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Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design
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building soil fertility for my Edible Garden

28/10/2012

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pallet compost bins at the bottom of the Edible Garden

....fertile, healthy soil.....its the heart and soul of food growing, and when designing the for the functioning of the whole farm, I have carefully considered the role that multiple aspects play in helping to make the garden as productive as possible in terms of adding to soil fertility.....cows, chickens, sheep, pigs, comfrey and nettles are all part of the design


...at the bottom of my Edible Garden sit my trusty pallet (salvaged) compost bins (tied together with recycled baler twine!) ...there are 3 bins here and one (overspill for the winter, when the contents don't compost down as quickly), in the little Forest Garden....each bin provides me with enough volume of composted material for a whole growing season for incorporating in raised beds, pots and other containers..... I generally add a thick layer to the surface of the bed (and then top with straw to prevent nutrients been leached), in autumn/early winter/early spring (depending on the crop and the weather) and totally replace the contents of each container in Spring, before planting seeds/young plants....old contents of the container get added to raised beds which need less less nitrogen content for the following season (carrots/parsnips/onions etc)....

...i don't house my cows in a building if the winter is very cold, so only get chance to collect their poo for short periods of time...this is heaped (with straw bedding), left and spread on the pasture land after rotting down for about 2 years.....I also use 2/3 year old cow manure/straw mix to add to my raised beds both in the polytunnel and outside, particularly for crops which like a heavy feed of nutrients (courgettes, potatoes etc). 

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layers in the compost bins
......so, layered in the pallet bins are :chicken poo mixed with straw, pig poo mixed with straw, garden leafy waste (including lots of nettles and conmfrey,  cut specifically to be added to the compost bin), kitchen scraps, wool scraps (from the sheep clip) and some paper/card....I usually keep each bin covered with weed suppresent mulching material to keep some of the rain from making the mix too wet (our rain fall is very high, too dry is never a problem!)...when the bin is full I tuck the cover in to secure, and then leave it...for 2 years....after this time, the compost is lovely, smells amazing and ready to use

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new compost added to this raised bed, prior to planting garlic a couple of weeks ago
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making leaf mould
...for the first time this year, I have collected leaves from the garden to make leaf mould....half in black bin liners, half in hessian sacks....the plan is to make seed compost with the leaf mould, so will probably take about 2 years to break down to that consistency........

I feel really lucky that I am able to provide so much fertility needed for the garden from the farm itself....next year I plan to try incorporating a green manure system into the established one too.

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planting for the winter season.....

16/10/2012

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.......well autumn is most definitely underway now...and over the last week or so here in the Yorkshire Dales we've had some lovely dry sunny days and beautiful clear frosty nights....i've .said a sad goodbye to any frost tender plants who managed to survive the September sub zero night time temps.......am now trying to grow as many varieties of edible plants as I can throughout these long wintery months......my poytunnel is clear of all the summer growing now ..and i've topped up the raised beds in there with home made compost to give them a nutrient/protection boost for the cold season......I have kale, rainbow chard, lambs lettuce, winter lettuce, quick growing carrots, radish, corriander, rocket, spinach, chicory land cress , rocket and peashoots as baby plants in the raised beds/seedlings just coming through in modules ....am a bit worried what they just haven't had enough sun/light/warmth to get going this autumn...but will have to wait and see what they produce....outside, I am harvesting leeks, turnips, swede, beetroot, kale, chard, parsley, parsnips, carrots, lettuce....and 2 different varieties of cabbage, purple sprouting broccoli, sprouts and oriental greens look reasonable promising....and last week I planted garlic...

...who knows what kind of winter we will have though ....fleece and bubble wrap are at the ready for cloches over the raised beds for both inside the tunnel and outside too ....hopefully for creating little microclimates that will provide extra warmth.....am also extending my 'in the house windowsill growing' too this year (seed/pulse sprouting, micro herbs)......I didn't grow enough of anything this summer to store over the winter....but am determined to obtain a yield, and eat something I have grown, everyday this winter.....


PS....sorry about the lack of pics....internet connection almost comatosed!
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a year of observing........

5/10/2012

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my first blog post...ever!
its a year since i signed up for the Permaculture Association's Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design ...and its been an amazing time... Ive learnt SO much, attended some fantastic events and met the most amazing people from all aver the world....its been a chance just to absorb the experience of what the being on the Diploma journey actually means to me and how it influences my life at the moment.......in terms of designing and documenting design work for my portfolio,, various note and drawing books with random ideas scribbles/mindmaps etc are all I have to show!.... I have also taken lots of photos of places and events that I think will be included in my design work...the year really feels like I have been observing my self on the start of my journey......its been a good start!.....and now, just beyond Autumn Equinox (lots of time planning for a healthy, meaningful winter), I've begun looking at the next stage of this journey.......firstly I got all those scribbles/mindmaps, tore them out the notebooks and filed them in some kind of design order......and then I took a deep, brave breath and made a start at this website. as a way of documenting my Diploma life, but also as a way of sharing it with others too ........i'd like to thank my lovely friend Rachel W at this point for her help, encouragement and support with the whole website project, i'm a bit techno  phobic, so its been a big step...but feels a very positive one......and well, here I am ! x

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