PermacultureVisions.com Demonstration Site At Mt Kembla
Chook Mansion | Potted Worm Farm | Our Fuel Stove | Our Harvests

  

When we first bought this site in 1993 it took 6 hours to mow the acre of kikuyu and had to do this weekly in summer. In recent years we have mowed it only twice a year, to enable people to walk around without tripping on sticks. When we started planting, a big drought hit. Yet, with good design for water management we have not had to 'water the garden' for 10 years. We only water seedlings and new plantings. At first we didn't know how to catch a chicken, graft a seedling, manage snails or pickle chillies.  We are just ordinary people having fun trying extra-ordinary things! We have renovated the home to be more environmentally home, created an Environmentally Friendly Office, have become part of a supportive community and have an enjoyable lifestyle.

Location: Our home, garden and office is located in a sub-urban historic mining village. The village has a working mine at the top, a school, a small shop, an historical society and a small Church with cemetery.
Aspect and Climate: The site has a less than ideal North-westerly aspect. It is undulating and was previously pasture with some orchard trees in a sub-tropical to temperate climate zone. The Village faces north and is nestled within a mixed (mostly dry) rainforest with limited solar and wind energy opportunity. Rainfall is approx 1275mm per annum. There is good rainfall year-round. Minimum temperature is 4c, Max temp is 39c. Site Size: 1 acre (frankly this is too big for a small family).
Natural Oddities: Fungi and lichen, self-seeding trees including strangler and sandpaper figs carried by the wide variety of birds (wrens, bower birds, Kookaburras, Cockatoos, King Parrots, Owls, Cat-birds and Brush Turkey.) The Cockatoos and Flying Foxes are active pruners and eat fruit that is well out of our reach. Some years they destroy more than we welcome. Occasionally King Parrots damage delicacies such as snow peas, the Wonga Pigeon likes to eat seeds freshly planted. Other residents include Sugar Gliders, lizards, water dragons and larger possums. Flying Foxes come each summer and eat a lot of the fruits and berries. Other visitors have included Brush Turkey, Echidna, feral deer, neighbours cows, neighbours chickens and horses, eastern long neck tortoise and, of course, there are several varieties of snakes (including the golden crown), butterflies,  frogs and froglets (including Perons Tree frog), insects and spiders.

Site history: The site had a few very large historic plums, peach and apple trees. At the bottom of the garden lies a natural wetlands, which has been designed (that section not fully excavated) to form a future poly-culture system. A semi-commercial orchard had been planted about 70 years ago; the land use had involved market gardening, and overstocking of cattle, horses and geese. There is the possibility that toxics sprays were used on this site. So, we avoided growing and eating tubers from the soil for the first 10 years.
Soil type: When we started here the soil was highly compacted acidic soil in most areas. It still is compacted in areas that have not been mulched. The acidic soil has been improved by the addition of humus (sheet mulched beds with worms underneath) and initially, the mulch has supported acid loving brambleberries.

Age: Our site has been in implementation since mid 1993 when the first drought since purchasing the property broke and our seedlings were old enough to plant out. Most of the top garden that now contains herbs and vegies under trees were made by Esther Dean's no-dig method without soil (to combat Kikuyu an invasive grass and to improve soil structure). This is our second permaculture site, the first site had a SW aspect, very steep and shaded. Sloped sites require different treatment, more swales and erosion management. This site has some slopes but most beds are able to be sheet mulched. By the 10th anniversary of the site the trees were mature enough to survive a bigger drought without any hand watering. Once we had implemented half our original plan the system had evolved to show more potential and new challenges. We were moving into a dual existence: implementation and some maintenance.  Shade and food was created in just 2 years which gave us quick rewards.  In 2006 we embarked on a solar passive extension of the house. The new shape of the house formed a windbreak and suntrap and immediately the Mangos were able to hold their fruit better.

Layers of Produce: The existing mature canopy species of this site included: winter citrus and summer prunus fruits, a large ornamental Palm (existing) Sycamore and Pines, Red Cedar, Grevillia Robusta (to be removed as fuel), and Kurrangong. In the young tree layer below we have added species such as: Mulberry (now 5 different varieties) which we use for fruit and silkworms, Bananas (various varieties). Birch, Blackbean, Davidson Plum, Eugenia, Gingko, Tamarillo, Maple, Mango, Coffee, Avocado, Jackfruit, Wax Jumbu, Finger Lime, Olive, Tamarillo, Tamarind, Carob, Pomegranate, Jaboticaba, Persimmon, Lilly Pilly, Malaysian Apple, Paper-Barks, Custard Apple, Guava, Native Rosella, Paperbarks, Fejoa, Lychee, Quince, various Figs, Longan, Babaco, Irish Strawberry Tree, Ice-Cream Bean, Jak Fruit, Bunya nut, Apple, Chestnut, Ice-cream bean, Macadamia, Green Sapote,. Shrubs include Mulberry, Hibisicus (edible flowers) Teatrees, Camellia sinensis (Tea) Lemon verbena, Lemon and anniseed Myrtle, wormwood, various Sages, lavender, hazelnut, native raspberry. Understorey plants include: loganberry, strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, arrowroot, taro, Yacon, clumping Bamboo, sugarcane, Monstera, and mixed salad greens. tomatoes, spinach, lettuce, and Asian greens. Living Mulch plants include warrigal greens and sweet potatoe. There are numerous bulbs (peruvian ground apple, jerusalem artichokes, arrowroot, potatoes, onions) and culinary and medicinal herbs, low sage, lovage, aloe vera, mints, cardomon, tumeric, rosemary, lavender, lad's love, rue, wormwood, bromeliads including pineapple, ferns, and native palms (including walking-stick palm) and orchids. Water Plants include: Taro, watercress, kang kung, water chestnuts, lotus, sagittaria. Climbers include Passionfruit, Kiwifruit, and Epiphiliums (Dragon Fruit), different varieties of grape, and choko. Smaller tropical species are thriving in microclimates. Much of the surplus is given to workers and their families. There are some mature trees that will be succeeded by edible species and a local wood turner or fuel in our woodstove uses their timber. The most prolific food plants are: chilli, tomatoe, mulberry, sweet potatoe and grapes.
Special Interest: In the early years there was a strong emphasis on rare and heritage non-hybrid breeds. We support Seed Savers Australia. Now the system has become more self-seeding and self-governing. We have some unusal species to share such as Custard apple (Annona cherimoya sp.)
Integrated Pest Management: Ducks control snails but we have learnt that they are very vulnerable to dogs. Geese deter dogs. The other pests are cabbage moth and Stink bugs on citrus which are controlled by hand and the use of Neem oil; and Fruit fly which requires yeast baits and the chickens to eat infected fruit. To combat fruit fly, we have decided to focus more on species that the fruit fly don't eat. Chickens, the worm farm and liquid manure in drums are used to control highly invasive weeds such as Madeira vine. We remove the vine and fill the poultry house with it. For 10 years we have had geese. They eat grass, deter cats and dogs during the day but require strong protection at night their run links up with the chickens.  We have some recent problems with Deer eating at young trees, we now protect the young trees with wire, and covers of stinging nettle and Lanatana off-cuts.

Plantings: There has been on-going tree planting of endemic species and additional introduced edibles. At first we would plant at the rate of one plant per day. Most weeks we would start new beds, each day we could collect food. Now, we rarely plant new plants, sometimes we might start some new seed in pots and every day we can find something to eat in the garden. We often share produce with friends and relatives. Often other people share with us in return. After just a few years implementation there were over 60 different edible tree species and varieties, over 160 different edible and medicinal species and varieties of herbs, bramble berries, vines, shrubs, tubers. Some species did not succeed and we may try them in a different area with better soil.
'Weeds': we do have some species we classify as weeds (i.e. they do not respect diversity) these include Madeira Vine. It can collapse whole areas of rainforest, coral trees, kikuyu. Other species to be succeeded with careful management are Coral Trees (use manual removal and strangler figs) lantana, croften weed and non-native wandering jew (white flowered). Fleshy invasive plants such as Madeira vine and grass are controlled well by chickens. Paul has noticed that lantana keeps maidera vine out. Woody weeds such as lantana are manually removed and replaced by shrubs to keep soil and wildlife protected. Invasive trees such as Privet and Indian Coral tree have strangler figs in them, have been ringbarked, lopped and the branches piled up off the ground. We have used fire in the stumps to finish them off. We re-use all removed material either as ash, liquid manure or fuel. We have found various uses for invasive plants. Most woody weeds such as lantana and privet are cut and burnt in the fuel stove. Some are dried in raised piles on top of tarps so they can't seed, then later used as mulch. Fleshy plants are put into the poultry house - nothing survives in there!  We use branches of weeds to protect young plants from the chickens and wonga pigeons.
Workers: Mostly 1 small female of resident family and occasional student workers. All maintenance and harvesting work is part time and maximum of 3 woman/man hours per week. There is little heavy work as the garden is designed to be worked by less abled and small persons. Paths run along contour. The paths can accommodate large carts. Materials are light and transportable. There are ramps rather than steps wherever possible. Some workers have been students who have studied with us in our work-learn program.

Our Fuel Stove and our hydronic heating system are our only domestic heating. Here is a picture showing some of the features.

		Here are before and after photos of the sandpit area: L: 1995 (surrounded by kikuyu) and R: the same area in 2006 used for fire making and cooking at night by young teenagers (surrounded by fruit trees and vines). Now the boys use the bottom of the garden for cooking fires, camp outs and loud music. You can see Paul in the background in '95, planting trees for privacy and food, now the trees are over 10m tall. (and so are the children - no just kidding.)

Our healthier active lifestyle has given us:

Harvests from our garden: see recent harvest photos on facebook.

Our Garden Award: We entered Shellharbour City Council's first innovative award Waste Busters Competition to promote resource efficient gardening.  Our garden won the overall regional prize for Shellharbour and Wollongong combined.  We were proud to demonstrate our use of solar home heating, solar hot water, greywater, rainwater use, solar cooking, Food 'waste' management.  All garden waste is considered a resource, even weeds and cumbersome branches. Here is a copy of the flyer about waste management we hand out to visitors. We welcome visitors to our site in Spring and Summer on designated open days. We would like to try more fruit-fly resistant species please email us if you know of unusual fruits and suppliers of plants.