What Permaculture Isn’t—and Is Permaculture is notoriously hard to define. A recent survey shows that people simultaneously believe it is a design approach, a philosophy, a movement, and a set of practices. This broad and contradiction-laden brush doesn’t just make permaculture hard to describe. It can be off-putting, too. Humans are a problem-solving species. Thomas Kuhn, in his masterwork, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, uses the word “paradigm” to mean the viewpoint that defines the problems to be solved in a particular field. “Paradigm” has been trivialized through overuse and I’m sure that Kuhn is spinning in his grave. Permaculture and other ecological approaches are attempts to articulate this new paradigm, by framing the problem and offering tools and strategies to pursue its solution. So, why, then, is permaculture so confusing to define? In the 18th Century, combustion was explained by something called phlogiston. In the 1770s, cracks began to appear in phlogiston theory.
Which Commercial Fertilizer is Best? - Leaf, Root & Fruit Gardening Services Melbourne We purchased a range of “off-the-shelf” fertilizers from Bunnings and tested their performance. We think our Hungry Bin Worm Farm is great. It’s easy to use, the worms love it, and it produces plenty of worm wee. This summer we conducted an experiment to test the performance of a range of potting mixes. We compared nine different fertilizing regimes. Each treatment was used to try and improve the plants growing in two different types of potting mix. We mixed the powdered and pelletised fertilizers through the potting mix prior to potting up. For both the potting mix and fertilizer experiments, we used capsicum seedlings. The potted-up seedlings were then placed in our greenhouse. We assessed each of the plants and recorded the colour of the leaves as well as the number of plants in each group that had set fruit. Results of different fertilizers used to treat seedlings growing in the Fulton’s Bulk Potting Mix We also took photos of the plants. The best plant from each of the 5 replicates.
Bill Mollison Bruce Charles 'Bill' Mollison (born 1928 in Stanley, Tasmania, Australia) is a researcher, author, scientist, teacher and Biologist. He is considered to be the 'father of permaculture',[1] however Joseph Russell Smith, was the first to write about a system of Permanent Agriculture in a book entitled Tree Crops, published in 1929.[2] Permaculture is an integrated system of design, Mollison co-developed with David Holmgren, that encompasses not only agriculture, horticulture, architecture and ecology, but also economic systems, land access strategies and legal systems for businesses and communities. In 1978, Mollison collaborated with David Holmgren, and they wrote a book called Permaculture One. Bill Mollison founded The Permaculture Institute in Tasmania, and created a training system to train others under the umbrella of Permaculture. He received the Right Livelihood Award in 1981 with Patrick van Rensburg. Bibliography[edit] Articles Mollison, Bill (15–21 September 1978). See also[edit]
Permaculture with a Mycological Twist Permaculture is a concept pioneered by Australian Bill Mollison and literally means "permanent agriculture". His model of biological diversity and complementary agricultural practices promotes a sustainable environment via the interplay of natural ecosystems. Permaculture has gained a huge international following with the publication of his book Permaculture: A Practical Guide for a Sustainable Future. Permaculture has become the mainstay philosophy of the organic movement. Mollison's vision, which borrows from Masanobu Fukuoka's "One Straw Revolution", intelligently combines the factors of site location, recycling of by-products from farming and forest activities, species diversity and biological succession. When gourmet and medicinal mushrooms are involved as key organisms in the recycling agricultural and forest by-products, the bio dynamics of permaculture soar to extraordinary levels of productivity. 1. 2. King Stropharia is an excellent edible mushroom when young. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Terra preta Terra preta (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈtɛʁɐ ˈpɾetɐ], locally [ˈtɛhɐ ˈpɾetɐ], literally "black earth" or "black land" in Portuguese) is a type of very dark, fertile anthropogenic soil found in the Amazon Basin. Terra preta owes its name to its very high charcoal content, and was made by adding a mixture of charcoal, bone, and manure to the otherwise relatively infertile Amazonian soil. It is very stable and remains in the soil for thousands of years.[1] It is also known as "Amazonian dark earth" or "Indian black earth". Terra preta soils are of pre-Columbian nature and were created by humans between 450 BC and AD 950.[5][6] The soil's depth can reach 2 meters (6.6 ft). History[edit] Early theories[edit] The origins of the Amazonian dark earths were not immediately clear. Anthropogenic roots[edit] This type of soil appeared between 450 BC and AD 950 at sites throughout the Amazon Basin.[6] Pre-Columbian Amazonia[edit] Location[edit] Pedology[edit] Wood charcoal[edit] Biochar[edit]
Introduction to Agroecology: Green Gold- "The Source of Wealth is [are] the Functional Ecosystems" "Kariegasfontein Ranch, Aberdeen, South Africa: Land on the left managed under Holistic Planned Grazing (HPG) in 200 mm [7.87 inches] rainfall, showing a contrast with advancing desertification," Photo Credit: Norman Kroon. Source. I fixed the horizon line from original image. My last diary in this series shared Allan Savory's TED talk on his system of Holistic Management. Recognizing the audacity of such a statement, I provided the following for context: Allan Savory is NOT proclaiming that Holistic Management is the only solution for climate change. In light of the acknowledgement that Holistic Management (HM in this diary) is not appropriate everywhere all the time, nor is it the only solution for climate change, I wish to present John D. Originally aired on Dutch TV by VPRO, Green Gold was made in conjunction with Liu's Environmental Education Media Project (EEMP).2 Green Gold is an extended version of "Hope in a Changing Climate," coproduced by EEMP and The Open University.3 2." 5.
Permaculture Plants Permaculture Plants In Permaculture there is a big push towards perennial plant systems and for good reason. The idea of creating self-sustaining living systems that generate an excess that we can harvest and use sounds great to me! Our perennial plant guilds can produce more than just food, they can produce timber to burn or build, fodder for animals, mulch for the garden and medicine. I’m a huge fan of perennial plants. There are dozens of perennial plants that can substitute for their more popular annual vegetables and fruits but it may take a bit of an adjustment with your taste buds. Below are a few articles on some favourite plants.
David Holmgren David Holmgren (born 1955) is an Australian environmental designer, ecological educator and writer. He is best known as one of the co-originators of the permaculture concept with Bill Mollison. Life and work[edit] Holmgren was born in the state of Western Australia to political parents who were very active in the movement against Australia's involvement in the Vietnam war. I wrote the manuscript, which was based partly on our constant discussions and on our practical working together in the garden and on our visits to other sites in Tasmania... The book was a mixture of insights relating to agriculture, landscape architecture and ecology. According to Holmgren, '(t)he word permaculture was coined by Bill Mollison and myself in the mid-1970s to describe an "integrated, evolving system of perennial or self-perpetuating plant and animal species useful to man". Permaculture: Principles and Pathways beyond Sustainability[edit] Weeds or Wild Nature[edit] Eco village design[edit] Translation[edit]
Confronting the Context: Permaculture and Capitalism | Liberation Ecology I’ve written before about the challenges faced by permaculture enterprises. Farms, like other land-based permaculture projects, are faced with the formidable task of regenerating ecosystems and communities, while surviving in a system that rewards the destruction of the same systems. Permaculture projects have to compete with degenerative enterprises and institutions that are happy to take the efficiency ‘bonus’ from unsustainable and exploitative practices. The consequence is that it’s hard for permaculture enterprises to keep costs as low, and therefore people with less of an economic buffer, who have to minimize costs as much as possible, find it hard to support regenerative enterprises as consumers. That’s most of the world, in case you were wondering. So the regenerative enterprises that we would like to create have a difficult time offering products and services that most people can afford, and most people can’t afford to support the regenerative economy. Rafter Emily ©Erik Schmitz