Session 7: Permaculture Principles
COVID-19 Community Resilience & Permaculture Course
Session 7: Permaculture Principles
Why soil is the basis of all life and why we have to protect it?
After this session, you will
Know about two different sets of principles
Get an idea about Bill Mollison’s set of principles
Understand how David Holmgren’s 12 permaculture principles can be used in design or in your daily life
Be prepared to use the principles to make designs and decisions in line with permaculture ethics.
Watch the video, read the text, and finish the learning exercise to complete this session of our Permaculture & Resilience free online course.
Video: Session 7 -Permaculture Principles-
What are the permaculture principles good for?
The permaculture principles link back to the three ethics (people care, earth care, and fair share) and can be understood as a guideline for design, decision making, or daily activities. The principles are the second level, and the more detailed guidance permaculture design is offering to us. As we work from patterns to details you want to try to incorporate as many of the principles in your overall design as possible. Just ask yourself for every element you are about to place if it is actually in line with the principles and your values. It is important to understand the principles as a support rather than a regulatory framework. Thus, there is no need to fulfill all principles with every element or try to tick as many boxes as possible. It might even be ok if you can not tick a single principle while placing one element, as long as you are aware of it. However, by constantly keeping the principles in mind you will embrace the permaculture ethics and your design will be more led by nature. When we comprehend nature we can copy it and produce energy-efficient and abundant designs. The principles help us to create resilient ecosystems.
1 core value & 2 sets of principles
You can choose from two different sets of principles. On one hand, you have the principles by Bill Mollison (10 design principles and 5 attitudinal principles) and on the other, there are the 12 design principles by David Holmgren.
Holmgren’s 12 principles are very well known and established in the permaculture design movement. In their true value, both principle sets are very similar to each other. However, for me, the big difference is that David Holmgren's approach of framing the principles is way more praxis orientated whereas Bill Mollison's is more on the philosophical and macro-level (especially with the 5 attitudinal principles). Compared to Holmgren's, his 10 design principles require a higher level of permaculture knowledge to grasp the true meaning and essence of each principle.
Personally, I use Holmgren’s 12 principles mainly for my daily life and in order to explain the idea of permaculture to others. Bill Mollison’s principles help me a lot with land-based designs; they guide me towards an efficient and resilient design that is not only restoring ecosystems and soils but also fulfilling human needs. The 12 permaculture principles by David Holmgren are explained in the video of this session whereas the text is focusing a little bit more on Bill Mollison’s set of principles.
Bill Mollison’s set of permaculture principles
Let's have a look at Bill Mollison’s 5 attitudinal principles first.
Work with Nature, Not Against:
We need to assist rather than impede natural processes; we actively support the natural succession. “If we throw nature out of the window, she comes back in the door with a pitchfork” (Masanobu Fukuoka).
Problem is the Solution:
Everything works both ways - it is on us to change perspective by reframing a problem and seeing the solution that it is offered. Everything (resource, person, pest) can be turned into a solution depending on how it is utilized.
Least Change for the Greatest Effect:
We are looking for methods that are balancing human needs and the regeneration of ecosystems. As we try to work with nature we are mindful and aware that we try to change as little as possible to get our needs met by the ecosystem. Besides, it is also about efficient use of energy and resources. By looking for away with the least chance for the greatest effect, we will determine a solution or place that requires a relatively low input of human energy and resources.
The Yield is Theoretically Unlimited:
Knowledge plus diversity in abundance. The limiting factor is the information and imagination of a designer. Thinking out of the box is the key message behind this principle. It reminds us to creatively look for new methods of increasing the yield in cooperation with nature.
Everything Gardens:
Everything has an effect on the environment. Every creature sets up conditions so that it can thrive. They create and carve their niche in an interconnected web of life. By observing how plants and animals change ecosystems, we see new allies and partners supporting our efforts to sustain ourselves and nature around.
Permaculture Design Principles
The following 10 design principles of Bill Mollison make the attitudinal principles more accessible and easier to apply during a design process.
Each element carries out many functions.
Each element in an ecosystem or design should be chosen and placed so that it performs as many functions as possible. We already showcased this principle in Session 5 Hugelkultur.
Every important function is served by many elements.
This principle is designing redundancy into the system by default and helping to make the ecosystem more resilient. For your important and basic needs such as water and food, you always want to have at least two elements that can serve your needs.Use stacking in space and time to increase yields.
Start small and get the most of an area before moving on. Making your zone 1 a highly intensive and productive area for food, fiber, and energy.
Plant stacking: use varying heights of plants to increase the number of layers you can obtain yields.
Time Stacking: mixing species that provide yields early, thus gaining quick rewards from the intensive energy input of developing a space for a long term yield such as fruit trees. This works also in a growing season, by intercropping and using the space after and before the main crop with fast-growing vegetables such as salat, spinach etc.Accelerate succession and evolution.
Once we understand that nature is always following natural succession we also understand that supporting ecosystems means to accelerate this succession. By introducing other native species and plants to the ecosystem we can also partly slow down succession while setting the right plants or animals in place.Value Diversity.
Compared to monocultures a diverse system might have less yield per crop. However, the sum of the yields in a mixed system will be higher than in a monoculture. In a diverse system elements are cooperating and you can reduce your human intervention and just act as a supporter. Plant and tree guilds are one example of diversity where close associations of species are placed around a central element. These plant compositions are working with each other and it is on us to find plants that are able to reduce root competition, provide physical shelter, provide nutrients, and function as pest control.Plan for efficient energy use.
Using the existing framework condition to increase efficiency is key. For example, by placing elements on a slope we can make use of the slope as a support or energy storage and thus we are able to increase the efficiency of our design. By placing elements with high demand closer to our daily walkways we reduce the extra mileage we have to go. This also increases the yield as it is more likely that the plants get the needed energy input.Observe and use the effect of edge on the system – maximize/minimize as appropriate. Where two ecosystems meet, we have a high intensity of biodiversity and the creation of organic matter. While mimicking nature we design edges and their positive effects into our systems. Here the patterns of nature merge and we can let them inspire our creativity.
Cycle energy, nutrients and information as locally as possible within the system.
Permaculture is trying to keep energy, nutrients, water, etc. on the land and turn a linear flow into a local cycle. The incoming energy is utilized at its highest possible use, then its next highest, and so on.Place elements to maximize the beneficial relationships between them (relative location).
The core of permaculture is design; the design is a connection between things. To enable a design component to function efficiently, we want to place it optimally. Optimal permaculture means that components are supporting each other or at least not harming each other. A more human-centric approach is Input-Output-Placement. By placing an element so that the produced resources (Output) of an element can be directly used as a new resource (Input) for the next element, we are able to increase the productivity and efficiency of our system.Value biological resources.
Seeing the free service of renewable resources and services is a key strategy to develop sustainable systems. It helps to save energy and to actually do the work of the farm.
12 Permaculture Desing Principles by David Holmgren
In order to give you a holistic overview, we also add the 12 permaculture design principles by David Holmgren.
1. Observe and interact
Permaculture relies on your understanding of natural processes, your land, and local framework conditions. Ideally, you should observe your site for a year in all seasons, learning the patterns of sun, wind, heavy rains, flooding, hail, snow, animals, noise, and views while also observing where you have productive areas on your land.
2. Catch and store energy
There are many ways to catch and conserve resources when they are abundant so that you have access to them when you need them most or if they become unavailable. Preserving abundant summer produce for lean winter months is a way of storing food energy. Harvesting rainwater provides water energy during dry months.
3. Obtain a yield
Of course, the whole purpose of an edible garden is to yield crops. In order to keep motivation high, it is important to have success and having fast-growing crops combined with long-term productivity such as fruit trees helps to maintain motivation throughout the years.
4. Apply self-regulation and respond to feedback
In a garden, it means enriching the soil and increasing the resilience of your ecosystem rather than taking too much and reducing the fertility (leaving behind degraded land). Responding to feedback can also mean remediating our own mistakes or those of our predecessors. This may mean replanting unproductive areas of the garden or improving soil that has been impoverished.
5. Use renewable resources and services
Trees are an example of a renewable, multipurpose resource. From them, we get fruit, nuts, seeds, building materials, and fuel. They also provide shade during summer for cooling our homes, blocking the wind, filtering the air, and releasing oxygen. Using the sun and wind to dry your laundry instead of a laundry dryer run on electricity is another very tangible example.
6. Produce no waste
One of the great things about a permaculture garden is that there isn’t any waste. Instead, we find ways to re-use the leftovers from our gardening efforts. Composting is one example - we will cover in detail in the next session.
7. Design from pattern to details
Permaculture seeks to understand and mimic successful patterns found in nature and it always looks for why before implementing an element. By keeping your main design or your key design drivers in mind you ensure that every detail fits and supports your long-term vision.
8. Integrate rather than segregate
Placing plants together in the right combinations (companion planting) helps them to grow in cooperation with each other rather than in competition. In this way, the whole garden ecosystem becomes greater than the sum of its parts.
9. Use small and slow solutions
In permaculture, we don’t aim for the quick fix or the immediate payoff. The objective is to design a garden system that is composed of many small parts, each of which contributes in time to the overall function of the garden. An example is an emphasis on perennial crops. Perennials don’t need to be replanted every year, so they save energy, and they don’t disturb the soil like most annuals. Although their yields can be slower at first, perennials like chicory, dandelion, rhubarb, and sorrel produce earlier in cold climates because they are the first to come up in the spring.
10. Use and value diversity
There is more resilience to a single disease or pest when different vegetables and varieties are planted in proximity, whether it’s an entire farm or a backyard garden. If you try to establish some new varieties each year you create a diverse repertoire of plants and create a balanced garden system.
11. Use the edges
In a permaculture garden, we aim to make use of all possible space and we try to incorporate areas that we normally don’t see as resources and make the most of them. Edges between different ecosystems are highly productive and thus we try to make use of this knowledge by using edges in a smart way. Using the wooden edges of garden beds as areas to grow mushrooms might be just one example of how to make use of your edges.
12. Creatively use and respond to change
Our goal is to work with nature instead of trying to control it. As you face the challenges that come with growing edibles, keep this principle in mind. As long as you are willing to read the signs nature gives you, you will be able to constantly change your design to make it more in line with nature and thus more productive, too.
Permaculture Principles Summary
Permaculture is not giving you a recipe at hand. Permaculture and especially permaculture design ask you to observe and think by yourself. This is the same for the principles. You will not become a permaculture designer if you are just following the principles in your design or in your daily actions. The principles can help you to see if you are on track and still heading to your goal and they can also work as a reminder in times where you are too busy to get your head up and think out of the box. It is a very valuable tool to stay in line with your values and the permaculture ethics (earth care, people care and fair share), but more important than the principles is to keep thinking yourself and not to follow anything just like a recipe or rule book.
Learning exercise
Today’s learning exercise is about linking 3 to 5 principles of David Holmgren’s principle to your life or your project. Go around with your camera and take some pictures or videos to document examples of principles that you have already implemented or people around you. It is also very interesting to go into your neighborhood or check if some of the principles have been already used in your individual culture.