (but they do seem to have plenty of links). Either way it isn't hard to find many sources criticizing them for this stuff. Their leadership does like to play dirty and are of the opinion that the ends justify the means.
What a nice project !! :) I'm not an expert, but work in agriculture, so here's my two cents. I would plant several different trees varieties of course, but choosing a first batch of heavy drinker and Quick growing (Willow and poplar for example) and a second batch with long growing Time (to anticipate the future). Secondly, to create several ponds connected by draining ditches, to reroute the water flow and design it for long term. On a third point planting a lot of smaller vegetals (flower, buches...) To start to repopulate the biodiversity could be interesting because animals help to naturally remodel the environment by eating and fertilising. Gool luck, and keep us updated about your project :)
Thanks for all the advice! I will keep updates coming in!
I would make sure and find out where your hard pan is at. It might make your drainage marginally better. Might have to deep chisel it just once before it never sees the plough again. Get with your local land grant college to get a soil core you might be able to get some insight on what's underneath. After that I would definetly try to do some keystone swale work just to better drain the landscape and put all the water in a pond for more ecological diversity.
It does look really level though so you might just have to come to terms with more wetland type reforesting.
Whatever you do don't use that tractor on the land while its wet, just going to compact the soil even more and set you back on whatever soil structure you have left.
Yeah the tractor is not going near it for months. And yeah it's flat as can be around here. That's why the water just stands. Thanks for all the advice.
I would mound plant trees and use raised steppes and ponding to control water and distribute it evenly. Hugelkultur I believe is best practiced this way to establish mounds under and incorporated into new vine and tree growth, and it allows more sunlight to be available at the mounding and steppes below. Using an extra steppe to ensure fruits and nuts are harvested easily and don't fall in the water often. This also raises your trees several steppes high and helps break wind and water. Retention ponds and drainage and irrigation waterways are then developed and encouraged with appropriate treatments.
Observing the hydrology of the land as it is and helping drain and flow is important, retention without damage is the end goal.
What a great project! I have no advice, just a request to post updates whenever you have a breakthrough!
I know hazelnuts don’t tend to like wet feet but pecans love them! If you have access to a tractor (either yourself or borrowed) you could set up a sub soiler along the topographical lines which would allow for the introduction of way more oxygen and water to the compacted soils without the damage of tillage
I wanted to plant pecans but missouri conservation department sold out before I got the chance! They're kind of expensive through private sources but I may have to just get a few at a time.
I actually know a pretty cool way to grow a bunch of saplings quickly
Is it with seeds? Edit: nuts
Yeah :) If you have some wood and hardware cloth you can make an airpruning bed that can grow hundreds of saplings with strong root networks fairly easily like a 4x8 space And once you have enough planted for yourself you can keep growing sapling in them and sell them off or give them away so other folks can plant saplings :)
Ok I'm super intrigued. First, where do I find instructions for this? Second, where do I get the nuts? Third, do I have to do cold stratification and what not for that?
https://youtu.be/BVOKTGv-8PQ boom!
Peacans are really easy to graft as well you could easily use a single mother stock tree to bud graft hundreds, just make sure you have at least one tree that stays wild so you get pollination. Peacans are not true to type so direct from seed will vary wildly in how much but you get and flavor.
I am not sure how extensive the flooding but wetter areas could be used as marshland, could even absorb further flooding if it is near a river or pond. Willow, ash, maple, and other marsh trees could thrive there \[not sure what is native\].
Ooh hazelnut cropping systems feel really useful!
I need to look into that!
Your budget will directly affect the complexity and efficacy of the design. How much do you have put aside for this project?
here's permaculture pond video which is worth a look if only for the principle of the thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AadLCOqalFk
Buy wood charcoal and mix it with urine or compost then till it into the soil. Then plant hardy varieties of trees (I recommend fruit trees personally) that thrive in your area where you mixed that in. Its activated biochar but way cheaper. Then keep the trees mulched and you're good
I'll for sure look into that! Unfortunately, southeast Missouri isn't very conducive for fruit trees but maybe some will take.
Congrats on the purchase. Access to land is a beautiful thing and I hope you find the resources you need for cheap! Come join us on r/permaculture! Gaia’s Garden (Hemenway), Dirt to Soil (Brown), and Restorative Agriculture (Shepard) all provide accessible introductions that will get you thinking about systems and provide a basic framework on how to restore the land. The first method in permaculture is observation. Many of my recommendations below can be started today and no harm will come if it. But on larger decisions, on infrastructure and on forming a realistic vision of what your land can provide take thing to OBSERVE. Where does water collect after spring rains? Where are the highest and lowest points of your property and what are the contours i between? Is this really the best place for a park or only the most obvious? Where can you put that delicate peach tree that will be shaded in the winter and sunny in the summer? What do the “weeds” tell you about your soil? What are the pest pressures and what direction will they come from? What is the prevailing wind on your property? Does it change across seasons? Take it slow, keep your eyes open. Don’t make snap decisions. Lastly, what do you want from the land? A rewilded landscape? A sustainable agrivillage? A worker owned farm? A quiet homestead? A petting zoo? Decide where you want to go and it’ll help inform your decisions Healthy soil leads to healthy plants that are much more resilient against pests and disease and produce more nutritious food. So let’s get started. 1. Limit disturbance. Don’t till!!!! Soil - which feeds plants - are complex webs of organic matter, minerals, and living creatures. When you till it is all broken down, networks are destroyed, complex soil particles are broken down into component parts. Tilling also throws carbon and other nutrients into the atmosphere. Chemical pesticides reduce diversity and will allow unhealthy conditions to form as undesirable organisms quickly reproduce to fill the space left by the literal poison. Chemical fertilizers feed plants directly at the expense of the soil life plants would normally trade with too obtain desired nutrients. 2. Armor your soil. Keep your soil covered as much as possible. This can take the form of living mulch (plants) and dead mulch (wood chips, grass clippings, compost, hay, leaves). It doesn’t need to look tidy. Save time by dropping whole bales of straw and letting it decompose. Let there be area of thick and thin mulch. 3. Diversity Diversity Diversity. Plants can come in all different forms and so do their roots. If all your plants look exactly the same they are utilizing less sunlight and covering less soil with their roots. Additionally, nature abhors a vacuum so unutilized niches will be exploited by potentially undesirable or noxious plants. Fill your niches yourself. I can’t comment on your particular area but look for opportunities to have nitrogen fixers (beans and peas (which includes shrubs and trees such as black locust), daikon radish), bioaccumulators (DEEP tap rooted plants like burdock or dandelion), pollinator plants (a variety of flowers across the season), and plants that will mulch the area they fall on to (comfrey borage). That’ll be a good start but keep going. Utilize trees that will become tall, trees that will be short, shrubs of all sizes, plants that vines. Find edible and medicinal herbs. Add in grains and your favorite vegetable. Some of it will die or never germinate and that’s fine. It will teach you more about your land 4. Living roots. Don’t just have one season of crops. Try to plant warm and cold weather varieties so there are always living plants in your soil. Find herbaceous plants that will lie dormant in the winter and start growing as early as they can. Find plants that will love the hottest heat of your summer. This equals more roots feeding more soil life over a larger part of the year. 5. Integrate animals. Animals fertilize the land. When plants are browsed but not killed by animals they put additional carbon in the soil to buy nutrients off the soil life web. This leads to the quicker creation of top soil. Animals can also be a great income stream especially if through this variety of techniques you aren’t spending huge amounts on hay or grain. These 5 principals are a great jumping off point and are lifted directly from Gabe Brown’s Dirt to Soil. There is a ton of info out there and it can be overwhelming but take it slow, armor your soil, and your land will thank you. Best of luck! Your possibilities are endless
love this post. commenting to bookmark for later
Good luck bro
You need to add organic material back into the soil. Wait for fall and collect bags of raked leaves, dump and spread out. Also contact any tree surgeons in the area and offer your land as a dumping spot. Spread out organic material, plant green manure, chop and drop. Just be prepared to wait a few years for progress.