Q&A: Permaculture in Hot Arid Climates

Question: Best practices for permaculture in hot / arid climates, sequence of permaculture implementation steps in desert locations? – Anti-evaporation is the priority in hot, arid climates, so we have to increase shade, wind buffering, and use plenty of hardy, legume trees with deep rooting fruit trees. – Caliche is a hard layer that requires smashing up, after which trees can be planted in holes or pits. – There should be 50% shade on top of gardens (annual vines), 30% from the east (deciduous vines), 75% from the west (evergreen vines), and about 20% from the sun side (south or north). – The other goal is to sink water away from the sun, into swales or ephemeral ponds and lakes, using any hard surface as a means of collection. – Crop fields should be on contour and narrow (able to be shaded), with 70% of the landscape devoted to trees. – Get this design wrong and it results in a saltiness, but get this right and there will be very high nutrient soil to work with.