Bronwyn Olsen

Thank you! Permies are my people! I injured my right shoulder very recently and Permies kept me inspired and further motivated to experiment and collaborate and know that I am not alone in these endeavors!

Thank you for your knowledge shared! I have been trimming and thinning. Every dead tree has so much biomass although most of what is burned in the only safe open area is pine needles. We built a drum type biochar burner, it only makes small amounts.We are on a sandy hill, ten acres of pine, cedar, manzanita and Bitter brush. I discovered right away that ashes not raked out becomes concrete with added rain. I ordered your book for our local library. I have a lot more questions. As, one of my sayings is “Never go empty handed” it makes sense to take a load of ash away, (Cold ashes only of course!)when going to collect more needles and branches. I have to reduce fire load.We move chickens around ,garden and compost, have worm bins and have been using more wood chips. I will try some grass seeding.Thank you for doing what you do! Bronwyn

Hi Hazel, I am curious to know more about the importance of keeping standing stable snags in the landscape for reasons other than homes for wildlife? Also, the forest around me is pine and cedar. I have distributed ash and charcoal from a central burn pile to all over property in smaller raked out piles. The grasses you recommended. Do these have a better chance where trees are? I want to improve the soil, don’t want to kill trees. The biggest lack is consistent water and organic matter which makes it hard to keep anything else going like elderberries ,Oak or Oregon grape root. Right now, I’m just annoying my husband with the ash everywhere!

Christopher Gewirtz wrote:

Tomi Hazel wrote:

I would advise getting all the carbon left on site down on the ground except for stable snags. Snags are really important to recovery. And I would caution against using machinery as compaction of soils on fresh burns is a real problem; compaction restricts topsoil recovery and forest regeneration. Here at the gulch I would lightly toast and sow grass seeds from Fescues, Bromes, Native Rye and other deep rooted native mycorrhizal perennial grasses to hold soil and build carbon capture again.

Dead trees that have to come down and fresh un-embedded logs can be laid just off contour and in ground contact to act as nurse logs that shelter seedlings and soils. This may be a chance to lay out permanent access trails that become future broadscale underburn fire breaks. These trails can be laid out on Keyline patterns and can be built to allow future woodlot tending. Roads can be put to bed becoming water capture and infiltration opportunities. I love wheel barrows and they only require well built trails.

This makes so much sense! I'll need to keep this in mind. Planning a burn on my own land to turn some less than savory multiflora rose into carbon.

Thanks, I have been collecting and starting seeds and cuttings.Excellent advice! I feel the same about gifts…books are great too!

Jay Angler wrote:

Bronwyn Olsen wrote:I am very interested in your progress. I have property in Northern California where fire is always a concern. I hesitate in spending limited funds on desired plants and trees because of this.

This is the second reason that many permies members start plants from seed - limited funds. I don't have the space/ecosystem to put seeds straight in the ground and not have a deer or slug munch the lot of them, but I still start many plants by either seed in pots or by rooting cuttings. Many people are happy to let you take cuttings if you ask nicely, and many fruit seeds will produce fruit that is tasty enough and those seeds could come from groceries, or better yet, a farmer's market where the fruit is grown locally.

That said, I've also let it be known that I'll accept trees as birthday presents! I don't need fancy clothes, or dust collectors, but another Goji berry bush would be welcome! (I started some from seed in the spring with difficulty. I put them on the porch to harden off and a slug came by one night and ate the lot of them. I was seriously ticked, but I'll just have to try again!)

Can you please expand on the importance of leaving stable snags standing?Thank you!

I was wondering if a”water mine” was a flume? That is a ditch to move water?