Glenn Gall, "Farm Scale Permaculture Water Harvesting"

Farm Scale Permaculture Water Harvesting

Slow it down

Spread it out

Store it

Save it

How Much Water On Your Farm?

How Many Inches of Rainfall?

How Much Water?

How Many Inches of Rainfall?How Much Volume?

How Much Water?

How Many Inches of Rainfall?How Much Volume?

To Estimate --4” = ~100,000 gallons/acre

40” = ~1,000,000 gallons/acre3 acre ft = ~1,000,000 gal.

How Much Water?How Many Inches of Rainfall?

How Much Volume?

Rain Falls On Farm? Enters From Off Farm?

How Much Water?

How Many Inches of Rainfall?How Much Volume?

On Farm? / From Off Farm? Drainage?Ponding? Porosity/Infiltration? Runoff?

Flow Rates? Ground Water? Needs?

Rock Dams -- Trincheras, and Gabions

Credit: g-a-l.info

Circle Ranch -- Chris Gill

Erosion Damage Wide Irrigation Channels

Credit: Chris Gill, circleranchtx.com

P A Yeomans

Credit: D. Doherty

Broadscale Permaculture

Keyline Design

Credit: D. Doherty

Water Flows From Valley To RidgesKeyline Does The Opposite

Keypoints

Credit: D. Doherty

Draw Keyline through Keypoint.Harvest water Parallel to Keyline.

Keyline Design

Credit: D. Doherty

Water Flows From Valley To RidgesKeyline Does The Opposite

Savanna Lamb Ranch

Credit: D. Doherty

Credit: D. Doherty

Credit: D. Doherty

Filling the Pond that Wouldn't Fill

Yeomans Keyline Plow For Pasture

Designed to “till” subsoil with minimal surface disturbance. Plow rips deep into soil.

Channeling slightly downward causes water flow from valley to ridges.

Plow PatternAfter each grazing pass

or hay cutting

Credit: D. Doherty

Circle Ranch -- Chris Gill

Credit: Chris Gill, circleranchtx.com

32,000 Acres, West Texas, 12” Seasonal Rainfall

Keyline AgroforestrySingle bottom plow or other equipment can create swales to capture water.Trees are often planted near swales, which help provide sufficient water.“Alleys” between rows can be cropped or grazed while trees grow.

Credit: Mark Shepard, New Forest Farm

Digging a Swail The Easy Way

Credit: Mark Shepard, New Forest Farm

Credit: Mark Shepard, New Forest Farm

New Forest Farm – Neighboring Runoff

NO runoff from NFF due to Swails, Berms, and Keyline

Plowing

Versaland -- Grant Schultz

145 Acres in NE Iowa --

Government $ for: Tree Seedlings Tubes Pasture/Hay Seed Equipment Shelter

Tamera

Diverse Cover Crops

Diverse, multi-species cover crops allow for massive photosynthesis which can generate new topsoil. Gabe Brown in N.D.with only 16” rain per year has developed over five feet of topsoil at 6% organic matter. It infiltrates water at 8” per hour and does not pond, even with 13” rainfall in a day.

8 weeks with only 0.38” rainfall

Gabe Brown Peter Byck, Soil Carbon Cowboys

Holistic Managed Grazing

Pasture is dense perennial cover. Photosynthesis creates sugars which are sent to roots to feed microbes which help plants to grow and also leave carbon rich humus. This is much of the basis for topsoil. Planned grazing which avoids overgrazing and allows for sufficient rest keeps grasses healthy and grows topsoil.

Gabe Brown’s Tall Grass Pasture

Credit: Gabe Brown

Africa Center For Holistic Management

Neighboring River Bed Dimbangombe

Credits: ACHM

Dimbangombe -- New Pond

Credit: Seth Itzkan

Which Tool To Use?

Which Tool To Use?

Farm Scale Permaculture Water Harvesting

Permaculture Ethics

Care of the Earth

Care of People

Fair Distribution

Farm Scale Permaculture Water Harvesting

Slow it down

Spread it out

Store it

Save it

Farmscale Permaculture Water Harvesting Resources

P. A. Yeomans, Water for Every Farm

Darren Doherty and Abe Collins, Keyline Design Mark IV

Mark Shepard, Restoration Agriculture

Chris Gill, www.circleranchtx.com

Films: Cows and Keyline

Drought Busting

Sepp Holzer, Desert or Paradise

Peter Byck, Film: Soil Carbon Cowboys

Allan Savory, Holistic Management