Do you know anyone who’s practicing Natural Farming Or someone who had tried the method around here?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_farming
Is there any place where I can purchase unhulled short grain rice? Ideally grown in Natural Farming. But Organically grown rice are great , too.
Is there any house with their own water well in Athens City limit?
I had learned recently that it is a good thing to have water well for water and air circulation of underground. I’d like to know if it is possible to have one at home in Athens city limit.
This house came with fireplace where I was told that I could use log or gas. I did not know much about fireplace when I moved here so I thought I could cook and try making soap using ashes like I saw in movies. I also thought that the fireplace can heat up entire house in the way. But I learned that my fireplace is more like accessory, and It’s not made to cook in there, or meant to heat up entire house.
My house has central heating system but heated with city gas.
One of my goal is to use resource available in my yard (woods and twigs) to heat up entire house. So I’d like to figure out what’s the best way to change our house’s heating system into, real fire place, wood stove, rocket mass heating stove, or something I still don’t know about.
In terms of energy efficiency, rocket mass heating stoves is the best, second best is wood stoves, and fireplace. But I am also interested in Japanese irori, too.
Each option have pros and cons but I need to know more.
I’d like to know if it is possible to do so in my situation.
I’d also like to know if there are anyone who use rocket mass heater, woodstove, and real fireplace, and some other method.
House size is about 6000sq ft. Property size is about 1.5ac. And about the half of the property is with woods.
4/10/2020 Robert Urie
Upon my arrival at Broadwell Hill Learning Center I was placed on a 2-week quarantine due to Covid-19. I was more than content and comfortable but also looking forward to my first trip into town with Constantine. Not only was I on quarantine, but Constantine and Kathy did not travel as well. That left much to be done when Constantine and I went into town. Some of our priorities were to inventory and restock Seaman’s Grocery Store. Also we needed to package and ship items such as coffee and cashews.
With the Covid-19 pandemic we had to take extra precautions to ensure we did everything possible to limit our exposure and also our product’s exposure. Masks were worn, we carried hand sanitizer, and made sure to keep 6ft. away from others. We also made sure to double check and remind each other to sanitize as soon as we finished and returned to the vehicle. This was a standard procedure every time we left a location. I felt as though we literally did everything we could to limit exposure. It gave me a sense of pride knowing we put that much effort into ensuring our product’s safety. If every business took the steps we did I feel as though our food industry would be much safer and we could prevent future contaminations.
Learning to package coffee and mix cashews was a new experience for me; one I found enjoyable, especially the smell of those Highland Grogg coffee beans being ground up. I have never worked in food preparation before but I was pleased to see how it works on a smaller scale. I felt of service and had no doubt our products would be enjoyed. The hard work put into them will certainly pay off in customer service. That’s very important to me, it gives you a good sense of fulfillment and accomplishment, not to mention all the people I met along the way were great as well. I look forward to being more involved in such a tight knit community.
The whole day in general was a great learning experience. It gave me better perspective of what it takes to function in a community such as this. To know that I was able to be of service and help the community is the sense of purpose I have been looking for. It is a good overall feeling, one that I am privileged to have undergone. It certainly makes me look forward to future town endeavors and further learning about life here on Broadwell Hill and what it takes to support our goals and sustainability.
Chapter 1
Holistic Management offers people a way to make decisions that will move them toward what they want, not in reaction to what they don’t want. In a world where resources are becoming more limited, a thinking process that helps us think about long-term consequences is a valuable asset. While such changes go against our instincts, putting effort into having a holistic worldview will give us a firmer sense of being.
Chapter 2
Water Cycle- movement of water and how it affects plant and animal life
Mineral Cycle- movement of minerals or nutrients and how it affects plant, animal, and human life. Effective vs ineffective cycle.
Energy Flow- movement of energy through the sun through all living or once living beings. Everything in our ecosystem depends on the plant’s ability to capture sunlight and convert it into a form that feeds everything else.
Biological Community- interactions and interrelationships that exist among species that function as wholes or communities. Our biological communities are always changing due to plants and animals being born, aging, dying, and decaying. The key to advancing any biological community is soil cover.
Non-brittle environment- moist year round, often difficult to create large areas where the soil in between plants is bare.
Brittle Environment- erratic rainfall and humidity, becomes very easy to create large acreage where the soil is bare between plants.
Chapter 3
The importance of communication in decision-making can greatly influence holistic goals. Learning to use proper language can affect and influence group results. Learning to listen and build off the motivation of others will pull the group towards their goals more effectively then working as a individual. Listen to someone with the intent to understand their words, not refute them. Making the most out of the intelligence your group has to offer will help produce the intended outcome.
4/8/2020 Robert Urie
Forming a Holistic Goal Exercise
Quality of Life
Behaviors and Systems
Vision- how will you sustain your quality of life?
4/8/2020 Robert Urie
Creating a management inventory is the first step in the Holistic Management goal setting process. Three components to consider in this process are the decision makers, the resource base at their disposal, and available money.
Some assets I have in my inventory will include a good work ethic, a vehicle/tools, kindness, and gratitude. My love for nature and it’s well being will also be beneficial to me in my holistic decision making process. I also look forward to working with the other decision makers in the community to gain better insight on how this process works. I believe I have a lot to offer in regards to this process. My service to others is another key asset I can offer.
Key questions to ask along the way:
Who are the primary decision makers?
Resources?
Money Available?
Upon my arrival at Broadwell Hill Learning Center one thing that was brought to my attention was helping to identify a particular invasive species of common reed, Phragmites australis to be specific. More specifically how to differentiate the invasive Phragmites australis from the native subspecies Phragmites americanus. Identification is not easy early in the season but it looks like there a few distinguishing traits that can help us.
One particular sign to spot australis will be in the root clusters. They will be difficult to break apart, sheaths of leaves will be tightly wrapped to the stem base and require good effort to separate. Even further down the roots will all tie together to form and huge knot of root clusters. Large clusters will root down three to four feet deep.
After reviewing the links below and searching the web I do not suspect australis is in the Sacred Pool. However, further verification will need to be done later in the season. Australis will grow to 15ft. high, significantly taller then the other species. It will also take on a dark or blue-green color later in the season as plants mature. This particular subspecies will remain this color well into the later seasons when it begins to flower. It then will die off at the surface to make room for new growth the next year. The roots will continue to grow into thick clusters up to 3ft. deep making this species a nuisance to remove
Most sites have suggested contacting professionals to distinguish between the species americanus and australis. Until recently not much information was being spread about the Native species, leading to Phragmites americanus being killed off mistakingly. The links below require more detailed information on the two species.
Note that there are two different North American species, australis and berlandieri. Berlandieri is more prominent in South and coastal Florida.
See link for more info: https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/grass-sedge-rush/american-common-reed
Phragmites australis Plant Profile: https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=PHAU7
Phragmites Field Guide Distinguishing Native and Exotic Forms of the Common Reed: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_PLANTMATERIALS/publications/idpmctn11494.pdf
Logging In
-In the address bar type www.interns.athensown.net
-Find the Log In tab (in red) at the bottom of the sites main page. The username is AthensOwnInterns. The password is community.
Creating New Post
-On the top and left of the page you will see grey dashboards. Using either the +New tab or the Posts–Add New on the drop down menu you will be directed to a new page where you can post to your Intern Log. This is where you will log your posts.
-The first thing you will want to do is Add Title. When finished you can simply press Enter to start your first paragraphs. There are some font, and paragraph options that are simple to use that you can play with if you are comfortable. Some may help to make your writing more presentable but isn’t required.
-When your post is finished you will want to notice the menu box/banner on the right. It should be on the first tab titled Document. You’ll notice the category section and you will want to uncheck ‘Blogs‘ and then find your specific Log and check it. For instance if your name is John it will say John’s Intern Log.
-You can also add any desired search tabs.
-Under Discussion make sure both boxes are checked.
-Select “Publish“
-Select “Submit for Review‘
Quality of Life:
To live a life of purpose and meaning by being of service to others in times of need. To find happiness and joy out of the simple things in life where monetary systems do not dictate ones path. To live in harmony and balance with nature. To find a safe community where I feel comfortable raising a family. Also being a protector and of service to this community for as long as I am able. To leave this world a little better for the next generation and to always be a positive influence for those around me.
What I Have to Produce:
-Inspiration to others
-Service to others in order to live comfortably and safe
-Time for family, meditation, community, and leisure
-A safe and respectful environment for those around me
Vision:
To be viewed as a mentor and influential leader in my community. To always speak for those without a voice and look after the land my community is impacted by. This land will be a safe haven for those around me in a time of need and managed using holistic decision making. The community will function as a whole for the betterment of the next generations to come and we will always strive to promote this way of life in a respectful manor.