Designing 5 Acres for Abundance.

Permaculture April 2013

Designer

From a 5 Acre cow paddock to a lush Paradise The low-down on what it costs to build a 5 acre Permaculture Paradise and do it on a tight budget!

www.Geofflawton.com

Permaculture Masterclass

Creating a Permaculture Paradise So you bought yourself a 5 acre property and want to transform it into something magical that you and your family can enjoy, but don’t know where to start? This Case-Study might help.

In 1992, Permaculture designer Geoff Lawton down-

scaled from a 30 acre property to a 5 acre block of land in the rural town of Cooroy in Queensland, Australia. He was in the same circumstances you might find yourself with an ordinary gentle sloping block of land, partly cleared with a grazing paddock. The rest of it was dense regrowth forest, about 20 years old. Starting from Scratch Now, its important to understand that Geoff wanted an ideal block of land suitable to apply his permaculture principals. He knew what he was looking for. To the uneducated eye, it looked like an average bit of land.

Where do you start if your land looks like this? Scary eh? Watch the Movie about this story at Geofflawton.com

But Geoff had found something he could work with and build to create a sustainable paradise because he knew this land held an amazing potential. Something many people wouldn’t notice at first glance when walking over their new purchase. The Right Features for Permaculture Geoff walked over the whole property before he bought it an took note of the slope. The direction it faced to the sun. Any gullies, valleys and water flows that could be captured and used to make this land productive. The first thing he noticed was Access. There was a good road right next to his land and the gentle slope meant he could capture water run-off and direct it, if he wished into his future ponds and swale systems. But the jackpot was a tiny insignificant seasonal dry

Geoff Lawton in 1992 standing at the highest point of his 5 acre land measuring the contour with a sight level.

the property with a potential of another 40 acres of catchment rainfall. Geoff immediately decided to survey his land starting at the very top (picture above) to determine where the contour of his propcreek that ran down the middle part of his land. What a bonus it was to have on your land. Most people would ignore this minor insignificant detail, but Geoff knew it couold became the center piece of his dream. Geoff noticed that the farm above him had a house on the hill and cleared land around it. He calculated that there was about a 200 acre catchment above him. It could be directed in a subtle way to replenish his land should he ever need that water resource. There was another dry gully on the other side of

Geoff Lawton’s original plan for his 5 acre property

This road offers a huge potential to capture water and direct it right to where it’s needed- to your land and food forest!

right hand side of his farm. They were smaller than the larger dam (above) and cheaper to construct around $3,500 for both. These two smaller ponds would play a major role later, when he built his home on the property.

erty was. A sight level allowed him to map his property and then the seeds of his plan began to take form. He didn’t impose a preconceived plan onto his property. He let the property dictate which way his design should go. By understanding the slope and valleys of the land, Geoff was able to build his dream design in stages. Stage One of the Design If you are on a tight budget, be aware of building long roads as access to your land can be very expensive. Geoff built a small tin shed and lived in it for a while knowing where his future road access would go in his next stage of the development. Excavation of the Dams Geoff decided to build his major dam first. Having access to a large expanse of water would mean all his smaller satellite ponds could be interconnected to work as one system, channeling water, feeding his swale network and growing his fruit trees. A standard Olympic sized swimming pool is about 2.5 Megalitres of water. Geoff ’s big pond would be twice that in size. Earthworks costs can vary where you live but it cost him $6,500 to hire a driver and excavator to construct the amin dam.

From there, he was able to further determine the next catchment area on the other 40 acre dry gully and build two fishpond dams running down the

Gravity Water Geoff still needed gravity water and decided to build a smaller pond at the top of his farm. This pond would help irrigate his plans for a network of swales that he could grow fruit trees later on. But he needed a simple and effective way to add nutrient to the water to drip feed his plants. He eventually fenced off this top pond and put ducks into it to add nutrient to the system which trickled down and fed his forest. He also had a harvest of duck meat whenever he needed it. Permaculture is about minimal effort for maximum return. It’s designed to work for the lazy gardener or for the fanatic who wants a more productive bounty. It can adjust itself to your method of working the land

Access is a major expense if you don’t plan correctly.

Geoff Lawton on this farm making compost in 1992

This small Top Pond will irrigate a food forest below it (see map)

The largest pond on the farm being excavated

Smaller inexpensive swales will grow all the fruit trees

but you first need to get the mainframe design right. Geoff ’s idea of using ducks for nutrient worked quite well. Then it rained. He noticed the area below where he lived in the shed, was getting moist as water appeared in spring lines below his shed. What should he do? Too much water? It was time to build another pond. Nature was giving him a bounty and he needed to take advantage of it. He knew bananas loved lots of water. So he built one banana circle to soak the excess water, then another and then another as the water kept appearing before he eased it off his land and sent it on it’s merry journey down the hill to his neighbours to enjoy. This way, he was working with nature and using the bananas as a sponge to grow more food than he needed. He figured he could sell the surplus or build another pond. Thats exactly what he did next near his shed.

This goes the same for Permaculture teachers. Seek only the best.

few months and eating only the vegetables and duck meat and eggs he produced. .

Biodiversity One of the side benefits of this system is the return of rare and endangered animals suddenly appearing on Geoff ’s property as the system matured and became more stable. Ducks, insects, frogs, marsupials and exotic bird-life began to appear. Geoff counted over 85 species of rare birds appearing on his farm. It’s an indicator he says, that you are doing something right.

It gave him an immense self confidence, to realize that it is possible to live abundantly if you approach designing your home and garden, the right way. This knowledge gave him the confidence to teach others what he had now learnt.

You can survive and swim in your own pool, eat your own food and live comfortably in natural system knowing that your own needs and those of your family can be met. Permaculture Survival Geoff Lawton tells the story of living on this farm for a Watch the 22 minute online movie about how Geoff Lawton created his dream in the link below. Watch the Movie about this story at Geofflawton.com

A long thin pond was built next that could be developed into a chinampa system to grow fish with all that excess water. Suddenly the options available to you are greater, to do new things like an innovative aquaculture system that were not there before. The creative choices become greater as the biodiversity increases. Geoff was able to build his main house and two new ponds that were connected to a canal system that he devised to channel the water anyway he wanted through a sluice gate system. Water could be flooded to grow rice or sent down a long thin channel that supported a line of fruit trees. The creative possibilities became endless. Construction Costs The earthworks over the years on this 5 acre property designed by Geoff Lawton amounted to just on $17,000 in the mid 1990’s. He later built a house on the site for $30,000. In today’s dollars the excavation costs would probably be up to extra 50% on top of the figures quoted. Designing on your own land Seek a quote from your local earth moving contractor before attempting any construction work.

Geoff ’s smaller dam fills with rain water quickly. It will take time for the mud to settle and the system to mature.

This main dam is the major expense at $6,500 to construct, but will store over 5 Mega litres of water. (Over 1 millions gallons)

Many excavation drivers are familiar with dam building and permaculture techniques. For added security, you should not attempt earthmoving yourself unless you know exactly what you are doing. Secure the services of a qualified Permaculture designer who is experienced in project management or consider doing a Permaculture Design Course yourself. Budget at least two weeks to enroll in the course and at least $2,000 to $6,000 in studying the entire system of design. Make sure the instructors are familiar in earthworks and if possible ask to see examples of their completed projects before employing them.

Pomelo

Water Flow This property was designed along three basic principals. Water, Access and Structure.

was directed to flow towards a food forest swale system either towards or away from the dam adjacent to his house.

The water was captured from rainfall that fell outside the property boundaries. By strategically finding land that could take advantage of water runoff, Geoff managed to enjoy a catchment larger than his small 5 acre farm allowed. Utilizing existing features such as a couple of dry creek-beds that occasionally flowed allowed him to implement ponds that captured and stored water for later more permanent use.

All water eventually leaves the property. A spillway must be included on every dam or pond in times of flood and deluge. How you choose to assemble these techniques are based on your land profile and the way it offers you room for innovation.

Directing the water into purpose built structures such as small ponds or dams and implementing other supports structures such as a network of swales, canals and food forest systems allowed Geoff to passively direct the water where he wanted it to go. The water would slowly soak into the swales like a sponge and stay moist in times of dry harsh weather. Additional features such as a sluice gate also enabled directing the water to feed supplementary swales in more difficult areas as needed. One additional technique Geoff used was to build an earth mound at one side of his roadway. Excess water

Disclaimer: There are substantial risks involved when landscape excavation and water flows are involved. While the information in this article are presented in good faith, with the intention of raising awareness of the land and it’s rehydration process, the contents do not take into account all the social, environmental and regulatory factors which need to be considered before putting that information into practice. No person should rely on anything contained within this pdf or associated video as a substitute for specific professional advice.

Bamboo

Green Tree Frog

FOR SALE

As of April 2013 this Geoff Lawton designed property was listed for sale at $400,000. If you’re interested, contact the Real Estate agent in Australia: +61 1300 852 829

Pond near Main House

Rainbow Lorikeet

Row Boat on Main Pond

Water Lilies Pond “Human beings are the only animals who have to work, and I think that is the most ridiculous thing in the world. Other animals make their livings by living, but people work like crazy, thinking that they have to in order to stay alive. The bigger the job, the greater the challenge, the more wonderful they think it is. It would be good to give up that way of thinking and live an easy, comfortable life with plenty of free time. I think that the way animals live in the tropics, stepping outside in the morning and evening to see if there is something to eat, and taking a long nap in the afternoon, must be a wonderful life. For human beings, a life of such simplicity would be possible if one worked to produce directly his daily necessities. In such a life, work is not work as people generally think of it, but simply doing what needs to be done.” - Masanobu Fukuoka

Main House

Canal System

Variety of Ducks

Main Pond

Bananas

Mangoes

Pond and Canal

www.Geofflawton.com