Author Archives: Kerrick

I claim this post for SCIONS!

This weekend I went to the Golden Gate chapter of the California Rare Fruit Grower’s Scion Exchange, and if that is gobbledegook to you you are not alone but you are also missing out. Plants can do many things humans … Continue reading

Posted in how-to, learning | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Recap of recent events

Every so often I find it productive to leave a blog completely fallow for several months–or a couple of years–and then come back to it, possibly because I’m afraid regular posting might gain me an audience that I would feel … Continue reading

Posted in metablog, philosophizing | 2 Comments

Why Take the Train

I’ve just returned to the Bay Area from my trip to Florida by train, and I can report that while the US passenger rail system is, in the words of one Russian visitor whose acquaintance I made on the trip, … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Letter to the White House for “Advise the Advisor”

This is the long version of my response to today’s prompt on Advise the Advisor, which is about innovation: Innovation doesn’t just happen in the world of the Internet. The biggest need for American innovation exists in some of the … Continue reading

Posted in action | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Shrubs for Livestock Forage for Mixed Species Grazing

I’ve been flipping through this book online as I’ve been researching drought-tolerant plants suitable for creating a silvipasture system for goats and chickens. My plan is to design a management-intensive multicell pasture for dairy goats and a dual-purpose chicken flock … Continue reading

Posted in learning | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

Selecting Species for Coppice Firewood

With all the snowstorms blanketing much of the US right now, I feel a bit guilty that I’m still visiting family in Florida, where I grew up and where it is a cool 72ºF/22ºC outside.  On top of that I’m … Continue reading

Posted in learning | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Introduction to Permaculture Course

Just a short note to say I’m very pleased with the students in my introduction to permaculture course at New College of Florida this January. As so often happens in permaculture learning encounters, I learned as much from them as … Continue reading

Posted in daily life, learning | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Some Florida Wild Foods

While visiting the state I grew up in, I’ve made the acquaintance of a few delicious wild foods that I’d like to introduce to you. Sea Purslane—Sesuvium portulacastrum Sea purslane grows on sunny beaches and salt flats, often near mangroves. … Continue reading

Posted in how-to, photo | 2 Comments

Evolution, resilience, and building “antifragile” systems

Via Ran Prieur, I’ve been directed to this post by Professor Nassim Taleb introducing the concept of “antifragility”—the property of systems to flourish in circumstances of disorder. In summary, it suggests that the opposite of fragility, the tendency to collapse … Continue reading

Posted in philosophizing | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

New Year, New Cycle

A year ago this New Year’s Day, I had no idea where I would be in another two months. After a year of dreaming about quitting my perfectly good office job and saying goodbye to my great boss just so … Continue reading

Posted in daily life, philosophizing, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment