Christopher Coleman

Thanks very much for the tip! I'll just have to put the elderberry elsewhere on the property!

So I'm thinking about doing some hedlaying on my family's property in Eastern Washington (West of Spokane) and I'm wondering what kind of plants would be good for such an endeavour. We've got about 80 acres and a variety of elevations/areas (marshy, arid, etc). My short list includes elderberry, black locust, willow, and american elm. Does anybody see any issue with these or know of any others that might be good for that area and purpose?

My mom is wanting to build a house in Stevens County, Washington utilizing a number of unconventional systems and I was wondering if anyone out there knows of any architects that might have experience in that region. Specifically we are concerned about permitting and looking for some help with incorporating passive solar heating, straw bale construction, and a bio-carbon wastewater system. If there is anyone in that area with experience in the design or building of something like this we'd love to talk to you.