What is the Timeline of Water Elements Installed on Zaytuna Farm?

Geoff's Online Permaculture Design Course offers students weekly question-and-answer sessions where Geoff addresses various questions via video. This particular question was selected from the 2021 collection. For additional permaculture knowledge, be sure to explore Geoff's free Masterclass at www.discoverpermaculture.com.
Question
Were all the water elements installed on Zaytuna Farm built at the same time? Would you walk us through the timeline and thought process which was applied?
Key Takeaways
- The water elements at Zaytuna have been installed over time, a sequence of events done with courses rather than all at once.
- We started with a house site near a dam, with the two positions picked together.
- Then, we went straight to the top of the hill and picked a spot that had high water capacity for gravity irrigation. The high dam had a swale that lead to two more dams at the same contour level.
- Later, we found the lowest point on the highest boundary and put a dam in. It has the largest input gully, and it’s in the mid-slopes. We used the contour line from there to feed more dams.
- The dam near the house eventually led around the campsite and to two more dams.
- Feature by feature we installed, sometimes finding a good site for a swale that led to a future dam, and sometimes with a dam site that had a swale spillway that led to more dams.
- We don’t take down a forest to put in swales.
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About Geoff:
Geoff is a world-renowned permaculture consultant, designer, and teacher that has established demonstration sites that function as education centers in all the world's major climates. Geoff has dedicated his life to spreading permaculture design across the globe and inspiring people to take care of the earth, each other, and to return the surplus.
About Permaculture:
Permaculture integrates land, resources, people, and the environment through mutually beneficial synergies - imitating the no waste, closed-loop systems seen in diverse natural systems. Permaculture applies holistic solutions that are applicable in rural and urban contexts and at any scale. It is a multidisciplinary toolbox including agriculture, water harvesting and hydrology, energy, natural building, forestry, waste management, animal systems, aquaculture, appropriate technology, economics, and community development.
#permaculture #waterharvesting #havestwater

[@TheWeedyGarden]

Geoff is one of the few people that just talk and talk…buuut…you just want to keep listening. 💜 I remember doing a video with Geoff. It was sooo hard to edit because he didn’t pause for five minutes but I only need two 🎥😅 Buuut…that’s why he is such a good teacher. 💪🏻👍Thank you GL for all that I’ve learnt from you!

[@frankbrake7689]

You sir are one of the greatest teachers on this planet.

[@philip8742]

The teacher with the most valuable knowledge and experience!

[@Conus426]

Discovering Permaculture Principles was the greatest thing that happened to me, even in a small yard i managed to work in systems that provide good harvests. Bless you sir!

[@sharonhenry4685]

Hi Geoff, I have been watching your your videos for years and have learnt so much. I would love to see a diagram of all the water systems on Zaytuna

[@atruefreethinker1944]

so inspired by your work Geoff.

[@chijiokekingsley3189]

Thank you for your passion for humanity. Your teaching is comprehensible and rich. I'm thinking of being your disciple in permaculture farming❤

[@richermorin]

thank you for the precisions

[@basilsmith62]

+, благодарю! Немного не хватает анимации на карте, для лучшего понимания:)

[@АбрамовВалерий-л1ь]

Спасибо большое за перевод

[@jasonkennedy1670]

Top shelf permaculture

[@allanparker20]

Thanks Geoff

[@mojavebohemian814]

Thank you

[@CarlosGutierrez-xs4pe]

I have a farm in Colombia with 900 Tahiti lime trees on clay soil planted 6x6 meters in triangle. 5 years ago I am considering building alternating 12 meter swales with a 6 meter space Down the slope every 30 meters Since the trees are now almost touching some pruning will be necessary What do you think of this?

[@Oiltosoil]

Will you all be offering an online PDC this year?

[@barnabyvonrudal1]

Do the swale berms ever need re-topping? I mean if the top part of the mound erodes away for whatever reason so you need to add more dirt to maintain a level berm height

[@robroy8485]

Geoff do you get frost in your area? Does anyone know please ?

[@tiffanywilkerson5569]

Thanks Geoff... how do you not have mosquitoes everywhere with that standing water?

[@potatopertato]

My guess is that there's probably some living aquanic creature in there (maybe guppies or something) that eat the mosquito larvae

[@barnabyvonrudal1]

Normally the water should soak in after a while, unless the soils so wet that it sits. Off the top of my head.

[@NezumiWorks]

He explained in an earlier video (I forget which one) that there are small fish in a lot of the dams, which in the wetter parts of the year actually manage to travel through the swales. Fish love mosquito larvae, as do other predators like dragonfly larvae (which will eat just about anything), taking care of the bulk of the problem.

[@aldas3831]

Also bats will decimate mosquitoes.

[@tiffanywilkerson5569]

@@NezumiWorks thanks!

[@richermorin]

hi im wondering when you do permaculture how do you make sure that the food has no bacterias like salmona or e. coli etc...