Listen to the wind and the rustling of the leaves
This is the spirit of the land talking to you

Garden Layout

An important element of successful gardening is garden site selection. A few things need to be considered first. Such as full sun, wind blocks, and slope. Picking a garden with full sun can be tricky, unless you know a little about astronomy. If you're facing east the sun rises south of east in the winter and north and east in the summer. The day that it is furthest south is December 21, the day that it is furthest north is June 21, the two days that it's in the middle are March 21 and September 21. So finding full sun depends on what time of year you are looking. Just observe your garden site for a little while in the morning, at noon, and in the evening. You will see what's shading your garden and when. Trees on the south side of your garden site will shade your garden in the winter. Trees on the north side will shade your garden in the summer. Trees on the east will shade your garden in the morning. Trees on the west will shade your garden in the evening. East-west shade is constant all year long.

Wind blocks are important to keep your garden safe from heavy winds, and it also helps to retain the moisture. The wind can blow off the moisture quickly. A little wind is a good thing, sometimes you need it to dry things out. While you observe your garden site, observed the different angles the wind comes in.

Slope is another important factor. Too much slope and the water will run off too quickly, and at the top of the slope the soil is less fertile. Its best to find a garden site which has a slight slope and which is at the bottom of the slope. That's called bottom land. You can use the slope at your advantage. In the winter when it's wet plant on the upper part of the slope, this will allow the plants to dry out in the wet winter rain. And of course, planting in the lower part during the summer will help keep the plants moist.

The orientation of your garden rows or beds is important also. The most functional rows are laid from from east to west. I call these north-south rows because the shade is the north-south shade of the summer and winter. Not the east-west shade of everyday. If you place a row facing north to south it will create an east to west shade situation in your garden every day. You can use that to your advantage by planting things that need less sun between two north-south orientated rows. Mostly I recommend placing rows in the east-west orientation, or what I call north-south shade rows.

It's a good idea to place your garden site near a source of organic material such as leaf droppings, grass clippings, and compost piles. And of course, you need to be near a water supply. Don't forget to size your garden right for sustainability. To be sustainable the garden needs some spots to be fallow while other garden spots are being used for growing vegetables. I also recommend having some wild spots near the Garden site too. Nothing too wild, but a place where weeds grow, birds play, things like that, this just adds a good diverse environment for your garden site, and it also has a kind of magic to it. It's a good idea to have about 25% of your garden site in cover crops at all times. You can rotate your vegetable crops around into these sites throughout the year. This will ensure fertile, sustainable soil.

Farm Layout

Farm layout is a lot like garden layout only done on a larger scale. If you are setting up a new farm space, make sure you put enough space aside for trees and shrubs which leaves you can use as organic matter to fertilize your soil. I planted nitrogen fixing trees in rectangle shapes around the garden spaces. These are large garden spaces, about 40 feet wide by 200 feet long. The long direction is from east to west, or north-south shade, thus minimizing the area covered by east-west shade. I have about three of these spaces. I have also planted trees in an east-west shade configuration to allow for a natural shade house in between them. This is an excellent place to gather leaves and I have more than enough for my whole farm. Don't forget that you may need to move machinery into the area so leave some space open between the trees that you plant. You may have a truckload of compost or even be lucky enough to have a compact garden tractor, and you will need space to maneuver.

It's important to be aware of the water flow in the area that you plan to farm. If you have the time go out during a heavy rain and see where the big puddles are. Also look for flowing water. This can give you clues as to the erosional problems that you may run into later. Use any slope that you may have in your favor, plant in the wet season on the uphill side of the slope and in the dry season plant on the downhill side of the slope.

Check for your topsoil depths in the area you plan to farm by digging holes every hundred feet or so. You should be able to see where the topsoil ends and the anaerobic layer begins. All soil has an aerobic and anaerobic layer, below that it's just dirt. Of course, the best place to farm is where the topsoil is deepest.

I know there is a lot more to sustainable farm layout, but I just can't think about it at this moment so check back later for more information.  

The Only Thing Constant Is Change Itself

farmerMark...;)