David Bates

The reason that I don't feed developed eggs to my Pigs is because my Pigs might get the idea that eating Chicks is good. I free range my Chickens, Ducks and Geese and they spend a lot of time in the Pig compound.... ....here Chick, Chick, Chick

The eggs that don't hatch under our hens are almost always ROTTEN anyway. Those go into the woodstove, explode like stink bombs in there and then end up in the garden with our ash.

Jay,

I'll put Cobb at the top of my list then.

I don't have drawings yet because I don't know the shape of the rocks I will be building from. The site is Canadian Shield granite with a dump truck or two of the soil and glacial fun that has been left in a crevice. When the crevice is dug out them I'll see the shape. Low Cobb cordwood and boulders for the cold lower parts, roundwood timbers to make space beside that with infill of cordwood and probably a bathroom sized yurt on a platform above. Something like that.

- David.

Thank-you Jay,

I do use modern tools: Back Hoe and Chain Saw.

Also, the main plan at this point is to build round timber with infill of cordwood. There may be a Yurt sitting on top of that, off to one side. My other tools are chisels, axes, draw knives and mallets. I have a froe too but it doesn't like me much. I do not use electricity.

Oddly, I had a bit of a problem deciding what to call a modern tool here because when I am working I usually think about how much more *involved* I would be if I was using hardened wood and stone.

One thing that I keep coming back to is using Cobb instead of mortar for the cordwood. I have time, would prefer not to buy a truck load of sand and cement and the soil that I am going to remove from the rocks will be... right here.

- David.

Hi Jay,

Thank-you for that good information.

Yes I am still following this thread. Here I am (about "n" years later) sitting beside my building site. I just cleared three or four trees from where I *think* two large pieces of bedrock slope together to make a good cliff underground. The man with the backhoe will be along in a week or so.

That is good news that Hemlock will work, I also have plenty of Eastern White Pine. There is a monster log lying in the building area... I guess that I'll take the bark off and split it into cordwood to use because it is too large for my planned, tiny house to use for beams or posts. "That's a ten foot long wall but the posts are eighteen inches in diameter, so keep you arms by your sides".

I'll post some pictures of the hole when it is here...

- David.

Richard Cobbs wrote:Hi, You mentioned locally milled wood. Why not build a log frame covered with board and battens. I have built several structures with B&B and like the looks, speed of construction, and durability (get foundation high enough so bottom of boards don't get wet). I get boards (1x8 and 1x10) planed one side (install rough side out) and battens approximately 1 1/2" by 1/2'.
I am starting to build in Nicaragua and looking at different techniques. One thing that I am trying to get is dog toothed timber washers. They are code approved in the UK, but no supplier will sell and send them to me in Nicaragua. Are they available in Ontario?

I have one board and batten building here, we built it a few years ago, I don't know if it meets code. Actually we call it board and baton here because we assume the French people in Quebec started it and "batten" is a mis-announciation of the French word.

The trouble with board and batten is that the temperature gets to -30 or -40 degrees, so when you build it you need to plan insulation. The cordwood construction will provide an insullated wall.

Richard,

You are welcome. I just noticed that you are in Poland. I guess the Red vs. White Oak will not help, sorry. The two main types of Oak we have here are Red and White. The Red is full of tannin. The White is sweet. I think the reason that the White is sweet is because the acorns grow on the new growth each year. The Red Oak acorns grow on one year old branches. So you may be able to find tasty acorns in Poland by looking for this.

I am going to stop giving you advice now because I don't know much about what may grow in Poland I hope you enjoy the syrup. This year has been fantastic for Maple sap here, the Birch will start soon too.

I used to live in a place that was old sand beach with tall White Pine, Red Pine, Red Oak and Sumac growing everywhere. You could try Red Oak there. They grow deep, their leafs take three years to rot (which will provide humus) and the acorns aren't too bad if you soak them a lot. I prefer White Oak acorns. Is there somebody who would pay you to harvest some of those pines? They are good for building (if you get the bark off as soon as they are down). So build boxes for raised beds? Or a log Chicken coop? They are not so good for firewood because they will fill your pipes with creosote. If you can find some Sumac, they spread quickly and make a nice drink...steep the flowers in cool water after they open, before the first rain.

And finally, poison ivy loves that kind of place, watch out.


I just had a close look at your picture and it shows you have Birch. Are you tapping them this Spring? Birch syrup is excellent.

Richard Gorny wrote:on the edge of these woods there are small, native blackberry bushes, so I was thinking about planting them.

I don't think that will work. The Blackberries are verge and full sun plants. As soon as something comes along taller than they are, when they don't get a lot of full sun, they recede. Also, even if you get a nice Grape that likes cold (e.g. Concord) they will not climb Pine. I made a very nice little Pine trellis for my Concord Grapes. They avoid the Pine like the plague, grow away from it.

You could certainly get Wintergreen, Partridge Berry, and Juniper growing in there... if it stays moist.

Miles Flansburg wrote:David so when you say hummocks do you mean on the dam or is there some other place that they pile the "soil" ?

Miles, the Beavers pile the soil on old stumps and clumps of shrubs. There is no flowing water so there are no dams. The piles are about five feet above the surface of the snow and about six feet in diameter. Not lodges, just the junk they needed to get out of the way to create deep channels in the bog. Gardening an old existing Beaver dam sounds excellent, I hope you can find some that run in the right direction for you.

It's a few degrees below freezing here this morning but the sky is blue. Once the Sun has been up for a few hours I should be able to get another toboggan load. In the meantime I am sitting here boiling Maple sap. Hard life, eh?

Excellent news, thanks! I thought it might work. You'd prefer moving it here. I can get a wheelbarrow's worth of it on my toboggan and pull it over the snow... the only trouble is that the bog is melting and the hummocks are still frozen(ish). I can get a new melted layer off every day, I figure. Until the day I go through the ice.