Dear Residents of Windham County, Connecticut:

The great advantage of organic farming and "permaculture" is that in the long run, you can produce food at a far lower cost than Factory Farming.

If you have sunny, well-drained land but are stuck with hard, clay soil, it will require an up-front investment in some sort of soil amendment, whether it's (free) leaf compost from the Willimantic dump, or (free) horse manure from a local horse farm.

One thing I do is gather bags of leaves from the neighbors in the Fall, and mix with horse manure I get from a horse farm.

If you need dozens of yards of leaf compost and/or horse manure, and you are in Windham County, you are in luck. A friend of mine who is an organic farmer and car mechanic who is located in Windham, Connecticut, owns a large pickup truck with a dumper attachment. We can work out how much you will likely need based on the quality of your soil and the size of your garden, and you can get a load or two a week until you have what you need. We will have to work out the price with the owner of the dump truck, but it will be cheaper than buying your own truck, if you don't have one.

And if you do have a pickup truck or dump truck, I can show you how and where to get free leaf compost and free horse manure (not counting the cost of gasoline and vehicle maintenance -- the stuff itself is free). Both the compost and the manure have been used in our gardens for 3 seasons now, so we know it's good stuff.

I have been looking for ways to obtain manure without traveling to horse farms and to the Willimantic dump, however. This is the next step to adapting to the post carbon life.

My solution has been to fence in large areas that will be future gardens, and to put chickens and rabbits in there. So long as your neighbors don't complain and zoning allows it, raising small animals is doable. The trick is to make a LARGE PEN right away. Don't make the mistake of a little pen. Figure on using at least 300 feet of fencing, preferably more. Make at least two pens, one with the animals, one for the garden.

The chickens and rabbits will quickly denude the land. You'll be surprised what a dozen animals can do to a quarter acre! There won't be a weed in sight. And when you move your animals and put in your garden, it will be lush and rich. Get a soil test in case you need to balance the NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium). I have potatoes growing in a former chicken pen, and they are massive. A Vermont farmer recommends rotating chickens and Jerusalem artichokes. Contact me and I can tell you more about Jerusalem artichokes, or look up the article at www.energybulletin.net

As always, contact me with questions, or if you would like to participate in the Northeastern Connecticut Sustainability Project.