MLT Newsletter
October 1988
Autumn Greetings-and with them, our annual membership renewal notice and call for the annual meeting.
The Board of Directors would like to have your continued support-both
through renewal of your membership, and hopefully by your attendance at
the Annual Meeting-which will be held Sunday. November 13th at 3:00 PM
in the Glen Vista Room of the Kalamazoo Nature Center
In line with our goal to broaden community awareness of permaculture
systems and their cultivation, we are fortunate to have as our speaker
Ken Asmus, a local landscape architect, who will discuss "New Tree
Cropping Varieties for Permaculture Systems."
After his presentation and questions from the audience, we will conduct
our annual business meeting - which includes selecting Trustees
(regular members) for our various committees.
At the conclusion of the business meeting, we will have refreshments, including cider, chips, and cheese.
Ken Dahlberg,
Chairman of the Board
SUSTAINABLILITY IS "IN"
Ken Dahlberg
Sally asked me to report on two meetings that I've attended the past
few months. The first was "The Changing Atmosphere" which was held in
Toronto and was sponsored by the Canadian Government. After their
success in hosting the meeting at Montreal which resulted in the
signing of the agreement among the major industrial countries to reduce
Chloroflorocarbons, they have evidently decided to take the lead on
encouraging the world to address the whole range of climate issues.
This conference brought together experts on the "greenhouse effect,"
acid rain, and ozone depletion. Also included were various analysts,
agency bureaucrats, and politicians - as well as a good sized
contingent of Third World academics. The plenary sessions were designed
to give an overview of what is known about existing and potential
climate changes. Prime Minister Mulroney opened the conference along
with the Prime Minister of Norway, Mrs. Bruntland, who recently chaired
the U.N. Commission on Environment and Development - which resulted in
the well-known report (outside of the U.S. that is), Our Common Future.
The report calls for "sustainable development" - a theme stressed by
both Prime Ministers even if they any others don't really know what it
means. As far as I can determine, it translates as "development with
greater concern for environmental impacts, both short- and long-term".
This certainly is an advance over previous approaches, but is a long
way from the sort of re-thinking of development that is really
required. The conference also had a series of working groups which
sought to assess the potential impacts of climate changes in such
diverse areas as energy, food security, urbanization, water resources,
land resources, coastal and marine resources, industry and trade, and
decision making. Non-climatologists were involved - a useful first step
towards the sort of regional and local impact studies that are needed.
I served on the food security working group and we had a number of
debates revolving around the issue of how to increase production
without expanding into even more marginal lands. There is still little
awareness of "sustainable agriculture" among upper level officials and
most academics. Also, there is little awareness of the need for various
reforms, whether land reform or otherwise. Particularly worrisome in
this regard is the potential push the need to reduce carbon dioxide
emmissions gives to the nuclear industry (the conference called for a
20% reduction by the year 2005!). Unless we all push for conservation
and the sorts of "soft energy paths" that Amory and Hunter Lovins call
for, we risk a revival of nuclear power.
The meeting was very sobering. The magnitude of disruption which is
suggested by the different climate change scenarios is frightening -
probably enough to at least get the attention of politicians. The
problem is that the real answers - those being discussed by groups and
movements like ours - permaculture, sustainable agriculture, soft
energy paths, green politics, etc. have not "bubbled up" to where
members of the establishment (whether political, corporate, or
academic) are aware enough of them to take them as serious
options. These sorts of stresses and issues give alternative groups a
number of opportunities, but opportunities that will also require us to
reach out in new ways.
The second conference I went to was one on "Sustainable Agricultural
Systems," which was held at Ohio State University. As I read the
conference, which was made up primarily of the natural science side of
the Land Grant system, the main purpose was to try to legitimize the
work being done in this area. The hope appears to be to expand the new,
but rather minimal USDA program entitled "Low Imput, Sustainable
Agriculture." While there were a number of interesting papers given,
the focus was almost exclusively upon farm level issues, with a couple
of token talks on food safety issues and social concerns. It was
interesting to leam that most observers felt that the real drive
towards "Sustainable agriculture" would come from regulatory pressures
to prevent additional water pollution - whether surface of groundwater
- rather than from economic pressures. As with "Sustainable
development," "Sustainable agriculture" is a sort of umbrella. Some at
the conference stressed the "Sustainable" side - that is, the various
environmental concerns. Others stressed the "agriculture" side - that
is, an emphasis still on profitable production, albeit perhaps through
new approaches. A number of us tried to stress the need to go beyond
conventional economics in measuring "profits or losses." Also, in my
poster session, I suggested the need to place Sustainable agriculture
in the larger context of global climate change issues, resource limits,
and the need to move towards a regenerataive food system. The idea
behind the latter is to move away from strictly farm level production
issues to the whole food chain, including community and household
systems, not to mention waste and recycling concerns at each stage.
Again, there are a number of opportunities presented here, but the risk
is that this kind of program will be either co-opted or transmuted
along the line. This point was made by several "integrated pest
management" advocates, who pointed out that this very effective system
has never been strongly pursued and that in practice it often ends up
being more a program of "integrated pesticide management."
LAND TRUST FARM POND
-Jonathan Towne
This writing presents a rationale for the expenditure of
$1200 to bulldoze a runoff pond. The decision came very
quickly after some tedious digging with Maynard's tractor, but is a
result of design work done at the 1985 Permaculture Design
Course held here. This paper is also the result of the
tension between my inner need to "get the job
done" along with limits placed by the weather, and the
organizational need to document and justify all actions.
Managing Water
Land is valued agriculturally in the water it
holds. There are two approaches to managing water: drain
it, or store it. The drain it philosophy uses ditches and
tiles to facilitate the movement of excess water off the land
and into streams, lakes and ultimately the oceans. This is a
linear approach and sees this water as a waste product. There are
dangerous external costs to this approach. Ground water is
not replenished, especially if it is used for
irrigation. Surface water quality is reduced because that
runoff contains silts and chemicals. Wetlands may be drained in
the process.
The circular store it philosophy uses this excess water as a
resource for additional production. The soil is used as
the most important water storage medium through contour or keyline
tillage. Runoff is channelel into ponds and
dams, to be returned later as irrigation water. In the
meantime the water can be used for aquaculture and ecosystem diversity
along with trapping silts before they reach surface waters.
MLT has already contributed $1350 to a drainage project forced onto it
by the drain commissioner. This coincidentally is about the cost
of this pond.
Water management is critical at the LTF especially at this zone II
location with its waterlogged soils. It is critical to
develop this zone II location for additional vegetables and
intensive perennials, since there is a shortage of such land because of
the corner location of the farmstead. About
an acre of land will be so affected. In addition, the acre
of woods immediately to the west that formerly was inundated part of
the year, will grow much better with a less waterlogged soil.
Aquaculture and Ecosystem Diversity
In a developed aquaculture at the LTF, this pond is highest
on the landscape and consequently the most useful. It is
small in area but deep, so it "would function in wintering over
fish for restocking the shallower ponds lower on the
landscape. At this point it will likely be stocked with bluegills
and bass, a stable combination.
Having water permanently on the landscape is vital for
the farm ecosystem stability and diversity, a value of high
priority. Aquatic mosquito predators should cut down mosquitoes
dramatically. Beneficial insects, birds, amphibians,
and mammals would benefit, especially the predators, which
cannot get enough water in their diet as many herbivores
can. It will create habitat for new aquatic species of plants and
animals never before present.
Conclusion
Our climate may be becoming hotter and dryer. Water will
become much more critical and efforts to keep it on the landscape must
be a major priority. Water is a priority in Permaculture and
this pond is in accordance with its principles.
This is obviously not a standard cost-benefit analysis, but $1200
bought a more permanent asset than anything else MLT has bought so far.
It is a worthy addition to the MLT "resume".
Jonathan has an excellent slide show
on Permaculture and the Land Trust Farm. He presented it at the
Permaculture conference and at the Nature Center. He
is also compiling a Bibliography on Permaculture. If you
are interested in the Bibliography or know an organization who
would like Jon to show his slides please write him at 24760 CR 681,
Bangor 49013, or call- Jon at (616)4267-8791.
We received a notice of internships available at the
Land Institute. The following article is
composed of excerpts from their mailing. Please
pass the word if you know a
fitting applicant for the internships.
The final section is from Homesteading Schools Revisited. Ghostly wishes for All Saints' Day.
-Sally Kaufman, Editor
THE LAND INSTITUTE
The Land Institute is a non-profit, educational research
organization established in 1976 along the
Smoky Hill River southeast of Salina, Kansas. [It]
occupies over 275 acres which includes approximately 100 acres of
native prairie, several fields being restored to prairie, and two
fields planted in experimental plots. It is devoted to
sustainable agriculture
and good stewardship of the earth. The
Land offers a unique, post-graduate level curriculum for students,
serves as a center for the study of
environmental/agricultural issues, and conducts
pioneering research into the development of a sustainable
agriculture based on the model of the prairie.
Most agriculture research is production oriented. But
high-yield agriculture, based on annual monocultures,
discounts the long-term ability of the land to produce food.
Research at The Land Institute emphasizes a sustainable
agriculture based on the prairie as a model, one less dependent upon
fossil fuels and chemicals, one more conserving of water and soil...The
prairie is a regenerative system which features perennials in
polyculture.
The Land Institute is offering up to ten internships in sustainable
agriculture for the 43-week term beginning February 13, 1989 and ending
December 15, 1989. Each student receives a stipend of $125
a week for living expenses.
[Applicants can write Agricultural Intern Program / The Land
Institute/ 2440 E. Water Well Rd.
/ Salina, Kansas 67401, for additional information.]
THE EAST COAST PERMACULTURE GATHERING
-Jonathan Towne
On the weekend of October 8, I
traveled to Sandy Lake, Pennsylvania to attend the
third annual gathering of permaculturists. The
setting was the McKeever Environmental Learning Center complete
with forests, trails and comfortable facilities. The sponsor was
the Alter Project of Slippery Rock University. They have been and
are offering courses on homesteading and permaculture.
Through them several permaculturists have obtained grant money and
loans to build a large "bio-shelter" complete with compost bins,
aquaculture tanks, chickens and rabbits to form an indoor
ecosystem to support a couple of families by producing fresh market
fruits and vegetables. To promote this project was one of
the reasons for sponsoring this gathering.
This group consisted of 30 or so very diverse people ranging from
dedicated self-sufficient anarchists to professionals. The
meetings were structured with several people acting as
facilitators. No official notes or minutes were taken, a fact
realized only on Sunday morning.
Topics of meetings consisted of those of both group importance and
of individual interests and projects. I gave my slide show on
permaculture at the Land Trust Farm. There was a slide show
by David Jacke of New Hampshire on the creation of a greenhouse
marsh for the processing of sewage. The bio-shelter project
was the subject of another slide show. Others talked about their
projects such as developing native mushroom
growing kits, searching for a rural location to build a 700
pound three wheeled high tech car, and a computerized permaculture
information network. Adam Turtle, the last member of
a 60's commune on a mountain in Tennessee, spoke about his
grassroots and anarchic approach. There is nothing more subversive that
living outside the market system. He has a collection of
more than a thousand useful plant species and works with many diverse
organizations.
We also talked about such group oriented subjects as the
greenhouse effect, the need for supporting each other in our
projects, and on whether this group needed to centralize
more since the North American Permaculture Institute has become a
regional organization. Certification issues were also
talked about. Who can use the word "permaculture" and who
is really a "Permaculture Designer"? Bill Mollison set up
these structures but no one is overseeing it now. Maybe no one
should-many people, including myself- believe.
I didn't take any notes either, so I am leaving out alot. I
bought for MLT two books: Kourik on edible landscaping and
an Australian book on agro-forestry. I
also bought the Permaculture Designers Directory.
I gave away at least thirty MLT brochures. It was a
good experience and I hope to attend additional meetings in the future.
The Coffin
-Maynard Kaufman
It was in what is now the milking parlor which Tim Johnson (1977)
and others helped to design and build. But then that part of the
barn contained a row of stanchions in which the cows faced a large
coffin as they chewed their cuds.
This was the old Lynch farm, after all,
and one branch of the family was in the funeral home
business in Kalamazoo. Maybe the coffin was somehow defective;
maybe they were overstocked, or maybe it was ordered for someone on his
or her deathbed who survived. Or maybe it had a body
in it. For a long time we never opened it as we cherished the
fantasy that John Lynch lay in that coffin. Or maybe this was the
one Frank Lynch got from Kalamazoo.
John Lynch was the patriarch of the family years ago. His
son Frank was the last Lynch to work the land. According to
Barney he was a hard-working, hard-drinking Irishman. "HELL DAMN"
Frank would shout, "if you think you can outwork me let's
get started." Barney told long stories about
the Lynch farm and, the one about Frank Lynch's last trip to Kalamazoo
to buy his coffin was his masterpiece. This must have happened in
the late 40's but Barney never gave any dates. What happened
in his stories occured in the Past.
When he knew he was dying, it was reasonable for Frank to plan for
his funeral. But Frank was also afflicted with what
his old friends called a "drinking problem". Others called him a
drunk. So Barney drove Frank to Kalamazoo to buy a coffin-and a
bottle. Thus the way home was a last trip in another sense as
both Frank and Barney got awfully drunk. But that is another
story.
Eventually, when we built the milking parlor, we did open the coffin
and found in it a dusty emptiness. It was built of tough oak
boards fastened together with 'screws, as if to hold a body
inclined to roam. But the lid was unfastened. The
spirit of the Lynch's pervades the place. I now use
those oak boards as the table on which I keep my chain
saws, and they insist on the chain f connection to those who worked on
this land before me.
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