Post #2A Permaculture Overview and Ethics
Post Description: An overview of Permaculture, including the philosophy and ethics. Part One of a two-part series. Why is it the best way to garden, even if you aren’t planning to grow food? How can it make your life as a gardener easier?
I came to discover Permaculture through my love of the natural world.
When I was a child, one of my favorite pastimes was to sit in the leafy canopy of a tree and read a book. I love climbing trees, and still do it to this day. Oaks, mango and ficus, especially the Indian Rubber Tree, are some of the best for climbing!
And I’ll bet you didn’t know that the lower branches of an orange tree cascade down, creating a perfect little shelter all around the trunk, with bare ground underneath. It’s plenty big enough for a kid to hang out in for hours, a natural tree fort!
These majestic trees I love need entire ecosystems to survive. In turn, they give back to the habitats in which they grow to support the animals, pollinators and plants that live around them. As well as providing shade and structures to climb, they also clean the air.
When their leaves fall or their roots die back, they return nutrients to the soil, and feed the worms and other beneficial creatures living on the forest floor. They provide homes and food for birds, bees, and butterflies.
Permaculture is a system of design that takes us a step beyond organic gardening to maximum sustainability. It helps us work with nature to build entire ecosystems so all the parts support each other. The word is a combination of “permanent” and “culture”.
The term was coined in 1978 by Bill Mollison and his buddy David Holmgren, who were Australian environmentalist students at the time. They were looking to combine the natural environment with agriculture to create a permanent solution for sustainable farms and gardens and a healthier world.
These men were not the first or only people who used these principles. We will look at many, even from thousands of years in the past, who came to similar conclusions and systems. But these two set off a modern movement we can be thankful for, as the knowledge is built on year after year and made available to everyone.
Permaculture is not only a landscape design system but also a way of life. It is a philosophy of treading lightly on the earth to regenerate depleted land, soil, and ecosystems and ultimately, rebuilding human communities as well.
An often-repeated phrase in Permaculture is “right plant, right place.” This means putting the plant you need for its qualities (right plant), in the place where you need it and also where it will perform best (right place). If you do this, it will require less work or inputs from you in the way of water, food and pest control, as well as serving a useful role in your ecosystem.
This way of gardening, and this philosophy of living, relies heavily on the idea of reciprocity, the mutual exchange that happens in the cyclical nature of life. Permaculture is simply putting a name to living and gardening in a way that provides the most benefit with the least amount of resistance.
Gardening should not feel like an uphill battle. Life is not meant for swimming upstream. Observe the natural world and find a way to work within it to benefit all beings. Pay attention to patterns, within your own life and all the life that surrounds you. This is one way to understand Permaculture.
Plants will show you what they need if you watch closely. Opportunities will come your way in life if you cast your net wide and remain truly open to what turns up.
As you will see outlined below, there are ethics or standards that those who garden using this system of design stand behind.
To simplify this system, David Holmgren outlined 12 core principles.
Lastly, there are 6 zones that any piece of land can be organized into within the Permaculture system to create a closed loop, or cyclical ecosystem.
Before you break ground on your first gardening project, or begin your next season of gardening, consider these guidelines. I come back to them often to remind myself of the interconnectedness of all life on earth. It is a beautiful thing.
Ethical Standards of Permaculture
- Earth Care. We are generally working with depleted soil on land that has already been disturbed either by humans or livestock or both. It is best to leave previously undisturbed and undeveloped environments alone as there is already a strong ecosystem in place. The goal is to leave the land in better shape than when you first encountered it by encouraging the natural world to reclaim the proper order of things and in doing so create harmony in your garden.
- People Care. Caring for your loved ones and greater community is paramount to creating a permanently better environment here on Earth. Let the garden guide you and your loved ones on a path to clearer mental health. Grow food and flowers not only for yourself but for people in need if you have the capacity to do so. If someone shows an interest in your garden, invite them in. There is a global community out there and you are not a small part of it.
- Fair Share. Take only what you need and allow the Earth to regenerate. Consider cutting down on commercial consumption in the form of plastics and other “throw aways”. Harvest all you want from your garden, but whatever scraps or plants are not consumed, throw into the compost to be used to grow more flowers and food.
Next time, I will get down to more practical matters, with the 12 core principles of Permaculture, as well as an explanation of the zones.
Did you find this post helpful or inspiring? Let me know!
Happy gardening!
Mary
This is Part 1 of a series on the basics of Permaculture, Forest Gardens and Sustainable Gardening. Click for the Next Post in the Series.