Ben's notes on location near Manienie gulch, upper Pa'auilo

Client: Talking Peace Farm, LLC
Chief Contact: Kate Lipkis, kate@somerestraint.com

Location:

• Aerial from Google (actually, DigitalGlobe satellite) is the only hi-res imagery available
• http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&t=h&ie=UTF8&ll=20.021793,-155.391043&spn=0.008357,0.007725&z=17

TMK: 3-4-3-7-12 (343007012)
Area: 43.5 acres.
Elevation ranges from 1650 ft. at bottom to 1950 ft at top.
Adjacent lots: 7-13 to West, 7-4 to East, 7-10 below (huge Bishop eucalyptus lot), 11-2 above (306 acre pasture)

Map Data and Surveys

• As there are no previous structures, there are no site plan or blueprints.  Deed could provide Metes and Bounds, and there is the State GIS parcel SHP.
• 1-3: Marilee has some leads on a surveyor, although the recommended one hasn't gotten back.  We need to know what it would cost to get even a rough survey, if the cost would be reasonable.
• Draft map of possibilities, January 20, 2010:
  

  As a JPEG: plan1_36cm.jpg Or as a CAD file (DXF): plan1.dxf

Fencing

• The fence is barbed wire only (for cattle) at the North and South of the land.  East and West have hogwire plus barbed at the top/bottom.  There are multiple gaps under the east and west hogwire, and an abundance of pig trails throughout land, showing it is heavily traversed. 
• Given the state of things, pigs will come and attack any other attempt to improve the land.
• Current approach is not to spend a lot of money to pig-proof the entire parcel, but to incrementally pig-proof specific areas, as needed as the plan develops.

Vegetation: Existing

• Dominant grass species is clumping grass, which is thick and tall towards the bottom of the parcel, where cattle haven't grazed it sufficiently.  Little or no kikuyu or honohono seen on the land.  Some vetch is mixed in with the grasses.
• Top ~5 acres of land are full of eucalypt (appear to be E. robusta) which is spreading vigorously downhill.  Smaller patches of ironwood (Casuarina equisetifolia) are found on the land, which are also actively spreading by seed, with many young ironwood popping up.
• The rough plan is to only clear back the thinnest part of the top forest and ironwood patches, preventing further spread.
• The gulch at the bottom of the land is full of common guava (Psidium guajava), coffee, thimbleberry, and ferns.
• A few old and young 'Ohia are found on the land, most of them in tall grass in the bottom half.  Only a single Hapu'u was found.
• A small, attractive stand of closely-spaced Koa (Acacia koa) is located center-east.
• Castor oil plant (Ricinus communis) appears in the smaller gulches.

Tree crops: Potential

• Podocarpus windbreaks
• Papaya: should work well in lower half, and possibly even higher, with wind protection, rich soil and full sun.
• Avocado, Citrus: should be excellent; cite for full sun.
• Fig, Pomegranate, Persimmon
• Jaboticaba ('Paulista'), Loquat, Cinnamon
• Banana: Dwarf Apple
• Clove, Curry Leaf, Nutmeg, Allspice
• Lilikoi
• In gardens: Cardamom, Turmeric, all the traditional herbs
• Hedges: Coffee / Tea
• Landmark trees:
  • Monkeypod / rain tree (Albizia saman): gentle shade, graceful canopy, legume
  • Bamboo
• Citrus
• Mulberry, Surinam Cherry, Jamaican Cherry, Starfruit, Macadamia
• probably too high for: Mango, Lychee, Breadfruit

Garden crops: Potential

• All cool-weather vegetables year-round, sweet potatoes year-round; nearly anything will grow in a garden with sufficiently developed soil.  Fencing out of pigs is mandatory.

Cover crops, for areas to become garden

• Pigeon Pea, Crotalaria: use in areas that will not be grazed, to improve soil.
• CTAHR advises: "sunn hemp, a mustard mix and annual rye grass"
• Sudangrass: "King of the organic matter-producing, weed-choking cover crops. Grows to 8' on hot, fertile, irrigated soil. Reduces many species of nematodes and symphylans"
• Birdsfoot Trefoil' (Lotus corniculatus) works nicely in Hawaii, no sticky seeds.

Pasture

• If there be grazing animals, cover crops / grasses acceptable for grazing animals:

• Species	Grazing
  Birdsfoot Trefoil, Lotus corniculatus	Very good.
  Cowpeas, Vigna unguiculata	Good.
  Sunn Hemp, Crotalaria juncea	Ok fodder as adult plants?  Seeds poisonous?
  Pigeon Pea, Cajanus cajan	Ok fodder as adult plants.
  Ryegrass, Lolium spp.	Very good.
  Sudangrass, Sorghum bicolor	Good fodder as adult plant. Versus other sorghums, Sudangrass has low levels of dhurrin.  Content is highest in young plants.  The recommendation is not to graze until the plant is 18 to 20 inches tall, which is usually 5 to 6 weeks after planting.

Spreading Seeds / Manure / Compost / Macnut Husk

• TBD

Soil

• Send samples to CTAHR. 

  Sample	pH	P	K	Ca	Mg	notes
  location

Potential Animals

• Keep Cattle in less-developed areas, to keep down the clumping grass.
• Later: Chickens, Ducks, Geese, Sheep?

Workers / Consultants

• TBD

Neighbors

• TBD

Water

• No Hamakua Ditch, no County water. Catchment.  Need water plan integrated with land use plan.