Permaculture

PERMACULTURE

   Most of the early literature on permaculture came from the UK and Australia. Books based on these ecosystems give good insight into the principles of permaculture, but are not oriented to the specific flora and fauna of temperate North America, let alone New England and Maine.
   I have limited experience with permaculture, unless simple longevity (20+ years) of planting in an area allows one to qualify.
   I do have some experience with what happens when you set up your perennial flower and herb beds; and then neglect them for 3+ years. Over time, the massed plantings make way for each other, self-clustering in patches that have evolved beyond the original human dictates of shape. Watching this process has been fascinating. I feel that I may further encourage the garden to 'self-cultivate' in this fashion as I attempt to develop a more perennial 'edible landscape' over time.
   3/1/12; I have been reading the work of Sepp Holzer (see references below), and was just pondering building raised beds in the manner he does them; with the use of trees and brush as a lower layer, dirt on top. I actually hired someone (in 1996) to come out and clean up some of the 'slash' (branches and debris) from logging- he had bulldozed it into a pile and put dirt on it. I hadn't realized I was seeing a functional version of Sepp Holzer's activities. That area has been transformed, over the past 17 years, from blackberry bushes to trees. It definitely was changed, and I think for the better. So I was thinking how I could do this in my garden (in a wet, 'sour' trouble spot). I realized that my ever growing 'burn' pile of branches and etc, not far from the garden, would provide me with sufficient material for a substrate for raised beds.
2/19/13; I am halfway through my first formal permaculture course, and the pieces are starting to come together a little. The task with a piece of land of this size is additionally formidable because of the scale; howeer operations here are already underway (since our purchase and move in 1995), so some mistakes have already been made (and some even remedied!). The northern frigid zone is an especial challenge for the concept of a 'food forest'; one can see the aboriginal virtues of nomadic hunting/fishing/gathering in order to take advantage of briefly available, albeit perennial, resources in the 'unimproved' biosphere. I really want to pursue such projects as cranberries and rice, Zizania as well as Oryza. (A recent web search shows that one may finally be able to obtain viable wild rice for planting.)

1. For a valuable discussion of permaculture theory, consult the Wikipedia article;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permaculture

_Wikipedia;
'...Permaculture is a theory of ecological design which seeks to develop sustainable human settlements and agricultural systems, by attempting to model them on natural ecosystems.'

'...Permaculture as a systematic method was developed by Australians Bill Mollison and David Holmgren during the 1970s. The word "permaculture" originally referred to "permanent agriculture", but was expanded to also stand for "permanent culture" as it was seen that social aspects were integral to a truly sustainable system. Mollison has described permaculture as "a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted and thoughtful observation rather than protracted and thoughtless labor; and of looking at plants and animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single project system'

The 12 principles of permaculture (from Wikipedia);

'...Holmgren's 12 design principles;
'...The core of permaculture has always been in supplying a design toolkit for human habitation. This toolkit helps the designer to model a final design based on an observation of how ecosystems interact.

Observe and interact: By taking time to engage with nature we can design solutions that suit our particular situation.

Catch and store energy: By developing systems that collect resources at peak abundance, we can use them in times of need.

Obtain a yield: Ensure that you are getting truly useful rewards as part of the work that you are doing.

Apply self-regulation and accept feedback: We need to discourage inappropriate activity to ensure that systems can continue to function well.

Use and value renewable resources and services: Make the best use of nature's abundance to reduce our consumptive behavior and dependence on non-renewable resources.

Produce no waste: By valuing and making use of all the resources that are available to us, nothing goes to waste.

Design from patterns to details: By stepping back, we can observe patterns in nature and society. These can form the backbone of our designs, with the details filled in as we go.

Integrate rather than segregate: By putting the right things in the right place, relationships develop between those things and they work together to support each other.

Use small and slow solutions: Small and slow systems are easier to maintain than big ones, making better use of local resources and producing more sustainable outcomes.

Use and value diversity: Diversity reduces vulnerability to a variety of threats and takes advantage of the unique nature of the environment in which it resides.

Use edges and value the marginal: The interface between things is where the most interesting events take place. These are often the most valuable, diverse and productive elements in the system.

Creatively use and respond to change: We can have a positive impact on inevitable change by carefully observing, and then intervening at the right time.'

Link to the permaculture principles and discussion in e-book format (a free download from David Holmgren's site).
http://www.holmgren.com.au/DLFiles/PDFs/Essence_of_PC_eBook.pdf

2. Permaculture Forums

http://www.permies.com/

Up-to-date postings and discussion on permaculture and other useful topics.

Permaculture on Youtube

http://www.bioversityinternational.org/

PERMACULTURE

_Wikipedia;'...Permaculture is a theory of ecological design which seeks to develop sustainable human settlements and agricultural systems, by attempting to model them on natural ecosystems.'

2. Permaculture Forums

Permaculture on Youtube

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_Wikipedia;
'...Permaculture is a theory of ecological design which seeks to develop sustainable human settlements and agricultural systems, by attempting to model them on natural ecosystems.'