Dealing with Mosquitoes and Reading the Landscape | Permaculture Q&A

Geoff answers questions that have been structured around specific themes, starting with two common concerns about permaculture design: dealing with mosquitoes and reading the landscape.
How do we deal with mosquitoes with so much standing water? Mosquitoes do breed in water, but the larvae have to wriggle up and down to get air at the surface. That makes them perfect fish food. They won’t survive where fish is in water. The ideal spot for mosquitoes is too small for fish, something more like a muddy hoof print or little saucers under plant pots. Deal with those small bodies of water and the mosquito population will be greatly reduced. You can also design in other mosquito predators: bats, birds, frogs, lizards, and dragonflies. Favor the predator and disfavor the pests.
What exactly is contour planning? Contour is a level line in landscape, and following it helps us harmonize with the land. Water can be the most destructive or most creative component of a landscape. Designing on contour pacifies water flows and spreads it, slowing down energy to soak it gently into the landscape. Life, then, thrives. One (contour) swale on Zaytuna Farm connects four dams so that, in a rain event, the water is even distributed and, afterwards, the moisture in the swale soaks into the landscape. Swales on contour also make easy walking because they are flat and level. The advantages of working on contour can also be applied to vegetable gardens, roads and other elements to get better results from our design.
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[@topherbelknap2464]

I get the mosquito question all the time. Thanks for giving me a place I can direct people when they don't quite believe me.

[@huehuecoyotl2]

100%! My back yard was always swarming with mosquitoes in the back yard. Since I created a 10x8 foot 500 gallon pond and populated it with mosquito fish minnows, they have been wiped out.

[@B30pt87]

OK, this was another great video. I can't help it that my favorite part was @4:47 when he says, "...a dragonfly just arrives, magically, from nowhere" and a dragonfly appears briefly over his shoulder, where no dragonfly has been.

[@TheVigilantStewards]

Question for Next Episode: Tell us about annual vegetable gardens! What is the best way you've found to grow everything you need on site for this, and what system works best? Ruth stout? Wood chips? Both together at the same time? Swales are beautiful, but so much practical things happen when starting out in an annual garden. It's often an overlooked discussion about how to do it really really well like everything else you do. Please talk about this, AND PLEASE UPVOTE THIS COMMENT IF YOU WANT TO KNOW TOO!!!!

[@orangethumb6942]

you talked about lidar to help figure out water flow patterns. can you show how Lidar can be used to make swales and dams at the right place on a piece of land?

[@TheVigilantStewards]

I like this too, I left a comment on annual gardens if you like it please upvote it also!

[@rickobrien1583]

Thank you Geoff

[@audreycermak]

Thanks for also mentioning frogs and dragonflies! 💖🦇🦎🐸🐦🐲

[@OliviaChoong]

In Singapore we have dengue fever and we have slightly more deaths from this than COVID-19 this year so mosquito management has been a big topic for us. Mosquitoes usually like clean water so dirty water won't attract them so much although it depends what we define as dirty. My mom collects water discharged from the washing machine to wash the floor, and oddly we always find dead mosquitoes our pails of soapy water. When she went away on holiday and tipped out all the soapy water, I had a lot more mosquito bites that usual, so I knew that it made a difference to have these low tech "mosquito traps" around. Also, when I lived in Upper Cooper's Creek in NSW, the number of mosquitoes dropped after most of the bromeliads were removed. We didn't realise that these were an issue until that happened.

[@Scott-jb9kp]

Hey Geoff, what should we prioritise in a permaculture food garden that is relatively small. I'm talking for the people who live on quarter acre blocks and such.

[@Christodophilus]

I'd be interested to hear Geoff's response too, but my estimation would be to prioritise water and nutrient cycles, no matter the scale. Because this is what feeds whatever growing system, you overlay into the design.

[@annburge291]

Water access and direct sun. Flowering plants need sun between the equinoxes summer side otherwise they will be attacked by bugs. The garden is planned by sun angles .

[@DiscoverPermaculture]

Hi Scott, thanks for commenting. Geoff answers this question in his next Q&A here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZa4eZyOgrmIopo - Best wishes, Bonnie (GLO team member)

[@louisegogel7973]

@@DiscoverPermaculture Thank you, am heading to that video as that was exactly my question… and it’s for a Black Forest postage stamp size parcel.

[@PaleGhost69]

Just wanted to add that you can add lavender, citronella and lemongrass to communal areas. These plants naturally repel mosquitoes so you can use it to safe guard an area.

[@rosstemple7617]

Rosemary repels mosquitos.

[@tepeassydac]

I use seaweed and compost tea as a fertilizer. To control the mosquitoes in my fish-free buckets full of stagnant water, I have vegetable oil in sprayers that coat the water and kill the larvae. I spray the surface of each bucket after I refill it with water. Works like a charm

[@carolynphillips1437]

I want to learn about design planning on a small yard. I want to set up micro swales and use weeping ceramic pots like you teach in your other videos. But where do I even start with design planning? I’m in a suburb in a high desert in Southern California. love your work! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!!!

[@annburge291]

You need to decide what you want to include... rabbits, chickens, fish, compost... if the yard is small these are usually placed where they will receive sun in winter, away from openable house windows, and considering your neighbours. Usually chickens in a pen with a deep mulch. Locate compost area. Locate shade green house. Locate water tank. Decide if grey and or black water will be used and kocate reed bed. This water can soak into swale to water large trees. With lack of humidity, sun angles are very important with plant position. Big trees to the north with one being a nitrogen fixers and a vine ( grapes) Infront on the south side, plant bushes and right Infront small plants, herbs, flowers and vegetables. Edge with a berm. Paths can be Infront of vegetables on a woodchip filled swale that collects water from the roof when there is a water event.

[@annburge291]

Jujubes fix nitrogen

[@efrem_1167]

Hello Geff Lowton, I'd like to know if I should start permaculture on a land if I'm not there. PLEASE LIKE IF YOU WANT TO KNOW.

[@janhatchett7834]

What is the best way to deal with fire ants in and around the vegetable gardens. I live in the Southeastern USA and I am unaware of natural predators to help with fire ants.

[@efrem_1167]

Ants are an indicator of clai soil

[@josephrahman6455]

have you tried chickens

[@janhatchett7834]

@@josephrahman6455 yes, we have chickens, but they can’t be in the garden in the active growing season because they tear it up. Also, it’s not uncommon for a chicken to be overrun and killed by fire ants. If we mulch , it encourages the fire ants.

[@janhatchett7834]

@@efrem_1167 yes, we have acidic soil and ants are common in acidic soil. Most ants are only a nuisance but fire ants can be downright dangerous to children , pets, and anyone who tends to have allergies. I’m trying to avoid the use of heavy neurotoxins in my garden and I don’t know of any other effective means.

[@ClanEATCastingCrew]

​@@janhatchett7834 hey I'm in Eastern NC. Fire ants are awful here, but I've learned a few tricks over time. First of all, if you're seeing it in your beds, your beds are too dry. The mulch can be a pain in the ass, because the ants get in there and crawl around but we can work with that. The #1 thing is keep your soil moist, and mulching helps. If you're doing container gardening, I've learned to mulch the top AND the bottom of my pots to create a barrier between the ants and the soil. This will also allow moisture to wick from both sets of mulch into your soil, keeping your plants healthier AND the ants away (they don't like moist). Second thing to do is get some Dawn dish soap. It won't harm your plants, it's considered organic AFAIK, but it will eat up the ant's exoskeleton, exposing their breathing apparatus. They drown in the suds, and the more bubbles you can generate, the better. You want 5 parts water to 1 part soap or thereabouts. The best situation for you is if they congregate in the mulch... makes eradication easier. So the mulch becomes a benefit, a trap.

[@MarcoStabile]

BTW I really appreciate the mapping video and your goat video is very nice and will help me very much in the future.

[@Paravetje]

Love the heron in the background casually eating some of the fish. It's a circle of life.

[@HomesteadForALiving]

So much great info! We're incorporating so many principles learned from Lawton's and Mollison's course on the properties we're developing.

[@jonamuser4578]

Follow up question to this video: Since the ascent or slope varies from site to site, at which point is it ‚worth‘ digging swales and how do i define their ideal spacing? For example on a one acre piece of land.

[@leannebuchan924]

I. too have an acre on very flat, fairly depleted blacksoil and clay. Digging swales/channels is what I think I need to do...and maybe some small ponds at either end of the new flow areas.

[@sharonagoren6751]

I was wondering about this a lot. Very interested to hear the answer!

[@lindakurtz2653]

Re: veg garden. Can you discuss how you integrate your veg garden with the other systems? Ie near chickens so waste and excess can be easily handled.

[@annburge291]

Chickens up hill to vegetable growing area with compost bays in between or close by to finish off composting and treatment of meat processing leftovers, humanure, dog poo.. using part of the chicken deep mulch as the composting base. Fencing to allow chickens into vegetable area for a chicken clean up tasks when needed.

[@lizzieatherfold2293]

Just love the whole ethos of this

[@8rotherJun]

I like Geoff, a very good story teller. Hope I can visit him some day.

[@Hoireabard]

You have explained much about how to garden in arid regions by using swales and water retention techniques. But what do you do to create permaculture gardens in landscapes which have abundant water or even too much water? For example, what about the mountainous west coast of Ireland where the land is very wet? Thank you.

[@rahmatabrahim521]

Yup or a piece of land just next to a big lake where you have unlimited amount of water

[@annburge291]

I'm guessing the swales are a way to have the water below and the trees and bushes on higher drier land. They need to be exaggerated big swales.

[@davidb9835]

Have to admit I was watching this video and thinking I've not really seen much in the way of doing this kind of thing in the UK/northern European setting where we don't normally have water issues.

[@myronplatte8354]

The main question is, why is the ground so wet? a clay underlayer? Copious amounts of rainfall? is the piece of land just at the bottom of a basin? Usually what I do if there's "too much" water is intensify it. So make a chinampa, or a pond, or a water garden. If you have a waterproof clay underlayer, deep-rooted plants, especially trees on swale lines should be useful. If you're just in a basin that forms a swamp, ponds and islands, and chinampa-esque things, where you have a constant dance between water and land is probably the way to go. lots of rain, or a huge watershed? Bring the water out on contour, soak it in, make seasonal and not-so-seasonal water features, ponds everywhere, put trees by the riverbank, keep soaking the water in. Keep on like that, and pretty soon, you'll get springs! Your goal, if you are at a keystone point in a watershed, is to pacify, steady, and extend the water flow throughout the dry and wet times.

[@DiscoverPermaculture]

Hi Hoirabard, thanks for contributing. Geoff has answered this question in the latest Q&A here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZa4eZyOgrmIopo - Best wishes, Bonnie (GLO team member)

[@teresasoler9539]

Who wouldn’t enjoy going on a journey with you... I will follow this one for sure. Thanks for sharing your knowledge! I can’t wait for the next video 😁💚

[@jonamuser4578]

Q for next episode: About to plan a food forest in a temperate climate, I find myself thinking about ways to evade the competition for light and root-space between trees and bushes. Any tips to approaching a design thats optimizing the growing conditions for all levels in a food forest? (And do you put swales into smaller food forests?)

[@k0mm4nd3r_k3n]

Doing everything on contour is absolutely phenomenal.

[@richardhawkins2248]

I watched the most amazing thing yesterday. A dragon fly was flying at a puddle and striking it with its tail and watching to see what it had tossed onto the ground.

[@PaleGhost69]

How would we practice permaculture with only a container garden available to us?

[@Christodophilus]

I'd be interested in hearing Geoff's reply too. I live on 5 acres and apply permaculture into the landscape, but where I see the most rapid results, is when applied to the much smaller footprint, of my container garden. Because all resources are condensed. I've found it's very important to have a compost cycle going, to feed the containers. You can buy organic fertilisers in the short term - but long term, need to feed the containers with your own compost and/or worm castings/pee. Get much faster growth in plants, and less disease, with the addition of fresh compost.

[@HomesteadForALiving]

You can build soil in the pots, filling the bottom with sticks and grass, and adding mulch regularly to the top. You can also raise rare heirloom species that need preserved, and learn to save the seeds. Many people gardening large areas neglect this. You can also start fruit and nut trees now, with the aim of getting to a larger property and planting them.

[@Vention1MGTOW]

Build composting tomato planters. Recover all your old coffee grounds and kitchen scraps and turn them into compost for your other planters next year.

[@joycethorn2313]

Awesome Geoff. Love your easy to grasp explanations and obvious knowledge. Wish you were a neighbour.

[@MarcoStabile]

exited for the new series!

[@ClanEATCastingCrew]

I really don't understand the dams, swales and berms. Are there any links for someone who has no experience to get a firm grasp of the concept? I know nothing about draining, ponds or anything but I desperately want to install hugelkultur berms and swales on my tragically flat property for a food forest. I have a 30 ft diameter shallow pond but no aeration for fish. Any recommendations on how to attach a berm and swale system to that on flat land?

[@MrFunboy777]

I also have flat land. I was wondering the same thing.

[@strugglersfarm5428]

thanks for teaching us again geoff .love the Q&As

[@MichaelLesterClockwork]

Brilliant work! You summarise so much, so quickly, I'll be sharing this widely!

[@adnanalhasan3746]

I really enjoyed the journey with you Geoff

[@Vedariy]

Spasibo Jeff! I love your way to explain, you are genius!

[@randomfaz3867]

How to protect fruit crops from native birds, i.e. in australia thr rosellas and other parrot type birds can strip trees in a few days. Netting is not always possible.

[@benwells5662]

On the British Columbia coast with around 3000mm of rainfall and about 1500mm of snow, would swales be any use ? Also how would you go about designing muskegs?

[@jhosk]

Thank you for the knowledge

[@HFTLMate]

wow that dragonfly footage was awesome! great content !

[@danyapilchowski2959]

Awesome video.

[@hetaspandya]

Hi Geoff, thanks for inspiring millions including me. We have recently purchased 8 hctr land in Queensland Australia and on our first trip to the land, due to knee length grass everywhere, our pet dog had multiple ticks on him for the first time of his life. I notice you have dogs too. Could you advise what type of predators or plants help to protect the pet dogs/cats from deadly ticks/fleas? Thanks in advance.

[@JamezAdam]

Great videos Geoff! 👌👍

[@mousadaraghma8194]

good to see again .

[@geogeduggan6579]

Thanks for the good information.

[@PlantsAmore]

Great Channel! Thank you for sharing your knowledge!

[@purposefulpermaculture541]

fantastic film Geoff - you're getting better and better ifthat's possible! i think some species of bromelliad have tiny frogs living in the water I hope they would be eating the mosquito larvae too...

[@roelandselleslachs3292]

Thanks for the new Q@A series Geoff! How would you approach patterning the "landscape" on a small, rectangular shaped urban property? Would you more or less follow the straight boundary lines when designing elements like kitchen gardens or food forest? Or would you still prefer more natural forms, leaving the property with a number of "leftover" pieces of land, especially in the corners? In other words; Could you achieve a good permaculture design using straight lines, square patches and so on that better match with excisting buildings and property boundaries? Thanks!

[@jenhamilton]

What are some of your favorite undergrowth chop and drop types of plants to have in a food forest? and why? What are some shade resistance fruit tree /bush/vine varieties? I have most of my upper contoured and sunny spots taken and am now looking at secondary places on the property to fit some things in. Or good food forest floor edibles that could handle partial canopy? So I know weeds mean something is wrong with your soil (usually) and there is a type of weed that is attracted to fixing that problem. I have city lot (fruit trees and garden) but I also have sink holes and feel bad weeding the super dense runner weeds that are trying to maintain soil.

[@xavierroy5254]

thanks for this great video

[@theherbwalker7000]

I would like to learn more about the food you can grow in water bodies in a temperate climate with very cold winters. When I attempt to look this up online, or even in books, all I can find are things on raising fish in fish farm style, raising plants hydroponically, etc. In other words lots of stuff that requires more equipment (pumps, pipes, aeration, lights, etc.) and energy and therefore probably not the best environmental footprint.

[@didarling9347]

all my ponds are bath tubs etc and i don't use pumps etc. I do use my ponds to grow lebanese cress, flamingo plant for eating plus water chestnuts. Most importantly i grow azolla for fertilizer and use fishy pond water to water veg.

[@HeliIsoAho]

Truly magnificent shot from dragon fly munching an insect! We had so many of dragon flies around in our suburban yard...missing my gardens. Cannot wait to get started all over again and see wildlife finding us. Thank you for the video :-).

[@NashvilleMonkey1000]

So that's what dragonflies do! So amazing~

[@Permisiepl]

Hi Geoff, it is good to see you again with the new series of Q&A. I have a question for you regarding replacements for peat moss and coco coir, especially for seedling trays. Peat moss is being harvested at the cost of destruction of last wetlands here, while coco coir has to travel around half of the planet to us. You have teached us how to use sharp river sand mixed with compost, and it works very well here for propagation of trees and bushes, but not that good for a "classic" annual veggies. Is there anything else we could try or rather we should keep trying and perfect our sharp river sand + aerobic compost mix?

[@kiffest]

Awesome video, thanks for sharing Geoff! When starting a food garden on a property with poor soil, how much time would you spend repairing the soil with chop & drop or similar before planting the garden? We're looking on mid-north coast of NSW, close to the ocean, so pretty sandy soil.

[@theh2ohammer372]

Hi, im in New Mexico USA, in the Eastern high plane's, so its very dry, windy, hot, what would be the main things to apply for a fruit forest in this setting?

[@jozefdebeer9807]

Hey bud, so Geoff has done some permaculture work in the desert. Flowering Tree has done permaculture in New Mexico, since the late 80s. They can recommend some good native plants to use to help re Green the desert. www.floweringtreepermaculture.org Check them out. They were featured in Toby Hemenway’s book Gaia’s Garden

[@NashvilleMonkey1000]

Windy just means high volume of air moving through the area. There are ways to collect moisture from the air, especially in the desert where the rift in temperatures can be fifty degrees or more day/night.

[@HFTLMate]

Drylands require very specific strategies and design principles. Success is determined by the correct assembly of elements, the effectiveness of your water harvesting, the protective buffering of winds, and the moderation of intense sun. You can learn more from my journey here anarkeden.com/howtogrow

[@theh2ohammer372]

@@HFTLMate i am interested in learning more, thats why i wrote to Geoff.

[@bonzothebrown7603]

Mosquitoes are pollinators, they constitute gigatonnes of food for other organisms. People need to address their biases towards all weeds and pests.

[@aliayoussef7010]

Goodmorning.Geoff, I wish to know how to implement Permaculture in small back yard progressivly especially in a hot area like mine in Egypt. Thanks

[@Berta44]

Hi Geoff, love your work mate. My name is Brett. I live in southwest WA. Looking at buying land around kendenup and tenterden. There was apple orchards all round kendenup years ago but the rain has dwindled down over the years. Sitting at 500 to 600 mm a year. My grandfather in law who is 81 this year and says it is very good land around kendenup. But water is the biggest issue. The blocks we have been looking at are slightly undulating. The one I love has a winter soak. It is 10 acres. Good shelter belts around boundary and around soak. Setting up Swales on contour will only enhance this soak ? Possibly making it viable all year round. Keep up the good work! Love your vlogs. Cheers Brett

[@iteerrex8166]

Being the backbone of permaculture, and kind of mysterious to new bees. What is a guild and where to learn more about it? Thank you Mr Lawton.

[@ClanEATCastingCrew]

A guild is a grouping that compliments each other. Think companion planting. Say you use an elderberry bush next to a pear tree. The elderberry acts as a perch for birds to eat any pests around the tree, and provides a food source for the birds so they stay away from your ripening fruit. Below that you might have some comfrey, to replenish nutrients, as well as maybe a mimosa or other nitrogen fixing tree. You could do a ground cover of strawberries, throw in a dwarf fig tree, and maybe plant some carrots or turnips, too. That's a guild, each thing is adding to the overall whole, without competing for resources. Hope that helps!

[@iteerrex8166]

@@ClanEATCastingCrew Thank you for the nice respond. I do have a theoretical understanding. I was thinking of design elements of a guild, plant tables with info to assist in design, and even some pre-made guild designs categorized by climate type, and so on. Basically some good references to help in design.

[@ClanEATCastingCrew]

@@iteerrex8166 what zone are you in? The best thing you can do is look at what other people in your zone, or better yet in your local community, are growing. You want things to grow like a weed, so picking up 1 nitrogen fixer that is local to your area will help. For every two fruit or nut trees, you want 1 NFT (Notrogen fixing tree). Collectively, these three trees are known as a trio. Start with one or two trios, then jump from 1 to 5, then from 5 to 25 and so on. Propagation year after year will help you expand. In your trio, space the trees out. Imagine a circle around each tree that expands as far ad the tree will at full height. You want the outside edge of your first tree to touch the outside edge of the second tree. Ditto with the second and third tree. Where those circles meet, plant a dwarf tree. That's 3 big trees in a line, 2 dwarves in between. Between the big trees and the dwarf tree you can put one Bush or shrub, like elderberry or BlackBerry or raspberry. For every tree you want three bushes, or two bushes plus a dwarf tree. Finally you want groundcover. Strawberries, mint, rosemary, all work great. Beneath that, carrots, parsnips, etc. You want to select varieties that already do well in your area. You design to solve specific problems. I don't know exactly what your problems are so it's hard for me to design around that. Lack of information. If you have a mosquito problem, use fish and ponds. Pennyroyal and basil. If you have a run off problem, design berms. If you have a fertility problem, bury some logs in soil using hugelkultur. Start your own compost and make your own worm castings with a worm farm. Add more NFTs. Look at what is available locally, and look at what NFT species locals complain about. What do they call invasive and treat like a weed? Around here its alder and mimosa. Might be different there. But you want those. Are you planning on coppicing or pollarding the NFT? Certain trees do better with one or the other. Here's a small selection of NFTs to get you started TRIO OPTONS (Nitrogen Fixing Trees) Black Locust, Mimosa, Alder, Redbud, Autumn Olive, Kentucky Coffee Tree, Golden Chain Tree, Acacia, Mesquite Alder: This genus of trees fixes nitrogen, adds abundant organic material to the soil through its leaves, and also provides fantastic firewood. It responds well to pruning and pollarding. Doesn't make good fence posts According to the database, this is the only tree native to North America that fixes over 160 pounds of nitrogen per acre per year. Though you might think that other alders are equally powerful, the genus actually shows up in the high, medium, and low categories so pick RED ALDER Black Locust: Another nitrogen-fixing tree that offers a great source of firewood. It grows fast, can be coppiced, and also provides fragrant flowers that attract bees to help with the pollination needs of your orchard. It is some of the highest BTU firewood you can find. Also makes good fence posts. It is considered invasive in some states because it spreads rapidly via suckering, but it supplies premium firewood and long-lasting fencing timber. It tends reach about 30 meters (100 feet) and is not shade-tolerant, so established forests, such as the oak-pine forests here, aren’t threatened by it but grasslands are. The flowers are edible and can be sold as niche crops in season, and they are also great for honey production. Stef's favorite fragrance. Flowers are edible. Redbud: Eastern redbuds produce stunning early spring blooms (more pink than red) that are edible, delicious, and nutrient-rich. They grow to about 9 meters (30 feet) tall, have lovely heart-shaped leaves, and are commonly used as ornamentals. Unlike many legume trees, they do not have bacterial nodules on their roots, but some studies have shown that they do fix nitrogen into the soil somehow. They are otherwise beautiful and useful, so it makes sense to include them in the mix. Mimosa: Mimosa trees, despite having stunning and pleasantly aromatic flowers, are terribly unpopular with some because they are considered invasive. However, mimosa trees have been in the US for hundreds of years now and are rampant around North Carolina. They are short-lived, good for chop-and-drop mulching, and attract pollinators (hummingbirds, especially). The flowers are highly edible, and the leaves can be used as a soup/stew vegetable. Mimosa trees are drought and wind tolerant as well. Russian Olive: Native to Eurasia, Russian olive has only been in the US for about 100 years, and it is not popular. Brought in to be a windbreak, soil stabilizer, and habitat species, Russian olive trees have proven to be even better at escaping cultivation. They grow to about 7 meters, have aromatic flowers, and produce sweet (edible) drupes. They shine in poor soil, reproduce abundantly, and mature quickly. In North Carolina, this is a coastal species, where it can be a chop-and-drop NFT that will continue to provide biomass year after year. Autumn Olive: Related to the Russian olive, the autumn olive also has edible drupes, puts out sweet-smelling flowers, and possesses nitrogen-fixing abilities, three qualities that make it hard to resist for a permaculture food forest. It, too, is considered a highly invasive species. Though it isn’t shade-tolerant, posing little threat to existing forests, it can disrupt the natural succession in developing forests. Again, this could be a viable chop-and-drop species and could be managed to avoid spreading as it is naturally propagated by bird droppings (cut it before the fruit develops). It’s great for erosion and as a windbreak. Goumi: This nitrogen-fixing bush produces tasty red berries that are great for jams or jellies. Relative of the Russian olive and autumn olive, goumi berry trees are known to be a little less invasive with tastier drupes to enjoy. That said, they are not native nor naturalised here in North Carolina, so they have to be ordered from out-of-state. They grow to about 8 meters (25 feet). They are tough, nice-looking trees/shrubs that tolerate a wide variety of soil conditions and temperatures well below freezing. Seaberry or Sea Buckthorn: This nitrogen-fixing bush offers extremely nutrient dense yellow fruits that are high in Vitamin C and anti-oxidants. Chipilin: Another nitrogen-fixing bush that provides a protein dense green leaf that can be eaten in soups or salads. Honey Locust: Technically, the honey locust trees’ natural range is just outside of North Carolina, but does include Appalachia and the Blue Ridge Mountains. These are medium-sized legume trees (20 meters/60 feet) that grow quickly and get classified as invasive, especially in Australia. They are very tolerant of bad soil conditions, including road salt, compaction, and alkalinity. The pulp in the pea pods is edible and makes good livestock feed; however, despite its name, the tree isn’t especially good for honey production. Like the black locust, honey locust produces fantastic firewood and rot-resistant timber. Stef Sebkowiak's favorite NFT [nitrogen fixing tree] but admits it's not the best NFT, there are some that are much better. But it doesn't nodulate... doesn't create nitrogen-fixing nodules. Instead it spreads all along the roots... it's a different pathway, a different way of doing it. Nature has redundancy. It's called FRANKIA symbiosis. This tree attracts the most beneficial insects, though. Can be used as a living stake, to grow grapes or kiwi or both (train branches downward), and as a living post. A post gets worse every year, but trees get bigger and stronger. Produces an incredible mulch in large quantities. In perennial tree-based agricultural systems, there are a number of nitrogen-fixing trees and shrubs that can be grown together with your fruit and nut orchard. These trees and shrubs add needed fertility to the land for the other producing trees, and also respond very well to aggressive pruning so that they don´t outcompete your productive trees through causing excessive shade. This forestry system that relies on heavy pruning is called coppicing or pollarding. Certain trees respond well to pruning. Even when cutting the tree all the way to the stump (coppicing), these trees will quickly send up new shoots and continue to grow. Other trees won´t allow you to cut them down to the stump, but you can completely prune them to about your waist height (pollarding) and they will grow back. These forestry systems offer you large amounts of organic material through leaves and branches that can either be made into wood chips for mulch or left to rot through a chop and drop system. Either way, you are adding important organic material to the soil. Since fungi are the only creatures able to decompose the lignin in tree wood, branches that are left as mulch also invite a fungal-dominated soil which is important for any tree-based perennial agricultural system.

[@iteerrex8166]

@@ClanEATCastingCrew I hope you just cut n past all this form an article. You look knowledgeable, would you recommend some publications for further reading. Maybe a good list of plants to use. Thank you.

[@ClanEATCastingCrew]

@@iteerrex8166 nah those are just a small excerpt of my notes when I was putting in my own food forest. I'll send you some stuff to look at when I get home. What zone did you say you're in?

[@justinp1773]

Hi Geoff, love the new series - Thank you. I’ve got some land that’s mostly covered in a young forest (25 years or so). What would you recommend as the best steps to transition this to a food forest /permaculture garden with out clear cutting and starting from scratch?

[@agn855]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/nWrcmpaid6irg9E HTH :o)

[@sharonagoren6751]

I would be interested to hear about vegetable gardens on clay soil with boggy conditions as in my town these are often the conditions. Our very wet winter and spring seasons destroy the soil structure and cause the garden to require too many inputs of organic materials such as compost and manure, much more than most of us can produce on our property. BTW I tried the instant vegetable garden setup that you explained in your Q&A from quarantine series and it was phenomenal!

[@suryavana_India]

Hi Geoff been a fan of your teaching. Can you share some more videos on managing flooding and how to balance water harvesting and avoiding flooding

[@randomfaz3867]

In adelaide... it seems every backyard is a sea of kikuyu grass. How do we start garden beds with all that very invasive grass? Is it ok to use kikuyu as a living mulch around fruit trees?

[@VK-qo1gm]

random, same here in NSW, nightmare grass

[@8rotherJun]

I hopping to see more cold climate designs. Southern Ontario.

[@hieunguyen-jy4vp]

Hello Geoff. Awesome videos. Please suggest a few starting points in terms of designing food forest garden on slope. Thank you.

[@nancywebb6549]

I have a rain barrel that has no lid. The tree frogs lay eggs and I don’t have a problem with mosquitoes. I also spray BT around.

[@Rossi25]

Long live geoff

[@dantoppa1265]

In a semi desert climate,other than pigeon peas and lucena, what quick growing shrubs or small ground covers that are hardy can be used to build soil fertility for the urban food garden as biomass is a premium as is water

[@delilajahn-thue3751]

Hey, thanks so much for the contour explanation. I think I'm starting to understand how I can apply this in a very dry garden/food forest I'm developing. We have a terrible quack grass issue there I have battled for years. We are also growing in 3b zone so the time to grow is very short. I see your work in lots of tropical areas. Angry thoughts on quack grass control? I mulch a lot but this stuff is relentless and the soil is sandy.

[@aaronmoravek]

I feel like western Kansas, USA is ideal for these techniques. I also think a lot of damage has been done to the world's largest aquifer below us. We need to limit the killing of beavers

[@joeb8167]

Great episode 1 Geoff! Question/problem- my small suburban lot is flat, but its below a 10 foot alley way, while also being at a low point of the surrounding neighborhood- what can be done to deal with heavy rains which flood my yard and veg garden? Heavy clay soil!

[@wallaceanature2788]

Interested in knowing more about applications of humanure in food gardening, and other ways to exploit benefits of brown gold from composting toilets.

[@tcotroneo]

I just build a greenhouse with a thick rhizome barrier to prevent bamboo from growing in my greenhouse. The rhizome barrier is now acting as a water catch system and flooding that side of the greenhouse. I was going to install a catch basin at low corner to drain water, but thought maybe a swale system is a better option

[@freejamm1954]

Would the presence of livestock such as cattle, or even smaller farm animals such as goats or ducks, be potentially harmful to a new food forest system? I imagine the newly planted trees, bushes etc would be highly appealling to a number of animals. What measures would you recommend taking to protect a young system?

[@TheVigilantStewards]

I'm curious about that also... I've seen him fence off new areas as he has a foresting tractor system in the past at Zaytuna for demonstration. I left a comment about annual gardens, would love an upvote to get in the next episode!

[@ronendvir]

My question is what is the best way to irrigate a food garden in mediterranean area. Drip conserves more water but keeps the soil food web alive in much smaller areas. sprinkler will wet more area but may wet the tree trunks causing fungal problems. Another question is about adding compost to the garden. when it is best time to add and how should it be added (over the the thick mulch and between dripping line). If we create perfect habitat for bacteria and fungal growth in soil, why should we have to add compost. It may disrupt the harmony that was created and maintained earlier?

[@anandwwjd]

An urban house garden with no access to clean manure. Is there a way to make a quick compost with just green leaves and dry leaves? Kitchen wastes tend to attract flies. Is there an alternate additive to the compost pile that can quicken the composting and how frequently should the pile be turned?

[@michaelg8642]

breed BT bacteria by getting some of those mosquito dunks and brew in a compost tea sort of system with cut up potatoes in a sack, the starch in the potatoes feeds the bacteria. Use microscope to verify results. You could brew it in huge vats and spray your whole property with a tractor sprayer even.

[@wa2930]

Thanks for sharing. We have small ponds that freeze solid in the winter in Northern MN. Will fish still come back year to year? Will the ponds need to be stocked annually?

[@dieuhoquang1]

Your video is very interesting! Thank you. Is there a simple way to do biogas successfully without leakage issue?

[@d.s.douglas1281]

💜♾ThankYou 🌟ThankYou 🌟ThankYou ♾💜

[@tomatao.]

When's the next cohort for PDC 2.0? So keen!

[@electroteque]

Thanks this was helpful. I have 3 large pots as frog ponds south facing for summer evaporative cooling. And was worried it was these causing the mozzie problem. It seems it was an unused birth bath. Have to try and find more. There is tadpoles in all of the ponds. Might be too small for fish ? the pots are 1.2m x 60cm

[@afifsyifaulhayat6965]

Hi Geoff my name is afif from Indonesia thanks for your sharing, i wanna ask a question, is there any place/ landscape criteria for making a pond?

[@efrem_1167]

Natural dam

[@kaxiaz]

What is the importance and how do you do crop rotation and succession on your zone 1?

[@suburbanfarmer2024]

Hey Geoff how would you go about designing a very small partly shaded back yard it’s about 32ft long by 62tf wide. What would you put in first?

[@veganchiefwarrior6444]

mosquitoz ticks leaches n fleas.. the bane of living in a natural system, im about fed up with ticks man, where theres animals theres ticks, kinda part of the reason we live like we do these days so disconnected from the natural world, we wanted that.. but we must understand how to be balanced and be part of nature to protect it

[@skyboydan]

Hi Geoff, we live in a dense, indigenous forest in a moist, oceanic temperate climate in South Africa. I would like to know to what extent do we clear a portion of the land to make space for a permaculture food garden? Would you remove trees and their roots (essentially tilling the area) or would you just chop and drop everything above ground and leave all roots in the ground and then just plant into that? I am aware that we live in a beautiful and thriving forest ecosystem so I want to have as little impact on the land as possible while trying to make it more productive for our needs, so any advice on this would be great. Thank you as always for your amazing videos.

[@gm2407]

Hi Geoff, you had a burst damn earlier in the year, did it take much work to fix it? Was there much errosion due to the damn bursting?

[@leannebuchan924]

In a yard with already established non-food trees how would you suggest to start to incorporate food trees and plants? I'm in SE QLD with a very flat yard.

[@hflm]

Hi Geoff, got a question for you: in one of your videos you mention citrus peel ash can make good potassium fertilizer. If we want to apply that through a foliar spray, what racio should be used? Thanks in advance

[@timmycline8087]

Sorry I am late lol, how do you suggest doing food forest and swales on steep country? I live in the Appalachian Mountain Range and we have no low level slopes on our property.

[@fairyfarm238]

Question: designing swales for my sloping property is just what I need! How to make the high part of our property retaining some water in dry summer season? Where should I go from here?

[@aussiegardener5703]

how many cattle can you graze effectively per acre whilst rotating fields and what would be the minimum amount of pastures for them to graze at any time to effectively manage the land and keep them well fed without bringing in feed? is it simple like one cow per acre or can you have more if you rotate them more frequently? thanks Geoff! rudi.

[@agn855]

Check out Gabe Brown's keynote about healthy soil on YT, he's answering your question too, as life stock is part of the regenerative farming concept. HTH

[@mikepowell8611]

Look Up Greg Judy. He does rotational grazing. He will put like, 300 head on 3-8 acres or so and let them stay a day maybe only 8 hours. He uses portable electric fencing to create moving paddocks. That way he can rest the land for as much as 3-4 months before the cattle are back. Don't let them eat all the grass once its down to 6-8 inches get them out of there and give the grass a break. The whole idea is to reduce inputs to near zero.

[@annburge291]

Can you give us a description when to use totally on contour swales ( Bill Mollison permaculture) and slightly off grade swales going from valley to neighbouring peak and zig zagging back to the original valley with roads and paths on ridges ( key line design). Is it to do with the soil, rock situation, the amount of rain in an event, trying to avoid side collapse/mudslides, the steepness of the terrain... how does one decide to go on contour or at 2 degrees contour?

[@dukereg]

How do you identify and source the plants that will be most effective for your purposes?

[@annburge291]

Growing vegetables in the desert.. .under shade cloth green leafy vegetables tend to be bug eaten because it is a cooler place to be. Using Mezquites as semishade, nitrogen fixers in the vegetable area seems to be working but a real pest when the bean pods fall and I prickle myself with the branches. Any suggestions? I find growing in tree wells on the sunny side more effective than raised beds.

[@shanekonarson]

Native Micro bats are excellent.

[@suburbanfarmer2024]

Hey Geoff in your opinion is it a bad idea to grow blueberry bushes in a slightly shaded area next to a hugel mound? Would they be better off on my south facing side or next to a hugel; which one would have more benefit? I live in temperate zone nc hot summers, wet cold winters.

[@platypus6523]

Wow I would love to be one of your fish!

[@HomesteadForALiving]

How would you prevent vegetable seeds from cross pollinating in a diverse garden?

[@andrewkeane4310]

When starting a permaculture garden, if you use the instant beds you have shown, do you repeat the process once the first lot of vegetables are finished? Do you do the whole bed again? How many times do you repeat?

[@gavinmatthews5618]

Endemic soil building plants or introduced, what species to start with ?