Organic Landscape Design

For 2010, the Steering Committee for the Golden Community Garden has authorized an area approximately 20' x 43' as a demonstration garden for permaculture techniques.  Here is a preliminary conceptual layout for the space:

We will plant this space using permaculture techniques and including annuals, perennials and ornamentals.  We will announce the days we will be working on the space and let people freely join in to learn what we are doing and why.

In addition, we are offering "shares" in the garden.  People who would like to participate in the full season, and share in what the plot produces, can purchase one of ten shares for $25.00.  This money will be used to offset the materials and development expense incurred by the community garden - and is less than you might spend for a single day's seminar on permaculture elsewhere.

The layout allows for essentially 8 key hole beds with a center area that will be hard to reach.  We can then use the hard to reach area for high growing trees and shrubs giving us wind protection, some shade elements, and the additional habitat for more species to participate in the well being of our garden.

Here is the plot as it looked on March 29, 2010:

Because the substrate is all unamended clay, we dug a trench around the out side edge and each key hole path way building a berm at the edge to keep run off from other plots out of our plot and the water that falls on our plot in.  We then planted sour cherry, nanking cherry and goose berry, the potatoes from under Julie's sink and some jeruselum artichoke.  You can make out the main run of the drip line.

We did the final sheet mulch, most of the drip system and most of the planting on June 6, 2010.

This is taken on July 5, 2010

This is taken August 3, 2010

As explained elsewhere, we do not plow or till the soil - as evidence that tilling is not necessary, I offer the evidence of the 2009 carrot crop from the no till beds at my home:

I have started a discussion where people can ask questions on the Golden Communtiy Garden Google Group.  Please feel free to contact me here or through that discussion.

In 2009, the Golden Garden was a plot in the Golden Community Garden - if you go out now you can still see that plot, but we have given that one back so some other gardener can use it in 2010.

Organic Landscape Design rented a 10' x 20' plot for $75.00 and a commitment to spend 4 hours per month contributing to the common areas of the garden.  3/4 of the plot has been sheet mulched - leaving one quarter unmulched to show the layers.  The garden did not open for gardening until May 30 and the soil was unamended clay.  A simple drip system was installed and the fully mulched half of the bed was planted.

The bed was planted with the herbs for a kitchen garden . . . oregano, sage, tarragon, chives, mint, thyme, parsley . . . and then some tomato plants . . . later in the year some iris was added . . .

(right click on pictures to view image)

Participating in the Golden garden is about changing the aesthetics of lawns.  It is about showing people that gardening need not be a time consuming - labor intensive - activity.  It is about those who would like to do something to help the planet but think that gardening is too much work.

For comparison, here is an example of a garden based on extensive inputs:

This is a beautiful garden and it is producing quality food - there is nothing wrong with wanting to do that.  The point is that this garden is based on annual inputs of imported materials.  The permaculture approach is to use nature's processes to build soil in place - we feed the soil and the soil feeds the plants.  Our input costs are minimal and yet, the tomatoes grown in the permaculture bed are thriving better than the tomatoes grown in the bed with extensive inputs.