Dams to Wetlands: Part 3 - Time to Plant

November and December are the best months to plant in and around the water of the dam.

As the dam water receeds, the space becomes accessible and new plantings have a chance to become established before being inundated by the Autumn rains.

The objective of the plantings is to:

1. Stabilise the soil around the dam
2. Create habitat for native wilflife, particularly  frogs
3. Become water purifiers
4. Improve the aesthetics of the space

We took the chance to put in about 70 plants as close to the water as possible. These included the River Bottle Brush (Callistemon sieberi) as we as various rushes (Juncus) species sourced from the local nursery and being of local provenance.

All these plants have the benefits of being fast-growing, while the Juncus is particularly easy to plant, not requiring staking or covering. The local Macropods also don't seem too interested when there is tastier grass to be found elsewhere.

The area we chose to plant was the gentle slope down the hill, which is basically a mud flat, full of silt and nutrients. This is in contrast to the dam-wall side, which is rocky and would be more difficult for the plants to establish.

The plantings on the mud-flat area should quickly spread and start to fill that space.

Rushes planted in the silt

Several Rush species

See the new plants to the right and below the dam

We'll check back in a few months and see how these are progressing.

Rain Harvesting First Flush and Leaf Diverter Review

Six months ago, I installed a leaf diverter/filter as well as a first-flush system on our rain water tanks that we use for drinking and household water, to ensure we have a clean water supply.

Now that I've had some time to see them both in action, I thought I would share my findings.

What is a leaf diverter?

As the name suggests, this is a device that prevents leaf and other large debris from entering your rain water tank. The mesh filter also prevents insects, particularly mosquitoes, from entering the tank.

While most poly tanks have a filter, this is not always the case for older tanks such as our concrete tanks. In this case, I purchased the "Rain Harvesting" brand leaf diverter from Bunnings.

Here is the link to their product page.

What is a first flush diverter?

This device diverts a volume of water from entering your tank which is likely to contain roof contaminants such as soil/dust, bird droppings, fertiliser residue and other small particles or chemicals that accumulate on your roof between rain events.


Again, I used the one available from Bunnings.

The kit contains the floating ball and associated special T-join that has a moulded ball seat. Also included is the tube emd-cap, which allows for a steady release of diverted water, allowing the tube to empty once rain has ceased, resetting the system automatically.

The kit contains several rubber washers that have different sized pin-holes in them, allowing you to control the rate of water release and therefore the timing for the system to reset. Choice of hole size is based on the size of the diversion tube, which can be quite large. The recommendation is to have as large a tube as possible given your space limitations.

In this photo you can see the floating ball in the background as well as the assembled end cap.

Overall impressions

My experience of installing the first flush diverter was problematic to say the least. The instructions were very unclear. I needed to use several YouTube videos as well as study the individual parts to finally understand how to assemble the unit. This is definitely an area the company could improve in.

However, after finally working it all out, the final system is excellent and works very well. It is easy to clean and would be easy to replace if anything should fail.

I was surprised by how much debris accuulated in the bottom of the diverter pipe, thereby preventing this from entering our drinking water. It was smelly, black mud. On this basis alone I would now never have a tank without a first flush diverter.

The Leaf Beater does as it suggests and was easy to install. The amount of leaf debris that can accumulate on the mesh is quite high, but this does not prevent water from passing through it at a high flow rate during, for example, a thunderstorm.

Once it has stopped raining, it is a simple task to remove the mesh, which is sitting in the device and not clipped or screwed in, and empty it of its leaves and twigs.

Recommendation

I would recommend both these devices. I note that Rain Harvesting now have newer versions of the first flush diverters. My only hope is that they have improved their instructions.

The Leaf Beater is really for people that do not already have a tank mesh filter, but if you don't, then this product will do its job well.

How to Build a Double Bench with Table

I recently built this double bench with a centre table to replace some camp chairs and brighten up the place.

This is from a design that I made on the brilliant Sketchup program based on other designs I found there.

The primary improvement I made was to slope the seat 5 degrees, which leads to a more comfortable sitting position and does not overly complicate the build process if you have a mitre saw.

The Sketchup design can be found here.

The Sketchup model looks like this:

Materials

For all the sides, rails and supports, I used 90 x 45 mm recycled timber.

The front horizontal rail is bigger at 140 x  45 mm. This height is not critical - adjust your build accordingly.

The seat slats are 108 x 19mm floorboards cut down to 86 mm wide. You could use any decking timber.

The table and arm rests were milled from an old piece of timber to 130 x 28 mm. This was custom-milled. As long as they are all the same thickness, the overall piece will look good.

I used 14 - 10g x 75 mm stainless steel screws for the majority of joins.

8 - 10 g 40 mm screws were used to attach the seat slats.

The piece was finished with outdoor decking oil.

Step 1: The Frame

To build the frame you need to cut the correct angles of the rails: 5 degrees for one end and 10 degrees for the other. This leads to an overall slope for the back of 15%.

The first cut to make is the small bevel where the front seat slat will sit. This cut needs to be first so that you can align the timber correctly on the mitre saw. This is a 5 degree cut of only 3mm.

Once you have made this cut, do the other 5 degree cut for the front, then do the 10 degree cut for the back.

Once complete you can assemble the frame:

Step 2:  The Sides

Making the sides is straight-forward. Cut all the pieces, including the 15 degree cut to the back of the top rail and join all the pieces.

In this design I chose to cut a notch in the vertical front pieces to support the front horizontal rail. To do this a did multiple passes on the mitre saw with the depth set to 45 mm (half the depth of the vertical piece). This adds a nice effect to the overall piece. If this is too hard for you, or if you don't have the right tools, just leave this step out and cut your front rail the same width as the rear rail.

To get the pieces square, measure and triangulate and adjust accordingly. If these pieces aren't square, then the rest of the build will be difficult.

Attach these pieces to your frame.

Step 3: Seat Slats

The seat slats need to go on next as you will have to temporarily remove the upper side rail to gain access to drilling and screwing.

I cut a bunch of 9mm spacers to help lay out the slats.

Once you have finished attaching them, reattach your side rails.

 

Step 4: The Back

The back pieces need to be square and all the same length. It is also nice to round them over to take away the bulky feel of the overall piece.

To round them, I drew a semicicle using a round saucer. Try to aim for a radius of about 45 mm (half the width of the timber). Then I cut using a jigsaw. On the recycled hardwood I used, this was quite difficult as the timber burns as the saw turns. Sanding tidies this up.

Once you have your four pieces, attach them to your frame:

The side pieces can be used to stabilise the two at each end, while the middle pieces can do with an extra screw. I used 3 screws in for the middle pieces. All others have 2 at each point (4 in total).

Step 5: The back slats and table supports

The back slats go next to ensure that the back rails are the correct distance apart. If you attach the top slat first, you can correct for any warping in the vertical rails.

Once you have all the slats on, go ahead and attached the pieces that will support the centre table, taking care to align the rear piece carefully to ensure the table will be level. It's best to do this on a level surface and use a spirit level to align the rear piece.

Step 6:  The Table and Arm Rests

Finally, attach your table and arm rests.

I decided to shape the arm rests with a jigsaw to give a nicer overall look, but this is optional. You may alternatively round the rear corners the same as the back supports to soften the look without overcomplicating the build.

I hope you enjoy this design. If you build your own or have any comments or suggestions, please let me know.

An Australian Weather Parser for the RainMachine

I had previously written a comparison of various smart watering systems and have selected the Rainmachine HD-12 as my preferred option.

While there is no local support, I have been able to get the RainMachine working well here by replacing the 110v plug pack with a 240v one from Jaycar.

The RainMachine uses internet feeds for weather predictions and is very U.S,-focussed, as expected, with the majority of weather services localised to the U.S. However, being open to developers there is the opportunity to write your own weather parser for a weather service of your choice.

Here in Australia there is a weather service called Willy Weather and I have written a parser for Australia based on the JSON API from willyweather.com.au.

Instructions and code can be found here: https://github.com/safepay/rainmachine

Willy Weather provide a commercial API that uses the Bureau of Meteorology data and wraps it in a modern API framework that is easy for developers to consume. The first 5000 calls are free, then the cost varies based on data requested, but is around $0.05 per 1000 calls.

This parser I have written detects your location based on your lat/long settings and suggests the closest station ID's. You then enter and save the station ID of your choice and the parser does the rest.

I hope that this can assist anyone else looking for a local Australian weather source for their RainMachine.

I use this parser along with Open Weather Map for good results.

Wine from 200 Vines Part 2: Layout and Soil Preparation

One of the challenges over the last summer has been the hot, dry north sun killing many of the plants in our garden. Advice from Bruce at Chalmers Vineyard suggests that some new vineyards are being planted in an East-West orientation instead of the tradtional North-South to enable leaves to shade fruit during the hot, dry months of February to April, leading up to harvest.

Therefore the site was pegged out in an East-West orientation.

The goal here was to mark out the rows to enable a tractor to come in and rip. Ripping breaks the compacted soil and allows nutrients and moisture to deeply penetrate the land. In turn, the vines will be able to send roots down to find water, thereby minimising irrigation - a key goal in the process.

Row spacing is 3 metres as advised from several wineries. Overall row length for ripping is calulated on a vine spacing of 1.5 metres, plus an extra 1 metre before and after the first and last vines respectively. This means for 25 vines the length is (24 x 1.5) + (2 x 1) = 38 metres. Pegs were then put in an addtional 3 metres before and after this to avoid them being dug up by the tractor, which means peg spacing of 38 + (2x3) = 44 metres.

We are trying to avoid ripping in the areas where the fencing end-assemblies will be, to ensure they are in stable ground.

Measuring the row spacing and marking with chalk.

Using string to align the pegs.

Now that the site is pegged out the ripping can occur. This is done via a single, winged tine (known as a Yeoman's Plough) which can rip to about 500mm deep. The rig is also fitted with a spinning plough to help break up the topsoil and kill weeds. The tractor made two passes over the ground to ensure a deep rip.

Here are some photos of the ripping process:

The finished result.

Now we have prepared the soil, we move on to a standard approach for growing fruit trees. Add gypsum, adjust the pH, fertilise and sow a green manure crop.

Gypsum was bought in bulk from Dellavedova in Maryborough. 350kg for $27 is great value. This was applied evenly to all 8 rows.

A pH tester (bought from the local Home Hardware) showed the soil at three different locations to be a surpriing pH7. It was fully expected that the pH would be acidic (< 7) and that lime would be required. It was good to avoid this step.

Finally, a full trailer load of chicken manure was bought for $13.20 from Hazeldene's Chicken Farm at Bendigo. This is great value because they will fill whatever size tray you have for that price. This is also a good way to ferilise the area as the chook poo is mixed with a lot of grain husks from the chicken feed which adds an additional amount of organic matter to the soil which will rot away over time.

At the same time as the fertiliser is added, a green manure crop is also sown.

Green manure crops are a mixture of seeds from cereal and legumes that help to fix nitrogen in the soil and are also ploughed back in 6 weeks after sowing to add further organic matter.

The green manure seed mixture was bought from Bush's Produce in Bendigo. They recommended 100g per square metre. We have 320 square metres, therefore we need 3.2kg. We purchased 10kg for $25 so that we could sow additional crops if necessary.

This was a mixture of barley, wheat, oats, peas and lupins, 50:50 cereals:legumes.

Here is a photo of fertilising and sowing:

Sowing a green manure crop.

Now that the preparation works are complete we are relying on Autumn and Winter rains to wet the soil and germinate the seeds.

We expect to be ploughing the manure crop in 6 weeks, before any hard stems develop which facilitates the decomposition process.

Wine from 200 Vines Part 1: Site and Vine Selection

I was standing in the front paddock a few months ago and realised that there was a gentle, North-facing slope. Why not plant some vines?

Hiking through vines in the Asti Region of Northern Italy

This is the first of probably many posts as we embark on our home vineyard journey.

Who, at some point, has not dreamed of the idea of growing their own grapes and making wine? The idea of looking down on the green vines from your summer deck, with a glass of wine in hand, thinking of the harvest. Or tending to the bare vines in the middle of winter, preparing for the next years crop?

To begin I did a lot of reading. Probably the best document I found is this one, published in all places, Queensland! Not really known for their wine, but the practices of growing grapes and making wine are quite standardised. The document is 20 years old, but the information it contains has agreed with every conversation I have had with local wine growers.

The other fantastic source of information has been from the local winemakers: Don at Welshman's Reef, Bruce at Chalmers and the kind people at Harcourt Valley Vineyard.

Next come the key questions:

1. What varietal and clone to plant?
2. What rootstock to pair it with?
3. How many vines to order?

Firstly, we needed to determine what we want to grow and how many vines, so that we could place an order with a suitable grower this year before the end of June, so that our vines could be grafted and grown ready for planting in Spring 2019 (yes, 2019!).

The first question was one variety or two? The answer - One. Because you can make two wines from the one batch of juice. For example, a red and a rose. This gives some flexibility to the process depending on yearly yield and also simplifies the harvesting and fermenting processes.

There are so many varietals as well as root stocks, but we have chosen Sangiovese clone Matura 7 (Mat 7). This is because Sangiovese is less common in central Victoria (Shiraz being dominant) but grows well, particularly in the Heathcote area. Secondly, it is a forgiving grape, like Shiraz, but unlike Tempranillo which can be low in acidity. The Mat 7 clone was suggested as it simply makes great wine and has vibrant, dark fruit. This is a clone that is being grown both locally and in the King Valley region.

Rootstock is another key selection criteria. Our objective is to grow un-irrigated, once established, therefore a recommended rootstock is Richter 110. This sends down deep roots and therefore tolerates drier conditions. It is also of medium to high vigour, meaning that the yield should be good despite the low water use.

To determine how many vines to plant we sat down with Ron and Julia from Welshman's Reef Winery and did some back-of-the-envelope calculations:

Assuming we get 3kg fruit per vine...
200 vines would give 600kg fruit...
Assuming 60% juice yield, this gives 360 litres juice...
Which can fit in either a Barrique (225 litres) or a Barrel (360 litres), as we are aiming for barrel aged wine which makes a more professional wine than oak chips.

Therefore if we have a good year we can use most of the juice to make a red wine and the remainder
to make a rose.

So, we have now ordered 200 Sangiovese Mat 7 + R110 clones from Chalmers Nursery based in Mildura, which will be picked up by us in October 2019.

In the next post we will cover vineyard layout and preparation.