Permaculture: All that I have Learned

While travelling, we have become interested in Permaculture. We would like to settle down, and have some land to work our way to supporting ourselves off the farm. In May, we plan to go to a Permaculture Design Certificate course. We think that Permaculture fits well with the bible, especially the ethics of care of earth, care of people, and fair share, sharing resources with others.

What is permaculture? Here is a description from www.permacultureprinciples.com:
Permaculture is a creative design process that is based on ethics and design principles. It guides us to mimic the patterns and relationships we can find in nature and can be applied to all aspects of human habitation, from agriculture to ecological building, from appropriate technology to education and even economics

There are twelve principles of permaculture. I will share also what I have learned about what the 12 principles mean. They are:

1. Observe and Interact- Nature is the perfect garden. God designed it with precision, and they can support themselves without intervention from man.

2. Catch and Store Energy- Water, Food, Solar energy, are all things that we need to catch and store. Water is becoming an increasingly important resource, and if we do not store it we will lose it.

3. Obtain a Yield- We do not want to not get anything if we work the land. We just want to not destroy the land while obtaining a yield. We want to look after the land, and feed ourselves at the same time.

4. Apply Self Regulation and accept Feedback- If we do not accept feedback, how will we know what we are doing wrong, and what do we know to improve? Maybe a system would work better, why do we get defensive when someone suggests something? Feedback is important to improve and fix things that could be improved/ fixed

5. Use and value Renewable Resources and services- If we are simply usiong non-renewable sources (coal, petrol etc.) what do we do if it runs out. Using renewable resources allows us to actually keep something for our children to use. Already petrol and diesel are getting more and more expensive, and if we can find something renewable, why dont we value it?

6. Produce no waste- We value what we have, and conserve it 'Waste not, Want not'.

7. Design From Patterns to Details- If we design from the big things to the little things, details will fill themselves in as you start to plan.

8. Integrate rather than segregate- Plant plenty of crops rather than just one (like corn). Just think of symbiosis (i've been learning about it in Biology). By putting the right things in the right place, relationships develop between those things and they work together to support each other.

9. Use small and slow solutions- Small and slow solutions are easier to maintain than bigger ones, and also 'slow and steady win the race'.

10. Use and Value Diversity- Diversity reduces vulnerability to things like pests and diseases. It also takes better use of the environment in which it lives.

11. 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.

12. Creatively Use and respond to change- We can observe and then intervene, using creative methods that we have observed to intervene.

I’m not an expert, that is just all I have learned. We all have discovered some great websites. Here they are if you want some more information:

Geoff Lawton- Here are some great videos, that are free

Redeeming the Dirt- We greatly enjoyed the book, Born Again Dirt. It provides a biblical perspective to farming, and it is extremely interesting.

Permaculture Voices- This website is great. There is heaps of great stuff, and it is really imformative and covers a whole range of topics.

Jack Spirko has also done a lot videos that are really informative. They are all available on Youtube. Here are the links to the first 3.

Permaculture with Jack Spirko Part 1- Introduction

Permaculture with Jack Spirko Part 2- Ethics

Permaculture with Jack Spirko Part 3 - The Third Ethic