The natural farmer of the Alps, Sepp Holzer, will offer a public lecture and two workshops in Pierce County in February. In preparation for these events, there will be numerous free movie showings about his property, the Krameterhof, at local coffee shops and libraries.

Holzer’s work in the Lungau region of Austria has received international acclaim and was featured in Expo 2000. At an altitude of 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) in the “Siberia of Austria,” he has created a self-sustaining landscape in which he produces many varieties of quality fish, fruits, nuts, vegetables, mushrooms, pork, poultry and even citrus without irrigation, fertilizers, pesticides or weeding. He has also written books, “The Rebel Farmer” is the only one currently translated into English. A handful of movies have also been created about his project. Ciscoe Morris will have Holzer on his Feb. 28 show.

Pierce County residents will have an opportunity to learn about his innovative techniques that involve food growing, localized economics, appropriate technologies and more. A free movie will run from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday at Buono Coffee in Wilkeson, from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 11 at Beyond the Bridge Cafe in Sumner, and then again at a Feb. 26 and 27 workshop at Mick and Vicki Boynton’s Mowich Way Ranch, also known as Mowich Mick’s. They, along with Friends of the Carbon Canyon, will host “Ponds on Sloping Land: Microclimates, Microhydro, Aquaculture.”

The Divine Earth Gardening Project is a garden design and teaching business ran by Kelda Miller. It is a Puyallup-based “Permaculture” resource, though many projects extend throughout Western Washington. Permaculture is a design system for creating sustainable human habitats that do not degrade ecosystems. About Perma-Dise Corporation: Perma-Dise is a similar business to Divine Earth. They operate out of Yelm, where Sepp Holzer will be based for his western Washington tour. Their Web site has complete listings for his month in western Washington area.