Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting System Installation Workshop

Part of our Fair Share is our volunteer time organizing the Chico Permaculture Guild. We facilitate monthly gatherings and seasonal workshops as well as participate in local events and other outreach efforts to help our community learn more about permaculture.

A timely workshop that Brian and I are teaching is coming up this month and it's focus is all about rooftop rainwater harvesting. We'll be teaching this workshop at our own property as part of our forest garden development. This workshop is FREE for the community to attend.

All the details are here:

6th Annual Spring Seed Swap

Sunday, March 1st from 2-6pm 

Chico Grange Hall, 2775 Nord Ave, Chico, CA

ALWAYS  A  FREE  COMMUNITY  EVENT

5th Annual Spring Seed Swap

ALWAYS A FREE COMMUNITY EVENT

Sunday, March 16th from 2-6pm

Chico Grange Hall, 2775 Nord Ave, Chico, CA

WHAT IS PROVIDED

• Over 8 tables of seed to exchange ‘Potluck’ Style
• Speaker Presentations
• Seed Saving Education
• Seeds & Plants for Sale
• Community Non-Profits
• Food & Drinks for sale by Chico Natural Foods
• Activities for all ages

SPEAKER PRESENTATION SCHEDULE  
2:15pm
Seed Saving 101: a focus on drought tolerant crops -with Kalan Redwood of Redwood Seeds: www.redwoodseeds.net  
3:30pm
Water Panel: rainwater harvesting earthworks, rain barrels and greywater systems -with Stephanie & Brian Ladwig-Cooper, Nani Teves and Stephanie & Tim Elliott  
4:45pm
Seed Stories: open forum on the beauty and importance of seed -lead by Joan Bosque

WHAT TO BRING ~ you do not need seeds to attend, please label your seed and plants ~

• Seeds, bulbs, plants, cuttings and more to exchange
• Used envelopes/containers and pens/pencils

FOR MORE INFORMATION

• Sherri Scott (GRUB Education Program) 342-3376 sherri@grubchico.org
• Stephanie Ladwig-Cooper (Chico Permaculture Guild) 828-6390 modcpg@gmail.com

More information can be found on the Chico Permaculture Guild website here. You can also join the Facebook event here.

Urban Permaculture Property Tour

In celebration of International Permaculture Day, May 5^th, 2013 the Chico Permaculture Guild is sponsoring 2 FREE tours of our urban permaculture project.

About the Tour:

Brian and I (Stephanie) are helping our local permaculture guild celebrate International Permaculture Day by providing a public tour of our local permaculture project; an urban 2/3 acre residential property that has been in development and succession since 2009.  (You can view photos of the Project here.)

3.5 years underway this property has been designed, implemented and managed utilizing the ethics and principles of permaculture. We'll be providing tour participants a first glimpse of this property which has not been open to public until now. We plan to provide and overview of the designs, permaculture techniques and strategies they used for creating an evolving oasis on this urban piece of land.

Map of Fruit Trees 2011 (canopy and subcanopy of forest gardens)

 Site Elements and Systems Tour Attendees will Observe:

•    From Swimming Pool To Aquaculture Pond

•    Rainwater Harvesting

•    Edible Forest Gardens

•    Perennial Polycultures

•    Coppice Tree System

•    Chicken Integrations

and more...

TOUR INFORMATION

Tour #1: 10am - 12pm

Tour #2: 2pm - 4pm

Registration is required; please indicate which tour you wish to attend when registering. Please register here: http://ipdtour.eventbrite.com/

Space is limited to 20 people per tour so register today to ensure your spot!

This event is free but donations are accepted to support the Chico Permaculture Guild and more events such as this one! No dogs or other animals, please.

Please join us for a day of learning and fun in solidarity with other permaculture activities around the world as we celebrate International Permaculture Day 2013!!

For more information please contact Stephanie at 530-828-6390 or modcpg@gmail.com

Berries, Trellising and Harvest

Marionberries on trellis

Eating berries is one of my favorite summer activities. Saving them for later use is also a favorite past time. There are many ways of preserving berries -making jams and jellies, canning or freezing them whole or even dehydrating them for a hiking snack with nuts and seeds. Anyway you do it berries are an awesome treat.

Introduction to Permaculture Workshop June 23, 2012 in Chico, CA

Flier for Intro to Permaculture Workshop

Brian and I, via our business Gaia Creations, will be teaching an Introduction to Permaculture Workshop next month in Chico, CA. The focus of this workshop is to invite the community to learn more about permaculture in general and at the same time begin/continue networking with each other to gain experience in permaculture design strategies for effective local food production and resource efficiency.

3rd Annual Seed Swap

Seed Swap Flyer 2012

The 3rd Annual Seed Swap is happening this coming Sunday February 26th, 2012 at GRUB Cooperative. Sherri Scott of GRUB and myself, via the Chico Permaculture Guild, spearheaded this annual event back in 2010 for many reasons. First to promote local seed growing and acclimation but also to celebrate the genetic diversity of seeds, to inform the local community about the potential danger of genetically modified seed and to get more people in touch with the life cycle of seeds in general.

THINK GLOBAL - SHOP LOCAL Give the Gift of a Garden

How many times have your family and friends said to you,

“If only I had more time to spend in the garden!” or

“I wish I knew more about growing fruit trees.” or even

“It would be great to have an expert over to consult with me about my gardens.”?

If your answer was "A LOT!" then give the gift of a garden or garden advice to your friends and family. Simply contact us today at 530-828-6390 and we’ll set you up with a beautiful gift certificate that can either be directly mailed to the garden loving people in your life or we can meet in person to discuss details.  You’ll be supporting an 11 year old Chico business while caring for the planet at the same time! 

Gift Certificate Example

Urban Permaculture Project -2 years in progress

My husband and I have been actively working on an urban 2/3 acre permaculture project for 2 years this month. We began the design and subsequent installation at a residence in October of 2009 and it continues in multiple phases today.  As we complete the swimming pool to aquaculture pond conversion and reflect upon our progress thus far we would like to share our experiences -the trials, corrections and successes made along the way and to basically let more people know about this Mediterranean climate permaculture project.

Growing Blue Oyster Mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) in a Box Kit

I have to hand it to my husband and business partner, Brian, for trying new things all the time.  He loves to branch out and learn new practical skills.  In his spare time of late he’s been growing Blue Oyster Mushrooms for food and loving every minute of it. 

Mushroom Box Kit results 2011

He’s always loved mushrooms while I’ve never been a big fan.  I love mushrooms for their mycoremediation ability allowing contaminated land to regenerate and for their knack of creating the soil conditions my perennial plants prefer: fungal dominated soils.  But Brian, he just loves to eat them so why not start growing them too.

Books -a reliable resource

We recently had a friend ask us for a list of good, easy to read permaculture books.  It got us thinking about the fact we've never cataloged our "library" of books.  They are such a wonderful resource and don't succumb to electricity outages...

Part of our "library"

While the "library" as it stands is comprised of several bookshelves, some tabletops and a lot of wandering to find the one you're looking for, we are in the process of relocating our family and business so it seems fitting to take inventory.  

We've listed 35 permaculture, gardening, sustainable living type books below; some we own and have read, some we don't own and have read, some we've read only bits and pieces from and some we've never read at all but have been advised to read.   We also put them on the side bar to check out as you read other blog entries.

Planting for Seed Saving

ADAPT YOUR PLANTS, INCREASE DIVERSITY

Calendula seed

Here are a few tips for planting success:

•       If your intentions are to save seed from certain plants -grow more plants than you think you need.  This allows room for error and the unexpected and also ensures there will be enough plants from which to harvest all your seed.

•       Saving seed requires you grow plants to maturity.  This means they get a lot bigger when not harvested or deadheaded, so leave more room around them.  The plants you let go to seed will most likely be growing in random places so be fairly flexible in your overall garden design and subsequent plantings.

•       Think about isolation.  This means in space (location) or in time (month of seed harvest) or both.  By doing so you maximize the chance of maintaining the specific variety you're after. Look up recommended isolation distances or choose early and late varieties that flower at different times. Remember to try and check with your neighbors -they might be growing something that will cross!  If they are, you will need to isolate yours with physical barriers to prevent pollen transfer.  If it’s a GMO, ask them to buy open pollinated seed instead!

Chive seedhead

Food Forests and Pomegranates

FOOD FORESTS

A food forest is exactly what it sounds like… an abundant and self sustaining forest of edible, medicinal and other useful plants. 

There are 7 layers to a food forest:

1. CANOPY: oak, pecan, walnut, olive

2. SUBCANOPY:  almonds, cherries,  dwarf fruit trees

3. SHRUBS: currants, berries, paw paw, elderberry, bamboo

4. HERBACIOUS:  echinacea, comfrey, mugwort, parsley, cilantro

5. GROUNDCOVER: strawberries, creeping thyme, some mints

6. CLIMBERS: grape (wild, table or wine), scarlet runner bean, akebia, kiwi

7. RHIZOSPERE: daikon, radish, beets, carrots, onions

The soil layer down to 6” or so is the next layer essential for all the layers above; the microsphere.  This layer consists of the soil food web; organic matter (mulch) feeding fungi, bacteria, protozoa, nematodes and the larger arthropods.

Let us design this type food system for your property!  Contact us today for reduced cost!

Pomegranate   Punica granatum

The pomegranate is a deciduous tree growing to 20ft in height by 15ft wide.  A native from Iran to the Himalayas in northern India it has been cultivated since ancient times throughout the Mediterranean region of Asia, Africa and Europe. Because of the many seeds found in pomegranate fruits, they were regarded as a symbol of fertility by the ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece, and Rome.

The fruits ripen 6 to 7 months after flowering.  The fruits improve in storage if not split and become juicier and more flavorful.  The juice sacs may be frozen intact or the extracted juice may be concentrated and frozen, for future use.

HARVEST RAINWATER & KUMQUAT

The Melianthus major pictured above is an example of Nature's own gutter system for plants efficiently bringing rainwater to where the plant needs it most; its root zone.

We humans can do it too!  By designing rainwater harvesting systems for the roofs of our homes, barns, outbuildings and more we can effectively conserve water while recharging local water tables.

Contact us for more information!

KUMQUAT  Fortunella spp.

The Kumquat is a delicious garden addition.  They are superb eaten raw; the outer layer slightly spicy while the inner layer sweet as in the variety.

Kumquats, or comquats, are called 'gold orange' in China from where they originated.  They thrive in our valley climate and are said to produce sweeter fruits in our warmer winters.

Slowly growing to 10 feet or more they require seasonal food and water once established.  All the while producing food for snacking or preserving.

SUNFLOWERS

Sunflowers brighten our day with their beauty and graceful upturned faces.  Use of the sunflower dates back more than 3000 years to Native American peoples.  Sunflowers are native to North America and have been used for centuries for food, fiber, dyes and oils all across the globe.  

Sunflowers are easily grown from seed in the spring. Make sure the soil has plenty of compost then bury the seed about 1-2 times its size into the soil. Water regularly til sprouted then once or twice a week depending on how hot it is. The Mammoth sunflowers are truly remarkable to behold. 

It is amazing to capture a photo of a sunflower with the sun behind it. Sunflowers are heliotropic plants which mean the flowers track the sun as it moves through the sky. The sunflower genus is named Helianthus for this reason: HELIOS after the Greek Sun God and ANTHOS meaning flower.  

 

Sunflower seed is one among very few North American native plants grown for its global importance. The seed grew in popularity in the last century mainly through it's favor in Russia; it had importance to religious activities so was grown to become the 'Mammoth' sizes we see today.  

 

Birds love to eat sunflowers seeds but did you know that the Goldfinch loves the leaves even more? So do our dogs and parakeet! The leaves contain a high amount of essential vitamins and minerals essential for good health. Though they make a skeleton of the leave the plants never seem to fail.