Permaculture design

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  • Permaculture Design will run at Otago Polytechnic,Dunedin,NZ from June - November 2017.Everyone is welcome to follow along online as we publish recordings and study materials to this web page
  • Hortykim would like to thank and acknowledge the resources and information provided by the Permaculture design short course learning facilitators in 2008-thank you Peta Hudson and Jason Ross!I would also like to thank all the real life and "virtual" participants who helped create the permaculture garden at L block,Otago Polytechnic,Dunedin N.Z.Please call Hortykim on 021 735 498 to arrange a visit to this fantastic learning resource.


Contents

Aim

Permaculture students planting herb spiral in one of the many edible gardens located at Otago Polytechnic’s living garden
*This course provides an introduction to permaculture design principles and methods which when applied will lead you down the path to sustainable systems for your home or working environment.
  • Learning outcomes for this course:
  1. Understand and describe the ethics and principles of permaculture
  2. Outline procedures used to analyze a site for permaculture
  3. Create a permaculture plan for a selected site and describe considerations when implementing the permaculture plan.
  • By the end of the course the participants will have a design for a selected site and a portfolio of information which they can then can continue to work with & expand on.

Proposed Course Schedule 2017

Introduction to permaculture ethics & principles

Session 1: To do

Permagrow permaculture garden sign at Otago Polytechnic handcrafted by students from found and recycled objects.
  1. Introductions and welcome.
  2. The main part of your assessment will focus on creating a permaculture plan for a selected site.Please choose a site over the next week.Ideally you may want to choose a site which you can visit frequently in order to observe the characteristics of the site,take measurements, and in time, implement your design.If this is not possible, your learning facilitator will allocate a site for you so you can practice the process which will then be applicable to any site you choose in the future.
  3. Watch this powerpoint to guide us thru an introduction to the ethics and principles.
  4. What is Permaculture?The word permaculture is a portmanteau of permanent agriculture and permanent culture.Permaculture is an approach to designing human settlements and agricultural systems that mimic the relationships found in natural ecologies.Permaculture is a broad-based and holistic approach that has many applications to all aspects of life.
  5. Watch this video by Permaculture expert Penny Livingston-Stark shows how natural systems can teach us better design practices. Learning to work with the earth not only creates a healthier environment, it also nourishes the people who live in it
  6. Explore permaculture ethics.At the heart of permaculture design and practice is a fundamental set of ‘core values’ or ethics:
  • Earth care – recognizing that Earth is the source of all life and that we are a part of Earth, not apart from it. Permaculturalists have introduced new ways of practicing agriculture. These ways are fundamental in restoring a mutually beneficial (and healthy) relationship between humans and the environmental factors indispensable to our survival.
  • People care – supporting and helping each other to change to ways of living that do not harm ourselves or the planet, and to develop healthy societies.
  • Fair shareThis principle may also involve redistributing any surplus you have created.(or placing limits on consumption) - ensuring that Earth's limited resources are used in ways that are equitable and wise.

Permaculture Principles

Session 2: To Do

  1. Welcome and quick review of last week.
  2. Hand out sketchbooks.
  3. Permaculture text book.
  4. Hand out winter gardening magazine,and info on planting garlic and shallots.
  5. Andrew Martin once worked in the finance industry, but after leaving that life, he and his wife Beth moved to New Zealand and developed an amazing permaculture property in just 3 years!This film was made as part of the Living the Change series.This series captures the travels of the film makers adventures around New Zealand making short documentary films about permaculture farms, tiny houses, and sustainability.
  6. Living the Change
  7. Permaculture principles class activityPermaculture principles. We will explore permaculture principles at workYou were assigned a principle last week so you will try to explain what the principle means and then describe how you already honour that principle or perhaps an example of how you could honor the principle in the future.
  • Observe and interact - By taking the time to engage with nature we can design solutions that suit our particular situation.
  • Catch and store energy - By developing systems that collect resources when they are abundant, we can use them in times of need.
  • Obtain a yield - Ensure that you are getting truly useful rewards as part of the work that you are doing.
  • Apply self-regulation and accept feedback - We need to discourage inappropriate activity to ensure that systems can continue to function well.
  • Use and value renewable resources and services - Make the best use of nature's abundance to reduce our consumptive behaviour and dependence on non-renewable resources.
  • Produce no waste - By valuing and making use of all the resources that are available to us, nothing goes to waste.
  • Design from patterns to details - By stepping back, we can observe patterns in nature and society. These can form the backbone of our designs, with the details filled in as we go.
  • Integrate rather than segregate - By putting the right things in the right place, relationships develop between those things and they work together to support each other.
  • Use small and slow solutions - Small and slow systems are easier to maintain than big ones, making better use of local resources and producing more sustainable outcomes.
  • Use and value diversity - Diversity reduces vulnerability to a variety of threats and takes advantage of the unique nature of the environment in which it resides.
  • Use edges and value the marginal - The interface between things is where the most interesting events take place. These are often the most valuable, diverse and productive elements in the system.
  • Creatively use and respond to change - We can have a positive impact on inevitable change by carefully observing, and then intervening at the right time.

Permaculture practical class activity

  • The article mentions wild garlic and as with many plants that have been deemed a weed -the article suggests ways to get rid of the garlicbut is it useful?Part of our journey with this permaculture unit will be to try to change our mind set about how we view weeds. What is a weed? I like one definition in particular-"A weed is a plant whose virtues have not yet been identified"
  • It is time to plant some garlic and shallots!We are going to head over to the Permaculture terraces and plant the Mega Herb Spiral!

Homework

  1. Finalize site choice.
  2. What do you think of David Holmgren's belief that permaculture could change the world?Watch the video embedded on the link and scribble down your thoughts.
  3. Before our next session, find an Internet connection and look for resources and video related to permaculture ethics. Free access to computers and the Internet is available at Otago Polytechnic Community Learning Centres.Please take note of any good information you find so we can add it to our list of resources..
  4. Print off your free poster of permaculture ethics and principles.
  5. Find an article or topic related to permaculture and add it to your scrap book.

Pruning Fruit Trees and Bush Fruits

Session 3: To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance.
  2. How are you doing with your base plans?
  3. Training and pruning method used on fruit trees on The Living Campus' "Quad Orchard" Here is some information about the Solaxe pruning method.
  4. Guest speaker-Paula and her journey with permaculture.
  5. We will also be pruning fruiting bushes On The Living Campus which will include a range of currents,goose berries,blue berries and brambles.
  6. Train apple trees intoinclined cordon in the Permagrow garden. Why use an inclined cordon or espalier system?
  • Good technique in small gardens where space is limited, because it lets you grow different types of fruit against a wall or fence – an area that would otherwise not be productive.
  • Espaliered fruit trees can be a feature or divider.
  • An apple tree as a low single horizontal cordon (step over)can be a small fruiting hedge.
  • An espaliered fruit tree can make a plain fence pretty.
  • An arch of fruit trees can create an entry to a garden.
  • The plants can be more productive, with fruit produced all the way along the lateral branches and the fruit can be easily harvested and is less prone to blemishes.

Homework

  • You may be interested in workshops offered by Jason Ross.Jason owns Habitate nursery located in Waitati NZ Habitate heritage fruits nursery provides a delicious and diverse range of outstanding heritage fruit trees, berry fruits and companion plants that are diverse in both flavour and use.We permaculture systems approach to an orchard. We use a number of methods to prune fruit trees and one innovative approach to pruning a wide range of fruit trees and shrubs is called the Solaxe training method used by Stefan Sobkowiak who features in the film THE PERMACULTURE ORCHARD
  • Use all of your senses to start to observe what is happening on your site.(Observe and interact)Use a notebook/scrap book to record these observations.Pay attention to boundary areas, temperatures, winds, types of living organisms, anything you can notice about the space.Do this as regularly as you can and it will become a useful resource for years to come.
  • In future sessions we will start to look at the concept of the zones which you will include on your site plan.Zone 0 is often the home or office/classrooms as is our case for the permaculture garden at Otago Polytechnic.Regardless, permaculture principles could be applied in terms of aiming to reduce energy and water needs, harnessing natural resources such as sunlight, and generally creating a harmonious, sustainable environment in which to live, work and relax.Your zone 0 may be your own home or a rented property but if you could choose any home-what would it look like?
  • For next week's class please find an example of a home or an office building that you think would meet some of the expectations of permaculture design.

Site plans for your permaculture design project

Session 4: To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance
  2. Homework for this week's class is to find an example of a home or an office building that you think would meet some of the expectations of permaculture design.I am captivated by the tiny home concept and brought some examples to show you.The tiny house movement is a description for the architectural and social movement that advocates living simply in small homes. There is currently no set definition of what constitutes a tiny house; however, a residential structure under 500 square feet (46 m2) is generally accepted to be a tiny home.A student in last year' class was intrigued by-Earthships can be built in any part of the world and still provide electricity, potable water, contained sewage treatment and sustainable food production. The Most Versatile and Economical sustainable green building design in the world.Stephanie' exampleTree houses for rent in New Zealand
  3. Base plan and development of Permagrow Garden at L block.If time allows we will stretch our legs and explore the Living Campus.
  4. Today you will be showing the rest of the class how far you have come with drawing your base plan. Using an A3 or A2 piece of paper you will have started to draw everything that is on your site. A base map is a drawing that captures everything that is already on your chosen site. It includes buildings, fences, trees, hedges, pathways and driveways, power lines and services.Please choose a scale that will suit you and your site.The most common scales that students have used in the past are a scale of 1:100(1cm.=1 meter) or 1:50(2cm.=1 meter)
  5. There are a number of base plans for you to look at on the wall of the classroom.
  6. You may find it helpful to use the DCC web site for aerial photographs of your chosen site? For instance check out an aerial map of a permaculture garden at the art school
  7. For our hands on activity we will do a seed raising mix growing comparison using our own hand made Permagrow seed raising mix compared to commercial seed raising mix. We will sow a variety of vegetable seeds that will be useful for your home garden,The Living Campus and our end of year plant sale.
  8. And in keeping with this theme we will have a look at the garlic we planted way back in June.(We planted some garlic in our nursery potting mix and then some in our Permagrow compost which we sieved.)

Homework

  • Use all of your senses to start to observe what is happening on your site.(Observe and interact)Use a notebook/scrap book to record these observations.Pay attention to boundary areas, temperatures, winds, types of living organisms, anything you can notice about the space.Do this as regularly as you can and it will become a useful resource for years to come.
  • Bring in some soil samples from your site and we will test pH and look at your soil characteristics. Bring samples from all over your site and perhaps label them.For example, if you have an area in mind for growing fruit trees ,shrubs or vegetable garden then take samples from these areas and the pH and soil type may guide you as to what types of plants are most suited to the areas you have in mind.

Site plans Continued

Session 5: To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance
  2. Our guest speaker this week is Emma Taylor from the award winning Design and Garden Landscapes in Dunedin.Emma will be talking about what it takes to be an award winning designer,and will share some basic drawing tips that will help you progress your plans.
  3. What is the difference between your sector analysis map and site analysis map?
  4. Today will continue to refine using a soil block maker.This video shows how to make a DIY unit.
  5. I would like you to create a recipe that will work for creating soil blocks using resources from the nursery and plant some vegetables seeds.

Sector Analysis Plan

  • What energies are affecting your site from the four different directions outside of your site(north south east and west).
  • What is happening in your neighbors site?
  • Where does most of your wind come from?
  • Is your site near a busy road?
  • Read pages 101-104 from your text Earth User's Guide to Permaculture. Rosemary Morrow and Rob Allsop. Kangaroo Press, NSW Australia. 2006
  • You may want to combine your sector and site analysis plans into one

Site Analysis Plan

  • Site Analysis will expand on the factors from outside you boundaries and begin to go into more detail.Use all of your senses to observe what is happening on your site.(Design from patterns to details.)
  • Your site analysis is what is happening on your site and to some degree what you will have more control over.
  • What energies are affecting your site and how best can you utilize them and work with them.(Observe and interact.) This will also help you identify your zones and zone placement.
  • What is the sun's path in summer and winter?
  • What are the prevailing wind and rain directions?
  • Where are the main areas of people activity?
  • What existing paths are in place and how do you move across the site?
  • What is the aspect? Where is north?
  • Where does rainwater collect or flow to?
  • Where are any areas of shade/full sun?
  • Use a notebook to record these observations and/or draw directly onto your site analysis plan.
  • Observations could include:temperatures and micro climates,prevailing winds,the different types of living organisms,soil conditions,the types of weeds you are finding,what plants are self seeding/doing well or maybe not so well,what plants are perennial,evergreen or deciduous?You will want to create some sort of key that will be useful for identifying the different features as per examples shown in class.
  • Observe your site often and transfer as much information as possible onto your site analysis plan.
  • Practical activity today will be in the nursery looking at the use of soil blockers

Homework

  • Bring your sector and site analysis plans to our next class
  • Optional self directed experience to help hone your senses and stress the importance of linking ecology or non cultivated natural ecosystems to permaculture
  1. The purpose of a visit to a natural bush area/non cultivated system is to embrace the importance of how natural ecosystems underpin our goals in creating a cultivated ecosystem.Watch this video of permaculturist ,Peta Hudson,which explains the purpose of the exercise in exploring natural ecosystems.
  2. Visit Lovelock Bush in the Dunedin Botanic Garden or another area of bush close to where you live and make some observations about what is happening in this ecosystem.
  3. The desired learning outcomes would be:
  • Use your senses to gather information about various aspects of any ecosystem or section of land.
  • Describe how materials & energy cycle through an ecosystem.
  • Describe the co-operative relationships within the ecosystem.
  • Understand and link the ecological foundations of permaculture principles.
  • Pay special attention to the diversity at the edges of Lovelock Bush.
  • Observe the stacking effect of the forest from ground covers to canopy & the various relationships that occur between the plants,animals and decomposers (fungi,insects, & micro-organisms).
  • Look for the flows of energy through the forest in terms of water & air flows, & the way light moves through the forest.
  • Observe the different growth habits of the plants and in turn their different needs.For example: dark,large leaves are suited to shade.
  • Identify five native plants.List their botanic name,maori name and common name.

Soils Improvement Techniques in the Permaculture Garden

Session 6:To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance.
  2. How did your homework go?#The purpose of a visit to a natural bush area/non cultivated system is to embrace the importance of how natural ecosystems underpin our goals in creating a cultivated ecosystem.Watch this video of permaculturist ,Peta Hudson,which explains the purpose of the exercise in exploring natural ecosystems
  3. Now that we have made a good start on the design process let us have a look at the foundations of permaculture. Permaculture was developed by two Ozzy blokes in the 1970s David Holmgren and Bill Mollison.Bruce Charles 'Bill' Mollison (born 1928 in Tasmania, Australia) is a researcher, author, scientist, teacher and naturalist. He is considered to be the 'father of permaculture', an integrated system of design, co-developed with David Holmgren, that encompasses not only agriculture, horticulture, architecture and ecology, but also economic systems, land access strategies and legal systems for businesses and communities. In 1978, Mollison founded The Permaculture Institute in Tasmania.One of his many words of wisdom includes the following quote“The greatest change we need to make is from consumption to production, even if on a small scale, in our own gardens. If only 10% of us do this, there is enough for everyone. Hence the futility of revolutionaries who have no gardens, who depend on the very system they attack, and who produce words and bullets, not food and shelter.”And now David,“Permaculture is defined as consciously designed landscapes which mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature, while yielding an abundance of food, fibre and energy for the provision of local needs…more precisely I see Permaculture as the use of systems thinking and design principles that provide the organising framework for implementing the above vision”
  4. Let's re-boot and ask why are we doing permaculture?#Read pages 5-8 from *Earth User's Guide to Permaculture. Rosemary Morrow and Rob Allsop. Kangaroo Press, NSW Australia. 2006 (2nd ed.).
  5. Today we will look at soil improvement techniques and a hands on composting activity. We will also look at the different methods we use for composting for Otago Polytechnic and our Living Campus.
  6. Returning organic matter to your soil is the best way to improve soil health and we usually accomplish this by using some sort of composting system.There is a composting system for everyone-the trick is to identify the best method for your situation. The systems we use at Otago Polytechnic include:Bokashi ,vermicomposting,container composting and hot composting.More information about Bokashi composting And what are EMs? EM is a blend of beneficial microorganisms developed by Teruo Higa, a professor at the University of the Ryukyu in Japan. These microorganisms improve the health of the soil, the plants, water and humans by breaking down organic matter in the soil, fixing nitrogen from the air, and feeding and protecting plants and animals. The organisms included are primarily yeast and pro-biotic photosynthetic bacteria and lactic acid bacteria.
  7. You may have heard of a composting system calledHügelkultur where raised beds are constructed from decaying wood debris and other compostable biomass plant materials. The process helps to improve soil fertility, water retention, and soil warming, thus benefiting plants grown on or near such mounds. Hügelkultur is a German word meaning mound culture or hill culture.
  8. Check out this video of the construction of a no dig garden What is rock dust?Rock dust, also known as rock powders, rock minerals, rock flour, soil remineralization, and mineral fines, consists of finely crushed rock, processed by natural or mechanical means, containing minerals and trace elements widely used in organic farming practices.The igneous rocks basalt and granite often contain the highest mineral content.Rock dust is not a fertilizer, for it lacks the qualifying levels of nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus.
  9. You can replace lawn by sheet mulching
  10. Benefits of a no dig garden
  11. Use straw bales to create a raised ,no dig, no till, lasagna garden.
  12. Straw Bale Gardening may suit if you are flatting or do not have a large garden.
  13. Earlier in the week we gathered together a wide variety of compost ingredients and today I will share my Primo Compost Recipe with students as we do a hands on composting practical.Watch this composting demo first as our practical and the techniques we use at Otago Polytechnic are similar.
  14. Today we will be including and considering at least three permaculture principles:*Use and value renewable resources and services*Produce no waste*Use and value diversity
  15. Our ingredients for our practical are diverse and the more the better.

Homework

  • For next week could you unearth an interesting guild?A guild extends the concept of companion planting to a whole ‘community’ of plants which benefit, support and protect each other. For example, apple trees, comfrey and scented geranium and calendula all work together. Comfrey’s deep roots break up the soil; the scent of geraniums confuses codling moths and prevents them attacking the apples; and the calendulas attract good insects. All three smaller plants provide green mulch for the apple tree, and the apple tree in return drops apples and leaves that fertilise the smaller plants underneath.

The elements and zones in a permaculture garden

Session 7:To Do

  1. Welcome.
  2. How did you go with your homework? Did you find any guilds that would suit your design or you thought were interesting?
  3. How is everyone doing with building up the information for site/sector map(s)?
  4. Hand out written assignment and decide on due date.
  5. Remember to try to embrace and reflect on the ethics and permaculture principles when you are creating your design or starting a project in your garden-check out these tunes that can help get a handle on the principles.Formidable Vegetable Sound System - Yield (Official Permaculture Music Video - HD)
  6. Permaculture a Beginners Guide - a 'pictorial walkthrough'
  7. You will now be moving towards starting your final design and deciding what elements you will want in your permaculture garden? Handout list of elements.
  8. Today our practical activity will be checking our compost temperature and comparing potting mixes with a growth comparison exercise.And if time allows a crash course on a fruit tree grafting technique called whip and tongue grafting.A whip and tongue graft is stronger, because the interlocking tongues are held under compression by their natural springiness of the wood the root stock and scion.This technique is typically done in early September.
  9. The elements and zones within your garden are very important-The yields and needs of your elements need to be carefully considered.Think about a natural environment and how you may observe naturally occurring relationships between the elements in the bush-how can you transfer these examples to your site? (Use edges and value the marginal)For example,a pond needs: shelter from wind, some sun, a water source/catchment, plants, fish, and aeration. It provides extra humidity & light to the area surrounding it, moisture to the edges, thermal mass (holds heat & radiates it out in the evening), food & beauty. It’s needs will be met, if placed in good relationship to other elements & in return their needs will be met by it.
  10. Even on a small site all zones from 0~5 can be included. See “Earth Users Guide to Permaculture Design” and read pages 104-107 for more detail. Zones are about creating & placing areas of activity in good relationship to their needs & yields.
  • ZONE 0 — The house, or home centre. Here permaculture principles would be applied in terms of aiming to reduce energy and water needs, harnessing natural resources such as sunlight, and generally creating a harmonious, sustainable environment in which to live, work and relax
  • ZONE 1 — The zone nearest to the house, the location for those elements in the system that require frequent attention, or that need to be visited often, such as salad crops, herb plants, soft fruit like strawberries or raspberries, greenhouse and cold frames, propagation area, worm farm and compost bin for kitchen waste.
  • ZONE 2 — This area is used for siting perennial plants that require less frequent maintenance, such as occasional weed control (preferably through natural methods such as spot-mulching) or pruning, including currant bushes and orchards. This would also be a good place for beehives and larger scale composting bins.
  • ZONE 3 — The area where maincrops are grown, both for domestic use and for trade purposes. After establishment, care and maintenance required are fairly minimal (provided mulches and similar things are used), such as watering or weed control once a week or so.
  • ZONE 4 — A semi-wild area. This zone is mainly used for forage and collecting wild food as well as timber production. An example might be coppice-managed woodland.
  • ZONE 5 — A wild area. There is no human intervention in zone 5 apart from the observation of natural eco-systems and cycles. Here is where the most important lessons of the first permaculture principle of working with, rather than against, nature are learned.

Homework

The Designer's Checklist and Tips for Drawing Your Permaculture Plan

Session 8 :To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance.
  2. What did you think of our field trip last week?Jason Ross showed us his permaculture garden with a theme of pointing out his zones, edible plants, and his site plans.He also explained how important his chickens are to recycling organic matter -even perennial weeds as well as cultivating new areas to plant out. He also toured us through the market garden that suppliesTaste Nature with year round edible greens and then finally we looked at his amazing orchard: Habitate heritage fruits nursery provides a delicious and diverse range of outstanding heritage fruit trees, berry fruits and companion plants that are diverse in both flavour and use.
  3. What is the designer's checklist?Hand out checklist to guide with your planning/design.
What are your needs from your site? What resources do you have available?
  • Consider the time you are able to spend on site.
  • What are your physical abilities?
  • How much money can you spend on resources/desired elements?
  • Take your time and allow yourself some mistakes.(Use small and slow solutions.)
  • What are your long-term dreams/goals for your site.
Observe what is happening on your site. (Design from patterns to details.)
  • Use a notebook to record these observations. Pay attention to boundary areas, temperatures, winds ,the different types of living organism, anything you can notice about the site. Do this as regularly as you can and it will become a useful resource for years to come.
  • Think about our visit to Lovelock bush and how we observed naturally occurring relationships between the elements in the bush-how can you transfer these examples to your site?(Use edges and value the marginal)

For example, a pond needs: shelter from wind, some sun, a water source/catchment, plants, fish, and aeration. It provides extra humidity & light to the area surrounding it, moisture to the edges, thermal mass (holds heat & radiates it out in the evening), food & beauty. It’s needs will be met, if placed in good relationship to other elements & in return their needs will be met by it. Look at other elements that you have or need, in the same way & see how you can place them so that their needs & yields are met by each other. Cycles of energy are enhanced & created this way.(Catch and store energy)

  • Experiment with random assembly if you would like to break out of traditional patterns of thinking.
  • What type of birds and insects are on site? A heavy infestation of a particular insect indicates an imbalance which will need to be addressed using IPM. Plant health is the key here.
  • What plants are presently on site? For example, weeds can be a useful tool for indicating soil conditions. If you have chickweed or Stellaria media growing on your site it indicates good soil fertility!(Use and value diversity)
  • Have a good think about the structures and elements (present and future) on your site and consider what resources they provide and what are their needs/ maintenance requirements. Do they provide useful micro climates? How can you group certain elements together in order to maximize their functions?(Integrate rather than segregate)
  • Identify all of your resources on site as well as within your immediate boundaries to your neighbours/neighbourhood. When can these resources be collected and used, or stored for later use. For example, the stockpiling of all the tree prunings at Permagrow which can be chipped later or driven in one load to clean and green recycling station. Resources may also be available off site. For example, food scraps from Bokashi bins.(Use and value resources and services)
Sector Analysis Map

(Observe and interact.) Think of your sector analysis as what energies are affecting your site from the four different directions(north south east and west)outside of your site.See above for more detail.

Site Analysis Map
  • What is happening on your site?(Observe and interact.) See above for more detail.
Analyze elements and flow patterns
  • This exercise enables you to create the beneficial relationships that are central to good Permaculture design. It leads to a great deal of creation! These relationships echo those you find in nature. The principles of “co-operation not competition” & “observe & interact” apply here.Make a list of all the elements that you want in your design. Take each element and look at all its needs & what it gives.(Obtain a yield)After you have identified the needs and yields of all elements try to place your elements within co operative proximaty or relative location to one another and with consideration to your flow/movements.If the land you are working with is already lived on, look at how you move across it. How could this change when your design is implemented? Make the pathways multi – functional. You are a flow of energy in a permaculture system. For example,you leave the house with the compost bucket & a basket & on the way back from the compost you can collect the eggs, & pick some herbs/veges & maybe grab a few pieces of wood or kindling from the woodpile.
Zone planning
  • Try to include all five zones on your site even if it may take a few years to develop all zones .You may want to seek advice from your local council when you are developing or adding to plantings for your zone 5. (Apply self regulation and accept feed back)
  • Even on a small site all zones from 0~5 can be included. See “Earth Users Guide to Permaculture Design” by Rosemary Morrow for more detail. Zones are about creating & placing areas of activity in good relationship to their needs & yields.See below for specific info about zones.
Planning for a disaster
  • What are some ways you could prepare for a disaster? Planning for a disaster.How to Get Ready. Create and practice a household emergency plan. Do you have an emergency kit? Possible activity: work with a buddy and make a list of some threats to you/your site and how would you plan for one of those possible disasters.
  • How will you make your permaculture sight and your household more resilient to a natural disaster or zombie invasion?
  • Due to its location and environment, New Zealand faces many potential disasters: weather related, volcanic disaster,earthquake, tsunami...whatever may come all disasters have the potential to cause disruption, damage property and take lives. What disaster is most likely to affect your site and how can you best prepare yourself,whanau,friends,pets/livestock?
Now pull all of these steps together for your final site plan.
  • Use the tips you have learned from Emma today to start your final plan.A legend can be a very useful tool to accompany your plan especially when it come to plant selection.
  • You may want to use a transparent overlay or cartridge paper. Remember that your plan may take some time to implement and you may change your plan as it is implemented but your site plan will be a great guide. (Creatively use and respond to change)Implementing your plan is not part of the assessment but I would like to hear of your progress if you decide to do so!

Managing pests,diseases and weeds in the Permaculture Garden

Session : To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance
  2. Power point on tips for vege gardening in Dunedin.
  3. Discuss concept of food forest use page 2 of Jason's book for specific plants to fit food forest layers.
  4. Watch power point on Managing pest and disease in perma garden and hand out useful resources.
  5. Puzzle piece learning -please present to the rest of class.
  6. Let us have a look at what pests are starting to get out of balance in the tunnel house and how can we control them.One of the pests we have most challenges with controlling is Sciarid Fly or Fungus GnatOther common pests that may get out of balance.
  7. The very best way to control pests and disease in plants is to encourage vigorous healthy growth. If a plant has a regular watering regime,is growing in healthy soil and you supplement with your chosen fertiliser it will not be weakened and in turn susceptible to attack.
  8. Plant selection can also help in that some plants have developed natural resistance and tolerance to insects."Plants with resistance based on morphological characteristics have plant structures or characteristics that interfere with insect movement, feeding, or reproduction on or in the plant. Examples include color, thickness of the cell walls and plant tissue, surface wax, spines and trichomes (hairs). These features can make the plant less attractive visually, or present formidable physical barriers to pests. Thick cell walls and plant tissue help a plant to resist the tearing action of chewing mouthparts and the penetration of an insect stylet or ovipositor."
  9. Some students have expressed an interest in learning more about plant guilds.
  10. Our practical activity today will be to plant some guilds around the apple trees on the main campus.

Growing Edible Plants and Fruit Trees in Dunedin and Surrounds

Session : To Do

  1. Welcome and attendance
  2. Jim Channons food forest garden
  3. Using food forest principles in your vege garden.
  4. Power point on tips for vege gardening in Dunedin.
  5. Distribute class set of Edible and Useful Trees and Shrubs for the Dunedin area by Jason Ross who owns Habitate Nursery in Waitati.
  6. Power point on Growing Fruit Trees/Shrubs in Dunedin
  7. Grow Otago provides information that can be used to improve existing land uses, develop new high value land-based activities and foster regional economic development, through optimising the use of Otago's varied climate and soils.
  8. What does Fukuoka say about pruning fruit trees?
  9. Check out Jason' wall chart!It provides a quick reference guide to sowing and planting vegetables throughout the year. Rotation, succession, frost, glasshouse and perennial vegetable information is also presented. The information is specifically tailored to Coastal Otago and Southlands’ unique climate.
  10. Guest speaker, Bart Acres , is the main contact person at Otepoti Urban Organics which is a non-profit network of gardeners, community groups and businesses who have an interest in fostering and engaging in organic food growing activities, and other sustainable practices in Dunedin.The primary purpose of the network's existence is to increase the quantity and quality of food grown by people in their own back yards or other locations, and to make these activities more enjoyable, productive and efficient for all involved.Bart completed his qualifications at the University of Otago and used his skills to start the first Organic certified mushroom business in NZ which he ran for two years before embarking on another venture, the "vege box" initiative, enabling consumers to subscribe to receive a weekly box of organically grown vegetables for a set fee.
  11. Bart is presently directing his energies to Stacpoole's Brewing Co. as well as revamping a web site for Otepoti Urban Organics which features a local seed exchange network.
  12. Bart's talk focuses on the why and how to of seed saving. Highlights include: the difference between open pollinated,heirloom and F1 hybrids as well as seed selection ,harvest and storage techniques.Have you heard of The Global Seed Vault? Bart explains that the seed vault is an attempt to insure against the loss of seeds in other gene banks during large-scale regional or global crises.It was reported on Mon Sep 21, 2015 that Syria's civil war has prompted the first withdrawal of seeds from the "doomsday" vault. The seeds, including samples of wheat, barley and grasses suited to dry regions, have been requested by researchers elsewhere in the Middle East to replace seeds in a gene bank near the Syrian city of Aleppo that has been damaged by the war.

Videos about food forests

Where can we source fruit trees/shrubs and shelter/forestry/firewood trees that are suitable for the Dunedin area?

Session Continued-Design Presentations and Celebration

Permaculture Tutorial and Practical Session

To Do

  • Welcome and attendance

Books

  • Introduction to Permaculture. Bill Mollison and Reny Mia Slay. Tagari Publishers, Tyalgum, Australia.1991. 198pp.
  • Permaculture: A Designer's Manual. Bill Mollison. Tagari Publications, Tyalgum, Australia. 1988. 576pp.
  • Earth User's Guide to Permaculture. Rosemary Morrow and Rob Allsop. Kangaroo Press, NSW Australia. 2006 (2nd ed.). 164pp.
  • And more books

Useful links and Resources

  1. The Living Campus project is the first of its kind in Australasia and involves turning Otago Polytechnic’s existing Dunedin campus into an open-air and interactive museum, a vibrant community garden and a sustainable model of urban agriculture. The aim of the Living Campus is to inspire curiosity and capability in sustainability to change attitudes to how we use land.

External links

Movies to make you think

  1. Watch the film, Food Inc. and identify examples within the documentary that do not support each of the three main ethics of permaculture.Identify examples within the movie that do support each of the three main ethics of permaculture. (Food, Inc. is a 2009 American documentary film directed by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Robert Kenner.The film examines corporate farming in the United States, concluding that agribusiness produces food that is unhealthy in way that is abusive of animals and environmentally harmful. The documentary generated extensive controversy in that it was heavily criticized by large American corporations engaged in industrial food production.)

Workshops and talks

Guest speakers and Special Topics

  • Guest speaker Phillipa Jamieson
  • Jen Rodgers explains why and how Otago Polytechnic has made a commitment to specialise in education for sustainability. This is because we recognise the need for a sustainable future, where economic, social and environmental dimensions are in balance.Jen Rodgers will go into more detail about her role.
  • Jason Ross who has a wonderful knowledge of what fruit trees ,perennials and useful permaculture trees suit Dunedin's climate?
  • Jon Foote is a Permaculture Consultant who specialises in the regeneration of Urban and Rural landscapes. He is passionately determined to help create communities that can feed themselves by designing food systems that will outlast the humans that plant and harvest from them, while also enhancing the eco systems in which they reside.The Centre he is developing in Dunedin spreads across 7 acres of a north/south running valley, the site will include a series of food forests, market gardens and timber crops. There will be an indoor education centre and outdoor workshop areas, demonstrating the many different methods of food production, such as stacking, guilding, hugelkultur and sheet mulch no-dig beds. There will also be an emphasis on passive water harvesting with dams, ponds and swales.Check out Jon's website-BareFoote GardenerIt has some great information related to permaculture design and some neat time lapse images of the building of the dam at the ReScape Resilience Education Centre.
  • Guest speaker Peta Hudson does a great talk about her life's journey with permaculture and share tips about using plants to build soil fertility as well as providing other resources such as mulch, shelter, bee forage, food and medicine.
  • Guest speaker, Bart Acres , is the main contact person at Otepoti Urban Organics which is a non-profit network of gardeners, community groups and businesses who have an interest in fostering and engaging in organic food growing activities, and other sustainable practices in Dunedin.The primary purpose of the network's existence is to increase the quantity and quality of food grown by people in their own back yards or other locations, and to make these activities more enjoyable, productive and efficient for all involved.
  1. It can be helpful to have a look at permaculture gardens that have been planned,implemented and are working examples of what can be achieved.Two great examples can be found in Waitati,New Zealand.Jason Ross of Habitate Nursery will give us a tour of these great models and some valuable insights into his design process.

Bonus Activities

  1. This unit of study on permaculture design may involve readings and references that contain terms that are new to us,have a look at this glossary of terms related to permaculture and identify at least five terms that you are unfamiliar with and jot those down in your scrap book.For example,hugelkultur was a new one for me!
  2. Student activity:Read pages 17-26 from *Earth User's Guide to Permaculture. Rosemary Morrow and Rob Allsop. Kangaroo Press, NSW Australia. 2006 (2nd ed.)Find a buddy and discuss the topics from your readings and where possible give examples for the following concepts.Each group will nutshell their topics for the rest of the class.*Hand out activity topics that include negative and positive stories about issues facing our world,students will nutshell and present to class
  • Group 1:Closed system and Gaia theory.
  • Group 2:Ecological footprint and Network Science.
  • Group 3:How ecosystems work and how surplus causes pollution.
  • Group 4:Food chains,foodwebs and succession.
  • Group 5:Stacking,ecotones and guilds.

And More Resources

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