The percolation test is quite simple -- Dig a hole about 1 foot deep. Pour it full of water and wait... Observe whether it soaks in... Then, once it has soaked in -- fill it up full of water again and let it soak in again.. If it all soaks in within a few minutes -- you may be draining too fast and the grass dries out too fast... If it doesn't drain within a day... you have other problems.... Sometimes clay soils will soak in great on the 1st round, then will become impermeable after the 2nd or 3rd round -- as the clay saturates... It can also help point out problems in the subsoil like pure coarse sand, big rocks and hard-pans... (Gosh, my lawn drains fine here, but doesn't drain at all over there... I wonder why?) The 2nd test is outlined on here somewhere -- but it is to determine your soil makeup.. You take a mason jar about 1/3 full of dirt (No rocks and sticks).. Fill it mostly full of water.. Shake it up really good and let it sit overnight... Then shake it up really good again and let it sit again... It will separate out into various layers.. Sand and rocks on the bottom, silt in the middle, clay near the top, and light organic material on the top or floating... You then measure the layers with a tape measure and it tells you the soil makeup... These tests will help lead you in the direction of which amendments will help vs which ones will hurt... If your soil is all sand and already drains too fast.. Adding more sand won't help anything... but adding a little Clay would help quite a bit... and vice versa. Thanks John

If you are thinking of fruit trees, I'd think about American Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)...one of the few native fruit trees, and one of the few tough fruit trees. Put some males near the road and females elsewhere. I like American Holly (ilex opaca) for areas you want an evergreen for screening.

I read the same things. The greenhouse engulfs the house, but yet the human living is part of the greenhouse that also includes the pool, wood burning, and combustion engines. And the sun is blocked by the roof solar panels, which is fine for vertical farming using electric light but "greenhouse" infers natural light. If you live in Nova Scotia even trickier. Also a generic 20' house deck length (to access the upper part) of a two-story vertical farm could yield enough of a crop to supply a small town. And you are talking a greenhouse to cover about an acre footprint. Not even mentioning the water, labor, and energy requirements. Your goals surely come from a good place, and many on this forum probably share similar goals in various degrees of reasons and purpose. It might be better to start at solar with passive design attributes - it's difficult just to accomplish that. And work on your program requirements for farming - maybe just a grow shed is sufficient.

Older pictures. Lower level windows are now black, upper windows to be replaced to black as well. Not sure of style yet. (Don't want sliders). Garage door I want to replace. Not sure to what colour. Style if eith glass? If dark grey and black frame? Or wood look and black frame? Front door is black frame and wood look with large frosted window. Want to add lit up house number or lit up street name with house number. What to do about the half moons above garage and between upper windows? In pic 2. Property line indicated with black thick line. Would like to Widen the driveway and make the driveway and walkway all in pavers. Also thinking to add stone veneer on garage front porch front and lower half of side of the garage.