Weather, A Little Knowledge Makes A Difference.

A few weeks ago while I was surfing the net, looking for article ideas and passing the time, I came across a quote by Bill Mollison, the founder of permaculture. My understanding of what Mollison was saying is that in the future we were going to be experiencing weather that was highly variable and difficult to predict in advance. This certainly rings true with the weather that we have been experiencing locally over the past year.

This winter we are experiencing near drought conditions with very little snow. This does not bode well for this Spring and Summer. Forest fires, lower lake levels, wells drying up and water restrictions are just some of the consequences that may occur if this dry spell continues. It has also been cold, minus 20-30 C, cold aka bone-cracking cold for much of the past eight weeks.

Mollison made this statement some years, but when I think about the past few months, I realize his thinking may well be right on. We cannot afford to take the weather for granted. I have talked with people who are happy we have not had much snow. Nothing to shovel or get stuck in. They do not make the connection between snow and water and even if they do, our society still takes water for granted. We need to understand the importance of the elements to our survival and how vital water is to Life.

Knowledge is a gardener's most important ally, especially so, if your family food supply is home-grown.

Permaculture provides us with the skills that enable us to become self-reliant while living within a community setting. These skills can be used by the backyard gardener to improve personal food security as they enhance the health of their property. It can also be used within a neighbourhood context. If you learn nothing else you will develop a knowledge of plants and that can improve your own ability to understand how Nature works.

If you live in an apartment or a condo or have limited means you can still get started practicing permaculture. The first step is to get to know the space you occupy. Know it well and you will be able to see the possibilities. This is the point I repeatedly mentioned in the grow your own food indoors series. This is the beginning knowledge that you will use to design your own permaculture system. Now do some reading, take a trip to the library and look for some works on permaculture. Surf the net. Develop your knowledge base. Next begin to consider what you want to achieve, compare that to where you actually are and list what needs to be done to get to one point from the other. Now do step one.

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