Permaculture is a low impact method which aims to use perennial cultivation practices to produce food crops following the way it happens in nature.
As life evolved on this planet all of the flora and fauna worked together as interdependent entities growing and recycling the basic elements of existence. One species developed to a greater degree than all of the rest, learning to manipulate its surroundings to its own advantage and to the detriment of others. The rate of this development has accelerated exponentially and over the last two centuries the so-called industrial revolution has moved our species from this co-existence to a point where some people never see where food is produced, simply buying it off the shelf.
Most of the world's population now lives in urban areas having abandoned subsistence living for what they believe is a better life. This process is occuring at present in China where land is left unused and those people who remain are changing the crops they grow to provide crops which can be sold to urban dwellers - just as it happened in the 'industrial world' in the nineteenth century.
Most people no longer grow any food and it has to be brought in from the surrounding land, or more usually shipped from afar. It is grown in a monoculture system which causes great harm to the land, extracting nutrients which are replaced with artificial fertilizers, and most of the natural flora and fauna are removed or displaced. These single crops attract pests and diseases, and often require irrigation as well.
The potato famine in Ireland occurred because the Blight disease spread rapidly through the single species of potato which was being grown at the time. The intensive cultivation leads to a reduction in productivity and can result in desertification, as has happened in areas where the rainforest was cleared for palm oil production or grazing for beef production. The latest trend towards the production of 'biofuels' is increasing the amount of land dedicated to growing monoculture crops, including rainforest destruction, so it is not the 'green' solution it pretends to be - also food crops are being diverted to this use and has increased prices.
The term Permaculture was first used by the Australian pair, Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in the 1970s, who used it to describe a means of sustainable food production where there is no need for industrialised techniques, with minimal inputs and there is no damage to the environment. It comes from 'permanent agriculture' which appeared in the title of a book on far eastern agriculture published in 1911. The term is now thought of as a shortening of 'permanent culture' since it is a wider concept of everyday living within a sustainable environment.
This way of looking at the earth is in tune with the Gaia hypothesis, first postulated by James Lovelock in the 1960s. This considers the whole earth as a large organism with many interdependent systems which work together. The atmosphere, oceans, soil and flora and fauna all operate with feedback mechanisms to maintain an eqilibrium. Unfortunately our meddling has disrupted this delicate balance, resulting in the current problems of environmental damage such as climate change and loss of many species which have to be addressed before it accelerates to a disastrous end. Although it is impossible to expect a return to a subsistence society where everybody lives in their own self sustained niche, there are plenty of ways to reduce our dependence on fossil-fuelled excesses.
Mollison and Holmgren set about designing living spaces which were in complete harmony with their surroundings. They are perennial agricultural systems which capture water and are planted with a diversity of species to provide food for all. Housing is built using sustainable materials sourced locally. The movement is now considered to follow two main strands.
- Original Permaculture which attempts to set up a system closely following nature to create a Forest Garden where plants and animals live harmoniously.
- Design Permaculture which uses natural processes to create an ecosystem following ecological principles in a more structured way and can be used in the more restrictive confines of a city.
When creating a permaculture garden it is usually a designed setup where the plants are grown organically and are irrigated by rain water. There is minimal cultivation with organic matter applied to the surface. The plants used tend to be perennials which provide leaves, roots and fruit for harvesting. Where space allows animals such as pigs and chickens can be included; bees will pollinate flowers and provide honey. The plants are grown in such density that they crowd out most of the weed plants which are not required. Due to the diversity of plants the number of pests are kept to a minimum and are reduced further by predators.
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Bill Mollison is still actively promoting this way of living and travels the world teaching his methods. You can view a series of clips of a documentary by Bill Mollison on YouTube by following these links:-
"The Permaculture Concept" - Part 2
"The Permaculture Concept" - Part 3
"The Permaculture Concept" - Part 4
"The Permaculture Concept" - Part 5
"The Permaculture Concept" - Part 6
This is a video clip of a gardener in Oregon who set up a less permanent growing system in a back garden (yard):-
"An Experiment in Back Yard Sustainability"
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