Ernest Rando

We use milk and whey from our dairy to add to the organic grain feed that we give our pastured pigs and it has cut the 6 month grow time down to 5 months. We let the milk sit in the buckets of grain for 12-24 hours doing a simple lacto fermentation. they love it. Fox Hollow Farm Naturally Dot Com with some photos on YouTube if interested. We are a Holistically Managed and Permaculturally Designed Farmstead specializing in mixed species grazing

I have received both part ones, and not any part twos, I have a hotmail account that forwards to my private gmail account

we are crossing a Guinnea pig sow with a Kune Kune/Guinnea hog boar, looking forward to rereading this thread and thanks for the info.

I am an on farm, residential permaculturist. I live with the folks that I do design work for cooperatively. My Income strategies are the following:

I structure my life to require as little money as possible. Avoid all debt and don't help others get into debt. My cell phone is my only expense that I am billed for each month, gave up my car a few years ago, and live in rural america.
My work contracts are structured with cash payments as much as possible but mainly at end of contracts I get an agreed upon end of contract bonus. I do part time labour and part time design/governance work with the farm I work with (not for).
Wage Labour is oppressive. We all have 24hours in a day so one hour of my time is worth one hour of your time.
I am more concerned about my resource streams and ethics than my income streams.
Constantly reduce my ecological footprint and reliant on fossil fuels.
I always accept tips and gifts they are far more valuable and usually have a human relationship connection to them that money just does not have.

would it be helpful to see your last year's food bill and quantities of what you purchased, ate, and for how many ppl approx?? also would it make sense to plant test beds and cover crops this year so that next year you go into healthy soils instead of depleting them from nutrients this year and having failed gardens year after year. It won't reduce your food bill this year but it will increase soil fertility saving you money in subsequent years and teaching you and others about your soil biology. Just a John Jeavon's observation

Register for courses on March 27th & 28th, April 18th & 19th, June Date TBD, July Date TBD, and October Date TBD
http://www.foxhollowfarmnaturally.com/pages/calendar/styled-2/index.html

Join us for a two-day workshop that will change your life and could change the world. This course is right for you whether you are new to Permaculture, looking for insight into the workings of a practicing permaculture farm, or seeking guidance with the design process. The only prerequisite? The hope that when we think ethically and use ecological design principles, humans can be a vital and beneficial part of the natural world.

Permaculture ethics and principles can be practiced on any piece of land and with all sorts of animals. You’ll learn principles, design methods, and strategies that will benefit a suburban backyard, a community garden, a local food co-op, or the abandoned farmstead you inherited from your grandmother. You’ll learn management strategies for livestock that allow them to do what they do best, lead good lives, and produce a yield.

Fox Hollow Farm is a family managed, multi-species, mob grazing grass farm that incorporates Permaculture Design. Come learn how we designed a regenerative landscape that mimics nature and follows ecological principles. A landscape that allows us to harvest high quality food and resources for our family and community, all while investing in future fertility.

Day One: We will spend the morning in introductions of each other and to permaculture. Ernest will present on Permaculture Ethics, the ecological principles of Permaculture Design, and lead a discussion on global situations that are creating local opportunities in our culture for agricultural and artistic change. After the provided lunch, walk around the farm and see how we implement the use the permaculture principles to develop business and agricultural strategies on Fox Hollow and get inspired by how you can practice them yourself. The evening’s festivities will include an optional potluck and movie screening of the David Holmgren’s documentary “Relocalization”.

Day Two: We will focus on doing hands-on Permaculture Design. In the morning, we will learn how to use analysis tools and design strategies. After another delicious lunch, we put those tools to use and create a basic regenerative management plan for several individuals’ landscapes. Then you’ll head out to home and start changing the world.

Please feel free to bring your own contour maps of your community or private property.

Weekend Course Cost for Attendance (click here):
$150 Includes: supplies & materials, 2 lunches, breakfast snacks, car camping, as well as a pot luck & movie.
Please phone for lodging 740-694-8528 or email us..

There are a couple lodging arrangements available for those that are traveling from afar. Please call ahead of time if doing so. 740-694-8528 or email us.
Anyone is able to Car Camp in or next to their vehicle, though we do expect frigid temperatures in March and April.
We have 2 rooms available : the Private Room is available upon request for those with physical needs and the Hostel Room is available at a group rate upon request
There are also lodging options available near Fredericktown, OH.

More information and registration information can be found at http://www.foxhollowfarmnaturally.com/pages/calendar/styled-2/index.html

I would love to hear about any experiences that you may have had with Pink Eye. I currently am working on a mob grazing farm and while we do not do dairy as a commercial strategy having some homestead Jerseys for milk and butter are one of the many joys that has become part of my life out here in Ohio and recommend it for everyone with the land to do it.

Dear Permies,
We here at the Center for Sustainable Community and Midwest Permaculture have a unique opportunity for outgoing individuals interested in attending the Summer Camp Music and Arts Festival at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Illinois. May 20th - 25th. Just north of Peoria. As a vendor we are required to show up a day or two early for set up and to help with some festival logistics.

We will be working with the Cincinnati Permaculture Guild and Earth Village Architecture to bring to the festival "The Permaculture Corner". (in the non-profit section of the festival). The current draft of the description of Permaculture Corner and the activities that we will be collaborating on is as follows:

Permaculture is the science of applied ecological design that explicitly supports the care of the earth, the care of people and redistributes surplus. Through working with, rather than against nature, permaculture allows us to creatively redesign our environment and behaviors in a world of less energy and resource needs by building individual and community sovereignty. And it is really fun! Come join the Permaculture Corner as we demonstrate companion planting, cob building, compost techniques, and host workshops where you can get down and dirty. There will be experts on hand throughout the weekend ready to answer any questions and help you plan your garden space when you get back home! Hosted by Cincinnati Permaculture, Center for Sustainable Community, and Earth Village Education.

We have 3 free tickets to share with individuals who can attend from May 20th to May 25th, 2014 We are looking for individuals who are looking to gain experience in the artistic side of permaculture, working with large crowds in either the area of logistics or on their Green Team . You would also have an opportunity to help with workshops and help with the running of the Center for Sustainable Community Booth. Applicants should meet the following requirements:

-should be able to answer general questions regarding permaculture design
- a PDC or several years of life/work experiences is desired
- general knowledge of the permaculture work in your local area is desired
- passion in the understanding of the importance of permaculture work to help move us into a post carbon regenerative/sustainable world is a must
- artistic passion is also desired as this is an Art & Music Festival
-some previous experience at other similar festivals (large or small) is helpful
- should have your own camping equipment (tent, sleeping gear, rain gear etc we have cooking gear and booth equipment)
- share in the food expenses ~ 50$ or so for 6 days
- have a "leave no trace" camping ethic
- may need own transportation to area close enough for me to pick you up, either in Kankakee, Chicago, or Peoria. We have some flexible opportunities here.

If this sounds like an interesting opportunity please email Ernest Rando at Lotusdog@hotmail.com and please provide me with your phone number and a brief description of why you would like to attend? Also let us know what gets you excited about Permaculture? and what other similar festival experiences you have had. If you are part of another non-profit Permaculture/Ethically based Organization (guild, learning center, or other), we can arrange for you to also share information about your organization in our booth. We are in a non-profit section of the festival and we are looking to support non-profit organizations and artists only at this event.

The deadline to submit your application for this opportunity is the Midnight of May 3rd, 2014. Please read all Festival Rules and regulations before applying and feel free to ask me any questions.

Thanks for your time,
Ernest Rando
Center for Sustainable Community and Midwest Permaculture

I thought it was a pretty good talk, it was accessible and made sense. I often wonder sometimes it is the simple things that it seems would make the most sense to work on, like heat or soil building, but often we are driven to work on things that have more novelty.

I also think that it must be hard to narrow down what you want to talk about, obviously any one who is serious should spend 3 hours watching your bricks video but I have found few folks serious enough about changing the world to find the time to do so. Present Permie company But excluded.

I was disheartened to not here you drop the word permaculture 7 times. I think it is a good strategy and that the Ted talk was a missed opportunity to expand the Permie Pie.