10 acre project, help appreciated ☺️👍

Sorry I'm a neo Luddite. Not sure if I'm doing this right but I need help.  Trying to design a 10 acre system for my friend and I could absolutely use some suggestions/advice/ideas/design tips or whatever. So I'll give as much specs as I can think relevant right now but ask away 👍☺️


Rainfall is about 430mm a year
House is basically in the middle, on the high ground.
The topography is VERY steep front to back.
He currently has some sheep in back paddock
Previously has had chickens so some existing infrastructure for getting chooks again.
Hads BIG water tank on property, fed from bore that feeds multiple other properties. Water isn't an issue ☺️
Has a crappy old tractor that is highly functional.
He has 4 sons, so there's potential labour there.


I've done a PDC, with Mr Holmgren. I've read the books, I know how to garden, I have a decent idea what I'm doing, I'm not looking for a permaculture 101 answer, I'm looking for some advice from any wizards/Jedi/gurus et cetera.

Warmest bloody regards, rorskin.

Looks like Aussie soil to me, where are you located?
I am near Bendigo and can help.

It seems like you want to do a rotational tree hay grazing operation. So the best trees for that would nitrogen fixers that can deal with low rainfall. So without knowing your zone here we go with the best trees for feeding to grazing animals - willow, honey locust, black locust (make these 1/3 or less of your trees as they can be toxic if eaten exclusively), oak, mulberry (can be eaten by chickens), serviceberry (leaves also edible to chickens), and poplar. Now if you are tropical then these choices will be completely different. I would like to say another thing about honey locust - these trees make sugary pods that last all winter long and the sugar will help the sheep digest other dry grass. I would pick the fodder trees that coppice well and then organize the property into eight grazing areas. Make one area the "sacrifice zone" where the chickens and sheep are kept in winter or when the paddocks are eaten down. The other seven are grazing areas where the sheep will stay until they graze down 2/3 of the vegetation (that time period will vary). In each area 1/7th of the trees are coppiced and fed to the sheep or dried out for winter feed. Over winter (if you have winter) put the chickens and sheep on the garden to fertilize the area and lightly till the soil.