Submitted by Santiago, Sustainable Living Center director
Pringle Creek will be adding two new "Sustainability Goals" to our list of 35.
36) Harvested Timber Used Onsite. Half-a-dozen fir trees, that either fell naturally during this year's big wind storm or had rotted-out bases and needed to be removed, were brought up the hill, decked and milled last week into dimensional lumber, which we will be able to use onsite.
Kevin Caster brought in his portable sawmill and cut the trees into boards and large beams that we will be able to use in houses and buildings at Pringle Creek. Click here to see more pics. This use of onsite material eliminated the need for hauling uncut logs to a mill and back, and turned a "waste product" (problem trees) into the highest, most valuable use (functional lumber). Another example of the concept "waste = food".
37) Create the Edible Landscape. Last week, we planted 200 fruit trees in the community orchards. The early blooming cherry and pear varieties were planted alongside the streets and pathways, so come springtime they will have an incredible visual impact. The long, symmetrical rows make nice view corridors, and the orchards will be a pleasant place to stroll through. The best part, however, is that the landscape is not only beautiful, but functional and productive too. 
The orchard, combined with the community gardens and 50+ blueberry bushes, gives us an edible landscape and a local source of food that we know for certain will be chemical free and fresh. And it can't get much more local than your own neighborhood. Columnar apples were planted so that, if gardeners want to, they can cultivate between rows for multi-layered, permaculture gardening. Additionally, hedgerows will be planted alongside the gardens and orchards to attract pollinators, provide food and shelter for birds and other wildlife, and act as a wind screen. All of our plants came from local orchard suppliers (the beauty of living in the Willamette Valley). We planted Oregon Curl Free Peach, Bing Cherry, Jubileum Cherry, Stella Cherry, Comice Pear, Chehalis Apple, Enterprise Apple, Liberty Apple, Lodi Apple, Golden Sentinel Apple, North Pole Apple, Brooks Plum and Ubileen Pear.
