Why Permaculture?

In the beginning there was the seed. This is how I was going to start this week's column. I changed my mind. If we are going to discuss beginnings, then let us first take a look at a food production system that is and can herald a new way to get food from the field to your table. An ecologically sound method to design a sustainable society.

An ecosystem is a formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their environment. Ecosystems are dynamic and involve relationships. Plants, trees, birds, butterflies, rocks and humans all co-existing.

North America is covered in backyards which primarily consist of lawns with close clipped grass bordered by flower and/or vegetable beds. These beds are frequently ordered in nice neat rows as though the plants were standing for inspection.

The backyards that I have just described are all immature or stalled ecosystems. The ecosystem wants to evolve but week after week it gets cut back, weeded, pruned or sprayed. All this work takes considerable effort as the gardener attempts to keep the garden frozen in time and space. The system is never given the opportunity to evolve.

Permaculture assist you to acquire skills that will enable you to intervene within the stalled ecosystem , to develop new relationships and interactions. This action will encourage the system to evolve into a thriving ecosystem that includes, plants, people, birds, butterflies and all the creatures that bring vibrant Life to a natural system.

I have discussed permaculture's origins previously but I feel a quick reminder is appropriate. Permaculture is a contraction of permanent agriculture. It was Bill Mollison and David Holmgren who first put these two words together to form permaculture. Books such as Permaculture One will give you more information about the permaculture design system. Today many permaculturalists use the term to refer to permanent culture as well. Permaculture is the conscious design of sustainable human systems which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems.

Why do we want to learn how to garden ecologically. Well, one reason is to be able to grow our own food. This way we know where it comes from and how it was grown. There is a sense of freedom and accomplishment that is derived from being able to produce at least some of your own and or your family's food. A second reason is to increase the amount of urban habitat that is friendly to the birds, bees and butterflies that have been forced out of far to many neighbourhoods due to urban sprawl and development. A third is to increase the urban food supply. This increase will result in a decrease in the demand that is put on the surrounding rural areas to provide that food. This frees up land which can then be allowed to return to a wilder state.

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