Eco Living Portugal

We now have the full-length video of Geoff Lawton’s “Harvesting Water the Permaculture Way” available for loan, or for viewing at Quinta das Abelhas near Tábua.

If you’d like your own copy, you can buy one from the Permaculture Research Institute:
www.permaculture.org.au/store/water_harvesting_dvd.htm

For about 6 months  somewhere this autumn till spring
No children
We have 2 old dogs and 1 donkey
On a quinta near Oliveira do Hospital

Please contact us on 238602988

I have started the social research bit of my watermills renovation thesis. If you have a watermill and have a few minutes to answer some questions, have a look here.

Of course mostly I have to go and ask people this stuff directly, which takes hours, days. Weeks in fact: to locate the owners, find out what time/where they are. Introduce the issue, me, the survey, what, why. for whom and so on… As I made so many changes to the survey (Monica being the master editor) I didn’t have time to translate into Portuguese, so I have to explain each question with my fairly basic grasp of the language. It has seemed to work, albeit with several promptings in some cases.

This couple in the picture are in their 70s, still working away on the land, and running one of the remaining grinding mills in the region. What quality of flour! What simplicity of technology!

Such interesting results. Most owners are over 65 years old, live on the land, have let their watermills go to ruin because there’s no longer a market for milled corn or wheat. Nor much of local production of these products, except to fatten the pigs. In fact, we usually ended up talking about the demise of local agriculture, how there are so few subsidies or support from the state. Agriculture in general is, they think, at the bottom of the Government’s priority list.

Most people hadn’t heard of climate change – at least in terms of dangerous levels of greenhouse gas emissions; urgent need to reduce emissions or global climate will go haywire and all that. Instead they were familiar with local changes over the course of their lifetime, “it used to be much colder in winters”, or, “now there’s a changable climate – it’s sunny in winter, can be pouring in July” and so on.

I also had a bunch of questions on peak oil. Despite the huge oil price rises last year, almost none of those interviewed had heard that global oil production could soon fail to meet global demand, leading to price instablity, economic and social chaos, etc.

This seems odd, given the potential severity of the situation. Probably the highest profile report so far on this was by Robert Hirsch, for the US Department of Energy (DoE) back in 2005 or so. The DoE apparantly shelved his report when it first came out because of his fairly alarming conclusions. His report can be seen here.

Further, the impact of peak oil on agricluture and food production is seriously disturbing. Surely any rural community should be worried, and getting ready for less fuel-hungry food systems. Richard Heinberg, probably the best known author and speaker on peak oil, describes our current food supply predicament in his usual eloquent and concise manner in this article.

But all this was a kind of background context to the watermill questions. It forms part of my thesis introduction into watermill renovation, so I thought I should add it to my survey. Anyway, upshot of survey is:

• almsot all interviewed showed interest in mill renovation
• didn’t know you could generate electricity or hot water from the mills
• would be interested in knowing more about the options
• don’t have much money to invest
• would be interested in partial investment if Govt / EU / whatever funds could help
• are interested in using mills as part of a new eco-tourism watermill trail (cheap shelter, cleared river access routes for mountain biking or walking).

More later

www.wolfeintransition.blogspot.com

Olá a todos!

À dois anos fui à Madeira e encontrei um Tomate Cereja selvagem a crescer muito perto do mar (30m). Colhi alguns e plantei as sementes no meu jardim, aqui no Algarve. Sem ajuda e apenas com pouca água estas plantas cresceram e disseminaram-se, pude colher uma taça cheia de tomates cereja durante vários meses do ano.

Vou enviar, sem cobrança, algumas sementes a qualquer membro do eco living portugal, ou seguidor da quintastuart.blogspot.com ou a qualquer amigo que tenha conhecido em viagens ou a quem quiser algumas. Estas sementes são realmente um sucesso permacultural e na verdadeira etica da partilha justa devem ser partilhadas.

Manda-me simplesmente um e-mail com a tua morada que eu enviarei uma carta com algumas sementes.

Super comida – sementes já bem secas ao sol!!

Feliz crescimento,
Stuart
stuartmerelie@gmail.com

Cherry Tomatoes

Hi Everybody!

Two years ago I went to Madeira and found a wild Cherry Tomato
growing close (30m) to the sea. I picked a few and planted the seeds
in my garden, here in the Algarve. With no help and only a little
water, these plants sow themselves around and I could pick a bowl
full a day for several months of the year.

I will post free of charge a few seeds to any eco living Portugal
member or quintastuart.blogspot.com follower or any friend I have
met on my travels who wants some. These really are a permaculture
success and in the true ethics of fair share must be shared.

Simply send me an e mail with your address and I will post on a few
seeds.

Super food – great sun dried as well!!
Happy growing,
Stuart
stuartmerelie@gmail.com

2 bed Alentejo cottage, part renovated and already habitable.

Legal share of 4 hectares (10 acres). Personal + communal gardens, fruit and olive trees and woodland.

Full details and photos: http://www.pureportugal.co.uk/listman/listings/l0350.html

• http://www.condominiodaterra.org/criarbosques

Health foods, wholefoods, herbs, therapies, British foods, Ecover household, yoga, groups, networking, advertising all at O Caminho Natural, Góis.

235778185

www.caminhonatural.com

Is there anyone in the Tomar area who would like to take away quite a lot of tree branches (possibly to make fire burning pellets)?

We recently had about 30+ trees taken down, sad but necessary, they took the tree trunks but left all of the branches etc.

Ann Marchant
Casalinho, Serra, Tomar
ann.marchant@btopenworld.com
249371136

I am open for small groups on my Quinta in Santa Catarina Fonte do Bispo (TAVIRA) — just beginning, so open for many suggestions at this time. Check out the video & join the vision!

Victoria Ratledge
vikkirat@hotmail.com

WANTED: I’d like some Elder (Sambucus nigra).

OFFERED: I have just under 30m of porous hose for irrigation.

Also various plants: comfrey (Symphytum officinale L.), horseradish (Armoracia rusticana, syn. Cochlearia armoracia), borage  (Borago officinalis).

sophie@pureportugal.co.uk