HOW TO CREATE A BASIC FARM PLAN

Planning starts with maps. The steps below roughly encompass what permaculture would call a base map, habitat map, and design.

1 Source an aerial map of your block

Use an image from Google Earth, Google Maps, LINZ (see above), or ask your council as it may have maps available online or by request.

2 Record the following information

• Farm boundaries and internal fences.

• Areas that are slopes, aspect, vegetation, soil types (or wet areas), erodible land, areas with weed issues.

• Infrastructure such as laneways, yards, buildings, stock fords/bridges, chemical sheds, water tanks, water systems.

• Streams (both permanent and intermittent), rivers, ponds/dams, lakes, wetlands, drains, sediment dams, anywhere stock can access the waterways.

• Critical source areas, eg septic tanks, troughs, silage stacks, dumps, offal holes, yards, lands, chook/pig pens, and anywhere else where faeces, nutrients, and soil can runoff into waterways.

• Existing and planned shelterbelts, forestry/woodlots, native bush, and pole plantings.

• Existing and planned riparian fences and plantings.

3 Describe the environmental practices you use on your block

This includes:

• soil testing;

• fertiliser;

• cropping/grazing;

• use of chemicals;

• water use;

• waste disposal;

• predator and weed control;

• biodiversity protection/restorations.

Create an action plan

Create a table of environmental improvements, an estimated timeline, costings, and (where appropriate) include them on the FEP map. Source: NZ Landcare Trust