Permaculture

January 25, 2012 Gardening Gals Uncategorized

Permaculture was developed in the 1970’s by Australians Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in a response to soil, water and air pollution by industrial and agricultural systems; loss of plant and animal species; reduction of natural non-renewable resources and a destructive economic system.

Permaculture is based on the study of inter-relationships and interdependence of living things and their environment.

The philosophy behind permaculture is one of working with, rather than against, nature; of protracted and thoughtful observation rather than protracted and thoughtless action; of looking at systems in all their functions, rather than asking only one yield of them; and allowing systems to demonstrate their own evolutions.

The main features or permaculture are:

• It is a system for creating sustainable human settlements by integrating design and ecology
• It is a synthesis of traditional knowledge and modern science, applicable to both urban and rural situations
• It takes natural systems as a model and works with nature to design sustainable environments which will provide basic human needs as well as the social and economic infrastructures which support them
• It encourages us to become a conscious part of the solutions to the many problems which face us, both locally and globally

The permaculture gardening method is definitely one to consider if your goal is to create a simple, non-polluting home and grow your own food, repair and build up the soil and care for natural vegetation.