Permaculture

A Simple Guide to Growing your

own Self-Sustaining Garden
Table of Contents
PERMACULTURE
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1: WHAT IS A PERMACULTURE GARDEN?
CHAPTER 2 – THE 12 PRINCIPLES OF PERMACULTURE AND HOW TO USE THEM
CHAPTER 3: NATIVE PLANTS, PESTS AND PREDATORS
CHAPTER 4: CLIMATE AND REGIONAL CONSIDERATIONS
CHAPTER 5: DESIGNING YOUR PERMACULTURE GARDEN
CHAPTER 6: CREATING BEDS FOR YOUR PLANTS
CHAPTER 7: PLANT PLACEMENT
CHAPTER 8: WATER
CHAPTER 9: USING MULCH
CHAPTER 10: CREATING A COMPOSTING SYSTEM
CHAPTER 11: THE PERMACULTURE GREENHOUSE
CHAPTER 12 – ANIMALS AND THEIR ROLE IN PERMACULTURE
CONCLUSION
Introduction
There are those among us who feel an unflinching connection to nature that
compels us to create a little portion of paradise in our back yard, whatever
size it may be. Then there are those of us that wish to use our space on the
land to cultivate a garden that is both beautiful to look at, and functional in
its provision of food that can be harvested in the grand design of becoming
self-sufficient. And there are those among us for whom the dream of that
slice of paradise in the backyard is appealing, but the notion of the ongoing
maintenance required to achieve it is enough to prevent that garden ever
being created!
For all these types of people, and more to boot, the answer may lie in a
splendid practice called ‘permaculture’! The essence of this discipline is
that you attempt to replicate and augment the natural processes that take
place on certain types of land in order to minimize waste and create a
garden that thrives in its ability to sustain itself!
That’s right; there are steps a gardener can take to cause chains of natural
processes to take place in a garden that allow plants to flourish without the
need for constant, tiresome maintenance from you. Now, this is not to say
that creating the conditions of a permaculture garden is a simple process –
the study of permaculture is, in fact, an advanced field when its application
is to be used commercially – but some knowledge of the basic principles
and processes can help you to go some way towards having your own
permaculture plot at your fingertips.
This book provides a rough outline for the permaculture novice, guiding
you through what considerations you must factor in when designing your
garden, how to organize plants and the types of beds they will require,
techniques to minimize waste and some tried-and-tested methods to make
your soil, land features, weather, local wildlife, house and behaviors all
work together for the benefit of your garden! I will also discuss animals and
their role in permaculture as well. Many people tend to be a little blinkered
when it comes to permaculture and focus only on the plants they are
growing and the insect and bird life. The true permaculturist will also use
livestock to help work their garden, providing many benefits.
Always keep in mind that the underlying principle to every permaculture
process is to avoid having to fight against nature. Artificial augmentations
to your land, the use of scientifically processed chemicals and the
allowance of unnecessary wasted ANYTHING are strictly off limits for the
permaculture gardener! If this is something you think could work for you,
then you’re reading the right book.
Chapter 1: What is a Permaculture Garden?
The permaculture garden is a clever combination of edible gardening and
natural landscaping. It is the ultimate in a sustainable garden, providing not
only for you but for itself as well. According to Bill Mollison and David
Holmgren, two Australians who came up with the name permaculture in the
1970’s, “the ultimate purpose of permaculture is to develop a site until it
meets all the needs of its inhabitants, from food and shelter to fuel and
entertainment”. While there are not too many gardeners who can or will
follow the principles of permaculture completely and utterly, most can take
some ideas from them to create a garden that uses landscaping techniques
that are based wholly or partly on usefulness and production.
Gardening and Permaculture
To make your permaculture garden a success, you should use plants that are
native to your area, those that are well adapted to the climate and soil
conditions. You don’t have to plant anything that you don’t like, it just has
to have a purpose and it must benefit the landscape in some way.
Look at fruit trees for providing both shade and food. Bamboo can be used
to provide aural stakes for climbing and vining plants. Perennial food plants
can be grown – sorrel, artichokes, chicory, and asparagus – as well as the
other standard garden vegetables that you can grow. When you plant a
perennial patch in your garden, to only do you need to take the principles of
permaculture into account, you also need to plant it somewhere where you
don’t need to disturb it too often.
While many gardeners look only for beauty and fragrance, permaculturists
also look for practical benefits. Instead of planting out your border with
flowering shrubs, put in berries, like blackberry, raspberry and blueberry, or
flowering herbs like sage bushes.
Avoid plants that need a lot of water or looking after, or those that are prone
to diseases, like the hybrid tea rose. Instead of planting trees that are high
maintenance, like the peach tree, go for something like a persimmon tree –
it needs neither spraying nor pruning. Think about the way your site is
naturally inclined as well what is growing or living there. Work with what is
available instead of buying in truckloads of topsoil. And keep in mind one
thing – your design will never be finished because the plants that grow in a
permaculture site are constantly changing.
The Difference Between Permaculture and Organic Gardening.
So many people confuse these terms, believing that a permaculture garden
is simply organic gardening. In fact, it is so much more than that.
Permaculture is a system that completes the circle by using waste from the
garden in the garden, creating a healthy soil and increasing the diversity of
the produce, thus decreasing the independence on inputs.
In terms of waste, the permaculture garden is responsible for its own, thus
cutting the risk of pollution in the environment that surrounds it. There is
no excess of nitrogen going into the natural water system or any seeds from
weeds spreading to the surrounding area or going into ay of nature’s
systems.
A permaculture garden is designed to cut down on the amount of work a
gardener must do, to cut down on the repetitive chores that few gardeners
enjoy. The sheer variety of plants that you grow, and the fact that you are
producing food is enough to keep a gardener engaged. The permaculturist
is excited about the fact that, not only are they developing a healthy and
varied lifestyle, they are also reducing their ecological footprint and saving
money at the same time.
The art of permaculture is to imitate nature as closely as possible. In visual
terms, this is the biggest difference you will notice between a permaculture
and an organic garden. In the permaculture garden you rarely see bare
patches of soil because conserving the soil and the water is one of the
highest priorities. Space is put to better use, plants are encouraged to go to
seed and are planted in such a way as to create natural pest control. Unlike
an organic garden, you are not likely to see plants in neat rows in a
permaculture garden.
Permaculture systems are set up with the aim of using the sun, water, wind,
bird droppings, leaves, even dust to maximize the output of the garden and
minimize the input and it is designed to provide food, not just for people,
but for the native birds, animals and insects.
Chapter 2 – The 12 Principles of Permaculture
and How to Use Them
Permaculture offers a system of design that is powerful and sustainable. It is
a practice that is usually applied to smallholdings or personal gardens,
rather than use on a bigger scale and it is the art of learning how to survive
by using what is readily and freely available.
The following 12 principles are designed to help you maximize the return
from a successful permaculture garden:
1. Observe and Interact
This goes back to following the blueprint of nature, copying it as far as
possible to ensure success. Watch how nature works, look at how the plants
thrive in the wild. See how the structure works and try to replicate it as far
as possible. If it works in nature, it will work in your garden.
2. Catch Energy and Store it
This includes solar power, which you can make use of through special
panels; wind turbines to generate power though the wind and thermal
energy, produced by well-designed buildings and well-placed rocks. It also
includes water that can be captured from natural sources, like a river, a pond
or the rain, and then reused in the garden.
3. Obtain a Yield
All the effort that you put into your permaculture garden should result in a
good yield, be it in food, energy or water. The idea is to not waste your own
energy on something that is not going to have any value and to design the
garden and its systems around you. A permaculture garden should be self
sustaining to a big degree and should result in you being something of a
“lazy” gardener, simply because there will be little to do – the garden and
nature will do it all for you.
4. Be Self-Regulated and Accept Feedback – Good or Bad
Feedback is vital because it allows you to use that information to make
better decisions and ensure that your garden provides for you and the
habitat. You must also self-regulate and learn from constructive feedback
and practices. If something isn’t working, ditch it and try something new. If
something is working, expand the scale – but not too much. You can easily
go overboard.
5. Use Renewable Services and Sources
Using renewables is the smartest thing you can do in your permaculture
garden. Live off what your garden provides instead of paying out more
money. If you have to spend too much money, your garden is not working
as it should be. For example, you should have a system in place to capture
water. If you have a spring or a pond on your property you can set up a
pump to extract water – but only if you have a renewable power source to
run it, like solar or wind power.
6. Produce No Waste
Everything in your permaculture garden should have value and that
includes waste products. Organic waste will go through a system, for
example, meat waste will become food of insects. The insect larva becomes
food for chickens or fish. And the chickens and fish become food for you.
7. Design Your Garden From Pattern To Detail
By pattern, I mean the pattern of the wind, the sun, the rain and the
topology. Always work with them, never against. If a part of your garden is
naturally wet, don’t attempt to plant it out with plants that require drier soil
and are not particularly tolerant of water. If you garden is laid out on a hill,
used the south for plants that need warmer climes and the north for colder
ones. Catch your rainwater at the top so that it can be gravity fed down to
where it needs to be. The idea of permaculture is to put as little effort in as
possible, to minimize the demands on water and for your garden to provide
for itself.
8. Integrate, Don’t Segregate
Use the elements and their synergy to your advantage, to allow the
complimentary qualities to provide support for one another. The same goes
with your plants. Don’t segregate each separate type of plant; integrate them
together so that they support each other. Look at planting sunflowers then
plant beans in front of them – the sunflower stalks act as a cane to tie the
beans to. Look at planting for pest control, interspersing specific flowers
and vegetables with others to provide natural pest control – not just to
eliminate the bad pests but to encourage the good ones too.
9. Small and Slow Wins the Day
You don’t need to plant hundreds of one type of plant and, in fact, this will
more than likely damage your permaculture garden. Start small and slowly
and build up as you go along. That way, if something isn’t working, you
will see it straight away and can correct it easier.
10. Value Diversity
Diversity is one of the basic characteristics for any sustainable system
because it is representative of resilience. Where one variety or species of
plant may not work, another one will.
11. Use the Edges and Value Margins
The edges and the margins of your garden are where the plants will grow
more robustly and you should this to great advantage. This is where the
richest yields will come from but you must still follow the blueprint of
nature to get the most out of it.
12. Use Change Creatively and Respond to it
Because of dynamics, it is inevitable that changes will happen in your
garden and there will be problems. You must rise to these changes and
problems and use them to your advantage. Be creative – there is always a
solution to any problem and it can always be used for the good.
Chapter 3: Native Plants, Pests and Predators

There are billions of microorganisms living in a suburban organic garden,

and many tens of thousands of insects and other arthropods, not to mention
birds, lizards, bats and marsupials. Many pest problems in horticulture are
caused by an imbalance, and attempting to destroy the pests and weeds
through artificial means can frequently lead to further problems. In
permaculture we encourage introducing more life rather than removing it
wherever possible. When studying the site of your future permaculture
garden, take the following considerations into account:
Soil life
Soil is a living, breathing ecosystem. The healthiest plants come from the
most biodiverse and biologically active soil. Plants pump simple
carbohydrates into the soil they occupy to feed this soil life, because they
need that life to return the favor! Microbes break down organic matter and
cycle nutrients, provide disease protection to the plants, and create good soil
structure; there is a symbiotic relationship, an exchange of nutrients.
- Bacteria: The most populous creatures in soil. These single-celled
organisms can perform all manner of chemical miracles: they can exchange
DNA to overcome problems; they create an adhesive substance that plants
feed on; they can capture atmospheric nitrogen. In short, they are vital
servants of plant nutrition.
- Fungi: Complex networks of interconnected fungi strands lie beneath the
soil. Fungi are effective at drawing nutrients from wood and rocks, and
establish mutual nutrient exchanges with plants.
- Protozoa: The main predators of bacteria and fungi; an essential part of
the cyclic processes needed for rich soil.
- Arthropods: Tiny creatures that cycle nutrients and move matter around,
contributing to the effectiveness of other elements in enriching the soil.
- Earthworms: In soil where their presence is abundant, they can move as
much earth as five horses would in an acre, but without damaging the soil’s
delicate structure. They contribute a wealth of organic benefits to improve
soil biology.
Pests and Predators
The arrival of pests is inevitable to any garden, and their presence can
severely damage the growth and development of flourishing plant life. In
permaculture gardening, the objective is to avoid using pesticides and other
artificial methods that contaminate an ecosystem, electing instead to
encourage the natural predators of those pests to control their presence.
Common pests and predators include:
- Aphids: A notoriously destructive garden pest, aphids reproduce
asexually and build populations rapidly. Predators include parasitic wasps,
hoverfly larvae, lacewing larvae, ladybirds and spiders.
- Whitefly: Pests that feed on sap. They can cause yellow markings on
leaves, spread diseases, and invite fungal attack. Most aphid predators are
also whitefly predators.
- Cabbage white butterfly: Young cabbage plants can be particularly
vulnerable to this butterfly’s caterpillars. Natural predators include small
birds and parasitic wasps.
- Snails and slugs: If young seedlings are vanishing overnight, or large
holes are appearing in leaves, the culprit is likely slugs and snails. They are
mostly nocturnal. Some birds, frogs, lizards and rodents are predators.
- Ladybirds: The gardener’s best friend, ladybirds and their larvae are
ravenous hunters of aphids, whitefly and other garden pests. Ladybirds are
inactive in cold weather.
- Parasitic wasps: These tiny wasps are very common, but so small that
they can be hard to spot. Different species are adapted to target different
garden pests including aphids, whitefly, and caterpillars. They like the same
kind of flowers as ladybirds, and are harmless to humans.
- Hoverflies: Although they eat mostly pollen, their larval offspring feed
on aphids and other small pests. They are drawn to the same types of
flowers as parasitic wasps and ladybirds.
- Spiders: The hardest-working insect predators you’ll find. Some are free
ranging hunters, some make webs. Most are harmless to humans, so try to
make your peace with their presence!
- Centipedes, millipedes and wood lice: These multi-legged arthropods
perform different jobs in the garden. Centipedes are predators, while
millipedes and wood lice generally eat decaying organic matter (great for
compost).
General garden strategies:
Start with the soil, as healthy soil allows plants to have strong immune
systems.
Try using the following types of flowers to attract the predator insects you
want:
- Umbelliferous plant flowers: carrot; dill; fennel; parsley. There are many,
so do your research!
- Daisies
- Marigolds
- Alyssum
Providing water for other predators – perhaps in the form of a small pond –
can be very rewarding for pest control. Surround it with rocks to provide a
habitat for frogs and lizards.
Densely-placed native plants can provide habitats for small birds.
Grevilias, fuscias and banksias attract honeyeaters and wattlebirds that also
feed on insects.
Look to create a balanced ecosystem that will minimize the presence of
pests and allow your garden to flourish almost on autopilot.
Plants and Herbs for Pest and Disease Control
If you have the right soil, the right watering system and the right mulch and
you are still getting problems with diseases or pests, there are some ways
that you can solve this. The first thing you must do is assess whether
intervention is absolutely necessary – if it isn’t, leave things alone and the
problem will solve itself.
The following are ways to combat some of the more common garden pests
and insects:
Ants
Gardeners dread the little black ants that encourage the growth of the aphid
camp in the garden. The aphid produces honeydew and this attracts the ant,
which then take the baby aphids to another location in the garden. This
spreads the diseases that the aphids carry. Ants also scare off a number of
predators and there are a few species that are extremely helpful to the
gardener because they kill off some of the pests, like cutworm, spider mites,
and stalk borer ad termites, amongst others. So do be careful about how you
control the ant population and don’t go in destroying the entire population –
you could be doing your garden harm.
Recommended Solutions
There are a number of plants that give off a strong smell that deters ants.
Herbs, tomatoes and khaki weed are three of the best. Tomatoes are not just
nice to eat; the plant acts as an insect repellant, has fungicidal and bacterial
properties as well as preventing the ants from laying eggs. The ants that
harvest and transport the aphid can be deterred quite effectively with the use
of a spray made from khaki weed or blackjack seeds and a spray that is
made from rhubarb or tomato leaves will also kill off the ants.
Aphids
Aphids feed on sap and can cause a lot of damage when they are present in
large numbers. They take the sap from the plant and kill the leaves the
growth tips as well as spreading disease. And, because they produce
honeydew, they also attract other pests like the ant and the fruit fly.
Recommended Solutions
Encourage predators into your garden – the ladybird and the hoverfly larva
can devour upwards of 250 aphids per day. The lacewing larvae, spraying
mantis, parasitic wasp and the Cap Witogie bird also feed on aphids.
Healthy plants and the use of compost instead of manure help the plants to
develop a resistance to attacks from aphids. If you use manure or artificial
fertilizer, it can produce plant tissues that are fleshy and sappy and this is
what attracts the aphids.
Diversity is also necessary so look into companion planting. Onions, chives,
nasturtiums, garlic, marigolds and any other herb that gives off a pungent
smell can help to repel aphids like the greenfly or the wooly aphid. You can
also plant milkweed or thistles to attract the aphids away from the main
plants.
Diamond-Back Moth
These are identified on a resting moth by the presence of three diamond
patterns where the wings meet together.
This moth is a real pest to gardeners who grow brassicas, such as the
Brussels spot, cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower. The moth caterpillars
munch their way through the leaves, leaving holes, which have a
detrimental effect on how healthy the plant is. They are more active in the
dry season and you will find them on the underneath of the leaf in a
protective kind of web. The eggs are laid on the tops of the leaves, either on
their own or in groups. Hatching takes place a few days after laying and the
resulting caterpillars head for the underside of the leaf. They will reach full
size within 30 days of hatching, sooner if the weather is in their favor.
Cocoons are spun under the leaf and the caterpillars pupate for about a
week before the moth emerges and they can rapidly multiply – the female
can lay upwards of 50 eggs each time.
Recommended Solutions
One way to reduce the chances of the adults mating is through regular
irrigation and summer rains. This also helps to wash the young caterpillars
and the pupae off the plants but you will need to direct a strong water spray
underneath the leaves.
This won’t always be successful so you should also make up herbal sprays
as well. You can use khaki weeds, black jacks, African marigolds, garlic,
basil, tomato and chili to make the sprays and add a teaspoon of oil to the
spray – it will help the spray stick to the leaves for longer. The underside of
the leaves must be sprayed thoroughly to kill off the pupae.
Bean Fly
Bean flies will attack legumes, such as bean plants and will cause the plant
to wilt and die. A closer look will reveal that the stems are hollowed out
and decayed at ground level; there will be a small maggot in there as well.
The plant leaves may have yellow spots on – this is where the fly eggs have
been laid and, on a plant that is more mature, the maggot may be further up
inside the stem.
Recommended Solutions
As with everything, prevention s always better than the cure and you should
engage in companion planting with herbs. You can’t stop the maggots and
the pupae but you can reduce the numbers by removing leaves as soon as
you see the yellow spots.
Make herbal repellant sprays from tomato laves, garlic and marigolds and
spray regularly and, to try to remove the eggs, put wood ash around the
base of the plants and dust the leaves with it.
Cutworm
Cutworm attacks seedlings by coming out of the soil overnight and
wrapping itself around the stem just above the ground, leaving the top of
the plant to wilt and die. They are not choosy about which plants they attack
and one cutworm can destroy several plants in a night.
If you notice seedlings that have been severed, look for a small hole nearby
– a look inside will show you a curled up caterpillar.
Recommended Solutions
One of the best ways to eradicate this pest is to keep chickens. Before you
plant your seedlings, allow the chickens to scratch away at the ground and
eat the worms. You can also use mulch and adding lime to acid soil.
If you have Sodom apples, soak ripe fruit in water and then dig it into the
soil as a control measure. You can also dig out the cutworm and feed it to
your chickens. One other remedy is to grate a turnip, pour boiling water
over the top, allow it to cool and then water the ground around the plants
with it.
Nematodes
Nematodes are another pest that is not fussy about the plants it attacks,
going for a wide number of species. The result of a nematode attack is that
the plat wilts or the fruit and leaves simply don’t develop as they should.
Nematodes also leave holes in root tissue and this encourages disease to set
in.
However, the nematode is also essential to the soil because it helps to break
down any organic matter into a hummus. Some species of nematode attack
others and keep them in check, as wells a parasitizing certain insect larvae,
particularly that of the leaf miner, beetles, armyworm and bollworm.
Recommended Solutions
The nematode will always be in the soil but, rather than destroying them
completely, you must learn how to keep them in balanced and harmless
numbers. The best solution is to reduce the amount of disturbance to the
soil and to make sure that there is plenty of organic matter, mulch and
compost, in the soil. You should also practice crop rotation and plant khaki
weed and marigolds to keep the nematode damage at the lowest possible
level.
Fruit Fly
You will find the fruit fly in just about every soft fruit, including the
avocado, apple and quince. The eggs are laid in small holes cut into the fruit
by the female – the first sign that you have an infection is a number of small
brown puncture holes with a clear gum seeping out. The maggots will feed
on the fruit for a couple of weeks, causing the fruit to rot and drop off the
tree. The maggots will get bury themselves into the ground before emerging
as flies within a couple of weeks.
Recommended Remedies
Spraying the fruit as it begins to form is the best remedy and then
continuing to spray, either after a rainfall or after every three to four weeks
in the dry season. Make a spray from plants that have a strong smell, such
as lavender, wormwood, rue, khaki weed and garlic.
Chapter 4: Climate and Regional Considerations
When choosing a plot for your permaculture garden, you must carry out a
thorough examination of the land in order to plan a successful site. You
need to familiarize yourself with the land, the organisms that inhabit it and
the influences that act upon it. By developing this understanding, you can
work with the land to develop a plan that will allow your garden to thrive.
OBSERVATION is the key: looking over the land; watching how it is
affected by seasonal changes; observing its reaction to events; the quality of
your observations will be the foundation upon which your permaculture
design will rest. Here are the primary considerations when observing your
site:
- Shade: Different species of plant have different requirements regarding
shade and direct sunlight. Observing how the sun falls on your plot
throughout the day will help you plan the placement of different types of
plant. It could also guide you with how to orientate garden beds to meet
their sunlight requirements.
- Sun: The locations of sunrise and sunset are usually published by
government agencies, but the specifics of your site may mean that the times
vary. For instance, a neighboring property that has a border of tall trees,
may cause the sunrise to first hit your plot a little later
- Temperature: Temperature affects everything from plant growth and soil
moisture to evaporation from water bodies and the comfort of animals.
Record temperature high and lows across the seasons, remembering that
temperatures won’t be uniform across the whole site – different conditions
will create niches and microclimates within the site. Noting the first and last
frost of the season is also a good idea.
- Wind: Wind can have a significant effect on your plot. It influences the
evaporation of moisture from soil and plants, can impact upon soil erosion
and even damage exposed plants. Careful observation of the way wind hits
your site can allow you to arrange your garden in a way that protects
vulnerable areas.
- Microclimates: Microclimates are spots within a garden where land
features, such as topography, materials and water bodies, affect
temperature. These microclimates can grant niches in which to cultivate
plants that thrive in specific conditions. You can modify microclimates to
suit your needs by, for example, placing larger objects to create shade, or
placing rocks to trap heat.
- Moisture: Moisture is essential for plant growth, and as a permaculture
gardener you should be aiming to harness the weather to acquire water as
much as possible. This means learning rainfall patterns and the settling of
snow and frost, and gaining an understanding of how to manipulate these
factors to your advantage.
- Flow: How does rainwater move across your land? Gullies and creeks can
affect the flow and make certain areas prone to flooding. Map the natural
movement of water across your land in order to manipulate this flow to
your advantage.
- Soil: Look at the natural soil. You will need a full understanding of this
fundamental element of your garden. Look for features like how loose or
tight the soil particles are to determine whether it is sandy or clay in nature;
this will affect key functions such as water retention.
- Views: A permaculture garden is intended to harmonize with all elements
of the land, including its visual beauty. Keep in mind that you want your
garden to be pleasurable to look at!
- Structures: Manmade structures on a site will have an impact on growing
conditions. Buildings, walls and fences can affect factors such as the
reflection of sunlight, the retention and diffusion of heat, and areas of
shade.
Chapter 5: Designing Your Permaculture Garden
A permaculture garden can be constructed even if you don’t have a back
yard; a courtyard garden or even a balcony garden can be productive. The
first step is to ascertain what a Permaculture garden is to you. There is no
one way to assemble any type of garden; you’ll need to have some idea of
what YOU want to create.
Having a finalized design will give your plans some genuine structure and
form. If you’re just entertaining indistinct ideas, you could find yourself
procrastinating and never actually creating anything coherent and
successful. Designs promote decisiveness.
From the outset, you will need to decide the degree to which you will
incorporate Permaculture principles into your design. The size of the garden
will be a contributing factor, and ultimately it is your decision whether to
create a traditional vegetable garden that incorporates a few permaculture
features, or a full-scale food forest design.
The Principles of Permaculture: Emulating Nature
Consider the permaculture principles when designing your garden:
- Soil preservation – there are many techniques to protect you soil:
Mulches/ground cover plants: Bare soil is exposed to heavy
rain, which will damage the soil structure. Trying to sustain
bare soil works against nature; pioneer plants (aka ‘weeds’) or
mulch can fill the spaces to protect soil.
No-dig design is preferable to ever turning and interfering with
it. Moving it damages its complex structure and exposes the
essential sub-surface organisms to damaging UV light.
Designing garden beds should be done with an eye to avoiding
ever having to step on the soil; make sure you can reach all
areas of every bed without stepping on them, because doing so
damages soil structure.
- Rebuilding damaged/dead soil - soil building techniques will need to be
implemented with soil that has become lifeless due to excessive
interference and damage:
Plants with deep taproots, such as fenugreek and dandelions,
will break up soil gently to initiate the rebuilding process.
If you decide to manually maneuver the soil, simply pierce it
once with a fork then cover the exposed area with mulch to
protect it.
Composting over the soil can breathe new life into it.
Green manures – made from chopped-down plants – can be
used to mulch the soil, adding the benefit of rich organic
material to feed the soil as they rot. Any strong growing annual
plants are perfect for this; cut them down before they go to
seed.
Use earthworms to do your digging, they are much better at it
than you!
- Plant stacking – spread plants vertically as well as horizontally
In nature, plants co-exist by occupying space at different
vertical levels; trees form a canopy, shrubs grow below them,
with herbaceous plants below these and ground cover plants at
the lowest level. This layout allows a more efficient utilization
of space, and plants to thrive together.
‘Edge Effect’ – It is observed that in nature, the most
productive area of an ecosystem is region where the
environment transitions from one form to another. You can
emphasize this ‘Edge Effect’ principle, by leaning toward
curved edge garden beds, or by simply using a large quantity of
small rectangular ones.
Vertical gardening – try introducing plants that grow up
vertical surfaces as a better use of space. Here are some
suggestions:
 Espaliered trees can spread along fences or narrow
vertical spaces.
Vines such as grapes and kiwi fruit can be grown over
fences, arches and trellises.
Cucurbits, such as watermelons, pumpkins and gourds
can be grown vertically up a widely-spaced wire mesh
supported by posts.
- Succession planting – stacking by stages in time
In nature, the death of a plant serves to nourish and protect the
soil as another grows in its place. Replicate this cycle by
introducing a batch of plants as the previous bunch is reaching
the end of its life. This will allow extended yields and
blooming throughout the growth season.

- Microclimates – plants grouped together can cause localized changes in

temperature, light and humidity; you can manipulate this to promote
increased plant growth.
Grow plants in groups so that they can protect each other from
the elements, thus increasing plant survival and creating a more
resilient garden!
- Water gardens – aquatic ecosystems (usually ponds) are the most
productive, and can offer many design functions to enrich your garden.
You could grow edible or non-edible but picturesque aquatic
plants, of which there are many.
You could introduce aquatic or amphibious life to your garden
habitat.
Larger ponds can even support ducks or even herons!
- Mono- and Poly-cultures, and Companion Plants – nature rewards
biodiversity, and by strategically mixing a good combination of plants you
can expect them to support each other’s growth and productivity.
 Monocultures make plants more accessible to pests, and limit
your opportunities for companion planting and plant stacking.
Nature does things the way it does because that’s what works!
Your job is to emulate successful natural ecosystems.
Monocultures also require more work and monitoring to
maintain because they are artificial.
Companion planting has many benefits: it can stimulate plant
growth/productivity; it increases resilience to pests/diseases; it
makes plants less accessible to pests; it will attract a wider
range of beneficial insects such as pollinators and predators
that feed on pests.
The Benefits of Careful Designing
A large challenge is more manageable when it’s broken down into smaller
parts. Even if you’re ambitious and motivated, the hurdles and obstacles
you will inevitably encounter may drain away your belief and cause you to
gradually give up. Aim to complete a planned succession of smaller tasks
that will enable you to gradually build up momentum and confidence.
Consider the following strategic design methods for success:
- Design BIG, start small – with a vision of the complete picture, create an
exhaustive design that presents the whole as merely the sum of its parts.
This way, you can confidently construct your vision one piece at a time.
- Know the overall scale of the project – whether large or small, have a
definitive idea of the scope of your vision. Weigh physical size by the
amount of maintenance the garden will require; a huge, but well-designed,
permaculture garden will require little maintenance as it should thrive by
itself, while a smaller garden built without permaculture principles could
require far more intervention from you to maintain.
- Identify the fundamental design elements – water, wind, sun, proximity
to house, placement of plants; make sure all the permaculture principles
have been considered to maximize your chances of success!
- Size priority - incorporate the biggest elements on the design first then
place the rest around them. Digging tree-sized holes in garden beds filled
with little plants is a fool’s errand, and installing irrigation in a planted-up
bed is next to impossible without damaging the soil and thereby ruining
your plans!
During the design phase, break down the task of constructing a garden from
scratch into manageable steps, with the overall vision upheld as the ultimate
objective. You will find that loss of motivation can be your biggest obstacle
to success, so you must act to minimize its onset in any way you can.
Chapter 6: Creating Beds for Your Plants
While it is true that no to permaculture gardens are the same, there are some
general features that all designs will incorporate. The organization of the
contents of your permaculture garden will be dictated by your intended
goal, and local considerations like climate, natural ecosystems and
topography. But, you will be installing a variety of plant beds in which to
grow your plants in the most efficient and effective way possible, so it will
be useful for you to have a working knowledge of the types of beds that
work best for permaculture gardens, and when to use them:
Herb Spiral
The herb spiral has established itself as an archetypal feature of
permaculture garden design. It utilizes space efficiently, has the inherent
capacity to create a variety of microclimates, allows ease of harvesting for
the gardener and is rather easy on the eye to boot! Its circular design can
allow you to place plants that have different needs in different sections of
the spiral; this placement strategy will expose them to differing amounts of
sunlight and win, as well as degrees of temperature. You can therefore
create a number of niches within one spiral, with the option of further
modifying these niches by adding heat-retaining rocks or strategies such as
guild planting (see chapter 5) to affect soil composition or create shade.
Key considerations:
- The top of the spiral is usually drier than the bottom
- The west side is usually the hottest
- The south side usually has the most shade
- You can water the spiral using a spray head at the top, as the water will
percolate down through consecutive beds
- As the beds are quite shallow, they require soil that is rich in organic
matter
- You can grow large numbers of culinary and medicinal herbs
Clipping Beds
Clipping beds are designed to allow you to easily access your plant crops in
order to regularly clip parts – usually leaves and flowers. As they must cater
for this need to be accessed easily, they are typically placed next to paths
and the inside edges of keyhole beds and contain lower-lying plant species;
those that benefit from lots of sunlight and protection from wind.
Key considerations:
- Place near pathways for ease of access
- Grow smaller plants for easy access and precise clipping
Plucking Beds
These would usually be placed as a layer behind the clipping beds, still
within arms reach for regular harvesting but with less precision required
when doing so. You would usually grow taller – and faster-growing - plants
in these than you would in the clipping beds, to maximize ease of access
and have them provide shelter from the wind for those smaller plants
beneath them.
Key considerations:
- Harvest regularly to prevent the weight of the yield damaging the plant or
falling onto those below
- Place larger plants that you can reach easily for harvesting
Narrow Beds
Narrow beds are intended for rows of plants that mainly grow vertically,
and typically demand high amounts of direct sunlight to thrive. Place them
to grow things like peas, beans, tomatoes and eggplants, and position them
so that you can access the crops for harvesting and expose them to the
highest amount of sunlight possible throughout the day.
Key considerations:
- Narrow beds are generally aligned north to south to maximize sunlight
exposure throughout the day.
- Consider adding permanent plants at the base of the larger ones, to help
maintain soil integrity
- Composting and mulch cover are also good for protecting soil structure

Broad Beds
These are installed to house the plant species that require little maintenance
from you, and are only harvested once during the growing season. These
plants will not require such frequent access, and are therefore layered
behind the previously described types of bed. The only restriction for
planting in these beds is that you need to add plants that are relatively slow-
growing and low maintenance – thereby meeting the obvious requirements.
With that in mind, you can be creative in distributing your chosen plants to
create microclimates, windbreaks and any other permaculture strategies that
will help your low-maintenance plants thrive by themselves.
Key considerations:
- Broad beds are typically set further back from paths
- Strategies for watering and protecting soil must be implemented
- Have plans in place to protect from pests
- Use slower growing, low maintenance species
Broad Scale Beds
Broad scale beds come into play for people whose permaculture garden
covers a larger plot. They are most commonly used for growing grains; a
big step towards self-sufficiency as they can provide food for humans and
livestock alike. Think of crops like wheat, corn, rice and oats – these
require larger amounts of space to cultivate, and within broad scale beds
there are numerous techniques for planting. For example, alley cropping is a
method where you grow grains alongside an established tree planting to
achieve protection from the wind.
Key considerations:
- Only suitable for large plots of land
- Numerous growing techniques available for different crops
- Complex watering methods, such as irrigation (see chapter 6), are
required
- Combating pests can be more challenging with larger plant beds
Vertical Planting
A vertical ‘bed’ is a great way to dramatically increase the growing space
available to you, and can add significant diversity to what you are growing
in your garden. Fences and trellises function as ‘beds’ for plants that don’t
grow in horizontal ones, and will take up considerably less space in your
plot. They are also useful for creating and modifying microclimates, and
can be aesthetically pleasing if utilized carefully.
Key considerations:
- Require vertical structures like fences, pergolas or trellises
- Some plants that grow on vertical ‘beds’ can become problematic if not
maintained
- Strategic use can help modify microclimates
- Allows the cultivation of different plants, adding a richer diversity
A good rule to keep in mind when designing the layout of your
permaculture beds is to minimize the presence of straight lines. The herb
spiral is a prime example of how curved lines allow you more opportunities
to get the most out of plant organization. You can aim to mimic this
principle by organizing beds in keyhole formation or other non-uniform
designs. This way you can maximize growing area, create a higher number
of niches and ultimately expand the potential yield of your site.
Permaculture, like nature, is all about making the most out of what you are
given, so you need to be creative in finding ways to increase efficiency and
diversity.
The types of bed described in this chapter are basic ones that are quite
common throughout permaculture, but this list is by no means exhaustive.
There are countless types of bed permaculture gardeners swear by, and
countless more creative ideas being formulated as the art continues to
progress. By electing to take part in the permaculture discipline, you have
undertaken a task of ongoing study and discovery! Research the bed types
covered in this chapter, experiment with placing them yourself and be open
to discovering new ways of expanding on ideas as you find what works and
doesn’t work for you.
Chapter 7: Plant Placement
When you design the placement of objects within your plot, the basic
strategy is that you will aim to select a point of focus and build around that.
Most commonly this will be a fixed point such as a house, but you may be
fortunate enough to be presented with a complete blank canvas, upon which
you can select your focal point and have complete freedom of design. In
either scenario, it is vital that you identify which are the most important
elements to place first and go from there. We’ll look over the two scenarios
individually:
Placement Around an existing main element
Fixed points in a plot, such as a building, are the constraint that you will
most likely have to work around. As this is such a common scenario, there
are a number of techniques that have been developed to help design a
successful garden in this way. You will have carried out your surveying and
research to know the lay of the land in your plot, and should comfortably be
able to draft a map of the land on which to draw your design. Having done
your prior research and built knowledge of plant beds and the requirements
of different plants, you should be able to identify the best placement for
each element of your system.
An even better tool for this designing is to have built an accurately scaled
3D model of your land, including the topography and notes for any special
features the shape of the land causes (such as water retention, or longer
sunlight exposure). This way makes it easier to explore possible interactions
between elements brought on by their placement in this 3-dimensional
space. Consider the following factors when making decisions on placement:
Design from patterns to details
The overall pattern of cause and effect that will govern the behavior
of elements in your garden is the starting point for design. You will
begin adding in the fine details after establishing this, and those
details will almost certainly cause you to modify that general pattern
as you progress. You need to allow that overall pattern to be defined
by the opportunities that the site offers, as this will retain the most
natural authenticity. For successful permaculture, you need our
design to harmonize with nature’s shaping of the land as much as
possible, or you’ll find yourself having to continuously battle nature
to preserve the artificial alterations you make. This will limit the
possibilities of your site; for instance, hilly & mountainous regions
are excellent for collecting water at higher altitudes - where it can
then be manipulated to your advantage - but not appropriate for
growing delicate crops. Identify the prime opportunities your site
offers, and recognize its limitations. Don’t fight nature!

Zoning
This is an effective, organized way to separate your plot and its
contents into areas that require different levels of maintenance and
care. Your main focal point is ‘zone 0’, and the zones radiate
outwards until the farthest zone, where the least high-maintenance
plants should be placed. Draw up the zones on your design, perhaps
using an overlay sheet, to guide you on where to place plants that
require different levels of maintenance.
Access & desire lines
These are pathways created by people and animals, and can influence
the basic radial zoning pattern. Any routes walked regularly will
receive lots of attention, so can be considered zone 1 and contain
more high-maintenance plants. Roads & driveways that are rarely
walked along will receive minimal attention, as people who traverse
them will be focused on driving, so place more low-maintenance
plants around these. Think about creating new access or desire lines,
complete with zone 1 contents, if they could serve a beneficial
purpose for your garden (for example as a pathway for ducks to walk
from the duck house to the pond each day).
Think hard about the positioning of different types of beds around
pathways; high-maintenance plants require easy access with minimal
disturbance to soil.
Sectors
Each system or element within your design needs to be placed for
optimal interaction with sunlight, wind, rain, snow and frost. Plants
need to either harness those energies or be sheltered from them.
Avoid placing tall plants in sectors where they might block the low
winter sunlight from entering the house. Consider also how the
contents of the garden influence winds hitting the house, modify
ambient noise and the views of the landscape. At heart, permaculture
gardeners are lovers of nature looking to bring the best out of it for a
home – picturesque views and protection from the elements are
important functions a permaculture garden can perform! Design your
sectors to create niche areas; frost will gather in dips in the ground,
while a nearby watercourse could cause a potential flood sector. Place
plants that would benefit from the prevalent conditions of each sector,
but always keep one eye on how these sectors influence the overall
pattern of the garden.
Elevation planning & aspect
As you progress through your design from the general pattern into the
finer details, you will find that slopes possess different characteristics
relating to microclimates, opportunities and restrictive factors. There
have been universally successful strategies to cope with slopes such
as planting trees to stabilize steep gradients and keeping the foot of a
slope clear to avoid the frost line. Also consider the way different
parts of a slope deliver higher and lower quantities of certain
resources; the extra sunlight exposure at the top of a slope will
counteract the fact water retention will be less efficient due to gravity.
These natural patterns are things that you want to make use of in your
design – a system in which water drainage from one area serves to
feed another is the essence of permaculture. Elevation planning can
be one of the most powerful ways to harness the natural laws and
promote a self-sustaining ecosystem in your garden, but it requires
careful planning!
Soil type
Never forget the importance of using the correct soil type for each
element in your garden. If you carefully factored in all the previous
considerations to identify an optimal location for a certain plant, you
 may find your plans scrapped by the presence of an incompatible soil
type. This is something you can modify, but if doing so would
represent an ongoing battle against the natural order then you may
want to reconsider your placement.
Succession
You must also keep in mind the fact that nature never stands still.
Trees grow, streams become diverted and land shifts, and in the long
term these factors could impact upon your garden. Keep some kind of
contingency plan at the back of your mind to be as prepared as
possible for these potential changes as time goes by.

The blank canvas

Without an existing central element around which to identify any zones,
you will need to take all the considerations of your plot into account to
pinpoint the ideal location for your zone 0. You may also find the following
techniques useful:
McHarg’s exclusion method
This practice involves narrowing down the list of potential sites for
zone 0 by process of elimination; cross out sectors that clearly
couldn’t serve as the focal point for your intended overall pattern.
This method will not necessarily find your ideal site by itself, but will
reduce the number of candidates so that you can focus on identifying
which is the ideal sector. For example, if your plan is to use water
from a natural spring to feed zone 0 under gravity then you can
instantly rule out any sectors at a higher elevation that the spring.
Integration
Having reached the stage where the plot is divided into zones, and sectors
have been identified according to the way nature works on them, the next
level of the planning process is to examine whether the layout of systems
and elements could be altered slightly to improve the way they interact with
one another. This is the analysis of integration, and is essentially where you
begin considering those finer details we have talked about. Creating an
abundance of beneficial relationships between elements and sectors will
give your site greater longevity and resilience, and minimize the amount of
interference you have to exert to maintain it. Look to create as many
connections as possible throughout your garden with the following
techniques:
Energy cycling
There will be a range of energies that move through your site on a
daily basis – you should plan to take advantage of these as much as
possible. To achieve this, create systems that link your elements; the
output from one element should be able to act as an input for another!
The most obvious of these is the use of gravity to distribute water
between elements in the garden, but it can also be as simple as having
larger plants that require lots of sunlight creating shade for those
below that don’t require as much. A simple energy cycling system is
the ideal way for permaculture to reduce the need for your
interference and have the minimum impact on the environment.
Nothing should go to waste.
Guilds
Guilds are groups of plants placed in close proximity to one another
to create mutually beneficial interactions between them. These are a
prominent feature of nature’s garden, because seeds that fall near
other beneficial plants will thrive and result in a far greater
abundance of the complementary plants in that area. There are a
number of highly successful established guilds for the studious
permaculture gardener to research. One such guild is the ‘three
sisters’ combination of corn, beans and squash:
The bean fixes nitrogen in the soil, to the benefit of the other
two; the corn provides a vertical structure for the bean to
 climb; the squash covers the low ground, protecting the soil
and increasing its moisture retention.
Discover your own guilds to implement in your garden for maximum
efficiency and resilience.
Edge effect
We have established that the borders between systems are particularly
fertile places, and that this fact can be exploited for greater yields.
Although guilds work on this principle, they are generally placed as
self-contained niches and therefore limited in their potential. If you
design the placement of guilds such that their edges transition in
areas abundant in resources that benefit both sets of elements, you
can significantly increase the ‘edge effect’ principle. The key is to
recognize what would be a naturally successful boundary between
elements, and then design the features so that you can implement a
targeted system that maximizes the natural growth opportunities you
have spotted. Again, it is not your objective to fight nature, but rather
to harness its processes by creating more organized versions of
systems that would naturally occur in certain locations.
Biological control
There may be occasions where you integrate plants in a way designed
to restrict the prominence of a particular element. This is usually a
tactic to suppress populations of pests or unwanted weeds on your
site, and in permaculture we achieve this through the natural process
of biological control, rather than the use of pesticides and any
interference with the soil.
The broad pattern that serves as the foundation to our site design will
gradually incorporate an increasing number of smaller patterns. These
smaller patterns will facilitate the placement of elements around desire
lines, the way the y interact with one another both in niches and along
boundaries between sectors, and also considerations regarding the zonal
placement of plants with differing maintenance needs. Ultimately, the
layout of your permaculture garden will increase in complexity as you
strive to maximize its efficiency and productivity, and you will discover
new obstacles and challenges along the way that force you to make
modifications. These are the joys of permaculture gardening, and anyone
committed to succeeding in it must relish the ongoing tribulations of
dallying with nature!
Chapter 8: Water
The summer months are the ones that gardeners will expect to get the most
out of their gardens. Flowers bloom, animals are plentiful and the rich
harvest is reaped from all that we have sown. The one drawback of
summer? Rain can become a lot scarcer, and one of the key factors in
achieving the most bountiful of summer harvests is water for your plants.
Thankfully, this is an ancient problem, and one that has been tackled in
numerous ways. There are many strategies to implement that will remedy
this problem, and they all revolve around the notion of infrastructure. As
with most things in permaculture, it’s all about planning for the long term
and implementing structural techniques to allow the garden to, for the most
part, sustain itself. Consider the following infrastructure modifications:
1. Hugelkulture
One of the staples of permaculture, hugelkulture can be an extremely
useful addition to your growing spaces. Its core principle is that plant
beds are constructed with a deposit of wood or some other biomass at
the base. When this is covered with soil and compost, and perhaps
even mulch, it serves to absorb far more water than the soil alone
would, and retains this extra moisture for a longer period of time.
This will encourage thirsty plants to grow roots deeper into the soil to
find their much-needed hydration, resulting in the additional bonus of
a more resilient garden!
2. Swales
A swale is basically a deliberately placed depression in the ground,
with the intention of causing water to stay on the land for longer so
that soil can absorb it over a longer period of time. Swales can be
enhanced in instances where they naturally occur, or they can be dug
manually. The key is to place them in sectors where they are likely to
have a lot of water run into them, resulting in a flooded region. This
flooding exposes the soil to water over a longer duration of time,
meaning more can be absorbed. The size of your swale will need to
be judged according to the sector’s terrain and soil type, and your
average rainfall.
3. Contours
Contours, particularly during periods of sparse rainfall, are a useful
feature of your garden to understand. Having an accurate map of the
elevation of land in different parts of your garden can enable you to
be identify the best locations for structures and techniques you could
implement that involve using gravity to distribute water throughout
the garden. If you could create an actual topographic map of your
garden, with the contour lines accurately included, your planning for
these types of features would be most effective.
4. Catchment systems
When the rain does fall, every drop of it is precious. Particularly
during dry spells, you will be crying out for a downfall, but you need
to be prepared to make the most of it when it happens. Catchment
systems are an essential method of doing this. Large, sloped roofing
on your house, garage, shed and barn are catching and then dropping
large amounts of water as they are rained on; guttering and
downspouts will then move all this water to either be absorbed in one
part of the ground, or entered into a drainage system. If you alter this,
placing large containers at these points where the accumulated water
is released, you could be recycling all that water to use in hydrating
your crops! This would mean that even when there is a hosepipe ban
in the driest summer months, you have a stored source of water to use
when your plants are in need of some moisture.
5. Ponds
Having ponds on your property can mean that when the rain is scarce,
you still have an emergency stock to turn to. These little reservoirs
can be lifesavers as an emergency source to water plants and hydrate
your livestock – a general principle in permaculture is that at least
10% of our land should be covered in water at all times. Ponds can be
a great insurance policy for this.
6. Irrigation
This was a groundbreaking agricultural technique for keeping crops
hydrated, and for the permaculture gardener who is working tooth
and nail to catch as much natural water as possible, a good irrigation
 system can be the perfect way to distribute it. There is a range of
options available to you when choosing to use irrigation:
Wicking beds can be constructed with basic piping and gravel
to transport water underneath the soil.
Drip lines can be installed to continuously drop water onto the
surface of the soil around a large area.
Olla gardening involves burying unglazed clay pots that retain
moisture because they are porous, then periodically filling
them so that they slowly feed water into the soil.
Irrigation techniques can be implemented with a little research and at
very little cost, and are a great way for the permaculture gardener to
minimize waste and maximize the use of their collected water.
7. Bunds
You can influence the speed at which water moves down a slope by
erecting low walls in targeted locations. These walls will trap water
and divert it at a slower rate in the direction you plan for, with the
added bonus of collecting any eroding soil that the water carries, and
breathing new life into it by keeping it exposed to the travelling
water.
8. Mulching
Coating the surface of your soil with a layer of mulched wood chips
is a common method of preventing moisture loss in soil. This is
particularly useful when rain has been scarce, because such times are
usually accompanied by bouts of intense sunlight. The layer of mulch
will prevent moisture loss through evaporation, allowing your soil to
stay a little more hydrated as it struggles through the dry months.
Mulching has a range of other benefits too (see chapter 7), but its
effectiveness in the moisture retention of soil is the most important
aspect for this chapter.
9. Grey Water
This means trapping wastewater from your home activities, such as
the water from sinks or bathtubs. If you are able to divert the
 wastewater outlets from these plumbing systems to your garden, they
can be an abundant source of moisture to distribute around your
garden; water which would otherwise have been discarded to a sewer
or septic system.
10. Shade
Using garden arbors or overstory canopies can create shade over
areas of your garden that might otherwise lose a lot of water to
evaporation due to intense sun exposure. They can also act as
windbreaks to protect from the other main culprit for rapid
evaporation from plants and soil. Carefully place these items during
your design phase; overstory plants and trees are the elements you
want to use to create shade, but you don’t want them to have an
adverse effect on another element of your garden.
Putting as much thought as possible into the infrastructure of your plot can
make you most prepared to tackle the issue of how to keep your plants
hydrated. Think about how you can catch water, distribute it widely and
minimize waste and evaporation and you will be adhering to the principles
of permaculture!
Chapter 9: Using Mulch
Mulch is the multipurpose, marvelous miracle that permaculture gardeners
swear by. It can help to decrease the time and effort you need to spend on
each sector of your garden, provide soil and plants with plenty of valuable
organic matter, and help resist evaporation to keep soil well hydrated. In
permaculture, the term ‘mulching’ refers to covering the surface of soil with
a layer of organic material – the key word there being ‘organic’. This
mimics the presence in nature of low-lying plants at the ground level, but
gives you the control of the quantities and qualities of that presence.
Mulching benefits soil in many ways:
Preserving moisture by preventing excessive evaporation
Adding nutrients to the soil that help cultivate important bacteria and
other microorganisms that improve the soil structure
Adding an organic presence that can restrict the growth of weeds
Starving unwanted crops of light so that they die and rot into the soil
Improving the visual appeal of a garden as bare earth is covered with
a more pleasing texture
There is not one definitive way a permaculture gardener can mulch their
garden; you may want to research your own method but in this chapter we
will outline a step-by-step process you can follow that should work just fine
for your garden. This method is aimed at permaculture beginners looking to
transition their plot into a permaculture site, with fairly large areas that
require mulching.

Step 1
Hack down any long grass and weeds using shears or a scythe. Leave
the felled plants where they are; they will add valuable organic matter
to the soil through the mulching process. Don’t worry about digging
up roots or seeds of the unwanted weeds in the soil, because the
layers you will add during mulching will starve them of sunlight and
thus prevent them from carrying out the photosynthesis they need to
survive. Their presence will eventually serve to further feed the soil
as they die.
Step 2
Once you have finished cutting down the unwanted growth, and the
remnants are lying on the surface of the soil, thoroughly water the
ground. This is important because once the mulching process is
complete, and moisture in the soil will be sealed in, but rain won’t be
able to penetrate the ground anymore. The water you input now will
be essential for the processes of all the living organisms in the soil to
function.
Step 3 <Optional>
Add in some agricultural lime to the mix. It is important that any
artificial materials don’t contaminate the lime you use. Lime serves
to bind any heavy metals that may be present in the soil – if these
heavy metals are present, it could harm the plants that grow in the
soil if they absorb them while feeding. If you add the agricultural
lime, you limit this risk.
Step 4
You will now add the most heavy duty layer of the mulching process.
Using material such as cardboard sheets, newspapers, old carpet or
even denim clothing (any strong organic material) cover the entire
surface of the soil so that the edges of each piece of material overlap,
leaving no gaps. The purpose of this layer is twofold:
it prevents the growth of weeds (this is why it is important not
to leave any small gaps where a weed might find its way
through)
as it degrades, it provides nutrients for the soil (this is why
organic matter is used as opposed to materials like plastic or
metal)
Step 5
Mark out pathways. If you are mulching a large area, you will need to
have ways to access parts of that area so you can check on plant
health, scan for pests and eventually harvest the yield of your plants.
Use bricks, stones or timber to establish your access pathways, so
that you can see where NOT to place subsequent layers during the
mulching process. The steps taken before now will ensure the paths
remain weed-free whilst maintaining the integrity of the soil
underneath.
Step 6
Add to the layer with any other organic matter you can find; weeds
cut from other areas, small pruning, perhaps even small amounts of
food scrap such as potato peelings. Anything that could be used for
compost goes into this layer, because as it breaks down it will further
enrich the soil and create a nice layer of humus in the topsoil.
Step 7
Add a substantial layer of hay. This layer should have a depth of
approximately 15 centimeters. Over time the layer will become
compacted, and it will interact with the organic layer beneath it to
further boost the composting effect from step 6, resulting in more
humus for the topsoil and more food for every organism that resides
there.
Step 8
Now is the time to add some actual compost. This layer should
comprise some rich organic manure, preferably horse manure if you
are able to get some. This layer will ensure there is an immediate
source of nutrients for plants that you place directly into the mulch.
Over time it will, of course, decompose further and add to the soil-
enriching processes you have already set in motion below.
Step 9
The final layer is one of yet more organic matter, but this time it
needs to be completely weed-free. Any weeds or cuttings in this top
layer will have access to sunlight, enabling them to establish
themselves and grow in the richly fertile land you placed, in part, to
eradicate unwanted weeds! Use straw, rice hulls or sunflower husks,
 and aim for a depth of around 10 centimeters. This layer will regulate
the soil temperature, provide further nutrients and protect against
moisture evaporation from the layers below.
Once you have your strong mulch mix established, you could plant directly
into it if you wish. Newly planted specimens will require good watering,
but no composting should be required due to the abundance of nutrients you
have provided through your mulching process.
Most permaculture gardens will require mulching in at least some areas. A
high quality organic mulch benefits the soil, the plants and the gardener to
no end – it is a solid foundation upon which to build a rich and fertile
garden!
Chapter 10: Creating a Composting System
Compost is one of the most energy efficient and organic ways to improve
the quality of the soil on your plot. It reduces waste matter to the bare
minimum by recycling refuse matter from the garden and the kitchen into
nutrient-rich humus to feed your soil. The result of your good composting
will be that the soil, and the plants that grow in it, have an abundance of
nutrients to feed on to promote healthy and plentiful growth and resilience.
The two fundamental forms of composting technique are the hot method
and cold methods. ‘Hot’ composting is a faster way to turn organic matter
into functioning compost, but it requires an investment of more time and
effort from the gardener to achieve the optimal results in the garden. It
involves maintaining an elevated temperature of between 110 and 140
degrees Fahrenheit at the center of the compost pile, keeping it
continuously moist and manually turning it at least once a week. Turning it
like this moves cooler material from the outside to the warmer center, where
it will break down into humus more quickly. The advantages of hot
composting include its swift creation of useable compost and the fact that
the higher temperatures within can break down weed seeds before they
grow. During cold composting, a gardener would have to ensure such seeds
are not added to the mix from the outset.
Cold composting essentially involves creating a pile and leaving it over a
long period of time to allow nature to break it down at its own pace. It
demands considerably less input from the user, but can take up to a year to
produce useable compost.
The ingredients for both forms of composting are the same; brown and
green organic material of roughly equal quantities. The brown material can
be items such as leaves, twigs and pruned branches, while the green portion
will be made up of fruit and vegetable scraps, and grass/leaf clippings. Add
to this some livestock manure – avoid waste from animals that contain
pathogens that are harmful to humans (dog and cat feces, for example) –
and some soil that contains microorganisms that will break down the
organic material in your compost pile. Other helpful additions are things
like eggshells, coffee grounds and shredded newspaper. Although the actual
ingredients are similar for hot and cold composting, there are key
differences in the methods you use to turn all that material into useable
compost. Here are some of the factors for you to consider:

Bin
What industrial agriculturalists call ‘in-vessel’ composting refers to
any method of creating compost that involves the use of a closed
container. It is a simple technique to follow, and has a range of useful
applications for any kind of permaculture plot. The contained nature
of a sealed compost bin means the contents are protected from the
elements, and as such you can compost in this way all year round.
However, the lack of ventilation means that the process can take
upwards of six months to produce workable compost for your garden.
The duration of the process will depend on the materials you use, so
do your research before composting in this way if you need it to be
ready as quickly as possible. Compost bins can be easily purchased at
gardening or hardware stores.
Turning Bin
You can speed up the process of bin composting by utilizing a
container that can be turned. With the inclusion of a crank and pivot
mechanism, a compost bin can be rotated, shifting the contents so
that they all gain access to the air and thus accelerating the
decomposition process. This is still a cold technique, however,
because it is very unlikely that the contents of the bin will reach the
temperatures required for hot composting. Nevertheless, this
technique of bin composting can be significantly quicker than the
static bin – you may have some useable compost within two months!
Pile
A pile, or ‘heap’, is as simple as the name suggests: a mound of
compost that is open to the air. Some gardeners will construct a
containing wall around three sides of the pile from bricks or lumber,
while others may go so far as to erect a cage from chicken wire to
restrict the spread of the compost pile. Ideally, you want a compost
heap to have more width than height, as this will allow it to retain
more heat, but your compost pile can be placed in whatever space
you have available. If your space doesn’t allow for a wide compost
heap, it just means it will take longer to mature. Having more than
one pile is preferable, so that when one has reached the limit of what
you consider a manageable size, it can be left to decompose while
you add new material to the next pile. The length of time your pile
will take to be ready will depend on these factors and also on whether
you choose to turn the pile or not; as such it can be a hot or a cold
composting method.

Sheet
Sheet composting is a part of the mulching process we described in
chapter 7; it involves the spreading of organic layers of material over
a garden bed that is then left to decompose. The adding of multiple
layers of organic material is the process of sheet composting, utilizing
a range of materials such as garden clippings, food waste and fallen
leaves. In permaculture gardening these layers are spread carefully
over the surface of the soil to prevent disturbing its complex
structure. Adding the final layer of mulch or straw on top of the
layers of organic material will increase the rate of decomposition and
protect against the elements that could erode the organic materials’
presence.
Pit
A more advanced progression of sheet composting is the method of
pit or ‘trench’ composting. This method is most commonly used for
compost that is created from waste materials from the kitchen –
peelings, leftover/rotten vegetables, eggshells, etc. The principle is
that you dig shallow pits or trenches into which the waste material is
emptied, and then you recover the pit with soil. The soil’s anaerobic
organisms spread across the waste material and break it down over
the next 6 to 12 months, producing nice useable compost that can be
dug up later. A step on from sheet composting is the pit or trench
method. This is a cold composting technique, and although it is quite
slow it comes with the benefit of keeping the decomposing material
 out of sight, and can be a good place to establish new garden beds as
the added nutrients below can promote strong root growth. One
drawback is the laborious work of digging pits, and it is unsuitable
for breaking down brown materials because they take longer to
decompose.
The Worm Farm
The worm is definitely one of the best friends a permaculturist could have
and can easily be used to provide great compost. Worms condition soil by
breaking it up, aerating it and allowing the moisture to seep down into it.
Because the soil is much looser, the roots of a plant can get much deeper,
bringing more of the natural nutrients up to the top.
Worms are also good for breaking organic matter down and releasing the
nutrients from that matter into the soil where it is then used by your plants.
As they eat the organic matter, worms produce castings, which are an
excellent and natural form of nutrient-rich compost and this is the perfect
addition to your plant beds.
One of the best thing you could do for your permaculture garden is start a
worm farm. Not only do you get a constant supply of castings, you can also
dispose of any organic matter from your kitchen into the farm as feed for
the worms. Creating a worm farm is relatively simple and inexpensive and
the benefits are huge.
Step 1 – Find a container
You need a container that can drain for your farm. You can buy special
worm farm containers but you can also recycle other materials, which is the
preferred option for the permaculturist as it is better for the environment.
You need a stack of containers, perhaps wooden or plastic crates, wooden
boxes, or even Styrofoam containers. The worms will reside in the top
container of the stack, with the bottom container used to hold the drainage.
The container must be watertight and it must be capable of protecting the
worms from temperature extremes. Poke holes in the bottom of the top
container and then cover the base with a shade cloth so that the worms
cannot fall through the holes.
 Step 2 – Decide Where t Site the Worm Farm
This should be somewhere where it doesn’t get too cold or too hot and do
avoid any location in your garden that is prone to frost. A deciduous tree
that provides shade in the summer will be ideal because, as the leaves drop,
this allows the sun through in the winter. It must also be placed here it
doesn’t require a great deal of energy for you to take the castings and put
them on your beds. Try to keep it as central as you can.
Step 3 – Add Bedding
The worms will require some kind of material to live in and this is normally
a mixture of shredded newspaper, compost and a small amount of garden
soil. You can use mushroom compost, coconut fibers and grass clippings as
well. Make sure that the material is deep enough – your container should be
half filled – and lightly water the material so it is damp – not soaking wet.
Step 4 – Add the Worms
Sadly, you cannot just pick up a handful of worms from your garden and
put them in your farm. Firstly, they are better off left in the soil to condition
it and improve its structure. Secondly, you need a specific species that are
good at composting. You will need to buy these and you can usually get
them from an online supplier or a specialist organic supplier. There are a
few species to choose from but make sure you get one that is adapted to
your particular climate.
Step 5 – Add the Food
Worms will eat quite a range of different organic materials, mostly what
you would put into a compost piles. Fruit and vegetable scraps from your
kitchen, old shredded newspaper, coffee grids, garden prunings, leaf litter
and old mulch are just some of the things you can feed your worms on.
Also, add eggshells as the calcium promotes egg laying in the worms.
Step 6 – Add Cover
Lay another sheet or cover over the top of the farm, even damp newspaper,
as this stops maggots and vinegar flies from getting in. Once you have done
this, pop the container lid on to keep the worms safe from the elements.
 Step 7 – Maintain Your Farm
To ensure that your farm provides you with the nutrient rich castings, you
must keep it running efficiently. The bedding needs to be kept moist and the
worms need to have sufficient food. Allow the population of worms to let
you know how much food to put in – if you find food matter that is going
moldy, you are feeding them too much. Conversely, if the food matter you
put in disappears very quickly, you aren’t feeding enough. Overall though,
worms will respond to the supply of food and they will breed according to
the supply. Every now and again, add a small amount of garden soil to the
farm – the grit and sand is useful for helping the worms grind their food up.
Step 8 – Migrate the Worms
As your worms breed and multiply, the amount of castings will grow as
well and the worms can be migrated to the top container. When the middle
container is almost full of the castings, put some more bedding in the top
container and the worms will migrate up to it. When they have, take the
middle container out and harvest the castings – this container can be used to
migrate the next round of worms.
Step 9 – Use the Liquid That Drains off
In the bottom container will be the liquid that drains from the rest of the
farm. This is worm waste but is not to be wasted. It can be diluted with
water and then used as a liquid form of compost. Do keep an eye on the
liquid level in the bottom container. If it gets too high, it will start to seep
back into their bedding.
Step 10 – Use the Worm Castings
The castings are an excellent form of slow release compost, both for garden
beds and for plants in pots. Add them directly to the soil and they will
prompt the microorganisms that already live in the soil to activate and they,
in turn, will process those castings and put them back into the soil. This
increases the amount of valuable nutrients for your plants to use.
Chapter 11: The Permaculture Greenhouse
The greenhouse is an integral part of any garden. It’s most basic function is
to absorb light and heat from the sun, providing indoor conditions that are
warmer than those on the outside. For a permaculture garden, the
greenhouse provides another environment for growing, an environment that
compliments and harnesses the power of the climate. A greenhouse is also a
way to extend the growing season, allowing you to start off plants much
earlier and move pants in to extend their growing and fruiting season when
the outside weather turns colder. And a greenhouse will allow you to grow a
more diverse range of plants, in particular plants that need a warmer climate
to survive. A word of caution on this though – these types of plants are not
likely to be native to your area so be careful that cross pollination doesn’t
occur.
The success of a greenhouse in the permaculture garden will depend on a
number of factors, including having the right species of plant, and the
greenhouse itself being sited in the best location to make the most of the
sun. Inside the greenhouse, you have to consider temperature, moisture and
airflow, in particular ventilation. Ventilation is one of the most important
aspects to a successful greenhouse, having an effect on all the other factors.
Here’s why:
Temperature
Obviously, the real purpose of the greenhouse is to provide hotter
conditions that those outside but it is vital that you do not allow it to get too
hot inside. Plants are temperature sensitive and too high a temperature will
cause wilting, growth will stop and they may stop producing fruit, or even
die altogether. Plants also do not like extreme temperature swings either.
Ventilation can help you to avoid these issues by letting hot air escape and
cooler air in, thus maintaining a nice even temperature.
Humidity
All plants produce a moisture vapor through the act of transpiration. If this
moisture cannot get out of the greenhouse, it will become too humid and
this can be highly detrimental to the growth of your plants. Water absorbs
the sun’s heat and an excess of humidity will cause a rise in temperature
inside the greenhouse. It will also provide the ideal breeding ground for
pathogens and mold, mildew and fungi will affect your plants. If the
humidity is allowed to scale out of control, it will reach what is known as
dew point. This is where the air can no longer hold the amount of water
vapor and it will condense back into a liquid. This will give you
condensation problems and your plants will become saturated.
Having proper ventilation prevents this from happening by allowing the
warm and wet air to escape and replacing it with cooler and drier air.
Exchange of Oxygen
Any gardener will know that plants take carbon dioxide from the air and use
it in the photosynthesis process. Oxygen is a by-product of this process and,
if your greenhouse lacks proper ventilation, the air will become full of
oxygen, stopping the plants from getting the carbon dioxide they need. That
means they will not be able to photosynthesize and will not grow properly.
Plants require a certain amount of oxygen as it allows them to take in the
nutrients that they need – these are taken in through the soil into the roots.
Pollination
Air movement allows for pollination of your plants. In the wild, many
plants rely on the wind to take the pollen to other plants, so that they can
propagate and also ensure their survival. In a greenhouse that is not
ventilated, this cannot happen. Proper flow of air will shake the plats gently,
allowing the pollen to be released and will then carry it off to other plants.
Circulation
Good air circulation links all of these factors. Air movement inside a
greenhouse helps with the regulation of both humidity ad temperature, it
encourages plant pollination and the exchange of oxygen. It also gives your
plants a stable environment, a consistent environment, ensuring that all the
plants get the same conditions and there are no pockets of excessive heat,
cold or moisture. Air circulation in a greenhouse is the indoor equivalent of
the wind or a breeze and we know that wind is essential for the strong
cultivation of plants. As a plant bends from wind pressure, their cell walls
grow stronger as a way of protecting themselves. This helps the plant to
grow stronger and hardier and this is vital if they are to be transplanted into
the outdoors later on.
Pests
A lack of adequate ventilation in your greenhouse will end in tears as your
plants will be weak and that means they are more susceptible to attack by
pests. There are also some insects that like a humid and hot place to lay
their eggs in. Proper ventilation will stop an explosion of pests by stopping,
or at least slowing down, the breeding and it will also allow the predatory
insects that are beneficial to plant life to come and go as they please. And, if
these insects can get in and out, they also provide another avenue for
pollination.
There are a number of ways to make sure that your greenhouse gets the
right amount of ventilation and each must be considered at the time you
draw up your plans, rather than waiting until later on down the line. One of
the more common methods is fan ventilation – the fan exhausts the hot air,
which creates a vacuum, drawing the cool air in. However, in a
permaculture greenhouse, you should not use this method unless you have it
rigged up to a sola or wind-driven form of energy to drive the fans.
You can use methods that do not require the use of energy. Vents in the
sidewalls, high up, will work as the hot air will rise and can be dispersed
easily. Top opening greenhouses work for the same reason. Just leaving the
door open can work provided you have an opening at each end so that the
air can circulate properly. You could also design a greenhouse where the
sides can be removed but you would need to ensure that chickens or other
animals could not get into the greenhouse, otherwise you will see
destruction on a grand scale.
The Walipini
To truly extend your growing season and the diversity of the plants in your
permaculture garden, you could set up a walipini. This is an underground
greenhouse that allows you to grow plants all year round, regardless of the
weather outside. This creates resilience and a more consistent stream of
foods coming from your garden.
Walipini’s are the ideal solution for using the energy that is freely available,
reducing the amount of pollution and growing crops that are of a higher
quality. Building an underground greenhouse is actually fairly simple. The
hardest part is situating it in the right place. They are ideal for a large range
of climate conditions and, because the earth is generally cooler in the
summer and warmer in winter, the greenhouse provides a highly stable
microclimate for plants.
Most walipinis are built to go around three to five feet under the ground and
are designed to collect and store the energy from the sun. Typically,
walipini is covered in plastic sheeting and the widest surface area should
face the winter sun. That means in the northern hemisphere, it should face
south and vice versa in the southern hemisphere. The depth lets the
gardener make use of the constant thermal temperatures below ground and
allows for year round growing. This design has been in use for hundreds of
years and has proven itself a stable and warm environment.
A solar greenhouse, which is what the walipini is, in effect, relies almost
entirely on the sun for crop growth and these crops are not affected by the
external weather conditions. The design takes advantage of anural
insulation while, at the same time, optimizing the absorbance of solar
energy. You can build on a scale that suits you, be it a small one for
producing a few vegetables and fruits for the winter, or something much
larger. Whatever size you opt to build, these subterranean greenhouses have
proven to be much more beneficial to gardeners, especially those who
practice permaculture, that a normal greenhouse or conventional growing
methods.
Chapter 12 – Animals and Their Role in
Permaculture
Most people tend to think of permaculture as being just plant life and
energy but animals can also be used, in particular, the pig and the chicken.
Chickens
Just by being chickens, and doing what chickens do, they provide you with
a very useful and integral part of your permaculture system. What can they
do for you? Let’s look at what they produce:
Firstly, we know that chickens produce eggs and can be used as meat as
well. But, to do that, they need a supply of good protein. Too many people
feed their chickens on a grain only diet and then wonder why the egg yield
is low.
Second, when you use a chicken for meat, you are left with the feathers and
the guts, both of which are an excellent source of protein to add to your
compost heap or feed to your worms. And if you keep pigs as well, they
will happily eat the guts.
Third, chickens do three things at the same time – they scratch at the soil,
removing weeds, the forage for those grubs and insects, in the ground and
out, and third, they supply your garden with a healthy amount of manure.
Clearly, you do not want your chickens loose in the garden as they will
destroy it in short order. What you can do is make up a coop on a small
trailer and use a moveable pen to move them to different areas of the
garden.
There is little that a chicken won’t eat. In a fruit orchard, they will clear the
fallen fruit, eating the fruit fly maggots, which breaks that cycle. In the
garden, they will target snails and slugs and they will even attack and eat
any mice that come across their path.
There is one design feature that you can add into your permaculture garden
that will boost things no end. Build your chicken house over a pond – this
will allow the manure to fall directly into the water, passively feeding an
aquaculture system and increasing its productivity. Chicken manure is full
of phosphorous, nitrogen and potassium which, when it breaks down in the
pond water, provides food for the algae and the phytoplankton that edible
fish feed on. This is especially useful if you are raising fish for food.
Feeding Your Chickens
When a chicken is well looked after, it will be healthy and it will be happy
and that means it will be productive. Here’s what a chicken needs:
Food
You can add kitchen scraps to the bought or grown feed that you give your
chickens and to their own foraging activities. They must have fresh greens
all the year round to ensure their health and it really is worth growing
certain foods to keep them fed, like dandelion and comfrey.
Medical
Unfortunately, chickens are prone to picking up diseases. To reduce the
likelihood of worms, give them a large area to roam, keep their bedding
fresh and clean and remove the build-up of manure. The bedding can go
straight into your compost heap and the manure can be dissolved in water to
make a great liquid fertilizer or just sprinkled around the garden. Grow a bit
of garlic and wormwood around the pen and your chickens will happily
self-medicate.
Use diatomaceous earth to dust your birds to keep lice and fleas at bay and
put herbs like dried neem leaves, rose geranium and lavender in their
nesting boxes. The following medicinal herbs can be grown in an area that
your chickens can get to:
Comfrey
Wormwood
Garlic
Lemongrass
Lemon mint
 Mint
Echinacea
Astralagus
Melissa
Nasturtium
Nettle
Grow them in a boxed area and put netting over the top so that the chickens
can eat what grows through the netting but can’t scratch at the earth or eat
the entire plant.
Always make sure that your chickens have fresh water and that they can’t
get into it and soil it. If they do soil in their water, simply use it as liquid
fertilizer. However, if you are keeping chickens and ducks together, it is
important that the ducks cannot soil the chickens’ water.
Never keep just one chicken. Apart from the fact that one really isn’t a lot
of good for your garden, they do like to be together. Allow an area of 1
square meter of space per adult bird when you build their pen – this will
stop any bullying behavior and feather pecking.
Chicken Tractors
A chicken tractor is a must for anyone who has land they want turned over
and weeded with the least amount of hassle. A chicken tractor is nothing
more than a moveable cage. This allows you to control where you chickens
are and still be able to move them around.
You can make a simple one out of old pallets and chicken wire with a piece
of tarp to give your chickens’ shelter from harsh sun and the rain. Simply
pull the pallets apart and use the wood to construct a simple frame,
whatever size you like and then cover it in chicken wire on all four sides
and the top. Don’t forget to add a gate in it and place the tarp over the top at
one end to give them their shelter. Position your tractor where you want it
on a daily basis and pop the chickens in every morning. Don’t forget to give
them fresh water and a bit of extra feed. If you do this on a daily basis on a
patch that you need cleared, you will soon have a de-weeded freshly tilled
garden.
Pigs
Pigs are another great addition to the permaculture garden and there are two
different breeds to choose from. One is a short snouted breed and one is a
long snouted breed. The snout on the pig determines how it forages. The
longer snouted breeds can dig deeper in the litter that is around the pen or
enclosure while the shorter snout breeds are closer to the ground, enabling a
grazing behavior.
Pigs are well known for turning over the earth in search of food and will
soon lay waste to any area that they are allowed to roam in. For this reason,
you must ensure that your pigs are properly fenced in but with sufficient
room to wander. Like the chickens, pigs are social creatures so always keep
more than one.
In addition, like the chickens, you can use pigs as tractors. You can either
build something similar to the chicken tractor but on a much larger scale or
you can just fence in the area that needs to be ploughed. Most people use
single electric wire fencing, erected at the height of their snouts. Do opt for
this is you have a solar or wind powered way of powering it. Your pigs will
need to be trained to be aware of the fence and, as such, they will need a
strong zap from the fence to stop them. They will only touch it a couple of
times before they realize what it is and stay away from it. A fence that only
gives out a weak zap will not stop a pig, as it will simply barge its way
through it. If you don’t want to use electric fencing, opt for dog wire or
ordinary fencing wire. Do make sure that it is taut and the wire strands are
close together because a pig will get its snout underneath and lift it if it can.
Pigs are escape artists and, if they can get out they will. Left to their own
devices, they will lay waste to your garden quite indiscriminately.
To get them dig in particularly hard areas of land or to get boulders out of
the ground for you, sprinkle a little grain on the area. The pigs will go into a
bit of a frenzy to get the grain and the land will benefit in no time at all!
To get your pigs into the tractor, simply wave a bucket of food in front of
them and they will follow you. They may not be quite so quick at plowing
up the land as methods that are more conventional but they are very
thorough. They will eat the roots of any weed or grasses in the ground and
they will eat the seed heads from plants like thistles, stopping them from
spreading. They will trample down weeds and they will uproot small trees
or plants. They will pull up sod and eat it, roots and all. In addition, they
will leave you with ground that is open, fully aerated and free of weeds, not
to mention well manured.
Try not to keep the pigs in the same are for too long, as they are likely to
compact the soil in some areas. Give them an area that will take them about
a week to clear and then move them on. And one good piece of advice for
all permaculturists – when you move your pig tractor to a new patch put
your chicken tractor on the old one. They will add their own manure to the
mix while scratching the pig manure thoroughly into the ground. They will
eat any insects that may be left and will flatten out the lumps and the bumps
left by the pigs.
Feeding Your Pigs
There are two ways to provide your pigs with a sustainable food source that
gives them the right nutrients. You can grow plants for them or you can feed
them on decaying or composting material. The first method is fodder crops
and this is the easiest. The food revolves around a source of protein, like a
legume, which contains a high level of nitrogen. The food also revolves
around a source of energy and this can come from carbohydrates – simple
ones from fruits and complex ones from fibrous vegetables or grains. The
second method is food that is rotting, rubbish or compost. One of the richest
sources you can feed your pigs on is fungi and these are easily grown,
particularly those that are edible. Both of these methods can be integrated
into your permaculture garden very easily.
You can also use sheep and goats to clear areas of grass and shrubs as well
as fallen fruit, prunings from trees and other vegetables or fruits that are not
fit for eating.
The beauty of using these animals is that you can also use them for meat at
the end of the season. You can breed them so you have a constant supply
but, unless you live in a temperate climate, there will be little for them to do
over the winter months and you will have to bear the cost of feeding them.
It is best to start afresh the following year or borrow your animals from a
nearby sanctuary or farm.
Conclusion
Achieving success in the field of permaculture is certainly not a
straightforward process. There are many considerations to take into
account, and an even wider range of options available that you must sift
through until you find what will work for your needs, and those of your
plot. Some will relish the challenge of trying to harness the power of the
land and the elements to produce a prosperous, bountiful site of crops, flora
and fauna, while others will find this challenge to be too great an obstacle.
The reality is that permaculture is a practice for the former of these two
types of people. Each step along the road to achieving a functional
permaculture garden is part of a learning curve that will be an enriching
experience for the enthusiastic gardener, and the final result of creating such
a natural habitat for life in abundance is the pinnacle of what a gardener
could hope to achieve.
Permaculture is an advanced discipline, and one that has developed a great
number of core principles and practices as it has evolved through the years.
But the beauty lies in the fact that it is, essentially, so primitive. There is no
use of products created artificially through some advanced scientific
process, or complex machinery that functions by some miraculous modern
technology. Rather, it is the art of studying and becoming at one with the
natural processes of a location, acknowledging the most potent of its
beneficial processes and modifying the variables to allow these processes to
reach their full potential.
If you are committing to permaculture, know that you are a student of an
ongoing journey of discovery. Use the findings and experiences of others to
guide your plans. Do your research when considering what actions to take.
This book is merely an introduction into a practice so rich with diversity
that no book could ever contain all the information one would need to be
successful. Good luck on your journey, it promises to be one of the most
rewarding you will ever undertake.
I would like to thank you for downloading my book and I hope that you
have found it helpful and interesting. Please consider leaving a review for
me at Amazon.com