Permaculture 02 - Permaculture in 8 Steps
- Jimmy Barrett
- Sep 22, 2016
- 3 min read
Permaculture allows us to holistically create a place for ourselves and our loved ones in a way that benefits life in all its forms. We wish only to secure a sustainable place for ourselves and all life that lives with us on our property. When we sit down to create a Permaculture Design, we want to bring together a myriad of elements that have complimentary function and "play well with others" to create a harmonious system designed to nourish ourselves and those around us.
Let's develop a design using the eight different techniques of Permaculture Design:
ANALYSIS: When the time is right, we need to sit down and list all of the characteristics of the components that will influence our site. Be they obvious, like moisture and soil, to the less obvious, such as ethical use and time. We do need to understand the specific part each of these components will play in the overall design of our piece of Earth, and we may need to change current designs to meet its needs, so we'd need to list the characteristics and what we know about each one.
OBSERVATION: Analyzing can be done electronically (desktop, tablet, even your cell phone), but Observation requires "feet on the ground" at your site. Look for unique characteristics, bring your camera and a notebook and plan for your first Permaculture expedition to your site.
NATURE: What can nature teach us out at your site? From your analysis and your observation you can just being to understand that Nature has used and the patterns your property has taken in order to achieve her goals. Can you use them too in order to guide your Permaculture design?
EVOLVE: The old phase, "If you want to hear God laugh, just start telling him your plans", is a good one to remember here. You may plan for one thing, but it will evolve into something else over time. While you do have "your eye on the prize", just remember that the road there may not be a straight path. Still, even windy roads give us more options than we originally considered, always be open to incorporating these new options into your original plan.
PLOT: Try to get an overhead picture view of your plot and, using transparencies, overlay your ideas and see how they would work within the site.
RANDOM: No matter what you do, there will be an element of randomness that you did not first expect. Try to remain open-minded to the randomness presented to you and see if you can't work that in to your plan. Worst case scenario, you may have to adjust your plan from the original, but always let that work with you.
WORKFLOW: Always keep in mind the flow of work necessary to accomplish your goals. Are you raising livestock? Where are you processing the results (Milk/Meat) of the livestock? Are you raising vegetables to be canned? Where is your processing area for the canning? Create a workflow that fosters the most efficiency and productivity for what you have in mind.
ZONES & SECTORS: There are always two types of energy in permaculture. The energy that is on site (people, machinery, plants, and wastes) treat under "Zone Analysis". The second type of energy that comes on site (wind, sunlight, rainwater, and wildlife) treat under "Sector Analysis".
When utilizing these 8 steps you will always find you can achieve Permaculture Design Success! Give it a try, and stand by for future lessons in Permaculture!
Jimmy Barrett is an Business Services Professional, working from home with a Family of four. He's enjoying the journey of learning about Permaculture and adding it's practices to his own home garden. Please note that opinions expressed by Jimmy Barrett may not be shared by Heart 2 Heart Farms, should you have any questions please feel free to email us directly.
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