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The property is almost flat but has a 10 foot high berm dividing an upper section and lower section. The lower section is floodplain with silty clay. The upper section has more sand and little gravel. We dug a “borrow” pit in each section. The lower pit might pond but it’s a drought now in SE AZ. We needed the earth to raise the site for a barn to be added. The area can sheet flood during the monsoons so the barn site needed to be raised. I have new respect for those that move earth and operate machinery.

In the permaculture vein of stacking functions the pits might serve several functions: 1) ponding and water infiltration; 2) wildlife water source; 3) upper pit might become a future cabin site with a basement; 4) source of earth for natural building; 5) source of sand and gravel for road maintenance; 6) upper pit might become a mechanics pit for maintaining vehicles.

I learned it’s very slow to dig with a small backhoe and dumping trailer. It took several weeks of halftime work. I did not want a bulldozed pit, called a cattle tank by ranchers, like so many I see around here. The soil needed to be moved and used for something else rather than piled up around the edge of a pit. But a bulldozer is faster and easier. However, a loader backhoe is the most versatile equipment one can rent or buy. I cut two new maintenance and fire roads, moved earth, spread gravel, moved heavy objects around the property, dug trenches, raised bags of cement mix to the mixer, etc. No wonder a loader backhoe is the standard equipment for many homesteads.

By operating the rental backhoe and dumping trailer myself the cost was about $6500. It’s expensive but the raised barn pad we made is nice. And the roads are very useful. It can go from drought to flood here is a short timespan so the raised barn site is good insurance. It’s important to have gravel to cover the roads or a dust storm and mud can become unpleasant. So the gravel was another $4000.