Hi, thanks for the in-depth comments! I appreciate the feedback and take it in the spirit it was offered! Sounds like an adventure is in store for you, coming to this part of the world, it tends to be quite an eye-opener for westerners, but also very refreshing - people are more open and more relaxed on the whole! Yes, learning the language helps, I am fluent in Serbian, I just chose to do the videos in English for a wider audience. I am sure there ARE still timberwrights out there in Serbia, and I would have appreciated some consultation with them, comparison of notes etc. But if they are out there, they are not posting KZbin videos, or really maintaining any online presence, so it would have been hard to seek them out and like with everything on this project, at the end of the day I needed to get this done and so I was just going to have to do it all myself for the most part, and also make some compromises along the way. For example the foundations - yes, I am aware of the practice of simply standing everything on stone plinth foundations, it looks great and we don’t even have that much seismic activity here (or strong winds - except sometimes!). But for one thing we just don’t have rock around here, so it would be something I have to buy in, I can’t just dig it up or collect it around the area. Also, there was the important question of the retaining wall. I would simply not be confident building that other than using the modern concrete-and-rebar approach, and it would just take too long probably. Additionally, that whole part in front of the house was piled up with bulldozers back when the house was built, so although it seems very compact after 40 years, I was just a little leery that some sort of subsidence might still be possible. So although I actually hate concrete, it looks ugly and is going to be there for centuries now, but I just had to go that route at the end of the day. I am gradually painting it all with rough lime render and limewash so it looks traditional, best I could do! It's not a purist approach, but I don't feel "wrong" in the sense that it will work fine, perhaps a bit too well. Most of the rest of the build - the important part that’s visible to me most of the time! - was done using traditional methods (though when you see the next part we can argue about those!) You know, I see KZbinrs do these wonderful timber frame builds, and then they use metal joist hangers, or carriage bolts, or modern insulating cladding, or roofing, which I feel is a bigger departure from a purist approach, so I don’t think the concrete was a huge compromise, especially as I say, I had to have a semi-engineered retaining wall too. I am not planning to do much more timber-framing in the future, though I am interested in using clay bricks and lime mortar to build an outdoor wood oven, which has got me scratching my head a bit, and there’ll probably be a small timber extension to the roof to cover that, and possibly some sort of small porch on the main house, so I will definitely consider reaching out! P.S. Gotta get back to Gold Shaw Farm, I haven't watched it for a bit and it's disappeared from my feed, need to catch up, but just so many other things to keep track of! Like, I am also trying to self-drill a well, but that's another whole project :D

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Thank you so much for your kindness...Many do not take "feedback" well these days. My critique is based of course on my own bias as a traditional and natural builder. I own that 100%. However, I also do have over 40 plus years of travel study and application of both design and restoration within architecture that is based on pragmatic and logical observation too. As such, I find most (not all)..."modern concepts"...in most things, including architecture, to be based on "dumbing down" a method for both speed and profit, rather than proven best practice either in application and certainly not in durability or ecological viability...Again a deep thanks for taking my words as intended... Yes...!!!...life has been, and continues to be, a grand adventure for sure. I was raised with the mindset within our family if you did not fill each day with learning something new both is skill and experience, then you certainly where not taking full advantage that the Creator gave us with a given life. I will be returning to that part of the world, rather than "coming to," as on my mother's side of the family I'm mixed race native and highlander, while on my father's side I'm of Roma descent. Being nomadic is something I was born into I guess, and one could say it's "in my blood,"...LOL!!!...I hail from the U.S. but was raised (oddly enough) in Eastern traditions and indigenous, so tend to "blend into" a given culture rather quickly because of these exposures at an early age in life. I recall a time when a broiled goat head was placed in front of me as a joke to see what they perceived would be a shock. As I split the skull and portioned out the different parts for others to enjoy the cook in the kitchen, an elderly man came out and sat down accross from me and just smile. His translated word came as, "...you've lived with us before...haven't you?" I miss Eastern Europe and why there is a very good chance I will spend the remainder of my days there or at least part of them each year. I wish to walk my Father's heritage since I've spent the first half honoring my mothers... I am not at all good with languages as a whole, but with technology now, I get by. I'm always a tad envious of those that master other languages well such as yourself... Finding those still building in the traditional ways is not always easy, even if one speaks a local language. Also, as I share with clients and students alike, much of our traditional knowledge, as a species regardless of culture, is still locked away within oral traditions and not written down at all. It is also there before us in the architecture and crafts themselves, however, if you don't have those foundational skills to create such traditional items of use, including architecture, regardless of the given culture, then restoring them properly or replicating them is virtually impossible. Case in point why, I will presume, you turned to industrial OPC concrete methods rather than stone, which would have been as fast if not faster... Locating those that still practice the traditional ways often takes more than just knowing language, per se, or even the local region. I found that out in Japan as I often "knew more" than locals about where the "crafts people" are at. I could speak..."carpenter"...or...stone mason...(LOL)...and if you know a skill those others that practice often reveal themselves to you. I would suggest also, that the politics of the last century did a lot of cultural damage to Eastern Europe, but it is rapidly returning now as the younger generation, especially those trying to be more self sufficient, want to learn these skills, which is another reason I wish to travel the region more extensively in this second half of life. I will teach where I find the need or desire wherever I can. I fully understand, and often see the..."need to get"...something done. I'm finishing a restaurant/pub for a friend of mine now here in Wisconsin that spent three years getting only..."you can't build that way,"..."no one will design and build that for you,"...etc!!! All he wanted was a simple timber frame carriage barn that had originally been on the property in the 1850s. Like yourself, it was nearly impossible for him to get good information but he did not really know who...or how...to ask. All in all...for doing this virtually all on your own...you did an exceptional job with this little timber frame, and the main reason I took the time to even respond should others be in your future or related work. As for not having "rocks" in your area, I will take your word for that, since I don't have those details. However, I would share that this is a common reason I hear from folks all the time...95% of the time...not true at all but it is true they don't know where to look or how to effectively acquire them. Perhaps in your case, your in a region where there are no stone houses, or stone foundations at all around you, which there are such places. In such cases, I turn to simple fired brick, which is still superior to most modern industrial OPC concretes for foundational work in architecture. Not having help, or at least someone to talk to, there is no doubt going the way you did was what most folks do. Sadly it's just the way it is, and why when something like this crosses my path, I at least reach out once so they know there are other options if they do more in the future. The fact you are aware of "subsidence" in foundation work, speaks volumes to your actual awareness and a rightful thing to be concerned with for sure..!!! I do hope we get to meet someday in my travels. Time it right or if you reach out (me email is easy to find) I will help you build that traditional oven with timber frame cover over it...!!!...Blessings, j

@@phillhart2990 Thanks, yes, I think there's definitely a place for both - keeping the water in the soil is definitely a major permaculture strategy, but yes, also keeping it in storage of some kind. I'm definitely going to look into some sort of storage in the top part of the garden. And then kind of work my way down. It's just got to be more like a pond or similar - a "natural" feature rather than some ugly plastic tank, if I can avoid that. And yes, it's funny how some of us have the opposite problem, too much water isn't something we experience very often!

I am definitely thinking about doing something like that, thanks for the suggestion. I guess it's a toss-up as to whether I want to sort of just soak it into the soil or actually try to collect it somehow for later use. The latter would involve digging tanks and things, so not sure about that...

Is all the orange because of clay? He might not need a plastic solution?

@@WebMaster-vh7ek Thanks for the suggestion, I would LOVE to have a pond but yeah, unfortunately what we have is not true clay and is rather permeable (though it's not sand either). So I would have to use plastic unfortunately, which I'm not a fan of as I guess I want something more sustainable and "natural". I am hoping to dig a well soon and maybe we find real clay further down which I could use as liner. But I am totally down with the idea of creating water-holding features at multiple points down the hill. You're right, the main collection surfaces are up top.

That's definitely on the cards, just a case of sourcing one, as delivery is a bit awkward and expensive. And they look a bit ugly, I have to think about how to hide it! 1000 litres isn't much tbh, that's gone in a week or two if you're doing even a small amount of watering, but it would still come in handy for sure.

Oh wow, yeah, Macedonia must have similar, or even worse conditions than Serbia! You're so right, I watch all these channels with UK gardeners like Charles Dowding and just think, there is no way that works in the Balkans. And you're right as well that there just aren't many people gardening in our conditions, where you can't grow tropical things because it's too dry, but also you can't grow things that are sensitive to frost because we still have cold winters. I have also used a lot of mulch (yes, no woodchips here, or you can buy them but it costs a lot! No-one is giving them away for free :D) - but no amount of mulch helps if you have no water. Well, I am going to do a video of what DOES work in this climate, but I think I still have a lot to learn. All the best!

So, you mean something that collects the run-off water from down the hill, that's just sunk into the ground? Like a cistern? We have a rain collection system on our house, and that works OK, I did a video about it ages ago, it's there somewhere. But the problem is rain is so rare! I need thousands of litres storage to make any difference. Also, because heavy rain is so rare I have never observed whether rain is running over the surface and down the hill, or not. Because our surface soil is very porous and the water just sinks in. Yes, maybe if there is a lot of water going down there I could even dig some kind of pond, as someone else suggested, but I need a liner, preferably natural. The next big rain I will make sure to observe what's happening down there. I could have a long wait though, unfortunately...

@@thehillsidegardener3961 cistern sounds like the right word. a pond has too much surface area. andrew millison did a tour of a farm in india where they dug into the ground for rainwater collection.

I will try to document the process even if I fail, as I think it will help others!

Thanks for the feedback, yes, it's very hard to know about the variability. I have looked at all the geological maps that I could and they just don't show that level of detail. I thought about drilling up the hill because there seems to be an aquifer on the geological map up on the ridge, which seems counterintuitive, but it will be very deep (I can't tell how deep from the map) and probably creates enough of a water table to extend under where I want to drill anyway. Also, just down the hill and a few hundred metres along someone drilled a borehole way back in the day (it's on some very old maps), so I guess down towards the bottom of the valley there MUST be water down there but I am painfully aware that you could drill to a huge depth and not find anything. However, I think there will be SOMETHING in the clay layers, even if it's a small amount, most people have got at least something around the 30-40m mark and I would make sure I pack and develop the well properly, which I don't think a lot of them have done. If I got down the 90-100 m (not gonna happen) I feel like the terrain is quite homogeneous and it will be roughly the same as the profile the guys up the hill got (clay and sandy clay all the way down to 100m and more), but yeah, it's highly unlikely I'll get down that deep. I guess all i can really do is start drilling :D. No, there are no green spots, I really doubt there's water anywhere near that shallow (though I shouldn't discount the idea and will take another look). Oh yeah, and no dowsing, there's no scientific evidence for that, not going to bother with that!

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Fair comment about the dowsing. Lots of ancedote, no science. My situation is very different to yours, I havnt done a well where I am now but if I did it would be up 20m. My place is on clay now but the place I described with the variability was mostly river rocks. Also I have a reasonable amount of rain, mostly in winter - about 1200mm a year but with a drought every 4 to 5 years. I see that your trees are green so it is not totally bereft. It maybe that native edibles is the way to go. Do you have access to the old bore hole?

@@smultanwala Yes, sorry, this is an area called Fruška Gora in Northern Serbia - I do sometimes mention the location and I sometimes geotag it, but I probably forgot this time. Thanks for watching.

@@Nicholas.Tsagkos Same in Serbia, it's a brandy but infused with this cherry, drenovača, it's called.

@@jennymartin8264 We always had some quite hot summers, but not like this: in the last ten years they've got hotter for longer periods, and the worst is the lack of rain. It at least used to rain in spring and in summer, now we barely have snow, poor winter rains, poor spring rains and almost zero in summer, it's really dire, the climate has swung this way so rapidly and I fear it's not going to swing back...

@@kvikende Yes, I imagine apples would be a tall order :) I would also love to grow semi-tropical or tropical stuff but I just can't do I guess go with what works..! Maybe if the climate changes much more we WILL all be growing mangos and lemons!

@@sagēzin1111 It was bare-root - although I now do quite a bit of grafting onto stuff that pops up from seed, most of the stuff that's more than a year or two old in garden was planted bare-root in winter, I probably should have mentioned that.

Ok serbia. Should be easier than here lol, does look pretty dry. Loquat north side then

I've probably got that weird non-descript "twang" in my accent from living abroad so long, lol. Thanks for the feedback. Would love to drill a bore but it's a LOT of money... And I guess defeats the permaculture philosophy I am trying to implement because it means stuff can't look after itself. So you're right, I think native edibles are the best bet. Apart from mulberry, there are things like cherry plum, cornelian cherry and walnut that do well, but there's not much that's GREAT eating, if I am honest. I probably need to do more research on local edible species but I am also going for things that aren't native per se but ought to do well like the fig I mentioned, plus seaberry, for example, though that's been kinda slow to take off. The loquat I planted south-east -facing because, well, our whole slope faces that way, plus I was primarily concerned about winter, and ensuring it stays as warm as possible. The spot I have put it is near the concrete slab of our septic tank cover so I am hoping that will accumulate some heat in winter too and protect the loquat a little.

@@thehillsidegardener3961 feijoa don't seem to need much water. Globe artichoke once established shouldn't need to be watered. Asparagus needs to be dry after a few weeks of summer after you stop harvesting, so really doesn't need much water. I guess when it's dry plants will struggle and send roots out further and subsequent years will struggle less. Harvesting your own seeds, subsequent crops will be better adapted to your climate

Oh, cool, I think we have chatted on the NSFVC group! I am in Banstol, we should definitely swap notes!

Yeah, I remember, you were having trouble with mobile Internet?

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Yes sir. That's me! I managed to sort it out by just moving the router to the attic 😅 We should, looks like we facing the same problems here and there.

Hi, so, I'll try to cut a very long story short, I have part-Serbian origins and gravitated to Serbia in the nineties when I got a job here and just stayed basically! As for prices, we paid absolutely rock-bottom for this plot 7 years ago - including the land you see and the house: just under 20,000 EUR. The market was really dead back then so that seems like insanely good value now (even though the house isn't really liveable year-round, and the slope would be a deal-killer for many people). Now you would be very lucky to find anything that cheap, unfortunately the market went a bit crazy during COVID, and also afterwards with the influx of Russians coming to Serbia, and as far as I can tell, this same plot and house would cost 3 or 4 times that now. Incredible really, but still not expensive by Western standards. Actually there are a number of Brits, Americans and others dotted around within 10 minutes of me but there isn't really a huge expat community or anything, Serbia can still be lacking in some creature comforts for some people and it's a bit "wild" still, but I am surprised more people haven't bought land up here as there are many positive sides, like the more relaxed lifestyle and the comparatively low cost of living.

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Interesting, thanks for your answer!

Thanks, the vineyard is going to be the biggest hassle...

I THINK it was, yes, that was annoying that the camera wouldn't focus. That would be great, it's one of the few native bugs here that will prey on stinkbugs, although to be honest I don't think their impact can be anything like that of the predators in their native habitat, which destroy most of the eggs so they never even hatch.

I have the rains this year to thank, although I do think that letting the garden go wild really helps.

Higher up is quite steep, so I am thinking maybe to make slash borders (piled up wood etc.) on contour instead? Yes, I would like to have water storage nearer the top, right now our main water tank is right up at the house so that is OK but that's for the house needs, would really like some sort of additional (maybe overflow) storage like a pond. Our soil won't hold a natural pond unfortunately, so I am thinking about what would be best, IBCs are ugly and anyway aren't huge capacity...

@@thehillsidegardener3961 for water holding in Ponds that are leaking just use bentonite....even Geoff lawton uses this - it's natural and closes the ground

@@lobotomie66 Yes! I have looked into this but have been unable to find a source of enough bentonite or any clay in my country, there must be though... I've tried some other experiments too, layering a lot of organic material in the hole to see if that gradually improves water retention, we'll see, it's definitely something I have given some thought.

I'm desperately trying to get hold of some, unfortunately I don't currently know of anyone that just gives them away, people are a lot more aware of the value of stuff around here..! I can buy them quite cheap but they cost a fortune to transport :/. However, I MIGHT have found an arborist company that has woodchips sometimes, watch this space!

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Try Chip Drop I used them in Toronto area here in Canada .Good luck

All the best!

Thanks, I guess I am lucky to have kind of a "blank slate" to work on. I feel like something isn't right with the way the land's been managed up till now (orchard, rows of trees, nothing else growing) and part of this is about not actually doing anything and letting it get a bit overgrown, and seeing what happens :)

Pozdrav! Well, that's what I would have thought, but that's the whole reason I put some straw in there - I put a lot of kitchen waste in there, so I add straw to compensate for the high nitrogen, and it's very wet too, so that's why it's a bit strange why the straw doesn't decompose, but I think it's just because of the very dry weather, so yes, it's probably not really a "mistake" to use straw per se, but it does generally seem to decompose quite slowly. It doesn't really matter anyway, I am going to use it like it is to mulch over garden beds (maybe for potatoes) because I use a lot of straw mulch anyway.

I know, right? I made a real mess of the car too, still going to need to get the seats deep-cleaned at some point! I don't think there's a cure, though...

Yes, I have just planted blueberries under our spruce, though I didn't film it. I have indeed mulched round them with the pine needles although apparently it's a bit of a myth that they acidify the soil and I will probably have to do so by artificial means as our native soil is somewhat alkaline. I have used pine needles as a mulch around tomatoes, strawberries, and grown zucchini in them the year after, it doesn't seem to make any difference, it's just a good mulch.

Thanks, yes, i do just leave them in the compost, not put them in the garden but tbh I've not noticed them doing any harm, stink bugs are our main problem unfortunately...

@@thehillsidegardener3961 ahhh that’s interesting I, at the moment have the same problem and I don’t like insecticide. I try to squash them but the next morning there are more!

@@sydneygardener540 Yeah, you just can't eliminate them all, you really need natural predators, but they are non-native and don't really have any, though I have heard praying mantis will eat the little stinkers. But you really need these parasitic wasps that prey on their eggs. Otherwise you have to spray, and I am just not going to do that, might as well buy them in the shop then.

Yes, I have ripened some with bananas :) They are useable for all kinds of things for sure but I wish I could actually ripen them on the vine without them getting savaged by bugs.

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Always preferable, for sure!

That's something to try, black raspberries aren't really a thing in my part of the world but I can probably find some. Our main problem with raspberries is the excessive heat and lack of water, but maybe I can tuck them in under a walnut somewhere.

@@thehillsidegardener3961 I saw this in West Virginia on an old farm that was abandoned for years. Just wild black Raspberries around and through a few black walnut trees, no supplemental water, lots of heat, and brutal humidity (avg of 80-90% in the summer). Not sure about red Raspberries.

You're right, not really any channels around doing this, I know because I looked around for advice and didn't find much. Lack of rain is absolutely a problem and I fear it could get a lot worse, we're still not really getting much rain this autumn... Yes, I am considering biochar, I need to find a simple way to make it and also a best use case for it, whether to put it in veggie beds, in swales, or just strew it around everywhere.

@@thehillsidegardener3961 We got some rain lately, and some moisture from night fogs. It's still too little to replenish ponds and streams around :( As for biochar, I'm making it at my bonfire spot. Just need to watch the fire until wood becomes coals, but not turns to ash. Then I douse it with couple of buckets of water - enough to completely drown all coals and cool them down. From then I use one of two methods: If I know I will need biochar soon (for a new bed or something) I put it into buckets, add some chicken manure, a shovel of compost, then fill the buckets with water. Then I leave it alone for couple of weeks, to let biochar soak water with nutrients and bacteria from compost. If I'm not in a rush, I add biochar to compost piles and let it sit there until needed. Right now I have two piles with mixed in biochar waiting for spring. When season starts I will spread my compost mix over the beds, put plants in and mulch everything with leaves I piled up recently. Couple of cycles like this, and I should have nice deep layers of soil mixed with biochar.

@@FrikInCasualMode That sounds great, I wish I had time for it. I do put regular semi-burned wood charcoal on some areas as I believe that would be somewhat analogous to biochar though maybe not as "pure" or whatever. I understand you really need to put the wood in a closed barrel or whatever, and provide the heat from outside, to prevent combustion and off-gas the components you don't want. I do have a possible setup for that so might try it

@@FrikInCasualMode P.s. wish I had chickens, too, useful little creatures, it seems! Love what Sean at Edible Acres does with them, they are like compost-making machines

@@thehillsidegardener3961 They are indeed. Every time I need some extra soil, I wander into my chicken run with shovel and bucket to dig up some. Any weeds taken out of beds that I'm afraid to put on compost piles get fed to chickens too. Kitchen scraps, same. Unfortunately, stray dogs got into the run in the summer and killed some of my chickens. I'm left with three hens and a rooster. It's too late to buy new ones - I will have to wait until spring to buy young chickens. Such are the risks we face - hawks, dogs and foxes like chickens too :)

The neighbour wants him around, he does come up and feed him most days. People have already offered to adopt him but he refused. I mean, he kind of is adopted by everyone up there already! I can't adopt him anyway, I don't live up there on a permanent basis and can't keep him in town either as we live in an apartment. I am sure my kids would love it though!

Yes, it was a grim job, I was down there till the wee small hours, lol. Not doing that again, I am not collecting rainwater until I have a first flush and preferably some filtering set up as well. I am trying to come up with a design right now that will fit the pipes and things I have available here, and the space I have, so will definitely do a vid on that. In the meantime I am using the local well-water supply that we have, since that water, though not properly purified, is basically clean.

Thanks for stopping by. It would be awesome to have chickens but unfortunately I don't at the property year-round so it's not practical... Maybe when I retire

Yes, I think it might take a few years for the swales to start performing, but we have so little rain that I really need to try anything that might help. I settled in Serbia because I have some Serbian origins, otherwise I doubt I would've thought of it, lol. But there are a few Brit expats here, it's quite a relaxed place to live and a decent standard of living whilst not being too expensive. For sure Brexit has probably made it much more difficult for Brits to live long-term in the EU, better not even get onto that subject... But Serbia is reasonably easy to live in if you have a small company registered, own a bit of property, or are married. I fortunately have Serbian citizenship so that makes it WAY easier... Oh, the land is about 1200 sq m (I THINK!), with probably a third of it being on the eponymous hillside. We bought it for the view, but I am embracing the challenges of trying to grow on it now.

@@thehillsidegardener3961 Thanks for answering, my questions. My sister, mom and I own property in Ireland, a cottage on about one and a half acres. It's lovely there but we all own our own homes here in England and just use it as a holiday retreat. We have mains water which is treated locally so it's like a private water company. My sister and Ma were over there drinking the water for a few days before they were notified there was a salmonella outbreak and to boil the water before using. They were fine. Take care, Poo