Land, plant and animal system management

 

Important ideas and topics for living a resilient life in times of change and crisis

 

Using nature as a model, coupled with human pattern recognition and forethought to create and nudge interconnected systems toward improved output, lower input.

We are aiming for a low impact, more sustainable way of living and being that draws inspiration from permaculture principals.

Sustainable firewood

Sustainable firewood

A lot of activities get labelled as 'sustainable' these days, despite having a hidden subsidy of non-renewable resources or energy. The only truly sustainable energy source is the sun and the various manifestations of that energy such as biomass, wind etc. The rate and method (technology) used to harness or extract that energy determines it's long term sustainability. Wind turbines constructed from huge volumes of concrete, steel and carbon fibre are not sustainable while harvesting a tree with a stone axe is sustainable if practised at a rate that permits regrow under local ecological conditions.

Note: I used a pseudo sustainable electric chainsaw rather than a stone axe to dissect this manuka tree. It will be replaced by a five finger (Pseudopanax arboreus), already growing up out of the decaying stump.
August 19, 2018
Portable Electric Chainsaw

Portable Electric Chainsaw

Configuring an electric chainsaw for mobile firewood collection.

Electric chainsaws are light, with no fumes, less noise and fewer complex parts to cause issues.

The problem is they require a fair amount of power, thus limiting their portability.

Check out how to set up a useful system for mobile sawing...
April 27, 2010

Only so many hours in the day

A recent trip to Christchurch took me past Southern Woods tree nursery so I had to buy something. Today I planted out the 5 blueberries (3 varieties) and picked out locations for the 2 fejoa bushes.

The tree felling neighbour offered me the slash and pine cones from recent trees he chopped down so we ended up with 2 trailer loads of pine for winter. And it only travelled a couple of hundred meters.

Pruned one of the olive trees, more for cosmetic reason than to improve the yield.

Melisa put a lot of time into the latest chicken run and got it to a point where we could add the chooks.

Put some silicone sealant on a leaking joint in the solar water heater (so much for zero maintenance)
March 12, 2010