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Mari Korhonen 's Profile
Mari Korhonen
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Joined:
12/02/2011
Last Updated:
13/02/2011
Location:
Finland
Climate Zone:
Cold Temperate
Gender:
Female
Web site:
pohjoinenpermakulttuuri.wordpress.com





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The Transformation of Our Urban Home Milkwood The GrowHaus Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute Katlaaed Transition Town Tervuren Eats, Shoots & Roots Centro de Convergência (NO LONGER ACTIVE) Quinta Regadinha Semilla Besada
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Autumn resources - hauling vs hoarding

Posted by Mari Korhonen about 13 years ago

People are busy hauling the leaves, branches and other nutrients out of sight - I'm hauling them back in.

It's been interesting to observe the autumn traffic of organic materials, especially dead leaves, fallen and pruned branches, withering flowers and anything else that's not lawn being removed from peoples front and back yards for dumping elsewhere. Well, where I live everyone takes these materials to the local wastewater treatment plant where it's used for composting the remaining sludge. So the cycle goes on and stuff is used wisely as a resource. However I can't help feeling the hunger of the soil for those nutrients and biomass at the origin, where it's raked into big piles and hauled away.

Today I also participated this kind of trip, helping my grandparents who wanted to take away a load of leaves from their house. Little did they know however, that my motivation to participate reflected intentions of quite the opposite kind! The leaf dumping site is also an abundant oasis of branches in all shapes and sizes, a perfect selection of material for anyone wanting to tear up some lawn and plant some winter garlic and jerusalem artichokes in raised beds filled with wood material.

Long story short, we dumped the leaves, and I piled up a bunch of branches to take back. The concept was a bit confusing for my grandparents, but they understood and encouraged me on the raised bed project on their lawn. Perhaps the broad beans that grandpa likes to nibble and few other things already growing there this summer were the cause for this change of attitudes :)

I spent the day digging and laying a nice lasagne of branches, grass turf, subsoil, remaining leaves, some well manured topsoil from a local organic farmer and finally the original topsoil topped up with a "shirt" of straw. The winter garlic is in, and there are still materials left for the jerusalem artichokes. It's somehow fulfilling and rewarding to hide those "unwanted" leaves and branches underground, knowing that they will soon be converted into humus, worm castings and food. Enriching the environment we live in, and nourishing ourselves in the process. Quite nice!

Unfortunately I got so carried away with shoveling that the usual habit to document the process got pretty much neglected. Sorry about that!

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Wen Rolland
Wen Rolland : Great story illustrating the paradigm change needed on the planet :) When we see "waste" as resource, the the world get a lot more regenerative and productive. Thank you.
Posted almost 13 years ago

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My Permaculture Qualifications
Pri verified
Permaculture Design Course
Type: Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) course
Teacher: Geoff Lawton
Location: The Channon, Australia
Date: Mar 2009
Other course verified
Permaculture Internship 3 months
Type: Internship
Teacher: Geoff Lawton
Location: PRI Australia
Date: Apr 2009
Other course verified
Permaculture earthworks course
Type: Earthworks
Teacher: Geoff Lawton
Location: Mulloon Creek Natural Farms, Bungendore, NSW, Australia
Date: Jun 2009
Other course verified
Solar greenhouse design workshop
Type: Gardening
Teacher: Jerome Osentowski
Location: Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute, Basalt, CO, USA
Date: May 2010
Other course verified
Permaculture, solar greenhouse design and forest garden workshop
Type: Gardening
Teacher: Jerome Osentowski
Location: Koroinen, Turku, Finland
Date: Oct 2010
Other course verified
Permaculture Trainer Course
Type: Teacher Training
Teacher: Rowe Morrow
Location: Austria
Date: Jul 2011
Other course verified
RegenAG and keyline design
Type: Other
Teacher: Darren J. Doherty
Location: Vale da Lama, Portugal
Date: Nov 2011
Other course verified
Holistic Management and Grazing Planning
Type: Other
Verifying teacher: Kirk Gadzia
Other Teachers: Tamara Gadzia
Location: La Donaira, Spain
Date: Apr 2012
Other course unverified
Mushroom Cultivation
Type: Other
Teacher: Will Borowski
Location: Sydney
Date: Sep 2012

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