Midwest Permaculture

8-Day Certification Course

Pictures: Bill Wilson, Claire Maitre and Vicki McLellan
Text: Bill Wilson

 

Day 1 - Ann Arbor

Our first stop is at a resident's home in Ann Arbor. To greet us are two of the people who helped to coordinate this 4-day speaking tour from the very beginning.

Kris Kaul (L) and Vicki McLellan pull up their cameras for a quick-one but I beat them to it.

 

Another coordinator of the tour
and my guide, host and chauffeur for the 4-days is Claire Maitre. Claire is a trained permaculturist and assisted me greatly at each of our consultation and speaking stops.

She is a graduate of one of our Permaculture Design Certification Courses.

We stopped at this residential home to host one of our WalkAbouts where we walk the grounds of a single residence and brainstorm with the owners what sort of permaculture design ideas might be applied to their home and landscape.

Our WalkAbouts are open to the public when the home owner agrees to include others. This way many can learn at the same time as we explore what sort of things we look for in a basic permaculture design.

We typically start at the back door and then explore the entire lot or property looking at how water and air flow through the property.

We'll also explore where sunlight is a blessing or a challenge and how the soil looks.

Every step of the way we will look at what sort of plants might be used to increase food security, build soil and provide shade, wind protection and beauty as well.

 

Here is a note from one of the WalkAbout recipients.

 

At this particular residence there was a challenge with spring thaws and heavy rains creating a very boggy situation in the back yard.

With the use of a transit level we were able to plot exactly where the low spots are and discuss a simple swale and berm system to direct the water away from the problem areas while still being conscious of drier areas that might benefit from a little extra water.

 

By evening we found ourselves at one of the meeting halls at the University of Michigan where I gave the first 4 introductory talks on permaculture.

From the feedback we have received, most of those attending came away with a much deeper understanding of what permaculture is and how they might apply it on their own property and in their own lives.

 

 

Day 2 - Detroit

Our day started with a WalkAbout in an older part of the city, in a working class neighborhood (not pictured).

After an enjoyable two hours of exploring some creative ideas with the home owners, Vicki took us around to the east side of the city (within a mile of Wayne State University) to view some creative gardening projects.

I was quite shocked at what I saw. What was once a bustling neighborhood with block after block of city homes, is now almost totally open space.

What you are viewing here is a sidewalk completely covered with grass and a lone fire hydrant.

This was once a quiet alleyway tucked between back yard fences and garages.

At first I was a bit stunned by the vacantness of what I was seeing but as we began to visit garden after garden I began to see the enormous opportunity this now 'clean slate' can provide.

 

Where a home once stood now sits this lovely garden space, full of vegetables and natural spaces.

 

In this garden, a once under-employed resident now makes a living growing and selling fresh vegetables to local restaurants and farmers' markets.

This lot, and others all around, are available, practically for free, to anyone who will care for them.

By growing food locally almost all of the costs of transportation and time to get the food to market are eliminated.

The food is picked fresh, fully nutritious, and delivered to the end user, sometimes on the very same day.

Goods of real value are sold locally and the income stays in the local economy.

Peoples lives begin to change when they are this close to their food and especially when they have their hands in the soil. This is a very healing space.

Next to a garden plot is this campfire area circled by bricks with a small homemade greenhouse in the back ground.

Ironically, what looks like a wide chimney coming out of the greenhouse is actually one of the city's casinos, about a half-mile away, brought into the city to help stimulate the local economy.

My guess is that if one-tenth of the money invested in the casino was instead diverted into small ecological gardening pursuits, the local economy and residents would have been much better served.

Because some abandoned urban landscapes have a build-up of toxins in the soil, a creative way to safely grow a garden is in raised beds.

Raised beds can be made out of almost anything and have a plastic layer placed between the existing ground and the new-fresh soil which is typically brought on to the site.

In this picture raised beds made out of cob (clay, sand and straw) are host to a bountiful garden.

What is it that the cobb material is plastered on to that gives it that round-humpy look?

That's right... old tires.

Attached end-to-end and then covered with chicken wire to give the cob something to hang on to, the old tires provide a solid framework for building the beds..

Why not reuse throw-away items instead of sending them to a landfill.

Here is a creative way to use old milk crates to build a raised bed as well.

 

Stack them together, put a plastic liner within the whole structure and fill with soil. Go ahead and fill the top crates as well to maximize the planting area.

Instant garden: Just add soil, seeds and water.

Every garden can use a little creative art work too.

 

Another one of our Permaculture Design Certification Course graduates, Patrick Crouch, took me on a quick tour of a couple of the garden projects that he is coordinating through Earthworks Urban Farm.

 

Area residents and local children find respite, exercise, education and fun working in these gardens.

 

The food raised in these gardens goes to the those doing the gardening and to the local soup kitchen.

 

People's lives are often changed when they experience the joy of growing their own food, caring for soil and plants, and sharing their harvest with others.

This garden project is raising more than just food.

Mid-afternoon we made a quick stop to the NPR radio station in Detroit (WDET). I had been invited in to have a conversation about permaculture.

 

That evening's presentation was hosted at Marygrove College in Detroit.

The campus is beautiful and attendance was good.

Marygrove is one of the satellite locations for the national Bioneers conference. While the main event happens in California, 18 other satellite locations around the U.S. broadcast the main speakers while hosting their own local workshops in between the main events..

The Bioneers conference is one of the primer events that celebrates many of the hopeful possibilities before us as we implement more and more ways to care for the planet and people at the same time.

Day 3 - Flint

Another key coordinator of this speaking tour is Holly Lubowicki who is also a Permaculture Design Course graduate.

Holly toured us around several inspiring places in Flint but before we left her home I just had to get a picture of this Boston ivy growing up the front of her house..

You can see the main stem of the vine in the lower right-hand corner of the photo... and it spreads half-way across the front of her home. But this is not where it ends.

This same plant, from the same stem, also fills the entire side of the home...

 

...and wraps around the back, covering half of that.

What is significant about this?
Vines on a wall can help prevent up to 70% of the suns radiant heat entry into the home in the summer while also preventing modest amounts of the heat loss through the wall in the winter. These vines are active insulators.

And this is all from just one plant!

And... if it was a grape vine instead of an ivy, it could also be providing fruit to the family and,,, a great resource for making a recession-proof product ...WINE.

Holly's back yard, a former flower garden, is now making way for edible herbs, fruits and vegetables as well.

Later in the evening after my talk was over, we returned to Holly's home for a small social gathering, picking lettuce at 11:00 p.m. for a fresh salad to go with our locally made pizza.

One of the highlights of my week was meeting a couple named Jacky and Dora King.

Together, they have helped thousands of at-risk youth in the Flint area to develop self-confidence, discipline and respect for others through their karate training school.

 

This picture of Jacky and Dora is from an article from The Flint Journal which talks a bit about their work and this new greenhouse operation they have constructed for their students.

 

Not only can their students develop their karate skills, they can now spend time after school learning in a garden. Jacky and Dora secured a grant this year to be able to hire 40 young people to help grow these crops for resale to local restaurants and markets. Most of the growing is going on out of doors in several garden areas that were once abandoned lots.

Here is Holly in the same greenhouse several months after the above photo was taken. When the greens are done growing, in go the summer crops such as kale, beans, broccoli...

...and tomatoes!

 

These sweet potatoes are looking healthy. They are an excellent crop for any gardener that wants to choke out weeds while growing food at the same time.

 

As part of their new farming/gardening venture, Dora and Jacky have added a chicken coop to their operation for a whole host of benefits.

Not only will the children have the opportunity to learn how to work humanly with the birds, they will be able to use plenty of their 'less-than-perfect' crops as feed for the chickens while the chickens provide eggs, meat and manure for garden and greenhouse fertility.

Win...Win...Win...

Here the young gardeners and farmers can learn about compost making. No fancy or expensive set up here.

Just some experience and exercise creates some of the most wonderful compost.

 

Also new this year are some early experiments in bee keeping.

 

But probably the most amazing part of Jacky and Dora's story is the vision they have for this economically depressed area of Flint.

Their vision is to revitalize the area by supporting small businesses and economic growth through the raising of food.

Michigan imports about 90% of the food that it eats. Why not create mini farms and greenhouses all through these neighborhoods, creating economic opportunity and building community all at the same time.

 

Just as in Detroit, vacant lots and open land in the city of Flint can be secured for almost nothing if one will agree to clean up and care for the property.

Off in the distance, you can barely see a water tower. Dora and Jacky have been granted this parcel of land to help them achieve their vision of food and economic independence.

This is a massive project they are undertaking but after meeting the two of them I have little doubt that they will be able to pull it off. Do you wish to make a difference in some way? They would welcome your involvement I'm sure.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has".
~ Margaret Mead

Later that day we gave the third of our talks at the Flint Farmers' Market.

 

Day 4 - Ypsilanti

The final day of the tour took us to Growing Hope, a vibrant non-profit where we hosted yet another WalkAbout.

Growing Hope works to help people improve their lives and communities through gardening.

On this site, the soil is especially sandy (over 15 feet deep) so we discussed ways to take the vegetative excess from their small woodlot (behind me) and bury it under their garden beds.

This excess organic matter (leaves, branches, even hefty chunks of wood) will assist dramatically in holding moisture while also providing nutrients to the plants above as these materials are converted to humus by the soil bacteria.

This is an example of how in permaculture, simple design and small changes can sometimes make big differences.

Central to their educational services are these grow boxes that are available to anyone in the community who would like to grow vegetables in their own front or back yards.

Growing Hope brings in the beds, the soil and seeds and will even provide guidance to each family in how to start and care for their mini-garden all year long.

While exploring their 2-acre garden lot we came across several mulberry trees that were in prime production.

These berries were some of the best I had ever seen; plump, large, sweet and ready for picking.

 

That evening was the final presentation, held at the Eastern Michigan University's School of Business, one of the key sponsors of the event.

Once again, the attendance was reassuring. More and more people are looking for simple ways to make a big difference.

"It's like it clicked! 
This is what we should be doing to feed ourselves
and create a greater sense of community & belonging."
 - Becky G.

Growing Hope also sponsored the talk. A local writer (David Palmer) took this picture of me and Growing Hope's executive director, Amanda Edmonds.

He wrote up a great summary of the talk and tour while doing an excellent job of assessing the overall objective of permaculture.

I warmly recommend reading this article for a great overview on permaculture. You nailed it David.

Article
This link will take you to David Palmer's article which is posted on Mark Maynard's blog site.