Water and the Winter Permie Perspective

As the last few leaves clinging to branches begin to fall and the cold air begins to blow in from the North, Winter is finally here. We’ve put the tools away, are mulching our garden beds, and beginning to pick up those indoor activities that we kept putting off into the future. Yet, many of us are also enjoying brisk walks and the unique view that we have now that the leaves are gone and much of the undergrowth has died back. Winter is the season of observation, and now is the time to look at your landscape from a new perspective.

In Permaculture, we have a mission to ensure that no resource coming onto the land gets wasted. This includes water, and during these cold months we can really see what happens to the water that falls on our space. Where does it go when it hits the ground, and more importantly, where is it accumulating? Where is water moving quickly and eroding soil or quickly leaving our property to travel to some unknown destination? If water falls on the land and does not get used in a meaningful way it likely means that we will have to use energy to replace that water somewhere else.

So what do we once we recognize these patterns? First, make a map of what’s happening. Even if it’s a simple hand drawing, there’s a lot you can learn from looking at the whole picture. Maybe the problem isn’t actually where water is accumulating for example, maybe it’s actually a problem that you can solve by stopping, redirecting, or slowing water somewhere uphill. There are definitely some useful things to look out for though and keep in mind while you’re observing.

Do you have a large slope where water is quickly running off of a large area? Some techniques to consider here are digging swales or using a method called keyline. You would use the keyline method in situations where water is running more quickly or if the slope grade is more than 17% which may have a tendency to erode and collapse. No matter which method you use, always make sure that you plant vegetation on the uphill side of any swale dug into a hillside to mitigate soil erosion.

Another thing to be on the lookout for are gullies where you have relatively flat ground but large amounts of water accumulating and sitting. These areas can be a great opportunity to hügelkultur beds. These are raised beds with a core of logs and large branches. This core will allow a bed to absorb massive amounts of water and store it for later use. During wet times, these beds keep plants from getting “wet feet” and in dryer times, water is released into the dry soil around to provide much needed moisture.

These are just a couple of things to keep in mind as you are observing what the water does in your space. Keep an open mind as you look for patters patterns. Be creative and don’t be afraid to try new things. Most of all though, don’t sit back and let the cold season pass by, awaiting the Spring buds to call you back into action. This is the season that we can readily see what’s going on in our water and landscape. Take advantage of it!