The Greenbriar Collective's Suburban Permaculture Garden is just that - a permaculturally inspired garden in suburbia, designed and operated to show that sustainable, just, and decentralized food production is possible in Oklahoma.  Because of the realities of exploitive, industrial, & unsustainable capitalist agribusiness, the Greenbriar Collective decided in August of 2004 to take action through the Garden and other non-traditional food gathering methods.

Garden Journal:
Update: 3.30.06
Update: 1.26.06
Update: 10.13.05
Update: 8.30.05
The Garden's needs & goals.
Garden Map for 823 N. Findlay

A related project, an important aspect of permacuture, is the Appropriate Technology Project.

Getting Involved: There has been increased interest this season in the Suburban Permaculture Garden project. We have expanded to collectively managing six gardens, and many have asked if they could volunteer. If you are interested in working with the Greenbriar Collective's Community Garden efforts, consider coming over (see below), joining our listserv by visiting here, checking the calendar, or looking at the wiki.

Update (3.30.06)
-Spring is here, and we are off and running! The cool-weather garden is planted, and we are digging the rest of the plots for the warm weather crops. The garden project has expanded tremendously in previous months. We are collaborating with six gardens in town for a maximum combined harvest. We are taking the microclimates and soil at each site into account when making planting decisions, and separating varieties for seed saving. Not much has been planted at the new sites yet. We are still working on preparing the ground, building raised beds and irrigation, and other preparatory work. Information on the new gardens will be forthcoming.

-Here at 823 Findlay, we have planted collards, swiss chard, florence fennel, chicory, potatoes, castor beans, and catnip, with much more planned for later. The collards, swiss chard, and fennel are beginning to germinate, and even a few catnips and chicory has come up. Much from last season is doing beautifully, including the surprise appearance of all the lettuce planted last summer! The onions, garlic, chives, and echinacea is resurfacing, and the rosemary has rejuvinated as well, and even the wheat has begun growing again. The prickly pears have begun to grow also. I'm worried about the potatoes, though. They aren't coming up, and we may need to start them over. Elsewhere, at the other sites we have peas, and chamomile already out. The drought seems to have broken, so we have high hopes for our harvest. We are already enjoying the occasional sprig or leaf off our small greens and wild edibles.

-Many wild volunteers have come up! These are a key part of any sustainable garden system, and have provided us the bulk of our harvest at this early point in the season. There is an abundance of wild mints of some kind, as well as some dock, a few dandilions, plantain, and yes, a greenbriar.

- We've been mulching and doing soil work in anticipation of a good spring crop.  We're hoping that history repeats itself with a terrible winter and a beautiful spring.

- The indoor plants continue to do very well; we've acquired some more perennials and continue to root cuttings from the bell peppers and tomatoes.

Update (10.13.05)
- The bell peppers have been potted up and moved inside, and the basil has been taken in for drying.  All other transplants continue to produce and normalize in their new environment.  The egyptian walking onions, beans, kale, radishes, echinacea, and beats are doing particularly well.

- We've created some new beds and planted mostly garlic along with more seed of the previously mentioned (8.30.05) varieties.  Despite our desire to xeriscape, we've been watering to keep everything alive.  The north wind desiccates things faster than we anticipated, and so we've seeded trumpetvine all along the north fence in the hopes of it providing a quick solution.

- We came across 160lbs of potting soil, and we've started potting long-term perennials (yaupon holly, chestnut, etc) for an eventual permanent planting.

- No new expansion is planned until we gear up for spring.

- Thanks go out to K for the donation of our first banana tree.  May it grow strong and prosper!

- We have recently seeded: prickly pear cactus, collard greens, black yardlong beans, turnips, lettuce, beats, radishes, egyptian walking onions, leeks, celery, endives, cabbage, catnip, cilantro, chives, feverfew, and we've gotten a few watermelon and cantaloupe volunteers that we hope will fruit before the first frost hits.

- We are trying as much as possible to use Oklahoma-hardened varieties of seed, and barring that, we're using as many varieties as possible in order to increase survivability and genetic diversity.  We're focusing on organically-raised heirloom seed, but being pragmatic about what we get our hands on.  We would have liked to do more permaculturally-inspired planning of the space, but we've had to hurry to get things in the ground and it's been a bit haphazard.  Come by 823 Findlay Ave. in Norman for a tour!

- Next season's plans include planting native fruit/nut trees/bushes and working with the OSU Extension Office Master Gardeners to plant traditional Native American varieties of spring crops.

• An educational and culturally appropriate resource for growing food in Oklahoma.
• Focus on permacultural, xeriscape, & indigenous techniques.
• Tours, networking, and help in facilitating the spread of sustainable and just food production in Oklahoma.
• Provide a concrete resource for the community in terms of free food, seed saving, and medicinal herbs.

• Untreated raised-bed borders (logs, lumber, etc)
• Soil
• Compost and other organic soil amendments (We'd be happy to muck your stables)
• Mulch (straw bales, aromatic cedar chips, etc)
• Large barrels for rainwater collection (clean, please! No chemical residue!)