Erik Rasmussen

Looking for the retardant used in Cast Earth building.  I want to pour a monolithic form, and need to increase the set time.  I know its proprietary — do you think that a gypsum retarder and cement retarder in conjunction would equal whatever metallurgic retardant that is currently used proprietarily?

Xisca Nicolas wrote:No, it will not be enough...

It depends if it is bed rock, then no.
If it is rocky soil, stones with earth, then you will hold more water of course.

I tell you what people say here: stones keep water in the soil.
Of course, if there is also earth, they mean that stones help stopping evaporation.

I have also read an ebook saying to forget about no irrigation through drought when you have a shallow soil.
You need 3 feet and more to keep water.

It is bedrock. So basically, are you saying that bedrock is not a good water holder?

So, with 12-24 inches of topsoil before you hit bedrock, you think that it's possible to mulch a countour swale enough to hold water throughout the 6-8 month dry period in the region? If so, I'm down to start digging pronto.

Tyler Ludens wrote:I find these resources to be very helpful:

http://www.harvestingrainwater.com/

http://www.drylandsolutions.com

Thanks! These are great resources. I really appreciate your time and effort.

Hello, my name is Erik Hans Rasmussen and I'm new to the world of permaculture. I've just moved to a property in Plymouth, CA which is located at the basin of a large, long valley between some mountainous uprisings on the side. At the bottom of the basin, there is a creek which runs seasonally when the rains begin to start. Most of the land is fairly dry, with hardy sagebrush and oak trees sparsely placed around the basin.

I want to build a swale around my cabin, which is located next to the creek. At it's highest levels, the creek runs between 3-5 feet in the early spring, and is completely dry in the summertime. The ground seems to retain almost no water during the hot summers, and the runoff is intense in the winter / early spring. Most of the water runs off the property and back into the creek. My questions are:

1. Since the soil is rocky (under 10 inches of topsoil), is it possible to import and compact clay to construct the swale to hold more water?
2. What is the best way to retain water in rocky soils? Is growing enough groundcover and brush / small tree systems during the late winter / early spring enough to fortify the soil with root systems to retain more water?

Additionally, there are several springs on the property, with the main spring producing upwards of 900 gal / day. I have thought about piping the water down to the area of the swale / dam system that I propose to build to continually keep it full during the hotter summer months, and hopefully have grown enough shade cover within 2 years to prevent as much evaporation as possible.

What do you guys think? Am I out of my mind, or can it be done? I am strongly opposed to any kind of irrigation system, seeing as I have such nice, flat land that I believe I could hold more water in. I'm aware that the water table will naturally rise once I dig out the swale and add ground cover / small trees in the first place, however the intense evaporation during the summer causes me concern that most of my plants will die unless they are extremely hardy.