Kara Ann

Thanks John! Great points to consider - I appreciate your input!

Hi Permies -

As long as we are talking hugelkultur - can anyone comment on nesting of root-eating critters within hugelkultur beds?
 Or more specifically how to prevent this?

My farm property was timber producing land for the past century - last clear cut was in 2021, and I purchased it 4 years later as land that needed regenerative ag practices.  There is plenty of slag from the clearcut, so I have been planning to build hugelkultur beds.  Then I read Kate Miller's post  (https://permies.com/t/45065/permaculture/Homesteading-Live-Free-Die-state) mentioning that the voles loved them. That along with other practicalities (size / reach / musculoskeletal realities) prompted them to abandon hugelkultur for other plant bedding options.

Mild winters here in PNW means that voles (and other plant-root-munchers) here are active year round. Are there specific strategies to know about when building a hugelkultur bed to prevent invasion / habitation of the little peskies?

Thanks, John - that is a great question, and I would appreciate your input.

I have been working on estimating water storage inputs and goals with Claude.ai;  attached is a .pdf of the worksheet with the documentation so far.
(Yes, I know there seem to be a lot of strong opinions about using AI... and the research capacity it gives me has been really helpful in researching / comparing / identifying. It would honestly be very difficult for me to do what I'm doing as I fly solo here, without the information I get with Claude's assistance. And always important to reality check!)

It would surely be helpful to have a wise set of eyes to review and assess, so thanks for your offer.
The worksheet has multiple tabs (assumptions / plants / livestock / household / catchment etc) that has laid out the various inputs and outputs.
This is based on the farm plan over the next 5 years.

I can work out how much storage you would need knowing your average rainfall.

That really is the crucial point, isn't it? Since I live in a place with lots of water input during the long rainy months, the storage is the primary constraint, rather than the amount that can be collected.

Looking forward to your thoughts on this...

Hey Kate -  thanks for sharing the story and pictures of your property as it developed through a decade!  I am at the beginning of this adventure now - bought property last year, and just moved here to live full time (off grid glamping for the time being) while developing it. It is inspiring and really helpful to see how your homestead has stepped along gradually, finding what worked and what didn't, expanding with each additional project.  Thanks for taking the time to post, and if you have any more to add for this year, it would be great to hear about!

Hi Simon,

Sorry to hear about all this - it sure can be frustrating...  As I read your post, a few questions came to mind.

Were you successfully growing anything in this area, prior to a few years ago when you initiated plantings there? If not, possibly a soil deficiency there that had not been evident yet. Or as you may be supposing, there could have been toxic content in the woodchips that were brought in to mulch the area. Testing the soil collected from several spots in that area, both for minerals plants need (are your plants starving to death?) and for contaminants (are they being poisoned?) could point out a clear problem to solve.

My go-to approach when a grouping of plants appears to be failing is mycoremediation (repair toxins, provide nourishment and strengthen the plants). Break up spent mushroom growing blocks and scatter around the plants, cover with a few inches of mulch for short term help, water well and regularly, and give the mycelium a season to work.  You can read more about this approach here: https://ambrook.com/offrange/environment/mushrooms-will-fix-your-soil
I also use a mycorrhyzae product called 'Recharge' - a powder that dissolves in water: https://realgrowers.com/product/recharge/
And I usually add SuperThrive for nutritional support (vitamin B1 and kelp) to the same water: https://thesuperthrive.com/

What do the roots look like on the plants that are dead / most impaired? Are voles, meadow mice, pocket gophers or other burrowing varmints eating them? Or weevil larvae eating current plant roots? They likely would not bother the comfrey, but they sure can destroy the other plants you mentioned. Mycoremediation and adding nutritional support for the plants won't solve this problem. Introducing some gopher snakes could help with a varmint problem (seems like so many times, the options for solving a permaculture problem involves "What eats this?") Interplanting / companion planting garlic, onions, chives, sage, etc that the varmints dislike but provide benefit to your plants could be an option.  Maybe it is time to dig up one of the mostly dead ones to take a look at the roots.

Good luck with it!

Hey All - thanks very much for chiming in! I appreciate the comments.  

John - Good question! I have attached the drilling company's estimate. The numbers/details for pump /pressure system that are part of their standard estimate will be different for my off-grid / solar pump situation.  And this is not instead of rainfall, this is in ADDITION to water catchment from hoophouse and greenhouse/barn, and dew catcher installation on the windward side of a berm on the property, and set up for pigs to gley a pond in a natural geographic depression on the property. Western Washington is softly soggy from October through May, and dry in June - September (Tucson, AZ gets more rain in summer time than my farm). So water collection can only get me so far in the goal to have sustainable water for peeps, flocks, herds, orchards and gardens year round.

Ben - thanks for laying out these points! Just knowing the questions to consider is a big step, especially for a newbie, first timer like me on getting a well put in.  All of these questions are getting on the table, and I appreciate your thoroughness - always lots to learn.  It makes the most sense to figure out the well pump details AFTER it is absolutely clear what the conditions of the well are! I have been talking to a solar designer this week, and currently looking at doing something like this


Joe and John - thanks for these suggestions. I will contact Backwoods Solar and also reach out the Oly Community Solar group at Evergreen. Great to have these contacts.

Lawren - OH MY - I was feeling like this was rough because of the potential for 325ft - but you REALLY have some depth there!!! Is that common where you are?  In the area around my property, some wells have come in at 145ft, many in the low 200s - neighbor to the south just drilled a well at 215ft, and several deeper than 300.

I will post here again once the rig is onsite and we are in the drilling process. It's going to be noisy for a few days, isn't it???
Thanks again!

a moment for a cracker, a cheese knife and a smile

Would be great to have a referral for a reliable professional who can help me assess and recommend a plan. Anyone have suggestions for a consultant?

For ages my little ones would sing the alphabet song LMNOP as 'yellow mellow peas'   😆

Hi Permies,

I have gotten a bid to drill a well on my property. Usual well depth is about 280 - 320 feet here (average for neighboring properties).  
Since I am off grid, I will be installing a solar well pump.
I am looking for recommendations for configurations of solar + pump that can be reliable in Washington state Olympic Peninsula.

Looking forward to hearing any suggestions you have.
Thanks!
K