Chuck Stephens

I'd just keep using it. I use larger pieces but that's because we don't have a shredder. I wouldn't add too much water though to prevent it from clumping up.

I know there are lots of birches, balsams, and cedars on the property. I didn't know about alders until recently actually. I will be planting elderberries, Siberian pea shrubs, apples, and locusts. I did read that black locust is invasive. I can't decide if this would be a good thing or a bad thing.
Finding this foreclosure was purely accidental. We weren't even thinking that way when we were searching for land. Good luck finding yours! Even now that we have our land, we still sometimes look for listings just for fun, to pass the info along to other people who might like a listing we see. Having that barn would definitely save you some trouble later on when needing to store things during the building process..

Do we have to use a picture hosting site to post pictures here?

Thanks, Neal, for the suggestions. I purchased an Uncle Henry's when we were out there in May. Great publication!
Our property is just northeast of Harmony (but before you get to Dover-Foxcroft). I know, it's in the boondocks..only have about 5 neighbors up the hill and several more a couple miles downhill. It really is central Maine. If you draw an equidistant triangle with bottom tips from Harmony to Dexter up to Pingree Pond, well, there it is...Maine highlands.

It's more like a diamond in the rough. Right now there's a lot of trash that needs to go to the dump because it was a foreclosure. But if it was bare bones, it would really be beautiful. Signs of wildlife everywhere. I think they are attracted to the pond. If anyone knows of anybody who needs some free building materials in exchange for helping to take down the buildings, I'd appreciate them pointing out this thread. When the place gets cleaned up we will start the swales and berms and hugelkultur.

Does anyone also have experience with planting alders in Maine? if so, where did you get your trees?

Hi, my name is Charles and my wife and I will be moving to Maine this summer to build a straw clay slip post & beam cottage and start working on our 8 acres in central Maine. The land has a small pond and a few streams flowing over it. We think our well is fed by a spring since it is currently overflowing...We have a lot of water and are thankful for it. Much of the bigger trees were select cut several years ago but there are a few big cedars left.
If anyone is interested in helping to build a straw clay slip house (put up the walls) please respond. We have not done this before but it will be a great learning experience for all. We are constructing the post & beam frame out of a pre-cut kit. We do have the knowledge on how to make the straw/clay slip and how to construct the forms, know when to remove them, and when to start plastering. This could be beneficial if you are interested in building a house like this or are just interested in natural building at all and are in Maine. Even though you don't pay for this "workshop" (we don't want to call it a workshop because we are not experts at this) you'd gain some first hand experience. Lots of natural building workshops are expensive for tuition or transportation costs or both.

We only have one neighbor uphill. Our land has acreage facing south but also facing east/northeast. It is basically in the middle of a hill, and that's why the streams/springs run through our land to get to the bottom of the hill. Would it be a good idea to increase the size of the pond? The pond is about 15-20 feet across. It is not very big but the berm that surrounds the pond is lush and grows very green grass. We also have a ton of boulders and some old logs in a pile. Would they work for hugelkultur?