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Permaculture My Orchard

Marianne Cicala

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 11 years ago

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it's taken almost a year of ideas, rethinks etc. but i had the opportunity to trade with a guy for a day & his dozer so, it's begun.

There's a big hill (approx. 1 acre) that was left fallow for about 3 years. Bartered with a guy & his bulldozer for a day - y'day. A bog with 3 perfectly slopped sides was dug & damed at the top left of this hill - approx 30'at it's widest point, approx 8' deep; a sister frog pond to it's right, about 8' round, 3-4'deep which has an overflow into the larger pond. We'll put a pipe 3/4 of the way up on the big pond, will plug for flood use when/if needed. At the base of the hill, he leveled 1 area, 17'X72' to hold a hoop house, gentle berm/sloped up 3', then another 17X72 area for a second house, another up-slope, level area with a deep ditch for a hugel and repeated.

I know I need to ditch beside the hoop houses to catch water run-off - since this is at the bottom of the hill - I'll post pics and will apologize before hand as they're lousy on all counts, but today when i took the afters, it's snowing like crazy.
Thanks for any thoughts etc.
M

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terraces - ponds are up to the right of this pic

Marianne

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Brenda Groth

pollinator

Posts: 4437

Location: North Central Michigan

posted 11 years ago

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good luck with that..looks like a lot of work but glad you were able to make the trade..

Brenda

Bloom where you are planted.
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Miles Flansburg

pollinator

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Location: Zones 2-4 Wyoming and 4-5 Colorado

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posted 11 years ago

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Looks good Marianne, Keep us posted!

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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posted 11 years ago

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We've been busy and pretty sore, but things are moving along. The big pond got seeded and strawed today, the back of the dam is filled with strawberries and more straw, one of the berms is filled with vinca major and of course straw. Black raspberries and a celeste fig around the frog pond with a lot of bee balm to keep the mosquitoes at bay. Comfrey in the orchard and 1 of the 3 hugels is planted with beans, potatoes, german camomile and some extra spinach seeds. sounds like a ton, but hardly looks like we've made a dent.

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Marianne

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Miles Flansburg

pollinator

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Location: Zones 2-4 Wyoming and 4-5 Colorado

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posted 11 years ago

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Looking forward to seeing this in the fall.
So is the pond filling up with rain/snowmelt or from a spring or what?

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Marianne Cicala

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I'm looking forward to it looking something other than brown - hopefully in a few months. Pond is filling with rain water. The little "frog" pond is already full and frogs have started moving in as well. Feeling pretty lucky! thanks Miles

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

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posted 11 years ago

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thought I'd post a couple new pics - ahhh, spring time. We couldn't be happier with how quickly things are blooming.

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big dam was planted with strawberries that are very happy

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 11 years ago

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alst few pics

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smaller frog pond is completely full and occupied with tadpoles

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1st planted hugel was plugged with onions

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and with lady peas. really happy with the fast propogation.

Marianne

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Adam Klaus

author

Posts: 961

Location: Appalachian Rainforest of NC, 2200' elevation, 85" precip, Zn 7

posted 11 years ago

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Nice earthmoving layout. One thought I had looking at your pictures was if you had considered applying Biodynamic soil sprays to the area? All that bare dirt and newly vegetated area would really benefit, in my experience, from a good microbial innoculation, such as the Pfeifer Biodynamic Field Spray. The Josephine Porter Institute (JPI) is in Virginia, and is the premier source for Biodynamic preparations. You can find them online; and if you have any questions about Biodynamics feel free to contact me.
Otherwise, good luck, you have a great project on your hands.

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 11 years ago

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Thanks Adam - we've seeded a lot of clover and are about to plant veggies in most of the bare areas. Would love to add anything that would help. I'll certainly check them out. Really appreciate the suggestion.
M

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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posted 11 years ago

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Latest pics - couldn't be happier. 1st, what we harvested this a.m. MMmmmm~ and what's currently growing etc.

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Really happy hugel with pumpkins, peas, herbs, random tomatoes from the compost pile

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 11 years ago

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swales & berries

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Marianne

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Miles Flansburg

pollinator

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Location: Zones 2-4 Wyoming and 4-5 Colorado

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Wow Marianne ! Looks like you are proving that hugels work. Thanks for keeping us updated.

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Victor Johanson

Posts: 425

Location: Fairbanks, Alaska

posted 11 years ago

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Those raspberries look like wineberries to me.

Vic Johanson

"I must Create a System, or be enslaved by another Man's"--William Blake

Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Yeah Miles - way beyond my wildest dreams. We seeded the tops with sweet peas which we've already pulled (less then 55 days from seed to harvest) and the dirt below is jet black! Threw on some eggplant seeds y'day. Amazing how much faster veggies mature - without question, the dirt temp is higher on the hugel which was an enormous advantage with our unusually cool spring. fan for life and putting in more for fall crops!

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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I don't know how to combine my 2 posts on the farm, so I'll just add our current link to the true beginning of our permadventure.
https://permies.com/t/36307/forest-garden/Permaculture-Orchard

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

Posts: 826

Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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Adam Klaus wrote:Nice earthmoving layout. One thought I had looking at your pictures was if you had considered applying Biodynamic soil sprays to the area? All that bare dirt and newly vegetated area would really benefit, in my experience, from a good microbial innoculation, such as the Pfeifer Biodynamic Field Spray. The Josephine Porter Institute (JPI) is in Virginia, and is the premier source for Biodynamic preparations. You can find them online; and if you have any questions about Biodynamics feel free to contact me.
Otherwise, good luck, you have a great project on your hands.

Hey Adam,
I took your suggestion to heart and ran with it. Our farm is now "pending approval" for biodynamic certification. True Believer!!
thank you very much!

Marianne

check us out @ www.cricketscove.net

Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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it's been a fast a furious 6 months from paper to dirt, but I wanted to share progress in converting our traditional orchard (rows of only fruit trees) to a slice of heaven with blooms, herbs, veggies, berry bushes and assorted ground fruit. Huge thanks to Andrew Millison with his direction and inspiration during my PDC & Advanced PDC & to our 2 interns Daniel & Andrew (yeah, different Andrew) for their hard work.

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Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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posted 10 years ago

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more progress. The straw is on the pathways, the wood mulch is where baby berry bushes, perennials and herbs are and the darker area are for row crops.

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Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

Posts: 826

Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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last 2

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Marianne

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Adrien Lapointe

steward

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Location: Kingston, Canada (USDA zone 5a)

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posted 10 years ago

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Looks good! I am looking forward to see more pictures later in the season.

Jesse Henderson

Posts: 4

Location: Northwest Arkansas

posted 10 years ago

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Looks great!

Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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Some pictures of our upper orchards and additional information. We are in zone 7B. We are USDA Certified Organic, which is quickly loosing it's charm, but that another topic. We do not use any additive, do not spray, add fertilizer, pesticides or herbicides. We companion plant like mad. For our trees, most have a crescent of narcissus or iris bulbs, all have comfrey and a variety of yarrow, alyssum, foxglove, coreopsis, daisies, helleborus, salvia and bee balm. We have a apples, peaches, plums, pineapple guava, jujubes, cherries (Korean bush and tree form) blueberries, figs, pomegranate, blacks, rasp, honeyberries, huckleberries, mulberries, kiwi, grapes, serviceberries, walnuts, pecans, pawpaw (natives near the water's edge) and just added olives.
In the upper orchard, we have 2 ponds - 1 "frog" pond which overflows into a larger pond for flood irrigation when needed. In that area we have strawberries, lavender, a few hugels, loads of herbs. For pest control we plant bee balm, a boat load of summer savory (the best!!!), lemon grass, marigolds and with the deep variety of stuff, it works just fine. We mulch with wood chips and straw. We have bloomers for pollinators for about 9 months a year beginning with camillias and helleborus, then witch hazel, forsythia, bulbs and so forth. The system work well - our cash crops like peas, beans, squashes, melons, lettuces, tomatoes etc is delicious and plentiful.

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Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

Posts: 826

Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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Upper orchard

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Marianne

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Kevin Young

Posts: 68

Location: Brigham City, UT

posted 10 years ago

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I LOVE what you have done Marianne! So inspiring. Do you have more details on your blog? I am wondering about the logistics--time for planning, time and expenses for putting it all in, next steps, etc. I hope for updates detailing what worked, what didn't, how the investment is paying itself off, any unexpected happenings, etc.

Thanks for the great photos!

V.Ginger Borgeson

Posts: 9

Location: Northern Colorado zone 4-5

posted 10 years ago

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Wow, Tremendous Job. Looks great. Are there any mulberry trees in that mix?

Lucas Harrison-Zdenek

Posts: 90

Location: Southeast Michigan, Zone 6a

posted 10 years ago

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That looks AWESOME! I'm starting a very small scale fruit forest on my urban lot this year, but I'm hoping to go full scale on our family farm in the next few years. I may just use some of these designs as inspiration!

Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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Hey Ginger - we do have mulberry trees, not in the orchards proper, but down by the chickens on the forest's edge. We're leaving that fruit for them.
Thanks so much Lucas and Kevin - I'll give more details as time allows. Here a link to my post when the terracing etc began early last year for the upper orchard.

https://permies.com/t/21857/hugelkultur/begins

really appreciate your taking the time to check this out~
M

Marianne

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Dan Boone

gardener

Posts: 3545

Location: Central Oklahoma (zone 7a)

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posted 10 years ago

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Hey, you mentioned lemongrass ... are you growing it as an annual or is it surviving the winter for you?

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Rita Jackson

Posts: 5

posted 10 years ago

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I am just planting some apple trees now (this week). What is the best spacing?
I also have animals hogs, cows and chickens. Once the trees are established is it ok to let the animals into the area?

Thank you!

Stefan Sobkowiak

permaculture orchardist

Posts: 120

posted 10 years ago

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Very nice progress. Congratulations.

Marianne Cicala

gardener

Posts: 826

Location: south central VA 7B

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Hey Dan -
I wish lemon grass was a perennial, but it's an annual here; none the less, it still get well over 5 feet. We also use it as a chop & drop mulch as it's an accumulator as well as chopping and dropping in our mouths

Rita - we have a couple of apple trees that are going in our pig area. I understand from Sepp's writings that hogs will not damage fruit trees - only enjoy the fruit droppings. I don't know about cows, but I would be surprised if they would damage trees - saplings may be a different story. We use open wired "cage" that we put around the trunks of our trees - they are approx. 8 inches away from the trunks. Air flows easily and there is no danger of mucky disease since they do not inhibit the trees in any way. Deer like to rub the velvet off of their antlers on saplings around here, which would badly damage young trees.
In our upper orchard that happily is not a conversion of a traditional row of trees, there's well over 30 feet between trees and they are planted randomly with a variety of perennials, herbs, nuts in the mix.
thanks!
M

Marianne

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Marianne Cicala

gardener

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Location: south central VA 7B

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posted 10 years ago

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Thank you Stefan - you are an inspiration!
M

Marianne

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Dan Boone

gardener

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Location: Central Oklahoma (zone 7a)

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Marianne Cicala wrote:Hey Dan -
I wish lemon grass was a perennial, but it's an annual here; none the less, it still get well over 5 feet. We also use it as a chop & drop mulch as it's an accumulator as well as chopping and dropping in our mouths

Thanks, Marianne! I thought it must be annual only based on my research, but I'm in my first season of growing a bit that I found in a sale bin at an Asian grocery, so I wanted to make sure I wasn't overlooking some miracle method of keeping it alive overwinter in zone 7.