+ All Categories
Home > Education > Homestead goals

Homestead goals

Date post: 13-Apr-2017
Category:
Upload: choppergirly
View: 210 times
Download: 0 times
Share this document with a friend
8
BECKY BUJAKI WEEK 1: HOMESTEAD GOALS ARTICULATION
Transcript
Page 1: Homestead goals

B E C KY B U JA K I

WEEK 1: HOMESTEAD GOALS ARTICULATION

Page 2: Homestead goals

HOMESTEAD ELEMENTS BRAINSTORM

• Although my front yard is small, I hope to capture as many elements as I can into the usable space and make use of all areas in front of my house. My initial brainstorm brought many different ideas.

Page 3: Homestead goals

PATTERNS FOR CATEGORIES• I ended up with four main categories• Permanent/Long-Lasting Food Food Sources: These included nut

trees, fruit trees, perennial vegetables and fruits, and a small vineyard.

Page 4: Homestead goals

PATTERNS FOR CATEGORIES CONTINUED

• Non-Permanent Food Sources: This category included an herb spiral garden, flowers and annual vegetables.

• Infrastructure/Buildings: Included in this list was a compost bin, rain barrel, sitting viewing area, storage shed and fencing from sidewalk/road.

• Animals: In this last category was a bee hive, worm bin and bird house/feeders.

• While re-arranging some elements, I discovered some could fit into different categories, such as the herb spiral garden could have been included in infrastructure and the bird house could also have been in infrastructure/buildings. I could have also used categories that focused on usage amount, size, or degree of difficulty to setup, plant or build.

Page 5: Homestead goals

TRANSLATING CATEGORIES INTO GOALS

• My ultimate goal is to retire in a few years and be able to spend my time at home receiving output of food from my yard instead of the grocery store. I want to be able to supplement my retirement income by being able to feed myself from many vegetables and fruits grown on my homestead, and sharing or selling my abundance with my local community. The categories focused on food categories, whether annual and perennial and also focused on structures that will support plant growth such as the compost pile for the soil and the rain barrel to provide watering needs. In my retirement years, I want to be able to truly enjoy my homestead and the sitting/viewing area will give me a place to relax and observe my environment which makes me happy and content.

Example of sitting area in view of front yard garden. From https://druidgarden.wordpress.com/tag/permaculture-2/

Page 6: Homestead goals

PERMACULTURE PRINCIPLE: GET A YIELD

• The permaculture principle that relates to my goals the most is to “Get a yield.” Bane1 (2012) mentions that our efforts should bear fruit that provides for our needs. Everything that I incorporate should be able to relate back to my goal of reducing food purchases from the grocery store. My trees will provide edible fruits and nuts, but will also provide shade and windbreaks. My spiral herb garden and vegetables will be planted to provide nourishment throughout the whole growing season. Additionally, the worm bin, rain barrel and compost bin will be sources of fertility. Bee hives will not only provide the precious gift of pollination for my plants, but also honey for the home. The vineyard can be used for making jams, drinks or fresh fruit. The fencing protects my yield from unwanted animals, pests and can also provide support posts for growing plants.

• Bane2 (2012) also mentions that when energy cycles or transforms, that we should look out for another yield when another resource is created. As my trees grow old or if they die away for some reason, I am still able to use the dried wood for cooking or even building new buildings and structures. As my annual plants die, I can recycle them in my compost bin or let them feed the soil as their nutrients pass and they breakdown. In a mature garden, I would like to observe and see what “new” places and environments have developed, such as a shady area to grow mushrooms. As trees drop their leaves, they nourish the soil and the underlying area may be a promising place to plant something that will benefit from the nutrients in the soil.

• 1P. Bane, 2012. The permaculture handbook: Garden farming for town and country.• 2Ibid.

Page 7: Homestead goals

“OUT OF PLACE” ELEMENTS:THE BIRDS AND THE BEES!

• I chose to incorporate a bird house or feeder, to bring nature into my garden. Although there are some benefits from birds such as natural pest and insect control as well as the beauty of their songs3, birds might also eat my vegetables, fruits, and seeds that I newly planted. I would have to see if the benefits outweigh the costs in order to decide whether or not I would like to incorporate this feature.

• Another element that might not work in my front yard garden is the bee hive. Although it will help with pollination and provide me with honey, the proximity to the public sidewalks and road could be harmful to the neighbors and people walking by. I would either have to tactically place it far from the sidewalk, or choose to omit it from my garden plan.

• 3http://www.motherearthnews.com/nature-and-environment/make-your-garden-a-bird-habitat.aspx

http://mariehulett.blogspot.com/2014/03/build-better-bird-house.htmlhttp://www.greatnorthernprepper.com/wintering-bees-in-alaska/

Page 8: Homestead goals

GOALS ARTICULATION STATEMENT• I will have a homestead that provides me with a peaceful

setting where I can enjoy the tranquility of nature’s drumbeat as well as providing me a source of food nourishment and abundance. My homestead will provide enough food resources to reduce my grocery store food consumption by at least 25% and I will preserve overabundance by canning, freezing, drying and other methods of putting food by so that I can enjoy food grown on my homestead year-round.

http://ext100.wsu.edu/clark/healthwellness/foodpreservation/learn-food-preservation/ https://porchsidegardening.wordpress.com/

page/12/


Recommended