Ruth Sanchez

jer ander wrote:Have you considered starting a small nursery and planting pioneer trees while nursery grows? Maybe in the area you already started doing water catchment.
My property had the same thing happen, back burned. Seeing what yours looks like makes me appreciate all the branches and rocks I do have. I have a similar property to this up north, with junipers and sage, but more clay. I think a fire would have that property looking like yours though

Hi Jer, yes we have started some native grasses and trees in the nursery and then will be planting once they're vegetative, the main concern are the winds right now in October they flattened a house and after the fire they're is nothing to hold down the sand, we hope to have something established before they pick up again.

Thank you for following and I appreciate any advice.

Anne Miller wrote:Ruth, that is sad to see.

It will take time for the land to recover.

Have you been able to put out seeds so that when spring gets here the seeds will germinate and help with erosion?

Hi Anne, we did and the biggest problem now is the wind, when it picks up it blows sand everywhere. We found a small section protected somewhat from the wind and planted some seeds my thinking was to start small and then stretch out if we have any luck growing the native grasses.

Thank you for following and I appreciate all the advise.

I’ve attached a picture of the land after the wildfire, no trees, sagebrush, no native grasses only sand. So far we have made some swales and berms on contour that will help catch some water. Come spring we will be planting native grasses, forbs and trees.

Looking at the mountain in front of me and seeing the tall stacks of smoke. I’m thinking “I thought fire season was over, ooo right…prescribed burn season..  we’re under 2ft of snow so what is happening to the plants, seeds, temperature, and ground in the forest during “controlled burns”? Are we really helping out? I understand all the benefits of fire in the forest but there are enough already in the summer. Does it affect the dormant plants? Doesn’t the forest need all this undergrowth to protect the soil from the drought we’re going through? Anyway just curious to find out what your thoughts are..

Thank you Chris, I found your post immensely helpful Yes there is bio char all over the land, it isn’t as much as you would find after a wildfire in a forest since we are in the high altitude desert or sage brush Steppe and from what I’ve read and see in the surrounding areas, this type of habitat has a harder time recovering from fires and the drought doesn’t help either.
I agree with you about checking the hydrology currently we are mapping out some swells in the land specially  since there is nothing to hold the topsoil in place at the moment and the little bit of water that does run through creates a lot of erosion.
I hadn’t heard of “brewing actively aerated compost extracts and inoculating the burn area” I will research this further.
One of the biggest challenges is trying to help improve the land in a shorter amount of time than what it usually takes in these areas (20+years)
I’m looking into the species that would be most drought and fire resistant in the area,  it’s a daunting task, since some that I have found are considered invasive species.
It’s definitely challenging but I continue learning.

Thank you Amy, The Morels sound Amazing! I’ll do my research on them thank you!

Hi Thomas, good to hear from someone in the area! Yes the smoke has been so bad these past few days. I agree fires have there place in these environments (bio char everywhere!) I’m wondering if there is something we could plant that would help nature recover faster? I’ve heard sagebrush steppes have a longer time of recovery, specifically in the area we want to do permaculture on? Greatly appreciate your insight!

Yes!! And a little permaculture help maybe things will be brighter sooner than later. Thank you

Thank you Leigh, yes I’ll post some pics

I find myself at the moment in the Steppes of Montana, a fragile environment surrounded by “conventional” methods of agriculture. I’m a student of permaculture but joined a group of volunteers who are helping to build a natural sustainable house for some good folks living out here.
A month before the build a terrible fire (which was kindled by a negligent human) burnt through the forest and because of its proximity to the closest town of Red Lodge, MT the firefighters were forced to do a back burn, unfortunately the Steppe quickly ignited including the land we are building on. Now it is a wasteland of ash and sand, along with the burnt skeletons of junipers. I have seen countless videos of Geoff Lawton and greening the desert but I feel overwhelmed when I look at the landscape and I have no clue where to begin with helping the land recover from this tragedy. I can send pictures and maps of the area I would greatly appreciate any help and suggestions I can get.