[Scpg] How to make water go uphill with keyline?

[Permacltur at aol.com]

Unfortunately, we get more than our share of 'instant experts' in 
permaculture who go off half cocked.   Water does not flow uphill without the application 
of external energy, e.g., a pump.   Keyline brings water from the valley line 
to the adjacent ridges because the ridges are also sloped downward along 
their crests.   So there are points along the ridges that are lower than some 
points along the valley floor, closer to the keypoint.   The keyline itself is a 
contour line (meaning a level line) that starts at the head of the valley and 
travels outward until it reaches the ridge crest.   Visualize a valley with a 
keypoint at the north end, and flanking ridges.   The valley floor and the 
ridges are roughly parallel and all sloping downward.   At any point on the valley 
floor, a line more or less at right angles to the valley floor will have to 
climb to get to the ridge crests.   But our keyline is not at right angles at 
all but flanks out in a south easterly and south westerly direction on either 
side of the keypoint until it reaches the point on each ridge that is at the 
same ELEVATION as the valley head.   Any line south of our hypothetical valley 
head that parallels the keyline is actually going slightly downhill.   This is 
just the way erosion shapes land.   And it is only true of land that is fairly 
old, geologically speaking, and has been eroded for a long time to get its 
present shape.   So if you comb the soil with a chisel plow or keyline 
cultivator BELOW the keypoint, and parallel to the keyline, the water will follow the 
consequent channels to the ridge at points LOWER than origin at the valley 
center, the creek bed, for example. Water goes downhill.   You can pick the valley 
out from a contour map because the contour goes up in the shape of a U or V 
through the keypoint (with a little flatter basin at the bottom of the erosion 
cut.)   So it is more like an omega, swelling out around a small basin and 
around the other side, going at an oblique angle to the stream bed or valley line 
until it indeed reaches the ridge at a point further from the primary hill or 
ridge.   The interesting thing I've learned by wandering about the planet a 
bit, teaching permaculture, is that the same arrangement pertains whether we 
have uplifted hills that have been eroded or a relatively flat prairie that has 
been sculpted below the dominant level by flowing water.   And of course this 
pertains only to humid landscapes.

The key to remember is the difference, conceptually, between 'level' and 
'flat'.   In our example, the entire landscape slopes toward the south, ridges and 
valleys alike.   This brings extended points on the ridges to the same level 
(elevation) as the valley head.   I would guess, and it is only a guess, that 
there are landscapes where the ridge valley arrangement does not extend far 
enough out from the hill for this to work.   But I've not thought of this before 
writing this post, so it is just something to consider as maybe possible.

For Mother Earth




Dan Hemenway

In a message dated 2/3/08 2:08:27 PM, ehumel at excite.com writes:


> 
> Hey everyone,
> I was talking with a professor who had taught in the past with permaculture 
> teachers, and he thought some things sounded a little far out.  He mentioned 
> one teacher who said that he could make water go uphill.  I couldn't defend 
> this one, I thought it had to do something with keyline and bringing water 
> from the valleys to the ridges, but 'uphill'? 
> Anyone remember the details on this one?
> 
> Thanks
> Eric
> 





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