What would you do with this land?

What would you do with this land?

We bought a .9 acre parcel in South Central Alaska, zone 4a/b. These statistics may be helpful:

"From December 1925 to April 2023, the average 12-month total precipitation was 61.7 inches" "From December 1925 to April 2023, the 12-month average temperature was 32.7°F" (National Centers of Environmental Information).

We plan to build a home on this parcel, and hope to raise some food to eat too. The land across the street is permies, and we are researching leasing a portion of it for agriculture. Ideally, I would like a dairy animal and some meat and egg animals. And of course a garden. Here is a topo of the parcel. Lines are at 4' intervals. North is up on this photo.



This one shows a bit more of the public land across the street. There is about 10acres of high ground before it descends into a swamp.



The land is wooded with lots of Alders (a woody bush, not the tall tree-like kind), Spruce (some beetle kill), and Birch. We are taking out all of the Alders at present. Getting some clearing done will help us see better see what we have, and alders will easily grow back if we want them back! I am thinking some of the brush and wood from the alders could be used for hugelkulture beds.

Some friends are building on the lot directly south, and we may partner with them in any agricultural lease we are able to secure. The lot directly North has an old rundown cabin (doesn't look like anyone has been there in a long time). The public land extends to the west a little over 2 miles, before reaching a highway, and the ocean.

A ~6ft hole revealed the following: (these are ballpark measurements. we did not use a tape measure).
2ft organic material
2ft clay
2ft clay+sand/gravel

Given the amount of clay, the land seems surprisingly well drained, and is not squishy wet, even with consistent rains. I am sure the slope helps.

I am interested in permaculture, but very uneducated... just been reading on permies for a couple years and implementing what I can. I have no idea how to "design" a productive piece of land. So i'm throwing it out to all you smart folks:

What would you do? How would you go about planning/designing/ living on this piece of land? Where would you put a house? how would you orient garden beds? green house? animals?

Any insights are appreciated!

Sorry, I have never embedded a photo before and it shows... i'm trying again.

Oh, and the lot is 126ft wide by 316ft long, if that is helpful info.

I see the prevailing winter wind appears to be Nor'easterly,  so the knoll protection isn't as definite as I would like; still a semi-passive solar accumulator orientated Southeast might prove rewarding.

I've never been to Alaska so not sure how this would work but here's what I'd do.  I'd put the house on the highest point and make sure you don't cut corners on insulation.  I'd find a sunny spot near the house for the garden and make it as big as possible.  I'm not sure what fruit trees/bushes will live there but if there are some, I'd get those planted ASAP.  I'd put the animal pens further from the house and build strong, tall, fences along with shelters to block the worst of the wind.  I'd have a smoke house, a fruit cellar to store your preserved food, and of course a storage shed.  I'd have a very small lawn and use every inch of the property to raise something be it food for family or food for your animals that feed your family.  

Please update us as you go along and post some pictures.  

I have experience with smaller homes, roads and rainfall collection.
I have a few questions;
- What are the contour intervals?
- Which way is the actual prevailing winds?
- What would you do for water?
- How remote are tradesmen?
- How remote are quarry supplies?
- What size, type of house are you considering?

Here is a chart dealing with how to improve housing efficiency
http://cchrc.org/media/BuildingSixStar.pdf

Water:
What will you use for your source of drinking water, in the winter/summer/ long-term/ short-term/ during an emergency/etc?
What will you do for sewage esp in the winter?
The soil might be dry/okay now but what does it look like during spring snow melt?
How will you water your expensive transplanted "bare root tree"?

Wildlife:
What will you do when the rabbits/mole/etc come for your vegetables?
How about bear/wolf/fox/etc, especially for your animals/pets?
Would it be easier to "hunt" trout from a stream vs trying to setup an aquaponic system, how about hunting a deer/etc vs rearing cows?
How about using goats for diary vs a cow, maybe a nigerian x alphine, what do the local do?
How about growing some honey bee? How do you make it bear proof?

HVAC-Insulation:
What type of insulation do you plan on having and what level of insulation, R-15 or R-50?
Do you plan on doing radiant floor heating to distribute the heat?
What type of heat source do you plan on using? Wood-Pellet/Natural Gas/Electric/Solar
Do you plan on having a 5,000 gallon basement tank filled with hot water
An ERV for ventilation without losing heat sounds like a good idea.
I assume you don't need an AC during the summer?

Social:
Will you all get cabin fever, how about future kids? Is it easy to age in place?
How far is it to market? Is there even a market?
Is 1acre even enough for a market garden, what if you don't get to lease any additional land?

Nut Trees:
There are quite a few nut trees that will grow in your zone 4
https://www.nuttrees.com/edible-nut-trees/other-edible-nut-trees/

Eloise, congratulations on getting your land!

Acquiring land was the most exciting thing that has happened in my adult life and, a couple of years in, I am still spending as much time as possible working on/with it (one day, hopefully soon, it will be my permanent home).

As I'm sure you know, the advice usually given to new owners/stewards of a piece of land is to watch and observe for as long as possible before making any meaningful changes. A full cycle of the seasons (12 months across a lot of the world) is usually recommended. This gives you time to notice where the sun shines at various times of the year; where the water flows and accumulates; what annual species might be present but hidden at certain points; where the frost pockets and microclimates are; how non-human residents make use of the landscape.

For us, taking it slow in our first year allowed us to find a fertile area for our vegetable garden; seasonal springs; sets of badgers that we wanted to (and were required by law) to protect; and various patches of uncommon wildflowers, one of which we can sell the seed from to provide us with an income stream. Had we waited for longer, we would have noticed that the very top of our vegetable garden holds a frost much longer than the downhill portion and, in hindsight, we may have planted differently to accommodate this.

Of course, I'm sure you will want to make some immediate changes. Clearing an area to park or camp, putting up temporary tool and equipment storage, etc. I would urge, if at all possible, that you take these steps slowly: you might find that the spot you first pick for a camping area, or the site of your future home, is quite different 6 months from now.

Eloise Rock wrote:The land is wooded with lots of Alders (a woody bush, not the tall tree-like kind), Spruce (some beetle kill), and Birch. We are taking out all of the Alders at present. Getting some clearing done will help us see better see what we have, and alders will easily grow back if we want them back! I am thinking some of the brush and wood from the alders could be used for hugelkulture beds.

The first thing that I noticed here was that you say you are taking out all the Alders. That strikes me as a bit of a rash decision. I always strive to increase diversity on our site and so removing all of a species, unless that species doesn't belong there (i.e. it is a non-native invasive) feels wrong to me. I'm sure you have your reasons for removing them.

Personally, I like Alder very much. It grows quickly and copes well with waterlogged soil, which other species may not be able to survive in. It coppices readily, meaning it regrows once cut back to the ground. This can make it valuable as a source of (low quality) firewood; poles for gardening or building; and also animal fodder, as the leaves are commonly fed to goats.

Alder is a nitrogen-fixing tree which means it actively adds nitrogen to the soil., increasing the fertility in its immediate vicinity. It's pretty common in forest gardens to incorporate Alder within fruit tree guilds for this reason.

Finally, Alder wood is remarkably durable when kept submerged or constantly wet. Famously, Venice is built on Alder piles, some of which are hundreds of years old. Alder, along with Elm (which has similar properties) was used for constructing water wheels in the UK for this reason - and I have ambitions to create a board walk across a marshy area of our land using coppiced Alder poles.

Eloise Rock wrote:A ~6ft hole revealed the following: (these are ballpark measurements. we did not use a tape measure).
2ft organic material
2ft clay
2ft clay+sand/gravel

Given the amount of clay, the land seems surprisingly well drained, and is not squishy wet, even with consistent rains. I am sure the slope helps.

That sounds like great soil to me! Two feet of organic matter sounds like it will be incredibly fertile and I'm sure it will be able to hold a large amount of water (= less irrigating the vegetable garden for you!). The clay will be an asset too, I'm sure. Not only does usually contain an array of minerals (which plants with longer taproots, dynamic accumulators, can often access) but as a building material or pond substrate. Sand and gravel beneath that is also fantastic, again for building with. I'm pretty envious of your soil actually!

You have a challenging situation, but I like challenging situations!

You have just under 1 acre of land.  If you build your house near the road to minimize driveway space, you could maximize land used for ag purposes.

It sounds like your soil is in pretty good shape.  I would consider making perhaps 1/4 of the lot a giant garden which is about the largest garden that I could attend to.

Maybe that steep slope on the southeast could make a good berry patch.  If you kept 1/4 acre dedicated to chickens & their buildings, you could have a great supply of meat and eggs.

With all those alders coming down, normally I would recommend turning them into wood chips to be further broken down by Wine Cap mushrooms, but that might be dodgy here.  Any chance that you can turn those alders into Biochar?  That would make a great soil amendment.

Any chance that you can get a rocket mass heater going?  You have about the perfect situation for one.

Some type of small tractor, 2 wheel tractor or 4-wheeler could make things a lot easier.  Worth considering.

I could go on and on.  These are just a few ideas.  Feel free to bounce these ideas around and use whatever you think is appropriate.

Good luck and I hope this helps,

Eric

Eric Hanson wrote:If you kept 1/4 acre dedicated to chickens & their buildings, you could have a great supply of meat and eggs.

Eric

I would echo this.  I wouldn't try to keep a dairy animal on a spot this size.  I think it's small even for a goat once you have buildings and gardens established, but I'll admit to being ignorant as far as goat needs.  I personally would rather raise chickens, and then trade chickens or eggs for dairy products if you have anyone nearby that has a dairy animal.  One of the great things about rural areas is that people are generally willing to barter, lend tools back and forth, trade labor, that sort of thing.  If you can establish even a small network of people that all supply something, it can spread the burden a great deal.

Everyone has given you great advice.

When we are choosing a building site there are two things that we want which are being at the highest point on the property and close to the road. sometimes we compromise somewhere between the two,

We did not get to choose the house location where we are now as we bought someone else's dream.

When it rains a lot of water washes across the homesite.

You might enjoy this thread:

https://permies.com/w/198448/Replacing-Irrigation-Permaculture-live-webinar

Someone mentioned water so I want to recommend the work of Brad Lancaster:

https://permies.com/t/36676/Brad-Lancaster-Waste-Transform-waste

Wow, guys! Thanks for all your responses! It is helpful to just hear peoples perspectives and the things they deem most important as revealed by the types of questions they ask. I will do my best to respond to the questions asked. Sorry if I miss any!

I should also say that we have only been in Alaska for 1 year, so we are still learning a lot about the area. But glad we have seen all 4 seasons now, as each is very different. It really helped us pick out what geographic area we would want to purchase land in.

Kay Fox:
Thanks for chiming in with your two cents! I have been telling my husband I want to get some perenials and fruiting trees picked out to get planted asap so they can get growing. I know that raspberries, blueberries, haskaps, saskatoons, and currents all do well here. I was thinking cherries may do alright too? I don't know anyone personally growing them, but I think there is an apple orchard not far away that has some. Apples would be on my list as well. If anyone has recommendations for other fruits and nuts to consider in 4a/b I'd appreciate hearing them. I know nothing about nuts, and I'm a novice gardener across the board. So feel free to over explain things

John C Daley:
- What are the contour intervals? They are 4ft

-Which way is the actual prevailing winds? This is hard to answer. I come from the midwest, where all storms and any wind of measurable strength comes from the west... It is not like that here. Being on a peninsula in the ocean, it seams that the wind can be different every day. I asked some of my husbands pilot colleagues, and they said it varies a lot. Storms tend to come from the south (could be south east, or south west), but that doesn't mean they hit you from the south, as a lot of circling happens. That said, it is never particularly strong it is rare to see more than a 12mph wind, and the property is very protected. Obviously any clearing we do will affect that, but all the surrounding properties still have a lot of trees, and many are completely untouched, and therefore thick enough you cant even walk through them (as ours was a couple of weeks ago).

-What would you do for water? At this point we are planning on a well and septic system. I have done some research on rainwater catchment. We certainly get enough rain for it, but there are a few hang ups that make the well/septic seem better to me. 1) Our storage tank would have to be buried (or in a basement, which we may not include in the house plans) due to the cold temps, which is an added complication. Especially when mother nature has provided a bunch of water stored underground already.  2) The grey water discharge would also have to be buried below frost line. With that being the case, you are pretty close to doing a septic anyway, and its not providing much benefit to your garden etc. Of course you could have a summer and a winter system, but in general irrigation is not a big concern here. In fact I can see a grey water system creating a liability, as many of our plants are near drowning this year as it is. 3) It is looking like required well depth will be reasonable. There is a "summer" home a couple lots away, and we got permission to look at their well. It was ~35ft to the surface of the water. We are thinking there is a good chance that a well would be affordable for us if our property is similar. 4) I really dislike the idea of storing our drinking water in plastic, and I don't see a way around it with rainwater catchment in a cold climate. If someone has one I am all ears. In all honesty, if there was a solution for the plastic issue, I would be much more willing to consider rainwater.
Additionally, as an owner/builder we can build our own septic system here and have it "certified" by doing an online course through the Borough.

- How remote are tradesmen? We are in a very well supplied and independent community. Tradesmen are easy to come by. But nothing is cheap here. So as much as we can practically do ourselves we will.

- How remote are quarry supplies? Quarry supplies of gravel, sand, road base etc. are plentiful and within a couple of miles.

- What size, type of house are you considering? At this point building with logs is our first choice. We have a friend who builds log cabin kits, and I think this will be the most appropriate and affordable option for us. As fun as a full scribed log home would be, we just don't have the time to devote to that, as my husband works full time and there is only so much I am capable of when it comes to heavy lifting. So it would be a butt and pass style log home with a tongue and grove cut in each log. Log appeals to us because it requires no vapor barriers, insulation, sheathing etc. That saves some time and expense for us, along with dramatically reducing the amount of synthetics in our home. Size is somewhat yet to be determined. If we can find an affordable on-site temporary housing solution, that is comfortable enough to live in for say 5 years, we would be able to save a few more pennies and build a slightly larger foot print. If our temporary housing is only comfortable enough to endure for a year or two, we would probably build smaller at first and add on in the future if necessary. We have looked at an example of our friends log kits in a 20x24ft foot print with a loft, and think that we could make that a comfortable home. Slightly larger would have its benefits, but isn't necessary.

S Bengi:
Some of your questions were answered above. Feel free to ask for further clarification.

The soil might be dry/okay now but what does it look like during spring snow melt? We saw the property at spring snow melt, and were surprised by how well the soil was draining. The "road" on the west edge of the property is just a 2 track right now. I would have expected it to be a lake, but there was only ever standing water in the pot holes, and it was not 'greasy' or soft to drive on. Of course good ground clearance was helpful since its just a 2 track, but it seemed to be draining better than we expected.

How will you water your expensive transplanted "bare root tree"? I am not sure what you mean by expensive transplanted bare root tree? I am a novice gardener on a good day. But in general watering is a gift from above here. If we get a week with out rain we rejoice, and the sunshine gives us the energy to bring the plants what they need if they are looking dry.

Wildlife:
What will you do when the rabbits/mole/etc come for your vegetables? This is a very good question. I am sure I will be at war with them. We would like to do a root cellar of some kind, and will need to find a way to make it vermin proof. Dealing with these critters (and particularly moose) while the plants are still in the garden will also be a challenge. I have heard that moose don't like garlic and onions, so I planted them around the edge of my small garden bed at our rental. So far it is working, but time will tell. Many people use fencing and greenhouses as a part of the moose deterrent.

How about bear/wolf/fox/etc, especially for your animals/pets? This will also be interesting. If we are able to lease the land across the rd, I imagine getting a guardian livestock dog to help with that. If its just on our own property, our boarder collie/aussie and trusty 17hmr & 12gauge will have to do.

Would it be easier to "hunt" trout from a stream vs trying to setup an aquaponic system, how about hunting a deer/etc vs rearing cows? Aquaponics has not made the list of things to research for me at this point. We have lots of fish to eat from the rivers. We love to hunt and fish, but some is easier than others, especially with limited time off from work for my husband. Being able to raise some of our own meat would be helpful. Hogs or goats may be a better option than beef. There are very few people raising beef here and I expect there are reasons for that.

How about using goats for diary vs a cow, maybe a nigerian x alphine, what do the local do? We have also considered this. Our neighbors may be interested in going in on a dairy animal together (especially if we are able to lease the land across the rd), and if thats the case we were thinking a cow may be worth it. I don't think we would require the output from a cow by ourselves, but between our families we would make good use of it.

How about growing some honey bee? How do you make it bear proof? My husband used to raise bees, and I wouldnt be shocked if we get a hive next spring. He knows more about it than me, but I think a solor hotwire fence is pretty effective bear proofing for bees.

HVAC-Insulation/heat:
As mentioned before we plan to build with log, and probably do a RMH as primary heat source. We would have a back up for when we have to leave town. Possibly electric infloor heat, or an electric base board. Electric is already run to the property, but natural gas is not. We could do propane or fuel oil, but seems like a more complicated investment for something we will seldom use. Solar wouldnt work well because it would really only be needed in the winter when we have very little daylight.  I love Matt Walker's cook stoves, and will probably go with one of those for the RMH. An auxiliary propane burner would be used for quick jobs in the summer when a fire is not ideal, and an outdoor cook area is also in the plan (another thing to figure out a place for in relation to the house, along with the garden, animals etc.) Thankfully our summers are cold enough having one fire per day in the house to cook supper in the summer may not be out of the question. Regarding air exchange- You said a EVR sounds like a good idea. Do you mind elaborating on why? I'm of the mindset that there is nothing wrong with opening a window, regardless of temperature, if the house needs fresh air. I am thinking the RMH will be efficient enough (and wood plentiful enough) to not fret too much about loosing heat. I could be wrong on that. If someone has experience, please share!

Social:
We hope to build the home in a way we can add on if need be. One of those additions could be a ground floor bedroom, which would help for "aging in place". We will see what the Lord has, and if this is the "forever" spot. But we'd like to plan it well enough to keep it.

Luke Mitchell:
Very good advice on observing first. We do not know yet when we will be able to move to the land, but thinking it could be possible this spring. We would not have our house built yet, but would be living in some sort of temporary housing. I have been looking pretty hard at yurts, which is another topic, but thats an option. Hoping this would give us more "on site" observation time, while we continue to save and start picking away at building the house.

Regarding the alders: I agree about not eradicating a species, and have no intent of truly getting rid of all of them. The alders are thiiiick here, and are more of a high bush species of alder, not a tall tree. We could not eradicate them if we wanted to. It wasnt really clear in my first post, but this piece of property was so heavily wooded that you could not see more than 4-8ft in front of you, and "walking the property" was more like an obstacle course/ jungle gym.  This makes useful observation incredibly difficult. We have said that we will take them all out, but we say that knowing that they will return in the spring. We feel we need to increase the visibility, and get an idea of what's the ground surface is actually like to determine where building is even possible. We are leaving the ones on the property line, and I'm sure they will fill in any space we give them in the spring. We are keeping the nicer sections of the branches to use for deck railings, furniture, etc.

All that said, your comments on the benefits of the Alder are really encouraging! We can have as many of them as our hearts desire I think, and this info will help me better understand how to make the best use of them. Also your comments on the soil are helpful. I am hoping all that organic matter on top will make things grow! Just need to determine where on the property to put the garden, hugelkulture beds, etc.

Eric Hanson:
I dont know much about biochar. What are the benifits of this as compared with hugelkulture, composting, etc? I like the idea of 1/4 garden, 1/4 animals. Could be a good break up. And using the steep section of hill to the SE for berries is a great idea. Would be nice to make that section useful for something.

Trace: Good point about space limitations. If we can't get a lease on the land across the rd, I expect the poultry will be the best use of the space we have? Does anyone have any other thoughts on that?

Anne:
Thanks for the comments and links!

Thank you all for your input! We are always mulling things over, as we go about daily tasks, and your input is helping us along.

Didn’t see it explicitly stated, so I will say to concentrate your growing and living areas on south facing slopes to maximize sun exposure. Best of luck to you!

Eloise, your plans are laudable, I like the 20 x 24 ft footprint.
I read basements can cause problems in some areas with perma frost.
Despite my rainfall loving attitude I can see a well is more practical for this site.
Steel tanks are available though.

I see the slopes are very gentle and the trades and supplies being readily available makes it sound like shrangalar!
Will a log cabin have very good insulation by itself?
I found this; From Insulating log cabins
"Because wood doesn't have adequate insulation, you'll want to take extra steps to ensure your cabin is energy efficient."

Eloise,

I will try to give a background on why I recommended the Biochar, but it all revolves around practical use for all that alder.  As I see it, there are basically 3 options.

Option #1 is my personal preferred option which is to chip it all up and break it down with Wine Cap mushrooms.  This leaves behind wonderfully fertile compost and takes about 6 months to one year to complete.  In your area, late spring, summer and fall are the best times.  You also get edible mushrooms if you like them.  I can help you with this if you like.

Option #2 is Biochar which requires making a kiln which isn’t difficult at all—I made one out of a paint can and soup cans, but it only yielded one soup can of char.  You would probably want a 50 gallon barrel if you choose this option.  Biochar is wood burned in the absence of oxygen.  The wood carbonizes and turns to charcoal (the real kind).  The char will need to be mixed with compost for some time before usage (maybe a week?).  The char acts as little homes for bacteria and fungi to live and the carbon helps to lock up water and nutrients that would otherwise be lost.  Over time, Biochar inoculated soils are very productive.  And that carbon is locked up for millennia.

Option #3 is hugelculture which you already seem to know about.  Hugelculture requires no modification to the wood other than cutting it down and burying it.  Your soils sound like they are already full of microbes so they will start going to work on that wood quickly.  If you want to go go with hugelculture, who am I to say this is a bad idea.

I will offer up an observation I made when I first used mushrooms.  Prior to using mushrooms, I saw soil as a bunch of chemicals with some biology thrown in.  My garden beds have far more abundant since using mushrooms that I no longer use any additional imported nutrients.  Now I see soil as being a LOT of biology with a few chemicals thrown in.  I no longer focus on the chemistry of my soils, I focus on the biology.  Any of the options I offered you can obtain that state.  My personal favorite is using mushrooms, but hugelculture can be great too as can Biochar.

I hope this helps,

Eric

I really like your the idea of your house having minimal amount of plastic/foam/etc. Please do build a log cabin. With 12inch logs, your got a R-12 insulation and once it is airtight. You are correct an Energy Recovery Ventilator isn't a must. I just like the idea of having one in the bathroom that is always running at a low speed.

John C Daley - Thanks for the affirmation We have pondered many ideas and now that the time is coming to actually act on some of them, its always good to have feedback and different perspectives. Thankfully we do not have permafrost in our region, and the water table is low enough we could potentially put in a basement if we desired. We have had some bad experiences with wet moldy basements, though, so we are not sure that we'd want to. However we would like to have a root cellar and it would be terribly convenient to have it accessible from the house, such as in a basement. We have talked about maybe just doing a short crawl space and a trap door (or a couple) in the floor to access an enclosed varmin proof box storing produce. For a foundation we are considering Helical Posts (sometimes called piles), which would mean that the crawl space would be above ground, and only a couple of feet high. We would of course have to sheath and insulate it to keep plumbing and produce from freezing. Any feedback on that idea is appreciated.

Yes Log doesnt have an exceptional insulative value. But it does have a bit of mass as i'm sure you know. I expect that keeping the house warm will require more wood than in a highly insulated home such as a SIPs home. But I know many people who live in log homes here with no additional insulation, and some heat with conventional box stoves. So it can be done, and a Rocket Mass Heater will require far less wood than these folks are using. I should also note that although we are in Alaska, our winter's are milder than many parts of this vast state. Temps are generally in the 10F to 30F range in the winter months, with little wind. A few days of -30F are expected, but those cold snaps are short lived. The large amounts of snow we get also help to insulate with is a plus!


Eric - Thank you so much for those explanations. That is very helpful. I can see how mushrooms and biochar could be good options, though admittedly more complicated. However, mushrooms of many kinds grow like crazy here. Does the species of mushroom matter for this process? From what I see around in the woods in this region, when a tree falls, the moss and mushrooms find it very quickly, it ends up with a layer of soil over top with things growing out if it (nature's huglekulture). I have a feeling if I made a huglekulture, or just chipped the wood and piled it, or even just left it as is where it is for that matter, many mushrooms would have a happy time devouring it. Would that accomplish the same outcome your mushroom process is targeting? What type of equipment and time frame does the mushroom process require?

Biochar also sounds interesting... but I am not sure if we are up for building a kiln for the process. Not that it sounds too complicated. But there are lots of other things to get done. So adding an new experiment is not that inviting right now... We have talked about just piling the slash and burning it this winter. Or some of it anyway. I know that seems like kind of a waste, but it would result in some "left overs" to be worked into the compost pile.

On a scale of 1-10 (1 being no benifit, 10 being no comparison), how much benifit would you say the mushrooms and the biochar would create over huglekulture or burning the slash piles and utilizing the left overs?

Thanks again for your input, Eric!

S Benji: We sure hope to build the log home! I'll try to keep you all updated on any developments.

Eloise,

The exact species of mushrooms is not critical.  The reason that I mention Wine Caps is that they are extremely aggressive and thrive on neglect.  Wine Caps aggressively outcompete other fungi so there is no need to sterilize the wood as there is for some mushrooms.  They don’t require total shade like some mushrooms do.  All that being said, if fallen wood gets colonized by local fungi as fast as you say, maybe the best option is to simply pile them into a hugelculture mound and let local microbes do their thing.

As far as rating the relative value of using mushrooms in the garden, I unequivocally give them a 10/10.  To be clear, that is in my climate which is known for mild winters and hot, sunny and terribly humid summers.  I only grow in raised beds and I get my garden bedding by trimming back an overgrown fence line and chipping up the debris.  All that gets distributed into my raised garden beds where it gets devoured by mushrooms.  After getting mushroom compost, I never need to add in any more external fertilizer—the microbes basically do it all.

Biochar will take a bit more work and you will have to build a kiln which isn’t hard.  The char should then be mixed with compost so that the char is inhabited by something living before being added to the garden.  The nice part about Biochar is that once it is made, it will out last you great-grandchildren.  It is really durable in the soil and locks in nutrients and moisture, releasing them over time.  If you still have trimmings down the road, maybe this is an option for later?

And of course, the hugel mound is probably the easiest of all to set up—cut down wood and bury it.  Like Biochar said mushroom compost, hugelculture will add valuable carbon to the soil, but from the sounds of your soil, you already have abundant carbon in the top 2 feet.

Eric

Building into the hillside on the south edge where the hill forms a peninsula seems most efficient to me.  The SE corner is the least usable but gives you elevation for the best view and sun exposure.  It is further from the road but locating a garage/shop near the road would reduce the need for extensive road building.  You did not mention snow.  There seems to be wide strip to the side of the road is that for snow removal?  You mentioned being close to the ocean so perhaps the snow melts down and doesn't accumulate.   Having lived where it does accumulate, one wants enough space to push the snow to clear the entrance but not have to clear a long drive.

Your soil was probably bult by the alders so treat them accordingly. Remove them to use the soil or leave them to do their job when the space is not needed.

Eloise, wet, damp basements are caused by bad design, if its insulated and provided with ventilation it will be ok.
If you have a basement, a water tank could be installed as well.
Have you considered a cut and fill process for building, cut the ground on a slope, install screw piles as needed [ including in the basement ],
building the house with good drainage for the basement area and backfill the external area against the walls.

Okay, we have made some progress on the property so I thought I'd put up an update and field any feedback folks are willing to give.

We have been working on taking out underbrush and dead trees to make the property more accessible. We have close to 1/2 of it opened up enough to move around in and get an idea of what we have. Additionally, my father-in-law, who used to be a surveyor, came to visit in July and rented a tripod & laser level contraption to calculate the slope of the property. He was only able to complete the first 180ft in from the road. Beyond this point there was still too much underbrush to access and take readings with the equipment and time that he had. Below is a photo of a graph I drew of the elevation profile from his notes. Note that this goes only to ~180ft from the road. He said that the area up to 120ft in is suitable for building on grade. from 120ft-140ft would require a walk out basement design, and from 140-180ish would suit building on grade. We are not a huge fan of the basement idea... so hoping for the flat spot at 140ft...

Also below is an elevation profile taken from the GIS information online. This profile extends the whole length of the property (note that the axis' on this are not to scale, so visually it is distorted). According to that profile, there is some additional elevation gain beyond where my father in law stopped his charting. This is definitely the case, but I question if it is as much as the GIS indicates, just from what I have seen at the property. I could be wrong. We will be getting much more of the underbrush removed with the help of some equipment this week, and will be able to see more clearly. The third image below is also from the GIS info online, and shows the profile from the East boundary of our property all the way to a swamp on public land. This is relevant because the swamp extends to the ocean, so it is possible that we could end up with a view of that and the mountains beyond it, if our house is at appropriately placed on our property, and if some trees are taken out. Views may not be essential for human flourishing, but they are sure nice.

Our main objective at present is to decide where we place our house and out buildings. We would like to build the following:

1) Guest house - this will also be our short term housing solution while we are building everything else. We are entertaining a yurt for this purpose, but we are not sure yet what will end up making the most sense. Ideally, this would be in the 300sqft range.
2) Sauna - We want one anyway, but if we are living in a yurt, we will want one sooner rather than later. A small building- 80-120sqft.
3) Root cellar - We would like this to be able to store everything grown on the property that doesn't have to be frozen, including raw and fermented produce and smoked/cured/fermented meats and cheeses. I need to do some research on how to make a cellar that can do all that?? I have the Root Cellaring book, but need to delve in a bit more. I also have not thought through how big it will have to be to store those things.
4) Toolshed/workshop - This would house our tools for building all the things, and if possible, be a working area for leather/rawhide projects (my husbands craft) and pottery (my craft)
5) Main house - I was targeting a 20x24 footprint for this, with either a loft or full 2nd story. However, I don't want to short ourselves by building something that simply can't accomplish all we are trying to make it do (home processing lots of food, sewing projects, butchering, and hopefully children sometime soon, etc). So it seems wise to allow some extra space in the property layout in case it ends up bigger, or for an addition in the future.
6) Carport or garage - What this HAS to house, and what it would be CONVENIENT for it to house may be different things. We have 2 vehicles, and will have to get something (besides my trusty shovel) for snow removal. Plow truck or blower attachment for a vehicle are likely.  
7) Barn - This is kind of in question still. We are not sure what our land will support critter-wise. My dear husband has become a dairy addict after being introduced to raw milk products, and would really love a Jersey. I of course would love one too (until recently, I was the main dairy proponent in the house)! The question is what is practical on our land. We have pretty long winters, so that is a big consideration. We are also looking into the possibility of leasing some land across the road for this purpose. Much will depend on that. If we do not think a milk cow is a good option, we still would like to have some sort of animals. Hogs, goats, ducks? Any suggestions for cold hardy critters that provide well for the homestead are welcome! I should note again that we only have 1 acre, so that limits options.
Wood shed - I almost forgot this one. We would be very cold with out it! Planning to build a Matt Walkers Tiny Cook Stove in the guest house, and the Continental Cook Stove in the main house. So a wood shed is important.

Boy, that feels pretty overwhelming when I list it all out! Additionally we will need to plan space for gardens and pasture if we have animals. As mentioned previously I am thinking huglekulture and the food forest concepts may be good options on our land. Huglekulture because thats what I'm seeing happen naturally in the forest, and we have lots of wood from taking out trees to make them with. Food forest because this lot is indeed a forest, and because we love fruits and berries! I have not made any list of what and how much I would like to grow. I am a pretty new gardener, and newer to Alaska, so I'm thinking I'd like to take it slow, start small, but plan for space to expand.

I grabbed some data on sun angles and altitude at the solstices and equinox, and put them in a diagram below, along with a potential layout of buildings. Hopefully its not too busy to see whats happening there. I don't want sun coming into my windows (at least the bedroom) before 5:30am, or after 9pm, so I also included where the sun will be at those times on the summer solstice. On this sketch, I placed the house about 140ft back from the rd. As mentioned before, this would allow us to build on grade, and potentially have a view. But I do not know if this spot is the ideal spot within the property for the house to go... So if anyone has feedback on that (with the limited information you have), let me know.

We are new to all of this, so any and all feedback is appreciated and will be considered!
-E

Do you need to clear what you are calling underbrush and dead trees?
They are habitat for many species and may also be preventing erosion.