Permaculture Principle #4: Apply self-regulation and accept feedback from our permaculture systems

permaculture design
I leap . . . then I look.

If you’re anything like me, you have done a considerable amount of leaping without looking, and jumping in with both feet. It’s how I roll. But, as I have learned from experience, that is quite often not so brilliant. By applying self-regulation, we just might save ourselves from making painful mistakes when setting up our permaculture system. Continue reading “Permaculture Principle #4: Apply self-regulation and accept feedback from our permaculture systems”

Permaculture Principle #3: Obtain a yield, with good permaculture design

Permaculture garden harvest
The tastiest grapes are the ones you grow yourself.

This is the most exciting part of the whole permaculture design process for me: obtaining that yield. Whether it’s harvesting vegetables from your permaculture garden, picking apples from your food forest, or storing the energy from solar panels, obtaining a yield is pure excitement. Continue reading “Permaculture Principle #3: Obtain a yield, with good permaculture design”

Permaculture Principle #2: Catch and store energy – renewable energy

renewable energy

Most people consider energy to be only something that you buy, to turn on your lights or heat your house. But electricity is not the only renewable energy floating around in the world. The natural energies are everywhere, and with ingenuity and knowledge, we can learn to harness these energies in a sustainable and low-impact way, to provide for our needs without damaging our earth. Continue reading “Permaculture Principle #2: Catch and store energy – renewable energy”

Permaculture Principle #1: Observe and interact, for good permaculture design

permaculture garden
Looking over the garden site.

Observation is one of our most important tools in planning our permaculture landscape. Whether we’re building a full on permaculture homestead, or setting up a backyard permaculture garden, we need to know what we have in order to know what we can do with it. Continue reading “Permaculture Principle #1: Observe and interact, for good permaculture design”

The 12 Permaculture Principles, and how to apply them

permaculture principles list

Besides the 3 Permaculture Ethics – Earth Care, People Care, & Return of Surplus – the visionaries of permaculture, Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, created 12 Permaculture Principles.

These principles help guide practitioners of permaculture in building the most abundant, ecologically sound, stable, and self-regulating landscapes possible. Continue reading “The 12 Permaculture Principles, and how to apply them”