Zorthian Ranch in Alta Dena

Today I took a tour of the Zorthian Ranch.A 40+ acre ranch located in Alta Dena. The picture below is a view from the patio.

This future eco-village is particularly interesting because the structures, designed by renowned artist Colonel Jirayr H. Zorthian, are made nearly entirely from "trash". Junk railroad ties, telephone posts, broken up concrete, old tire rims, and all kinds of other stuff. It might sound strange to you but the genius of Col. Zorthian and the power regeneration through re-using "waste" really shines through.

Recycled Chair Artwork

Walls of Recycled Concrete for Erosion Control

Horse Pen with 4 horses

The opportunity for sustainable growth is incredible here. They have plenty of clean and undeveloped land. The land, fed by springs, produces 20,000 gallons of clean water per day...

I couldn't get over the sweet ass artwork everywhere. The structure below is actually made of recycled telephone poles, pretty neat!

Tons of junk = tons of opportunity!

They have a pretty large area for planting crops right now. Raised beds with lots of salad greens and green onions. Notice that this is a multiculture which helps attract a variety of helpful organism and in the event of disease prevents a total loss of crops. This is important for helping the ranch become self-sufficient!

This area was actually the old horse stable so the land is incredibly fertile. The horses and gardens will be switched around to put that "black gold" horse manure to use.

Beautiful Recycled Concrete

View of Alta Dena

Since much of the property is built on a slope they incorporate many techniques of controlling erosion. Can you say regenerative?

Incomplete wall built from railroad tires and recycled concrete. Shaweezy!

Check this cool deck out. It over looks one of the very first pools in Southern California. 

Behind this wall lies one of the first pools in Southern California...I didn't get a picture of the pool however...=(

The resident llamas, Dolly and Lama.

Well that's about it. It was a fun tour and a great day. I will be posting updates about the progress of the ranch's transformation for every one to read. If anyone is interested in volunteering or helping out hit me up!