PERMACULTURE DESIGN - Permaculture Design for Aggie's Farm Page 16. Permaculture Design for Aggie's

PERMACULTURE DESIGN

P L A C E : A G G I E ' S F A R M D E S I G N E R : A G N E S E . D O U E

D A T E : M A Y 3 0 , 2 0 1 5

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

SITE ANALYSIS Site Location Climate Temperatures Dew point Frost Dates Planting Zone Precipitation Humidity Sunlight Wind Ecoregion Watershed Local Regulations History Locale Photography Topography Soil Description Base Plan Sector Analysis Existing Conditions

DESIGN REQUIREMENTS Vision

Values Goals Objectives

Needs Shelter Water Food Energy Economic Lifestyle Opportunities and Constraints

PERMACULTURE DESIGN

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Roads Perimeter Protection

Shelter Water

Water Collection Water Storage

Food and Useful Plants Production Areas Plants Support Plants Animals

Energy Connections Among Elements

External Inputs Purchased External Outputs for Income External Outputs as Waste Loops of Continual Reuse Chains of Multiple Use

Zones Zone Map Zone 1A Zone 1B Zone 2A Zone 2B Zone 3 Zone 4-5

Complete Design Map Conclusion

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SITE ANALYSIS

SITE LOCATION

Address 14192 US Highway 82 E, Avery, TX 75554, USA, North America

Coordinates Latitude: 33.55° N, Longitude: 94.78° W

Boundaries North .11 mi, West .47 mi, South .11 mi, East .43 mi

Area .48 sq mi

Altitude 465 ft

Distance to Water 270 mi to Gulf of Mexico

Public access Fronts highway US-82E

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Illustration 1: Image credit: Google.

CLIMATE

Köppen-Geiger Climate Classification. Köppen-Geiger Climate Classification type is Cfa – Humid Subtropical.1 This climate is characterized by hot, muggy, summers similar to the tropics, occasional winter frosts, and fairly even year round rainfall between 26 and 98 in. Major geographical regions include southeastern United States, northern Argentina, Uruguay, southern Brazil, southern Japan, southern China, and western Australia.2

TEMPERATURES

Temperature summary. Using data recorded at the Clarksville airport, 14 mi from property, for the years 2003-2012, over the course of a year, the temperature typically varies from 34°F to 95°F and is rarely below 25°F or above 102°F. The warm season lasts from May 30 to September 12 with an average daily high temperature above 87°F. The cold season lasts from November 25 to February 24 with an average daily high temperature below 62°F.3 Using historic weather data from the Paris airport, 45 mi away, the weather extremes are significantly outside the averages. The record high is 113°F on Aug 10, 1936. The record low is -5°F on Jan 18, 1930.4

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Illustration 2: Image credit: Wikipedia.

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Illustration 3: Image credit: WeatherSpark.com and PlantMaps.com. Red curve maps average high temp; blue maps average low, for recent years. Inner colored band to 75th percentile. Outer band to 95th percentile. Upper and lower unsmoothed lines map recent absolute highs and lows. X's mark historic highs and lows.

DEW POINT

Dew point. Dew point indicates how comfortable a person will find the weather, because it relates to whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Over the course of a year, the dew point typically varies from 27°F (dry) to 71°F (very muggy) and is rarely below 14°F (dry) or above 74°F (very muggy). The period during which the daytime dew point is likely to be experienced as muggy to oppressive is May 23 to September 16.5

FROST DATES

Frost dates. The table below documents the probability that the low temperature for the given date will be less than or equal to the listed temperature. For example, there is a 90% chance that the temperature will drop to 32° or less on March 12 but only a 10% chance on April 13.

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Illustration 4: Image credit: WeatherSpark.com. The daily average low (blue) and high (red) dew point with percentile bands (inner band from 25th to 75th percentile, outer band from 10th to 90th percentile).

Clarksville, TX Probability of Last and First Frost Dates6

Temperature 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

Spring 32° Apr 13 Apr 7 Apr 3 Mar 31 Mar 28 Mar 25 Mar 21 Mar 17 Mar 12

Spring 28° Mar 29 Mar 23 Mar 18 Mar 15 Mar 11 Mar 8 Mar 4 Feb 27 Feb 21

Spring 24° Mar 18 Mar 9 Mar 3 Feb 26 Feb 21 Feb 16 Feb 10 Feb 4 Jan 27

Fall 32° Oct 22 Oct 29 Nov 1 Nov 5 Nov 8 Nov 12 Nov 16 Nov 20 Nov 27

Fall 28° Oct 28 Nov 4 Nov 9 Nov 14 Nov 18 Nov 22 Nov 27 Dec 3 Dec 10

Fall 24° Nov 9 Nov 17 Nov 22 Nov 27 Dec 2 Dec 6 Dec 11 Dec 16 Dec 23

PLANTING ZONE

Planting zone: US 7b/8a

PRECIPITATION

Description.

The humid subtropical climate is characterized by even precipitation throughout the year.7 This is supported by local weather data. However, longtime local residents maintain, and the owners have experienced, that the hot summer months of July and August are likely to be dry.

Almost all precipitation is rainfall. Snow is negligible.8 Hail9 , tornados10, and severe thunderstorm winds11 have moderately low probability compared to the rest of the US.

Average yearly rainfall12 45.84 in

Maximum yearly rainfall (year)13 77.72 in (2009)

Minimum yearly rainfall (year)14 23.55 in (2003)

Average Reported Precipitation in a Month (Years 1903-2010)15 Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

In 3.14 3.21 4.26 4.65 5.41 3.76 3.24 2.74 3.47 4.01 3.88 4.08

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Least Reported Precipitation in a Month (Years 1903-2010)16 Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

In 0.14 0.36 0.38 0.09 0.23 0 0 0 0 0.02 0 0.13 Year 2009 1999 1916 1987 1988 1998 1913 1985 1937 1964 1910 1950

Most Reported Precipitation in a Month (Years 1903-2010)17 Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

In 9.99 10.08 14.75 13.51 16.77 11.32 16.07 10.39 11.63 16.83 17.27 11.56 Year 1949 1997 1990 1957 2009 2000 1992 1914 1974 1919 2000 1971

Most Reported Precipitation in a Day (Years 1903-2010)18 Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.

In 4.73 3.94 6.15 4.92 8.3 4.56 4.25 4.1 5.26 7.45 5.5 4.75 Year 1969 1927 1945 1986 1933 1938 1992 1919 1980 1955 1956 1982

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Illustration 5: Average, maximum, and minimum monthly precipitation for years 1903- 2010.

HUMIDITY

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Illustration 7: Image credit: weatherspark.com.

Illustration 6: Maximum daily precipitation by month for years 1903-2010.

SUNLIGHT

Hours of Daylight Throughout Year

Solar Path for 33.55N19

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Illustration 8: Image credit: weatherspark.com.

Illustration 9: Image credit: USC Architecture.

WIND

Wind Speed

Over the course of the year typical wind speeds vary from 0 mph to 13 mph (calm to moderate breeze), rarely exceeding 18 mph (fresh breeze).

The highest average wind speed of 7 mph (light breeze) occurs around March 27, at which time the average daily maximum wind speed is 13 mph (moderate breeze).

The lowest average wind speed of 3 mph (light breeze) occurs around July 24, at which time the average daily maximum wind speed is 9 mph (gentle breeze).20

Wind Direction

The wind is most often out of the southeast (18% of the time), south (14% of the time), and east (14% of the time). The wind is least often out of the southwest (4% of the time) and west (5% of the time). Winds from the northwest increase during the cooler months of the year, to a maximum of ~17%.21

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Illustration 10: Image credit: weatherspark.com.

Wind Effects on Microclimate

Wind speed from the northwest is increased somewhat during December, but not generally greater than 12 mph. Wind speed for the hot summer months of July and August is decreased to ~ 5 mph, decreasing the effectiveness of cooling breezes.22

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Illustration 11: Image credit: weatherspark.com.

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Illustration 12: Image credit: windhistory.com. Wind roses for direction and speed for month of December.

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Illustration 13: Image credit: windhistory.com. Wind roses for direction and speed for month of July.

ECOREGION

Ecoregion Post Oak Savanna23,24

EPA classifies the region as Central Texas Plains, also called the Post Oak Savanna or the Claypan Area. “This region of irregular plains was originally covered by post oak savanna vegetation, in contrast to the more open prairie-type regions to the north, south, and west, and the pine forests to the east... Soils are variable among the parallel ridges and valleys, but tend to be acidic, with sands and sandy loams on the uplands and clay to clay loams in low-lying areas. Many areas have a dense,