Seasonal calendar conversions and comparisons

Greetings

Reading northern/southern hemisphere books pertaining to planting/harvesting/pruning/horticultural practices/gardening/permaculture design etc. in the southern/northern hemisphere can be confusing with reference to the months/seasons. This is due to the  six month offset of the seasons and the differences between the meteorological and astronomical definitions of the seasons.

Meteorologists(NZ) divide seasons into periods of three whole months based on average monthly temperatures. Astronomers define seasons with two solstices (shortest day and longest day) and two equinoxes (when day time and night time are of equal length). Astronomers use the earth's tilt and the sun's alignment over the equator to determine the dates for each event.

The table below has been designed to facilitate interpretation of months and seasons for each hemisphere and seasonal definition.

 
Click on image for larger version or download PDF.

 

Month/Season Calculator

 

2025-05-29

American resources pertaining to planting/harvesting/pruning/horticultural practices/gardening/permaculture design etc. use the USDA Hardiness classification system to divided geographic areas that have similar long-term average annual extreme minimum temperatures into 13 zones. New Zealand covers 8b to 11b. 

Zone 8b:  −9.4°C to −6.7°C

Zone 9a:  −6.7°C to −3.9°C

Zone 9b:  −3.9°C to −1.1°C

Zone 10a: −1.1°C to  1.7°C

Zone 10b:  1.7°C to  4.4°C

Zone 11a:  4.4°C to  7.2°C

Zone 11b:  7.2°C to 10.0°C

Map of NZ divided by USDA classification

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Analysis: PITEBA Oil Extractor Design Element

I recently came across the website for Piteba oil extractors

• The extractors are hand powered mechanical extractors (seperators) for nuts/seeds and oil
• As a hand powered device they fit in with my manual production philosophy
• This is a basic cost comparison and review of the ability to produce hazelnut oil
• As a concept it could apply to any other nut/seed oil

• The mind map below shows my design element analysis for home oil extraction

 Click on the mindmap for a larger view

• Following the above analysis I will be purchasing a Piteba oil extractor as a design element.  I just wish I had a plant nursery and an area to plant nut trees
• I would start collecting cuttings and bringing them on in the nursery and at the same time start preparing the area where the trees would finally be planted

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Design: Reverse Engineering

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Reverse engineering is the process of systematically analysing an object (activity/concept/design/element/function/idea/problem/process/procedure/routine/structure/system...) specifically to ascertain the external (black box) structure/processes/inputs/outputs.. and/or internal (white box) structure/processes/funtions.. that contribute to its function and form

• The technique is used to breakdown an object/system (physical/actual or hypothetical/proposed) to facilitate our understanding and learning of that object/system

• For a hypothetical/proposed design/system the analysis can facilitate understanding of the energy/materials/... required to implement/manage the design/system

• The 5 Whys strategy of questioning is a type of reverse engineering used in Root Cause Analysis problem solving

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Mnemonic: SING - How to remember what you read

Greetings

Remembering read information takes an effort, especially when reading information/data in text books that will probably only be read once

• Note taking (in any form) is a good way of recording the information for learning, but how do I remember both the background information and the data to make it useful information in the future
• I came across the mnemonic below on a Youtube clip How to remember what you read, which fits in with the way I remember what I read 

Stop - at end of text/passage for a second to focus on the read text

Identify - the main point/s of the text. Stories are hierarchical. Focus on retaining the points

Never - mind the details. Focus on the point/s

Gist; get the - of the story. Overall - all point/s together 

Other techniques I use to remember read information include: 

• Reading the contents pages of a book prior to reading the book, a primer to understanding the gist of a book (see I and G above)
• If I'm bored I will also skim the index pages in the same manner
• Reading the first few paragraphs/pages of a chapter and then skipping to the last paragraphs/page
• Text book chapters will begin with an introduction to the contents of the chapter (the first few paragraphs/pages) and end with a conclusion (the last few paragraphs/pages)
• The information in between/the bulk of the chapter is simply discussion and only of further interest if required to understand the conclusion (see N above)

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Design: Toolkit

Greetings

• My permaculture design toolkit utilises my current skills, knowledge and experience and includes areas of focus and the tools I implement when working on life and design
• The mind map below shows a personal analysis of my toolkit, specifically for home and land based use. It is not intended to be conclusive

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