Wow we did it!  We reached our initial goal!  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  In just 20 days we’ve raised over $4000 to help us start our food forest here on the rez.  This means so much to us, and you all are responsible for making this happen.  It is truly a blessing… thank you again.

But wait!  We’re not done… we still have 11 days to keep raising money and we want to tell you about the other projects connected with the food forest.  $4000 will only take us so far to get started with buying saplings, starting a nursery, and getting our young fruit trees established in the ground.  Every dollar that we raise above this will only help to make this project better – a greater diversity of species, a bigger nursery, better tools and supplies, etc.  There are also other projects, which form a symbiotic relationship within our system.  Bee Hives, Wind Power, Rainwater Catchment, Solar Cookers… these are a few of the main projects, which will work with our food forest to make sustainable food security a reality on the rez.

Take a look… there’s much more to do!  Increase your pledge, tell a friend, give a donation in honor of someone as a gift, post it on your blog/facebook/etc.  Please continue to show your support in anyway you can!

Continuing Support

If we continue to raise additional funds above and beyond our target… you can help us support these other projects:

1. Beekeeping business. We can get lumber at wholesale to build top-bar hives.  A local Lakota beekeeper would like to partner with OLCERI to start a beekeeping business.  Getting started, we will host anywhere from 3-10 hives on our site.  Bees are vital pollinators for our fruits trees!  approx. funding needed: $350-1400

2.  Wind towers.  Six turbines are already up and our battery bank in place.  We need to hire an electrician to hook it up and buy supplies to connect the towers to the batteries.  Off-grid energy is essential for running our kitchen, for preparing and storing our harvest.  approx. funding needed: $1000

3. Rainwater catchment.  We have several tin roofs that we can catch rain from.  We would like to purchase 8 250-gallon tanks and associated hardware – in addition to the free materials we are recycling/repurposing (e.g. rain gutters, piping).  Sustainably sourced, fresh water will make our trees grow.  approx. funding needed: $500

4. Solar cooker/food dehydrator.  This is part of our food security plan; we want to dry and store food, a traditional Lakota practice. We’d like to build several of these and make them available to other groups including community garden groups and a coalition of sustainable organizations on the rez.  This will ensure that the yield from our food forest can be enjoyed year-round.  approx. funding needed: $500

These are not all or nothing projects… any amount raised will get us started!  We can do a lot with very little, but your additional support helps us fill in the gaps.  To contribute you can visit our kickstarter page or donate here on olceri.org through paypal (just click the donate button on the right – donations through either, both link to the same place).

We are thrilled to get things moving around here… please keep up with us to stay informed about our progress (we will continue to update this page, but you can also find us at facebook.com/olceri).

From everyone at OLCERI and people all across Pine Ridge, Thank you.

Mitakuye Oyasin

(We are all related)

Well, we’ve been busy here but every time we check back in we are continually amazed.  We have almost hit our goal in just two weeks!  We now have 83 backers and over 500 views… wow!  We’ve got 2 more weeks to go and we will continue to raise funds beyond our 4k-mark… we have many other projects that also need support.   Please continue to spread the word and if you haven’t donated yet, please consider giving any amount that you can.  Keep up the all the positive energy and feedback – you are our inspiration.

Once again, we want to fill you in with what’s been going on around the ranch and share our excitement about what we have planned for the coming months.

Since we last updated you… we’ve been doing tons of work in the garden, we’ve dug another, longer swale, we are nearing completion of the root cellar, we’ve buried the newest water pipeline, and we’ve been doing some spring cleaning around the ranch.  We’ve also employed our fearless pig – who has made it quite clear that she does not care to stay in her pen – to help us clear weeds, till and fertilize the site for our food forest.  She spent the last two days roaming the pasture with the horses, enjoying some open space and fresh green grass – until we found her napping in the outdoor kitchen!  She is safe and happy in her new, pig-pen-tractor, which will rotate throughout the field as she helps us prepare the soil for planting.  She’s happier out of the mud, we are happier doing less work; it’s a win-win… basic permaculture.

We’ve also been planning out our species list for the food forest, designing a number of companion planting guilds, and doing research about grafting fruit trees to grow with native species.  We also have a number of ‘experimental’ selections we are hoping to grow here (we’ll fill you in later, but one of them is Goji Berry!).

We’ve been making more and more progress in the garden.  The entire plot is laid out… every bed mulched and spread with manure, pathways cut, and tons of seeds and starts planted.  We have a double corn spiral, three-sisters guild (corn-squash-beans).  Herbs and greens are slowly filling in our medicine wheel bed.  We’ve dug a hugelkultur bed (deep bed, filled with wood to improve drainage and start building soil) – planted with an asparagus-rhubarb-strawberry guild.  We’ve started three potato-tires (stacking tires to create vertical beds).  And, we planted a NO-water tomato plant!  So many cool things happening and so many cool things growing!

We are gearing up for a spectacular summer – full of energy, life and beautiful things… wonderful people, free roaming animals, nourishing food and this beautiful land.  We are all in good spirits and we are being blessed with many days of warm sunshine.  Please continue to spread the word, support us, and come visit if you can.

Wapila Tanka.

Our Blessings from the ranch,

The Team at OLCERI

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/olceri/pine-ridge-food-forest-growing-food-security-on-th

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JOIN US for this incredible event

We are preparing for the Spring/Summer season and there are so many things to be excited about!  This is one of them.  Each year we host a Permaculture Design Course (PDC) to learn how we can prepare and begin to change our world for the better.  These 2-weeks are an inspiring and life-changing experience, bringing people together from all over the world to share and exchange knowledge, skills and joy with one another.  Please join us!

What exactly is a PDC?

Gain the skills and knowledge you need to provide for you and your community.  Learn to live in balance with the earth – making use of its natural systems, while protecting its majestic beauty.  This 2 week course will equip you with the essential tools for a sustainable and abundance future!

Why a PDC in South Dakota?

This is a unique opportunity to learn about Permaculture, in a Native American context.  Live, Learn and Work with the native Oglala Lakota on their beautiful and rich land.  The course is hosted here, on the Pine Ridge Reservation, at our very own permaculture ranch. During the course you will be able to see and help build the many existing systems we have in operation.  Our site focuses on: food production, water harvesting, sustainable energy, natural building, and broad-scale holistic management.

Whether you are an experienced Permaculturist, an avid gardener, or are just beginning to learn to benefits and skill-sets of a truly sustainable lifestyle, we would love to have you join us.  All backgrounds and experience levels are welcome!

For more details and registration visit:   www.permacultureguild.us

Wondering what Permaculture is?

“Permanent agriculture” or “permanent culture,” a term coined by Australians David Holmgren and Bill Mollison in the 1970s, describes a design system for creating human settlements that function in harmony with nature. Incorporating traditional knowledge, modern science, and the ecological patterns of the living world, permaculture design is applicable to farms, gardens, organizations, housing developments, towns and villages, or city neighborhoods.

Learn about how past course graduates are been putting their skills to work –> Read more