Page 13 - Sonoma County Gardeners Resource Guide 2017.indd
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DELUGE cont’d from page 12
2) Design your storage system – Decide if catchment is right for you and identify the best locations for tanks, ponds or cisterns. Once drainage and storage locations are identified, they become the basis for your entire water management plan.
3) Develop a water infiltration plan – Identify opportunities to allow water to sink into the soil. Think of the side of roads and pathways, in landscapes, farmlands, pastures, forests, parks, and other areas where there is no danger to structures. Usually there are more places to let water infiltrate than we realize. This can help to recharge groundwater while also protecting nearby creeks from erosion sediment that can have a negative impact on fish populations.
4) Be smart about your design – Be purposeful when planning infiltration systems in the landscape or on the farm. The best ideas are usually those that integrate other needs like food production. Strategically locating elements where they can serve more than one function and work in symbiotic relationship with
other elements will cut energy use and raise yields. For instance, a privacy screen can also act as a water infiltration system if it is planted on top of a rain garden. If you use edible plants, you now have an edible water-harvesting privacy screen that yields a variety of food and serves several functions. Successful design needs to adapt to the constraints of your soil, climate, topography and context in your greater hydrological ecosystem.
Water infiltration techniques that manage water across landscapes – often called “earthworks” – offer a variety of ways to shape and grade the soil to fulfill multiple functions and uses. Whether it’s contour swales, rain gardens, or terraces, the appropriate technique needs to reflect the ultimate goals and design of the space to achieve good function, stability, safety, environmental health and aesthetics.
Harvesting water is vital, but we have to design for  ood
A big source of flooding is the enormous amount of manageable stormwater running off of landscapes, houses, roadways, and agricultural soils. This quickly inundates low-lying land because it has nowhere to infiltrate. With
no water being absorbed in the upper reaches of the watershed, an enormous volume of water floods into our creeks and rivers.
protection too, and that requires a smart drainage system.
We need to turn our built environments and our agricultural lands into water-catchment, water-absorbing systems. With an ecological design approach, we can actually drought-proof our communities and reduce the threat of devastating floods at the same time.
Water is the basis for life. So let us ensure that the waters of our planet run free and clear for all living things. If we want a viable future for our children and grandchildren and security for ourselves in the here-and-now, we must fundamentally change our relationship to water.
Permaculture Artisans is a full service ecological landscape company that designs, builds,
and maintains regenerative and resilient landscapes and settlements. We specialize in food production, water harvesting, and restoration projects at all scales from broadacre farms and ranches to backyard landscapes. Our intention is to have a social impact by making our services accessible to a diverse variety of communities. Contact us to discuss how permaculture principles can transform and regenerate your home, farm, ranch or place of work!
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