D’Annie’s Extraordinary Off-Grid, Earthbag Wonderland in the Aussie Bush

I’ve seen some brilliant projects in my time. But D’Annies farm? Honestly it’s the most extraordinary thing I’ve ever seen. I could probably write five articles on it and still have left things out.
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Usually, we homesteaders specialise in one particular area. It might be the mud building. It might be a permaculture success or a small holding. If a project is succeeding in more than one area, often it’s because it’s a community project. D’Annie’s isn’t that. This incredible earthbag wonderland is the brainchild of a little 55-year-old suburban woman called Annie, and has been built by her, with some help from her old friend and right-hand man Danny (hence D’Annies).

D’Annies.

How it began
Three years ago, Annie was a middle-aged mother leading a typical life in the suburbs of Adelaide. Then the pandemic hit, and she suddenly felt a push to leave the madness behind. She sold her house and quickly found this beautiful piece of land. Thus began a life-changing adventure. Wow!
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Many things are remarkable about D’Annie’s farm. For someone with zero building experience, this is a staggering engineering feat. Here we have two massive earthbag buildings, a food forest in a desert, a fully functioning off-grid set up, livestock, a large aquaponics greenhouse, a massive polytunnel, beekeeping, rainwater harvesting, composting toilets...the list goes on and on. And she’s only been here three years!

The earthbag kitchen.

The ace up her sleeve
It’s one thing to build an earthbag structure or two. It’s quite another to do this off-grid in the middle of the Aussie bush with no running water, no power grid, and a very shaky mobile network. Don’t ask me how she does it. I was completely mind-blown when I saw it.
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“I’m ex-military,” says Annie, with a wry grin. “So I have some experience with setting up a camp.”

I suppose if you’ve trotted across the Nullarbor in combat gear with a SLR rifle on your back, anything’s possible.

When she first arrived on the land, there was zero infrastructure. The first thing she and Danny did was create some access. The second thing they did was to start collecting and organising materials. How many times have I visited a project to see salvage mayhem, with the person having no idea what they even have. Here it was all laid out in lots!

Next Annie and Danny set a couple of caravans on the land to sleep in, and created a makeshift camp with toilet blocks and a bush kitchen. Then she began what I believe is her heart’s calling: the gardens and food forest. Annie has green fingers. There is a huge polytunnel rammed to the gunnels with all kinds of vegetables. Not to mention many beautiful outside gardens full of fruit, trees, flowers, and herbs.
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The reason Annie manages these incredible gardens is because she has set up multiple very smart watering systems. If, like me, you have spent too long procrastinating about something like this, watch this video. Annie walks us through her very simple, effective, and low water usage watering system.

See Annie’s very smart watering system

Green fingers.

A love for animals
One special thing I love about both Annie and Danny is that they are real souls of the Earth. And while Annie’s practicality certainly is a bonus, in my opinion it is her ability to hear her land that has made her farm far more than just a “successful project”. It’s a place of beauty and originality, and respects all life. Annie loves animals, and I noticed just how healthy all her pets and birds were. Because yes, she has livestock— ducks, chickens, and quails, as well as three dogs and two cats. It’s quite a menagerie.

Raptor the duck.

The chicken palace.

Power and water
The place is entirely solar-powered. Annie has about 2 kilowatts of power, and has a few freezers, a fridge, and a washing machine. For water, she has installed multiple rainwater harvesting stations. But this is basically a desert, so in the dry periods Annie and Danny have to transport in water, as well.

Power.

The earthbag kitchen and bedroom
There was a lot to be impressed about at D’Annies, but I’m still gobsmacked by the earthbag structures. The kitchen is 20 metres by 20 metres! Not only that, but it’s a square structure, so includes a lot of buttresses too. I think there were something in the region of 3,500 earthbags in it.

“Some woofers came, I think they did about a row. But I did the rest,” she says.

When I first heard that, I simply couldn’t believe it. Earthbag building is labour-intensive. I always say it’s good for teams of about four or more. It’s not the easiest technique if you are alone, especially when you get to the higher layers. Each sack (hers were big, too...gulp) weighs something like 20 kg. Annie stands at about five foot tall!

“I’ve lost some weight since I’ve been here,” she jests, pulling her sun hat on as she scampers out to collect some honey. “And I was real glad when it was done!”

I simply blinked in response to that. You can watch the tour of Annie’s kitchen here.

Danny fully admits he didn’t do any of the earthbags, though he did help out with the roof. Annie is the architect of that very competently laid roof, and painstakingly researched it. What I noticed about her was that although she plans thoroughly before attacking a project, it’s not to the point of paralysis. When it’s time to act, she steps on the gas and works her butt off. Take note of how they spliced the upcycled roof joists together. It’s pro.

The kitchen interior so far.

You’d think a 20m x 20m earthbag structure would be enough, right? But oh no. At the same time, Annie built herself a sizeable bedroom! It was this 10m x 10m structure we helped to plaster a bit of during our clay plaster and cob workshop in Adelaide.

The bedroom.

Aquaponics
And there’s more. Annie et al built an aquaponics glasshouse completely out of upcycled doors. Inside she keeps a tank of perch. The perch poop makes fertiliser for the plants, and a pipework system feeds the fish poop water to all kinds of plants.

Aquaponics.

I could go on for another week about D’Annies. There are bees and clever ways to grow plants in hot climates, there are mulching and composting toilets, a figary too. And somehow above and beyond all that, Annie makes her own sourdough each day, and creates all kinds of natural salves and ointments. Feeling tired yet? He he he.

Amazing Annie on her land with her dogs.

Things to learn from this project
I learned plenty from Annie, and as a result of staying with her I pledged to change more than a couple of things about the way I go about my next off-grid project. Here are some important takeaways:

1. Collect materials and set up decent storage before you start the project. I must admit, I have a bit of an aversion to stuff and hate feeling like I live in chaos. But I can see Annie has saved herself a lot of money, time, and running about by creating a very organised kind of salvage yard, which she pilfers whenever she wants.
2. Set up an automated drip-fed (or similar) watering system. I’m so sold on this. How long did I waste in Turkey each day watering? I don’t want to even think about it.
3. Get your infrastructure up before you indulge in your passion. Annie really got this right. She made her life a lot easier by sorting out water, toilets, kitchen, and power from the get-go.
4. Listen and look out for the ancestors and guardians that might be wandering around your land. Ask before breaking ground.
   

The bush kitchen and volunteer camp.

Want to volunteer with Annie?
What an experience! If you really want the full off-grid outback adventure, Annie takes woofers and volunteers. She has a decent setup, and I can’t stress enough how much you could learn from this place if you have the right attitude. Heck, I learned plenty! But Annie really does need capable hands-on folk, so only apply if you are in reasonable physical and mental shape.
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You can contact Annie directly by email.

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Me with Annie and Danny this year.