Where to begin (Southeastern VA)

Hello,

I recently acquired around 3 acres of wooded land in Southeastern VA and I'm wondering where to start my permaculture journey. I've been following and reading about permaculture and self-reliance for the past two years and am excited to begin. I just need some direction.

For background, I work remotely and have access to wireless on the property through my phones hotspot. I've ordered a tent and Jackery to get started and I'm looking to start growing my own food. Hoping to get something in the ground by winter.

Also does anyone have issues with bears in this region?

Thanks

I live in south central VA and we have plenty of bears but they don't cause a lot of trouble, some but not much.

The most important aspect is your mindset! You are already 1/2 way there just by being present and willing at the location.

"The ability to be awed" I read that in a gardening book some time ago and it was on a short list of requirements to have or work on attaining. Super important, because that feeling will lead you down paths of research and trials in the quest of "growing your own food". Forage - sometimes the food is already there growing for you :)

I'm learning that sometimes going forward requires going backward. Sun/water exposure,  microclimates and soil conditions across even just a few acres can vary and have an impact on what grows best where!? So, be open to exploratory techniques and persistent hard work in the early stages...learn your "weeds" so you can decide what is beneficial and how to read and utilize them instead of a constant "fight" approach. A good field/chopping hoe (I have a Rogue 7") a good digging shovel, and a good broadfork (I have a Meadow Creature "Farmer") will also be your allies :)

Congratulations!  As far as "where to begin", the conceptual realm is a nice place.  Here are a six great concepts to start with if you haven't already experienced them in your two years of learning:

1)  12 Principles of Permaculture - >

  Very useful to have familiarity with Holmgren's twelve principles throughout the journey  Observe and interact being the first principle.  One of my favorites is to "integrate rather than segregate".

2) The "Scale of Permanence" - >

   There is an order to doing things which avoids chaotic do-overs and miss steps.  Do a site search here on the Scale of Permanence and be thinking and working down this scale.  Some aspects of your site will literally be impossible to change (e.g. your climate or rainfall) while other things are more malleable (e.g. soil quality and life).  Start at the top of the scale and then work down when possible.

3) Site Observation and Assessment - >

  1) Reflect deeply on your own needs, capabilities and limitations.
  2) Make a continuous list of site observations and later site assessments.  

For example, an observation is "it's wet up over there" and an assessment could be "this may be a good place for a pond".  

4) Analysis of Needs and Yields - >

  Think about other elements (materials, plants, animals, structures, etc.) required to meet your needs.   Consider all the inputs and output of each of those elements.  Permaculture is very much about the beneficial assembly of these elements and materials, via patterning.  Awesome things happen when you can pattern the outputs of one system with the inputs of another.

5) Designing by zones and sectors - >

   Designing via zones and sectors is critical for larger sites, especially.  But even with your 3 acre site, you'll find it helpful to conserve energy.

With respect to zones -- don't forget that the golden rule of permaculture is to start small, get an area under control, keeping things varied, and then expand.  It's very frustrating to try to maintain an large area and never get ahead of natural succession.  On the other hand, it is gratifying to have a small area well kept and productive.

With respect to sectors -- one of the most important yet overlooked sectors is the "human sector".  Legal issues, personal or family limitations, financial constraints, trouble with neighbors.  It can all affect the success of a site.

6) Site mapping - >

 Having a base map, complete with legal boundaries, contours, utilities, roads, key elements, etc. can be a fun way to analyze a site.  Then, drawing on and playing with the map can generate a lot of ideas, and help one discover ways to pack in productivity through permaculture patterning.

Have fun!

Many resources agree that it is a good protocol to start on a new site with a lot of time devoted to observation and research, while keeping your own footprint and other interventions at a minimum.  Some resources even recommend this for an entire year, so as to observe in all seasons.  Not everyone can afford to do this, but the main point is not to make drastic changes at scale in the very beginning.  This is even more so if you are new to the region and climate, or are relatively unfamiliar with life on the land as such.  Get to know the plants and trees and soils and wildlife already there, both on the site and nearby.  Look at climate, microclimate, weather records, history and prehistory.  Get out on the land in all weathers and walk it and make notes.  (This is especially true in heavy rain!  Hardly anyone thinks of this but you will learn way more and more intuitively about how water moves around the landscape than all the mapping and contouring commonly recommended!)  In any landscape resembling wilderness, always be on the lookout for rarities.  More than once I have gone onto a site for a design consultation only to come upon a rare plant right in an area planned for construction or development of some kind!  Many of these species are ephemerals, that is, they are only out for a short season of the year and are basically invisible bulbs or roots the rest of the time.  The same is true of some of the best edible and medicinal fungi.  Only walking the land regularly, or consulting with someone else familiar with the site, will reveal these.