The Survival Podcast Oaks, Fodder Trees & Homestead Resilience – Epi-3810
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Mar 4, 2026 Nick Ferguson, a permaculture designer and ecosystem consultant, shares stories from international regenerative projects. He explores function stacking, fodder and support tree strategies, coppicing and pollarding, and choosing oaks and rapid-support species. Short, actionable conversations on nursery tactics, living fences, and creating resilient, set-and-forget homestead systems.
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Prioritize Function Stacking
- Do prioritize function stacking: choose plants or structures that perform multiple jobs like fertility, shade, pollinator habitat, and windbreaks.
- Nick uses false indigo as an example providing nitrogen, mulch, pollinator flowers, shade, and structural edge for adjacent vegetables.
Fodder Trees Reduce Feed Dependency
- Insight: fodder trees convert dependency on feed stores into perennial on-site feed resilience.
- Nick found many clients' systems failed when feed-store grain stopped, so perennial coppicing trees solve that vulnerability.
Manage Fodder Trees With Rotational Coppicing
- Do coppice fodder trees to waist height on a rotation so you can harvest repeated high-protein foliage without letting animals overbrowse.
- Nick typically harvests each tree about every two weeks in summer, yielding 15–30% protein dry matter.