CAP OP 3: Project Outcomes

To start, I made a list of courses organized into several groups.
Courses I’ve lead

            -Mushroom cultivation on logs

            -Introduction to Permaculture

­Courses I can lead

            Subterranean Heating and Cooling System installation

            Hydraulic Ram Pump System

            Double Digging

            Food Forestry

            Cob oven construction

            Seed starting/ Transplanting

            Mushroom foraging

Courses I would have others lead

            Fruit Grafting

            Bee Keeping

            Vermi-composting

            Advanced Permaculture

Next I identified the workshops I want to do this year.  There were several factors that influenced the choices I made.  The workshops that I’ve done before were a shoe-in.  I’ve done both of those workshops several times and I get better at delivering them each time.  My competence will insure a successful workshop.  Two of my outputs from my first year at Gaia University produced two different appropriate technologies at LCP, a subterranean heating and cooling system (SHCS) and a hydraulic ram pump system.  These new additions to the permaculture site lend themselves well for demonstrating in a workshop setting.  I didn’t want to overwhelm myself with trying to do too many so I only had to fill a few more spots in my calendar.  I really wanted to get some fruit trees grafted this year so I got that workshop to happen at the appropriate time.  The other workshops that made the cut were based on things I do often.  Seed starting and transplanting is something I will be doing in the market garden already.  Mushroom foraging is one of my favorite things to do. 

Following is a description of each workshop.  This includes the logistics of each workshop and a reflection on any workshops that have happened already at the time of this output. 

          This workshop was the first of the workshops this year.  It was hosted at Love Creek Permaculture on February 9^th, 2013.  Timing was what prompted this workshop to happen already.  There is only a small window of time in the winter when fruit grafting is ideal so I made it happen.  Nate Berner, a friend that recently started a local tree service called Calaveras Tree Care is quite experienced in grafting fruit trees.  So contacted Nate and asked him when it should be and what I needed to get together to make this workshop happen.  Since there are several old apple orchards in the area we knew that apples would be a good choice for the workshop.  So I ordered 50 apple rootstocks (M.7 EMLA ¼” (1-1 transplants)) from Willamette Nursery in Oregon.  Even though Nate had the tools needed I wanted to get another grafting tool so we could have more than one going during the workshop.  I ordered the grafting tool and grafting tape.  Then with only 2 weeks to go before the projected date I created a Facebook event page to get the word out.  With no Paypal account set up I encouraged people to not just click ‘yes’ to attending the workshop but I also had them contact me by phone or email to confirm their spot in the workshop.  If they were going to cancel I asked them to contact me within 48 hours of the workshop so I could fill the spot.  I charged $25 for the workshop and planned on giving 2 rootstocks to each that attended.  I wanted to keep at least 10 rootstocks for my own use so I didn’t want more than twenty people to show up.  I would be providing the space and the atmosphere for Nate to come do his magic.  I had a loose agreement with him on what I was going to compensate him with.  Here is the rundown on the cost of the workshop, how much I paid out and how much I made.

Rootstock- $74.92

Grafting tool- $39.99

Grafting tape- $27.99

Paid Nate- $120

Total= 262.90
Attendees- 14 x $25 = $350

$350- 262.9 = $87.10 for me

I was able to get paid $87.10 after making this workshop happen.  I ended up with 14 rootstocks at the end of the workshop to make my own trees.  The workshop also paid for a new grafting tool that I won’t have to purchase at the next workshop.  I also have plenty of grafting tape for the next time I host a fruit-grafting workshop or for grafting my own trees. 

            This workshop was a great success!  Everyone that attended was very excited to graft fruit trees to take home.  Some even bought extra rootstock to graft another tree or build up more rootstock.  Others had plans of purchasing and creating their own nursery stock in.  When I paid Nate he was shocked at what I gave him, I told him “I want you to come back and do it again.”

Workshop reflections-

Having planned this workshop rather quickly I was surprised we had so many attendees.  Unfortunately the grafting tool and tape I ordered got back ordered and didn’t make it to the workshop, luckily Nate had the necessary tools and it still went smoothly.  Next time I have to order something for a workshop I will try to secure supplies a month before rather than only two weeks prior.  I plan on doing online purchasing in the future so I don’t have to worry so much about trying to get people to commit.  If they pay in advance they are more likely to come and not just say they are coming. There were several people that clicked the ‘going’ button on Facebook but never contacted me to confirm their spot.  There was one person that confirmed with me but didn’t contact me to cancel until the workshop had already begun.  One thing I didn’t have people sign was a release of liability.  This needs to be at every workshop so I’m protected legally if someone gets hurt. 

     I took a mushroom cultivation course at UC Davis and first got into log cultivation when I took that course.  Since then I’ve inoculated over 15,000 dowels into about 400-500 logs.  I’ve given this workshop several times now so it’s coming out smoother and smoother every time.  I’ve given this workshop in a community college class twice now and this was the second time I’ve hosted it at Love Creek Permaculture. 

            First of all I had already secured 10 lbs. of non-GMO soy wax and 5000 shitake dowels that had been inoculated with shitake mycelium.  Cool thing is that I got them from Far West Fungi, who I sell wild harvested mushrooms to, fresh and dried.  I traded them for some dried mushrooms I brought them in the fall.  I’ve kept the dowels refrigerated for the right time to inoculate.  With all of these dowels to inoculate I have some work ahead of me.  I figure I can teach people how to grow mushrooms on logs and I can get some work done quicker as well as make a few extra dollars.  Next I had to get some fresh cut oak logs.  This is harder than it seems.  The best logs are cut directly off of the trees.  I have some properties that I have been given permission to cut off of but I’m always looking for a new source.  The forest service recently worked on a reducing forest fire fuel in the overgrown and crowded forest near my house.  Luckily for me they decided to cut a few oaks out in the process.  Leaving behind perfect sized logs for shitake cultivation.  I only needed about 10-15 logs for the workshop so I was good to go. 

            The weather was a bit cloudy and cold on the day of the workshop so it was held inside our woodworking shop.  There I could start a fire and we stayed warm.  I had the wax melting before anyone showed up.  Drills were set up and ready for use.  First I put it into context with a little mushroom biology, cultivation history and explained why I’m using logs.  Then we got into it.  I showed them how to space the dowels out, pound them in and cover them with wax.  Now it was their turn to do it.  We rotated jobs around the group of 7 until everybody got to do each part a few times.  We inoculated 8 logs in a couple of hours and that was it.  One unexpected bonus was that the logs I’ve been harvesting from the last couple of years had begun to pin by the time of the workshop.  I went to show people how many I had done and where I put them and there will little mushrooms beginning to pop out. 
Following is a breakdown of the cost of the course.

Attendees 7 x $20 = $140
Sold 100 dowels- $15

Sold one small inoculated log- $15            

Total income= $170

Workshop reflections-

Having given this workshop several times it feels better every time I do it.  People in general aren’t clued into mushroom biology so it is always interesting to explain it.  Light bulbs click in people’s heads every time.  I regret not being able to make this workshop include taking an inoculated log home.  I’m not sure of the estimated cost of an inoculated log.  If I had the time to do it beforehand I would have estimated the cost of inoculating a certain sized log.  If I had done this I would have been able to sell the course as making your own mushroom log to take home.  To do this I need to estimate the price of an average sized cultivation log, how much wax is used, and how much labor is involved.  I think people would be even more stoked on the workshop if they went home with a log they inoculated and can watch grow.  I did however offer dowels for sale if anyone was interested and have since gotten requests from some of the attendees for dowel purchases.  Once again I did not have a liability waiver for people to sign, a mistake I don’t want to bite me in the future.  Some of the tools I have for this workshop are getting a little worn out.  I need to get extra drill bits, drill bit stops and wax daubers.  Another thing I could get is a bit that will fit in my angle grinder.  The angle grinder has a faster speed and can drill the holes needed a lot faster, but it is also more dangerous.  Perhaps I’ll save that for my own inoculation needs.

     I first learned about this technology when I went to the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute (CRMPI) in 2005 to take a PDC.  I was doing a work trade so I had arrived early to help out.  Even before the PDC began I was helping to install this technology in one of the greenhouses there.  I went to the site hoping to find some similar solutions that I could employ at my own permaculture site in California.  I revisited CRMPI again in 2009 and was convinced I wanted this technology.  Finally in 2010 I began building two SHCS greenhouses at Love Creek Permaculture.  My first Output Packet beyond my Life and Career Review and Learning Intentions was about the SHCS.  I felt very accomplished at finishing a project at the same time of completing my output packet.  I’ve been excited to watch them function for the past two years and have begun construction on a third SHCS greenhouse. 

Preparation

               I built the greenhouse trusses in the fall in preparation for having some free time and clear weather in the winter or spring to prep the site.  I had to remove a few hundred asparagus plants and transplant them as well as about 50 thorn-less raspberries to make room for the new greenhouse.  We hand dug as many plants as we could and then used the Kubota to remove soil and prep the site for the new greenhouse.   I still have to complete the calculations for the greenhouse to figure out the hardware needed.  The calculator and any other information can be found at Sunny John.com.  The drain tube is already purchased and I’ll still need to get a fan and a couple of plenums.  Other than that I’m ready to go. 

            For the workshop, the greenhouse trusses will be assembled into the greenhouse frame so we can set it on top when the plumbing in the ground is finished.  The bottom layer of the air circulation tubes will be installed prior to the workshop.  During the workshop we will bury the first row of tubes and install the next level.  Once the tubes are all in place and the soil filled in we will set the greenhouse frame on top and then connect the fan to the plenum.  The bonus is that we will have an identical greenhouse that is fully functional to demonstrate as well.  Since this workshop will involve more labor and be more expensive I plan to offer lunch included in the price of the workshop. 

Possible concerns- 

            My main concern is getting enough prep done beforehand so that we can make enough progress during the workshop to get all the fans hooked up and running.  I’m still not sure how to price this workshop.  It will probably be more expensive than the previous two.  With increased price and a more advanced workshop I’m a little concerned I’ll get enough people to show up.  Another concern is that I hope people that do attend can employ their newfound knowledge easily and not have to wait as long as I did. 

            This is something I do anyways several times throughout the year and I’ve become pretty proficient at it.  Whenever I have volunteers in the garden I’m always way quicker than my comrades.  I tell them it is all the practice I’ve had.  So I'm going to slow it down a bit and give people the full description of the techniques that I’ve adopted from the book ‘How to Grow More Vegetables* on less land than you can imagine’ by John Jeavons.  I’ve made dozens of seed flats for the transplanting process, both shallow for seeds and deep for transplants. I’ll show them the importance of creating healthy starts to put into the garden and how to do it.  I’ll show people how to broadcast seeds in flats or directly in the garden. I’ll go over pricking out and transplanting tiny seedlings into deeper flats and finally transplanting ready plants into the garden.  With the newly constructed greenhouse I’ll be able to transplant some summer crops directly into the greenhouse during the workshop.  
Preparation-

            I’ll have to make sure there are plenty of seeds available that I can plant during this workshop.  Not much to plant at that time of year except melons, winter squash, summer squash and cucumbers. I’ll have to have timed the development of transplants to be big enough to transplant for the workshop.  There will be transplants of lettuce, brassicas, tomatoes, peppers, and summer squash to practice with.  I’d like to give people some seeds to take home to start on their own and some transplants to take home and put in the ground.  That will require making seed packets and having well rooted transplants in 6-packs or individual pots.  
Possible Concerns-

            The only real concern I have for this workshop is getting the timing correct on the transplants.  But I’m sure I’ll have plenty going and to choose from.  

            With newly created transplants from the previous workshop I can piggyback off of the seed-starting workshop and show people a bed preparation technique that we like to employ at Love Creek Permaculture.  Another technique that I gathered from the book ‘How to Grow More Vegetables *on less land than you can imagine’ and Grow Biointensive.  First of all, it is a low till and fossil fuel free way to prep garden beds.  It is meant to soften the soil deeper than a rotor tiller.  The bed can then hold more water and when planted in hexagonal patterns can reduce water needs.  I adapted my own photo-documentation of the process on my website.

            Preparation-

            I will have to pick a few beds out to do before hand, removing any weeds and watering them well a few days before the workshop.  I’d like to have two other beds fully finished to show the end product, both planted and empty.  I’ll have some transplants of squash and tomatoes to show the plant spacing quickly and easily.  Other than that, I have plenty of digging forks available but will need to get at least one more digging spade. 

Possible Concerns-

            This is hard work and I wonder if anybody that comes will not enjoy this workshop because of the labor involved.  Selling the need for low-tech solutions.

            I’ve given this workshop several times at many different venues.  The thing is it has changed almost every time I’ve given it.  I’ve done it once here at Love Creek Permaculture, once at the Davis Freeschool, once at a local seed swap, once at Sierra Green Days, and once during Moondance at the Solar Living Institute.  The exploration of different ways to conduct this workshop has given me insight into what works and what doesn’t work so well.  I really like to get the audience participating and sometimes it has worked well while at other times it hasn’t worked at all, even with the same approach.  I’ve incorporated the action-learning spiral into developing this workshop better and am still honing in on the best approach to it. 

Preparation-

            I’d like to figure out how to engage students in the course more dynamically.  I think incorporating more design practice in the form of little models or other interactive projects, breakout sessions, and personal connections to permaculture can be valuable as learning tools.  I will have to explore the possibilities by looking at what colleagues might utilize and checking my notes from my PDC and Permaculture Teacher Training.

The outdoor classroom might not be cleaned up by the time of this workshop, so I’ll have make it classroom worthy and make sure that the bathroom and kitchen are up and running. 

Possible Concerns-

            Helping people grasp the entirety of Permaculture.

            I did my 4^th output packet on a Hydraulic Ram Pump System.  I coordinated tying the existing Ram pump into a gravity fed watering system with a storage tank above Love Creek Permaculture on a neighbor’s property.  A temporary tank was finally installed and we got to use spring water to fill a tank high on the hill without electricity!  The water was utilized in the market garden all summer in 2012.  The class will learn about the technology first of all then I will take the students on a tour of the system.  I’m looking at charging about the same as I do for the SHCS workshop.  Lunch may also be included. 

Preparation-

            A permanent water tank could be installed.  The current one is open on top and collects debris and water insects.  It works fine and will probably still be used but a more permanent one put in its place.  I’m not sure if this will happen before the workshop and it doesn’t really matter if it does, but it’d be nice to have even more storage capacity and a nice clean tank of water.  I will need to go back over everything I did for my output packet 4 and revisit the technology.  I know how it works but I sometimes lose the terminology that I learned. 

Possible Concerns-

            Getting people to come to this workshop!  This project isn’t applicable to everyone, only those with a spring or a stream available.

            I’ve been foraging for mushrooms for most of my life.  Finally in 2008 I got a job collecting mushrooms for a mushroom distributor in the Bay Area, Far West Fungi.  I try to keep up on the local harvest but have yet to explore much up in the High Sierra, only 45 minutes to an hour away from my house.  As much as I don’t like to share my spots and insight into mushrooms with very many people.  I figured that I could get people out looking in an area that I don’t know as well.  There are definitely some high quality edibles and medicinals to be found in the high Sierra, I’ve found several.  It’s an environment that I’m not too mycologically aware of yet and still have trouble honing in on the right spots.

I could teach people what not to eat first and then we could look into identifying mushrooms in the field.  I’m thinking I would do a one-day foray but it might be better to do two and have people camp out for a night. If we did find anything delicious I could show them some cooking techniques and share a meal together.

Preparation-  I need to look into the legality of holding courses in the national forest.  I believe I might need to pay some kind of fee for utilizing the space.  If I get enough people interested I might need to reserve a campground for the group.

Possible Concerns-

            Someone eats a mushroom that isn’t edible either during or after the workshop. 

I wonder how much the fee might be to hold a class or workshop in the National Forest, do I need insurance for it?