Jim Aldridge

We are in zone 6a and I am building an addition with a 6’4” crawl space head clearance at one end. I am planning on framing in a north facing corner on the east side to put in a 12x16 root cellar/storm shelter?

I am looking for any and all suggestions on the build. What to use for sheathing the walls? Moisture proofing ideas? Ventilation? Cardinal “do’s and don’t’s,” Other concerns I haven’t considered yet?

Thanks!

The crawl space for the addition we are building on our cabin will have about a 7’ clearance in the front part as it is north facing. The “floor” is uneven sandstone. What should I use to level the floor and floor it with? I was thinking about leveling it with sand and then putting crusher run gravel on top? Any suggestions?

What other advice would you give for a crawl space root cellar build? We live in Tennessee on the Cumberland plateau, zone 6 climate.

Thanks!

If you were designing a homestead in a way to save money as the costs of groceries increase, what would you focus on? I know that certain items, like eggs, are cheap enough in the store that you can buy them about as easily as you can produce them. What are the animals and vegetables that can be produces on a homestead that will actually make the process make the most sense from an economic perspective?

What would be the permaculture solutions to hydrilla aggressively taking over a pond?

Better link

https://sustainable-agriculture-institute.education/online-courses-programs/online-permaculture-design-course-opdc/

I have a son with special needs, so traveling is difficult and we have a strict budget. I found this online PDC and I am wondering if anyone can tell me more about it. It looks like an affordable option
https://sustainable-agriculture-institute.education/contact-us/

We have 12 acres. We aren't sure how many animals we want. We know we want at least one dairy cow and the ability to raise enough beef for my wife, my son, and I for the year, if possible. Along with that, we want poultry, pigs, and goats, but we aren't sure about the numbers. It isn't fenced yet, and we don't have barns, coops, or shelters up yet. There is a sense in which it is still somewhat of a "blank slate," but that's why I really want to do the planning process right.

I have been doing a self study on Permaculture but I haven’t been through a PDC, yet. Our goal is to do some gardening (perennials and annuals) raise chickens, goats, dairy cow/beef calves for the freezer, beekeeping , and maybe pigs. I have done a base map, zone map, and sector analysis map. We are growing zone 6 and at 2000 feet above sea level. Any advice or input will be appreciated.

There are some logs that need to be replaced, so it needs to be taken down anyway, and where it sits now would be an integral part of our permaculture design. It actually has a well inside that we plan to use for watering our garden and perhaps some small livestock. To be honest, it isn't an element of our design that "produces" anything. It preserves history and can be used for education, but it doesn't function as an ecological element. We want to move it "out of the way" over to a zone 4 type area and use the space where it currently sits for more zone 1 or zone 2 purposes.

Check out "the bearded Carpenter" on YouTube. The man's name is Paul Glidewell and he does an entire, thorough tutorial on how to build a hand hewn cabin from the ground up. It's free, too. He owns Broadaxe Beamworks in Arkansas and builds these cabins for a living.