#ipc10

[ptpermaculture-blog]

DIY Biological Innocuant: Using Indigenous Micro-Organisms (IMOs)

I had heard of effective microorganisms (EM) before and I had the impression that I would be paying a lot for something quite simple. I am always suspicious of things which require money rather than knowledge and effort. Thanks to Itai Dolev Hauben from Costa Rica and Rico Zook from New Mexico, I discovered that my suspicion of EM was unfounded.

According to Itai, the man who developed the powerful cocktail of organisms which came to be known as effective microorganisms, Teruo Higa, wanted the information about how to cultivate this melange to be spread far and wide. Itai gave a great workshop on the first day of the International Permaculture Convergence in which he outlined a recipe for EM. Rico coined a name for the cocktail which I really like ---indigenous microorganisms, or IMOs. Rico's name captures some of the significance of this process --- it can be done by anyone with locally available materials to cultivate a tremendously useful set of microorganisms which are indigenous to a particular place. It is to the great credit of Teruo Higa that he recognised that such a powerful process ought not be kept from anyone.

Why are IMOs Useful?

IMOs cultivated according to this process are extremely versatile. It seems that there are few things which are not benefited by their presence. They can be

… used as a foliar or soil spray to promote plant health,

… added to animal feeds for healthier animals,

… added to a a composting toilet or kitchen food waste bin to stop bad smells and aid decomposition, and

… added to pond water to maintain living, healthy water.

How to Cultivate IMOs

Now for the recipe. This one is for a 55 gallon drum batch. The same proportions can be used for a batch of any size:

Ingredients:

25 L of mulch, manure, soil, leaf litter and healthy (white / off white) fungal strands from healthy ecosystems

25 L of rice semolina (or equivalent)

25 L wheat bran

25 L powdered charcoal

50 L rice husk / wheat husk OR softwood sawdust

200 g bakers' / brewers' yeast

2 L raw milk

3 - 5 L molasses / cane sugar / brown sugar / silan (or equivalent)

Combine ingredients and check that the moisture level is that of a squeezed out sponge (like an ideal compost moisture level).

Put in drum / container with an airlock (simple plans for this soon).

Allow to ferment for approximately one week or until bubbling stops (time will vary with climatic conditions).

Open drum. The mix should have a pleasant smell.

Dry the mix slowly in the shade for later use; use directly on soil, in animal feed, kitchen waste or composting toilet; or make up a liquid mix (1 kg dry mix, 1/2 litre molasses, 20 L water) for foliar or soil application.

Thanks again to Itai for sharing your knowledge. read more

[ptpermaculture-blog]

The Underground Forest: Using Biodiversity to Help People

One of the highlights of the tenth International Permaculture Convergence was meeting Tony Rinaudo of World Vision Australia. Tony is a living example of the posture required for the development of truly regenerative systems. Tony has come to see patterns of people, plants and landscape which allow deserts to grow trees again. He does this by opening himself to the voice of the land.

While working in Niger, Tony noticed that what appeared to be small shrubs were in fact trees which had been coppiced by continuous grazing pressure, firewood harvesting and the impulse of farmers to keep crop land free of trees. Tony calls these trees 'the underground forest.'

'Do you speak tree?'

Rather than continue to plant trees as great expense only to have them die, Tony began to work with the natural processes which would allow this underground forest to grow. He says that it is necessary to learn to speak a new language --- 'Tree'. Not knowing whether it would work but trusting the natural fecundity the land, Tony worked with some farmers to select particular healthy stems, remove all but one to five of the remainder, cull to the required number of trees per hectrare and prune to promote healthy growth. This simple approach Tony calls Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR). FMNR is based on

"... the systematic regeneration of living tree stumps, roots and seeds."

In Niger, 5 million hectares have been reafforested in the last 20 years using FMNR. This change can be seen from space as a spread of green where once there was a growing desert. Niger, as a result of FMNR, is the only African country with net afforestation.

'It's not a bad thing to be ignorant.'

I listened to and spoke with Tony several times over the course of the convergence and what became clear was that Tony is not just peddling a technique. At the beginning I mentioned Tony's 'posture'. Tony's posture is one of enquiry, not expertise; listening, not just advising. This same posture comes to characterise the farmers with whom Tony works. Each community or farmer does things slightly differently according to their circumstances. Where Tony recommended keeping a maximum of 20 - 40 stems per hectare, some farmers have begun to leave 100 - 150 stems per hectare with an increase in their crop yield. They have found out what works through their own observations of natural regenerative processes.

Using Biodiversity to Help People

The trees and shrubs which grow up from the underground forest are the native species which have sometimes not been seen for decades. As a result, the community comes to have not only double or triple the crop yield between the trees but also tree fruits and nuts, medicines, firewood, fodder and shade for livestock and habitat and food for birds and insects which bring fertility and other ecosystem services. FMNR allows for the regeneration of biodiversity and so also the regeneration and maintenance of ethnobotanical knowledge which might have dried up with the desert.

FMNR is almost scandalous in its simplicity. Working with nature, Tony has been able to be a co-creator with that force which lies at the heart of nature and would produce abundance. It was a great privilege to meet Tony and to learn about his work. FMNR is one of the best examples of permaculture in practice and gives me great hope for the future.

Tony also has a lot to share about edible Acacias but that is another story altogether and a post for another day.

FMNR on YouTube

The Development of Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration

Tony's presentation "Against the odds: Reversing Desertification" at the IPC10 Conference (skip to about the 8 min mark)

Mr Tony --- turning deserts into food bowls

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[ptpermaculture-blog]

Brad Lancaster on Rainwater Harvesting - Day 1 of IPC10: Slow, Spread, Sink.

Beginning with the questions

"What is the story of your place?" and "What is the story of its water?"

Brad Lancaster began to tell two tales of water --- a degenerative story and a regenerative story.

A Degenerative Story: "The Hydrophobic Society"

Showing images of urban landscapes designed to hasten the movement of water from those landscapes, Brad suggested that these landscapes were indicators of a "hydrophobic society."

Not only is water wasted by this hydrophobia but the risk of flooding is increased 10 fold when paved, concreted and otherwise sealed areas feed the 'dehydration infrastructure' designed to solved the 'problem' of water inundation in drylands.

"Distance is energy"

The result of seeing rainwater as a problem which must be drained is waste and, therefore, expense. More rain falls on Brad's home, Tucson, Arizona, than is necessary for drinking, washing, food production and industry --- all of Tucson's water needs. Yet the pumping and transportation of water from the Colorado river is the largest consumer of electricity and the largest single source producer of carbon. Waste creates expense --- "distance is energy."

A Regenerative Story: "Run off" to "run on" which is "right on."

In Tucson 3,000,000 l of water falls on each kilometer of sealed road each year. Outside of their house, Brad and his brother began to use some of this water to irrigate native mesquite trees on their verge. The kerb was cut to allow the water from the road to 'run on' into the mulched basins in which the trees were then able to grow. Sufficient water falls on the roads of Tucson to passively irrigate a mesquite tree in a mulched basin every 8m. Recently, these mulched basins have been found to host a soil ecology approaching that of an established forest in comparison to the surrounding, relatively dead and degraded soils. Where mesquites have been grown in this way, local people have been able to earch $25 an hour picking mesquite pods to be processing into a naturally sweet flour and made into many kinds of food for sale. Here is one example of the creation of a regenerative system which turns 'run off' into 'run on' while increasing biodiversity, growing shade, food, community and livelihood. These basins are examples of 'infiltration infrastructure' --- 'rehydration infrastructure.'

"Show the flow"

Mulched basins and other water harvesting earthworks which are a part of rehydration infrastructure not only catch rainwater where it falls but are also able to receive greywater. Brad prefers to keep the greywater outlet pipe above the mulch level to prevent it being blocked up by roots and to 'show the flow.' I know that washing day is an exciting time at my house. There is something special about seeing this productive use of water which would otherwise go to waste.

"Plant the rain and the plants will plant themselves."

Brad emphasised that we must:

"Slow. Spread. Sink!" rather than "Pave. Pipe. Pollute."

By slowing water and allowing it to spead out and infiltrate, the earth responds with growth. Native and productive trees planted with an awareness of the the rainwater harvesting budget of a site can provide shade, food, biodiversity and many other benefits. Water is the beginning of the creation of regenerateive landscapes which provide many yields while improving ecological health.

Brad closed an inspiring talk with the suggestion that we all have a role to play in the story of water in our landscapes. We can choose the story and we can choose the role. Degenerative or regenerative? Not a hard choice, really.

Watch Brad's talk from the live streaming of IPC10.

Brad's books: Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands - Volume One - Volume Two.

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