maria holden

Hi everyone, I'd like to go at the buckthorn/honeysuckle question from a different angle. I have about a dozen acres of overgrown/abandoned grape vines and wild cherry and black walnut (upstate NY), among other things growing. I am slowly lopping the buckthorn and honeysuckle (many are as much as 3 inches in diameter), and planting fruit and other trees. I will also put down cover crop seeds as I go along, maybe half an acre at a time. I have heard about using salt and vinegar on stumps so they don't grow back but I was also thinking about black plastic on top of using this mix. Thoughts?

Hello all, how do I figure out what is the best cover crop? (I am in upstate NY, zone 5b, Finger Lakes) Best book? Website? How do I learn how/when to cut it? Etc, etc ??

Hello all, I'm new to goats...I have about ten acres that are totally overgrown with thick old bushy buckthorn and honeysuckle, among other things. I've found a goat rental near me but my heart just sank a moment ago when I found out that the owner will only be bringing out five of them! I imagined a really large herd! What can five goats (plus maybe a sheep) do in a week? What do I do after they're gone? I'm afraid that everything will just grow back...I remain stumped about how to clear this land...I'd like to see fruit trees/guilds out there eventually I'm in 5b, upstate NY

Stacy, what is a reasonable expectation for goats?? I have about ten acres. What can a herd of goats eat in a day? What do you do with the diminished bushes/stumps that they leave? Don't they just grow back again?

Yes it does, alas. I so, so crave a big, general plan but yes, I will put shovels in the ground. I think I am also afraid bc I have this idea of myself as having a black thumb, and I am afraid of making mistakes again.

Hello everyone, I'm not exactly a newbie at permaculture...but I need help. I am stuck in analysis paralysis. There are SO many websites and opinions and courses and info...I have a 30-acre property in the Finger Lakes NYS region. I need to know how to start and how to develop a plan. I don't mind going at it very slowly, but I need an overall vision. I found a thread on this site about good PDC's but it's an old thread...I am so stuck right now. To give an example, I dont' know whether to bring in goats and pigs and chickens to begin to remove the tons of honeysuckle and buckthorn and other vegetation (I'd like to see fruit guilds all over what used to be a vineyard)...or do I need to bring down that vegetation and put in ground cover. People provide all kinds of opinions, but they are all different, and I end up stuck. I'm feeling like I need either a good, reputable PDC where I'll be able to ask specific questions about my site and my vision, or I'll need to work with an expert who comes to my land and works to develop the plan.

Hi everyone, I am in Hector NY, about 30 mins from Ithaca/Cornell. Is anyone still practicing permaculture in this area? I'm still relatively new and still looking for community
Be well,
Maria