Although our last frost is just a few weeks behind us, I have been gardening for months. And by that, I mean preparing- taking in knowledge, planning in my garden journal, building new hugelkultur raised garden beds, drying out duck bedding for mulch, depleting the manure piles…and of course, planting and watching everything come to life before my eyes.

So naturally, the garden is never far from my thoughts. And every time I find myself gazing over the fence to admire the fruitage of the hours of labor that have gone into the garden, I’m filled with a sense of contentment. Why?

Because there’s something that just feels right in knowing that I’m working with nature, and not against it.

That is what permaculture allows. And it just makes sense. Perhaps you’ve never heard of permaculture, or have heard of it but don’t really know what it is. Maybe you’ve done a little bit of research but aren’t yet sure of how to employ permaculture methods in your own back yard. Today I’d like to bring you the basics and get you at least thinking in the direction of a more sustainable method of providing food for your family.

First of all, let’s look up the definition of permaculture:

(2) Permaculture is a system of agricultural and social design principles centered around simulating or directly utilizing the patterns and features observed in natural ecosystems.

As you can see, permaculture is a system that works with nature, and not against it. Most traditional gardens work against nature.

Permaculture Gardening vs. Traditional Gardening:

I used to have a traditional garden, and before discovering hugelkultur, I was on my way to fighting our rocky, wooded property in order to have one again. For us, that would have meant paying over a thousand dollars to hire someone to bring out machinery and tear our ground apart. After that, it would have been rock picking, tilling, and more digging, not to mention yearly tilling thereafter. For some, it’s tilling up a patch in their yard. And for others, it’s acres of property that they turn over year after year with a tractor. Whatever the case, the traditional method of gardening works against nature in a number of ways:

• Tilling or turning the soil destroys the soil structure and beneficial microorganisms along with it. The network within the soil consists of minerals, water, air, organisms, fungi, bacteria, roots, insects/small invertebrate animals, and so much more that create a living, working system needed for a healthy garden. Although freshly roto-tilled soil might feel nice to the touch, its structure is depleted, not to mention aerating beneficials such as worms and countless other necessary elements being devastated along with it.
• The spaces between your rows where you constantly find yourself pulling weeds is fighting against nature’s natural instinct to protect the exposed soil with cover (a.k.a. weeds).
• The walk paths between your rows cause soil compaction, which inhibit your plants’ root systems from obtaining water and air needed for proper development & production.
• Bare soil in the garden takes a beating from rainfall and watering, also lending to soil erosion and the depletion of topsoil

Permaculture practices can help you on your way to working with nature instead:

• Using raised beds allow you to reach across for planting, weeding, picking, etc., rather than walking on them and causing soil compaction. You can also use your space more effectively; by eliminating the need for walk paths between rows, you can space your plants in all directions as you would in a row.
• Growing cover crops, using mulches such as leaves or straw, etc., sheet mulching, and employing intensive/crowd planting techniques keep your soil covered and protected, while maintaining moisture.
• Composting is an invaluable way to feed your plants and increase the organic matter in your garden- if you’re not composting, start today!
• Hugelkultur beds are self-tilling as the woody debris at the bottom of the bed decomposes and feeds the roots of the plants. They also hold water like a sponge, reducing the need for frequent irrigation.
• Take advantage of what is available around you. In my case, we have lots of animals which means plenty of manure and recyclable bedding. We also have plenty of brush, leaves, and compostable materials. Limiting your intake from outside sources and fuel usage, and avoiding bringing in machinery are ways to increase your sustainability.
• Remove from your head the idea of neat, tidy rows of one type of plant. Instead, try companion planting. When used correctly, certain plants can benefit another by way of deterring pests or attracting beneficials such as bees, hummingbirds, or predator insects. And, depending on what you’re planting, companion plants can provide shade or trellising to another plant.

Essentially, take a look at nature and try to mimic it in your garden: for example, in the woods you see the ground completely covered with leaves, pine needles, and other debris which protects the soil beneath. Several different types of plant life can be found growing everywhere- not in neat little rows of one individual type. Growth flouishes and depends only on rainfall, due to the cover and protection of trees and companion plants, in addition to the forest’s mulched floor. Flowers attract pollinators while one plant will hide itself or another from insects using camouflage or its scent. If one plant dies or gets destroyed, another quickly takes its place.

If you’ve been wanting to find a more sustainable, low-impact, no-dig method of gardening, then permaculture is for you. Read and research all you can. Whether you garden on your balcony, in containers on your porch, in your back yard, or on an acreage- we can all be responsible modern pioneers and work toward a more environmentally supportive way of growing.

 Here are some great resources to get you on your way:

Permaculture Institute

permies.com

Permaculture Association

Permaculture Principles

References:

(1) OxfordDictionaries

(2) Wikipedia

Shared at:

The Art of Homemaking Mondays