permaculture in your garden (and life!)
DESCRIPTION
Permaculture is a design philosophy that is commonly applied to gardening, but which can also be applied to larger systems: businesses, educational endeavors, and other life work. In this class, we cover the personalities behind and basic principles of permaculture, introduce resources for learning more in the Portland area, and discuss how permaculture can be applied across disciplines. Folks who have earned or are pursuing the Permaculture Design Certificate or have done self-study in permaculture are welcome; this is a very basic class, but there will be time for all participants to share their experiences with and thoughts about p’culture.TRANSCRIPT
PermacultureIndependence Gardens
Portland, OR
Download the handout that goes along with
this slideshow!h!p://bit.ly/yIAjsr
January 2012© Independence Gardens LLC
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Topics We’ll Cover• Permaculture: de!nition• Permaculture: origins• Permaculture: vocab• In gardens• Beyond gardens• Examples• What YOU can do with
permaculture
What We’ll Cover TodayPreview
Got Questions? Please ask as we go along.
http://www.acari-rn.com.br/permaculture.htm
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
What is it?
• Design philosophy– Hard work now means less work later (but don’t put off harvesting something)
• Ethics– Care for people: humans are part of natural systems– Care for earth: natural systems keep us all alive– Return the surplus (also “fair share”): limit consumption to ensure that all have
access to resources to provide for themselves
• Principles (via Toby Hemenway)– Observe. Connect. Catch and store energy and materials. Each element performs
multiple functions/each function is supported by multiple elements. Make the least change for the greatest effect. Use small scale, intensive systems. Use the edge effect. Collaborate with succession. Use biological and renewable resources. Recycle energy. Turn problems into solutions. Get a yield. "e biggest limit to abundance is creativity. Mistakes are tools for learning.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Where did it come from?
• Bill Mollison (☞ that’s him with his wife )
&
• David Holmgren (☞ that’s him with his harvest )
http://greenconnections.wordpre
ss.com/2010/10/01/bill-mollison-the-ultimate-
strategist/ & http://www.weeklytimesnow.com
.au/article/2009/08/05/100145_count
ry-living.html
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Bullseye– Zone 0: self/household– Zone 1: most visited,
intensive use– Zone 2: semi-intensively
managed– Zone 3: commerce/farm/
semi-public– Zone 4: minimal care/
public– Zone 5: unmanaged/
“wild”
Key concepts: Zone
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Key concepts: Sector
• Oh well– External
in#uence on a site or situation
– Cannot control it, so must design around it
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Relationship– Group of
plants that perform distinct and mutually bene$cial functions
– Most famous example is the “food forest”
Key concepts: Guild
http://climatelab.org/Permaculture
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
• Maximize the edge– "e intersection of two
environments– "e most diverse place in
a system– Where energies and
materials accumulate
Key concepts: Edge
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Permaculture in the garden
• “Close to home”• Native plant backbones with
edibles integrated• A place you want to spend
time• Inviting to other bene$cials,
off-pu%ing to those you want to stay away
http://www.satoridesigns.net/?p=482
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Beyond the garden
• Health & well-being– Body = garden– Everything in relationship
• Living spaces– Green building– Natural building– Re-urbanizing
• Business• Stuff & things
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Example 1• Who: two-busy-person and a big dog household in SW PDX• Goals: create low-maintenance native garden space; grow food• Process: collaborative whiteboard design, zone mapping
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Example 2• Who: young couple in NE PDX• Goals: use existing garden space for edibles; plant rest in natives• Process: base mapping, calendaring, bed-by-bed schedule2009 Planting Plan
Prepared by Independence Gardens LLCh!p://www.IndependenceGardensPDX.com * [email protected]
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Example 3• Who: 4-person family & their pets new to long lot in Woodburn• Goals: food production, play space for two boys• Process: base mapping, plant ID, invasive removal, timeline
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Next steps for you!• Good design requires spending
time in your garden space• If you’re not going to actively
manage a space, design for that• Design and implementation take
time, so make time for both parts• Evaluate...& prepare to re-evaluate• "is is a process and a journey, not
a solution or a destination• Finally, a good design will push
you in the right direction, but won’t change behavior
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Questions?
Tuesday, January 31, 2012