For our Fall 2010 one day workshops scroll on down…

 The 16th Annual Permaculture Design Course

Registration for the 16th Annual course 2011 opens on Sept. 1st, 2010

Participants in the 14th Annual Design Course in 2008 pictured below. Click on the news link on our home page for pictures from the 2010 course.

Five Weekends in February and March 2011  – Feb. 5th and 6th, Feb. 12th and 13th, Feb. 26th and 27th, Mar. 12th and 13th, Mar. 19th and 20th
Cost $650, $595 for early registration (by December 31st 2010). There is also
a class book fee of $39 for a copy of Introduction to Permaculture by Bill Mollison. Also highly recommended is Brad Lancaster’s Rainwater Harvesting for
Dry lands Vol 1 and Vol 2.

For the last seven years this course has
been full with a waiting list, so early registration is encouraged. To give a high quality educational experience, we limit the size of the class to
eighteen participants. Contact dorsey@dakotacom.net or 624-8030 to register or see the information below for registration info and other FAQs.

This course is one of the longest running annual Permaculture courses in the U.S. and leads to a Permaculture design certificate. It covers all aspects of sustainable design with an emphasis on Southwest dry lands, including a balance of hands on experience, classroom time, and design practicum. Dynamic exercises encourage pattern recognition, noticing the links between plants and animals, climate, and landforms that make up natural ecosystems. These patterns are the basis for the Permaculture system of sustainable design.

The course focuses on dry land communities, addressing individual site and neighborhood “problems” such as storm water flooding. Students learn to read the landscape, to map and analyze energies flowing through a site, and to develop integrated designs for sustainable systems. The weekend format of the course makes it easier for people who hold a week day job to attend and promotes better integration of the course material into daily life.

Course topics include agro forestry, appropriate technology, building design, design principles and patterning, site analysis, dry land gardening principles, ecosystem restoration, philosophy and ethics of Permaculture, regenerative community economics, soils and erosion control, village and community design, water harvesting, and many other topics.

We take field trips to working Permaculture sites around Tucson, and you will have the chance throughout the course to design and begin implementing Permaculture on a site of your choosing. This course is challenging and fun, and it shows the whole big picture of
sustainable design in Southwest Dry lands and how sustainability and integrated design really work!

Site: The classroom will be in the Central Tucson area, and at other Permaculture sites in the Tucson area. Much of the class is held outdoors.

Taught and facilitated by Dan Dorsey, Brad Lancaster, Barbara Rose, and other teachers from the Sonoran Permaculture Guild, as well as professional guest instructors. For teacher profiles see the members link on this website. To register and for more information contact Dan Dorsey, course registrar, at 624 8030 or dorsey@dakotacom.net

Fall 2010

(registration information for these one day classes is at the very bottom of this page) 

Saturday, September 11th, 2010 – Medicinal Herbs of the Sonoran Desert

This class is an opportunity to spend a full-day with well known herbalist John Slattery. First we’ll travel to some nearby desert areas surrounding Tucson, and we’ll forage for seasonal wild food and herbal plants that can be used for home remedies. We’ll bring the plants we gather back to Tucson and learn how to prepare them for later use.  The amount of summer rains will tell us where we will look and what our harvest will be. Topics such as Ethnobotany, habitat observation, plant identification, medicinal uses, and wild foods will be covered in this class.  Bring your choice of sun protection, water, a bag lunch, comfortable walking shoes, and pencil and notebook (if preferred). 

Directions on where to meet for carpooling and other class details will be sent upon registration. Time 8AM - 4PM. Cost $75, includes all materials and handouts for the class. Contact John Slattery for information on class CONTENT only at desertortoisebotanicals@gmail.com For registration information contact Dan Dorsey at dorsey@dakotacom.net

Saturday, October 2nd, 2010 - Introduction to Permaculture

This class is a one day overview of Permaculture design, ethics, and principles. Based on the Permaculture design system, we’ll learn how to start telling the unique story of our own place, and put together a long term plan for a sustainable home and landscape – one that takes care of people and takes care of our environment at the same time. We’ll demonstrate and practice some of the skills and strategies needed to do a Permaculture design, like mapping our site and the use of simple elevation tools. Bring a basemap sketch of your home or a friend’s home site. Held at the Sonoran Permaculture Guild’s Ramada classroom site north of downtown Tucson, you will see Permaculture design demonstrated on site. Class size is limited to 15 participants.
Location: Mesquite Tree Permaculture Site, one and a half miles north of downtown Tucson. Directions and more information will be sent with registration. 9AM o 4:30PM
Cost: $59 – includes all course materials, handouts, and a delicious mesquite bread snack cooked in a solar oven.
Taught by Dan Dorsey (520) 624-8030 dorsey@dakotacom.net www.sonoranpermaculture.org/teaching-team-members/dan-dorsey
Call or e-mail Dan for registration or information. Directions and more information will be sent with registration.

Saturday, October 9th, 2010 - Natural Top Bar Beekeeping For Beginners

This is a one day introductory beekeeping workshop in Avra Valley just west of Tucson, Arizona.  The role of bees in a regenerative permaculture design will be discussed and compared to conventional “industrial” methods of hive maintenance. We will look at the biology of the honey bee, the structure of the hive, the roles of queen, worker and drone, and the honey bee’s complex set of duties such as completing pollination, storing nectar and pollen, making wax, and expanding the hive with brood.  To facilitate discussion, the morning portion of this class will involve the examination of these patterns within a working top bar hive. The second half of this class will illustrate the construction of a top bar hive, and the benefits of natural top bar beekeeping vs. standard beekeeping methods. The cost and planning involved in setting up a top bar bee hive and a conventional Langstroth hive is covered, as well as alternative hive designs and installing a new hive from packages or swarms.  If time, weather, and honey flow permit, a hive will be harvested and comb honey may be available for tasting.  Suggested reading: The Buzz about Bees, Biology of a Superorganism, by Jurgen Tautz, The Biology of the Honeybee, by Mark L. Winston, and Introduction to Permaculture,by Bill Mollison.

Location: ReZoNation Farms & Consulting, Avra Valley, Arizona, 27 miles west of downtown Tucson. Directions and class details will be sent with registration.  Carpooling is encouraged.  Time: 8AM to 3:30PM  Cost: $75 – includes all course materials. The workshop is taught by Jaime de Zubeldia (520) 869-1044 jdezubel@yahoo.com Call or e-mail Jaime for registration or more information.

TBA - It’s All About the Soil

The future of sustainable agriculture will be in small to medium scale organic food gardens grown right in our cities. Come learn how to set up a complete garden system from one of Tucson’s best organic gardeners. Kim will show you how to increase your garden’s health, production, and nutrient value, using an integrated system of on site earthworms, compost mulches, and organic soil amendments to improve fertility, structure and life in your soil. As a bonus you will see how chickens can be integrated into the system also.

Time: 9AM – 1PM

Cost: $39 – includes all course materials. Taught by Kim Fox. Contact Dan Dorsey (520) 624-8030 dorsey@dakotacom.net for registration. Please contact Kim for more information on this course at (520) 622-1917. Class limit is 15 participants.

Saturday, October 23rd, 2010- Natural Building and Passive Solar Design

This workshop includes hands on work with straw bales, adobe blocks, mud based plasters, cement based plasters, cob, and home made paints. We’ll do hands on building of small structures like benches and walls – projects that you can easily do at your own place to create beautiful outdoor spaces. After this hands on work in the morning we’ll cover the building codes related to these materials used in larger projects. After lunch we will talk about the main principles of good passive solar design. This class emphasizes integrated design and getting back in touch with the patterns of nature so we make design decisions that are in tune with the environment. Using these natural building materials can help make our living environments more healthy and comfortable too.   Location: T.B.A. in central Tucson. Directions sent with registration.Time: 9AM to 4:30PM Cost: $69 – includes all course materials and handouts.  Taught by Dan Dorsey and other teachers (520) 624-8030 dorsey@dakotacom.net www.sonoranpermaculture.org/teaching-team-members/dan-dorsey
Call or e-mail Dan for registration or information.

Tuesday evening, October 26th - Build A Straw Bale House or Wall

Co-Sponsored by Pima Community College

In this non-hands on seminar you will learn about straw bale construction and the advantages of super insulation, thick walls, and ease of construction. Handouts and a complete discussion of the current straw bale code, detail drawings of windows and doors, and additional tips to make your building experience easier are included. This class also includes a complete slide show from start to finish on how to build a straw bale house or wall, as well as a demonstration of special tools and props that work well with straw bale construction.
Location:
Time: 6:30 PM to 9 PM
Cost: $29,  Call PCC at 206-6468 to register
Class size is limited to 15 participants
Taught by Dan Dorsey, B.S., local straw bale designer of over 60 permitted single family residences and auxillary buildings throughout Arizona.

Picture of Dan courtesy of Watershed Management

Saturday, November 6th, 2010 - Complete Hands On Water Harvesting

Learning how to use rainfall and storm water run-off is one of the keys to developing a sustainable and lush landscape. Rainwater harvesting helps us to reduce erosion and have a lush multi use landscape without having to import water from outside our bioregion or overpump the groundwater table. In this hands on workshop we will install a water cistern, learn how to read the water situation on a site, and do basic calculations on the water flow available. We will install basic earthworks to hold water on site, and talk about contours, plant selection, and mulching. This workshop is more than learning about techniques for harvesting rainwater; it will show you how water harvesting can be integrated into your own lifestyle and into a simple landscape design for your home.
Location: Central Tucson Location, TBA. This class is limited to 15 participants.
Time: 9AM to 4:30PM
Cost: $69 includes all class materials and handouts
Taught by Dan Dorsey (520) 624-8030 and guest instructors dorsey@dakotacom.net www.sonoranpermaculture.org/teaching-team-members/dan-dorsey call Dan for registration or information

Day Workshops – Native Foods, Herbs and Earth

Ongoing seasonal workshops are available, scheduled as interest and group size allow, and can be customized for the interests of the participants-  please contact us (below).

Foods and herbs collected during their seasons are integrated into delicious and nutritious feasts, which complete the day’s workshop. Barbara’s and Jill’s new cook booklet features some of these in “Wild Recipes, Seasonal Samplers” (available at the class).

Past workshops have included:  Cholla, Saguaro, Palo Verde, Ironwood, Mesquite, Prickly Pear, Wolfberry, Hackberry, Barrel Cactus harvests, preparation and feasts; Prickly Pear borscht, barbecue sauce and rubs; Cactus seeds and fibers and their many uses; Herbal oils, salves and tincture making, Native culinary herbs for seasoning; Kombucha and vinegars made with herbs and cactus fruit; Desert kimchis and krauts; Cactus and Chapparral in earth plasters; Cob art and building projects including walls, benches, ovens and sculptures.

At all workshops, wear comfortable clothes and walking shoes. Class size is limited to 15 participants.
Location: Bean Tree Farm at Dancing Rocks Community, 15 miles north of downtown Tucson. Directions and more info sent with registration.
Date and Time: Saturdays, 10AM to 3PM (often scheduled earlier in the heat of summer)
Cost: $65 – partial scholarships available as class registration allows. Includes all class materials.

Instructors: Barbara Rose, guest instructors  www.beantreefarm.com or www.sonoranpermaculture.org/teaching-team-members/barbara-rose

faqs on registering for our one day classes…

How do I register for a one day or half day class?

You are registered for a class when we receive you payment in full. There are three ways to pay or register for a class…

1. Checks and money orders can be made out to our non-profit: “NEST/Sonoran Permaculture Guild”. Please mail only checks and money orders (no cash) to: Sonoran Permaculture Guild, c/o Dan Dorsey 221 E. Linden Tucson, AZ 85705. Include your return address, e-mail, and phone number, and you will be sent an e-receipt or phone call confirming your registration

2. Cash, money orders, or checks can also be handed directly to Dan Dorsey or to the contact person for the class in person, and a receipt will be issued to you at that time. Call the contact person listed for the class to schedule a time. Our central Tucson office is one and a half miles north of downtown Tucson.

3. You can pay by major credit card through our PayPal account. Call or e-mail dorsey@dakotacom.net for this option, and I will e-mail you on how to use your major credit card or existing PayPal balance.

If after I register and pay, and the course starts, what if I need to cancel out?

Our refund policy is as follows: Up to three weeks before the class, you will receive a full refund minus a $5 refund and processing fee. Up to ten days before the class you will receive two thirds of the class fee as a refund minus a $5 processing fee. Within ten days before the class date there is no refund, but we will give you some partial credit to use toward a future class. If the class you are signed up for is full with a waiting list, and we can fill your cancelled spot, you will receive a full refund minus the $5 refund and processing fee at any time.

Is there work-trade exchange available?

There might be some work trade for classes. Contact the class registrar for the class.

Can I get college credit for taking any of these classes?

Some of our students have been college students, and they have worked with their departments at the University of Arizona, Prescott College, and Pima Community College to obtain independent study credit for taking our courses and classes. It is up to the individual student to work out arrangements with his or her college or department for credit.

What if I have additional questions about what to expect in the classes?

Call or e-mail the contact person for each class listed below the description of the class.