Week 1

Permaculture. Hope for the future. A light in a dark world. For many years I have been seeking solutions, methods, techniques for repairing a world that is being increasingly stressed by our demands. In permaculture I have found a vision that encapsulates what I have been seeking. Focus for a plan of action that has the potential to not only avoid global catastrophe, but to transform the energy of destruction to rebirth and growth.

Sounds like a dream, yet as I sit here typing at Zaytuna farm where the Permacuture Research Institute of Australia is located, I can see the dream in action.

For the next 10 weeks, I have committed myself to a focused permaculture experience. Transformation of site infrastructure here is rapid. Solar panel installation, raised beds, swales, chicken tractors, cell grazing of cattle and horses, composting, food forests, off-site consulting-lots going on.

I will try to keep you posted weekly. Internet access is difficult at times, schedule is tight, but hopefully I can convey some of the hands-on experience I am receiving as an intern at the institute.

Week 1 -Animal systems

This is our classroom "the hex" outside and in.

Chickens, geese, ducks, beef and dairy cows, goats, sheep- more critters than I was anticipating. Mornings this week were spent mostly in lecture format. The classroom we call the hex is a

hexagonal strawbale building.

Besides lectures, two primary activities we got involved with were building a chicken tractor coined "the egg mobile" and cell grazing.

The chicken tractor is designed to be a mobile grazing station. In this case we have 27 chickens (25 hens) that are in a modified trailer. The following pictures show various stages of our creation. The chicken tractor is moved from cell to cell behind the cows pasture. In this way the chickens can "clean up" and spread out the cow manure as well as get other insects and greens.