Urgh! it stank 🙁 We have an eco sewer with urin separating toilets. During the two-week permaculture course the toilets started to smell. Before this they had been smell free for over a year. So we have been busy solving this problem. We plunged ourselves into the world of eco plumbing – filtration coal, lime, pipes, ventilation etc. We dug up and uncovered the installation leading to the two 1000 litre tanks (which didn’t smell at all). We had a brainstorm
Läs mer →Blogg
Bales of barley will be put in the pond which is finally cleansed from algae, so that oxygen can be led in. The algae is used as soil coverage in the kitchen garden. The first frost has come so we have taken the pumpkins inside. The paprikas, last tomatoes and melons in the greenhouse can stay a little longer thanks to the sun shining everyday 🙂 The stable roof is insulated. The inner walls are being finished and now we are
Läs mer →It is now time for a new autumn and winter program 2013. Most events this autumn will be held in Swedish so they are not listed in the English calendar. (See Swedish calendar here.) But we welcome guests from all over the world and have tours in English and German. We will update with international courses next year. The autumn has two themes going: society and lifestyle changes, or, the transition period that we are in. The second theme is alternative
Läs mer →The certification course in permaculture design was very intense for the participators – and appreciated. ”A designers Manual” by Bill Mollison was in its entirety the foundation for the education. Lots of theory, many films, creative exercises, morning meetings, field trips, guest lecturers, practical exercises and last but not least the making of permaculture designs that were presented to the public at the Permaculture evening August 15th. All this was pressed into the 72 hours the education consists of. The course that
Läs mer →The straw-bale house building course has now ended, and thanks to a shift of public officials in our local municipality; planning processes, the course as well as building, all came together in time so that everything moved forward efficiently. See the course leaders’ photos here. The roof is also in place now as well as the structural beams. Yesterday we planned our next project, a small recycling center with building permission from 2010. It will be built of rammed earth.
Läs mer →Sustanible Building South, a non-profit association, held a meeting at Ecotopia på Österlen. The association outgoing from their project “Ecological LowEnergyHousing”, in Österlen, is to encourage local firms on building sites to develop in an ecological direction, through supporting their members with local competences and network development as well as courses and workshops. Of which, many local firms are represented. There were builders specialized in straw-bale construction, recycled cellulose fibre insulation, sheep-wool insulation, earthen housing, clay building methods, window &
Läs mer →Last weekend we had Open Farm day with two guided tours, eco-café and plants for sale. My friends visiting from Austria helped out with baking and building a stall out of surplus material. We also received a proposal on how to decorate the roof edging on the second strawbale cabin with scrap larch wood. He made a model and doesn’t it look good in real life? A beautiful framing for the cabin and the future grass roof. Our neighbour gave
Läs mer →The theme night about Raw Food and the course in ecological farming gave the season a flying start. A really successful start! Åke Wikström, who has 30 years experience of organic-biological farming, is a real health prophet who also knows a lot about sustainable development. It was inspiring to meet this knowledgable and at the same time humble person. Our next course in farming will be the certification course in permaculture design on August 2-16. The participants will build a
Läs mer →Last weekend we held a course in clay building where the participants used their creativity and artistic vein. As the clay plastered walls in the strawbale cabin took shape, beautiful patterns and ornaments emerged. Inside the cabin it was completely silent. Each and everyone deep in dialogue with the clay and the wall. A wonderfully committed group and knowledgeable instructor. Now that the walls have dried we can put colour on them with pigmented clay. Åke Wikström was scheduled to
Läs mer →