REWILDING & PERMACULTURE

Permaculture is a holistic approach to sustainable living and land management that seeks to create harmonious and resilient systems by working with nature rather than against it. It encourages creativity, innovation, and adaptation to local conditions, making it applicable to a wide range of environments and cultures around the world.  These include the following key principles and concepts 

1. Design Principles:
Permaculture design is guided by a set of principles that emphasize observation, integration, and sustainability. These principles include:

Observation: Carefully observing the natural patterns and processes of a site before making any design decisions.
Integration: Creating systems where each component serves multiple functions and works together harmoniously.
Diversity: Embracing diversity in plant species, and local wildlife, and ecosystems to enhance resilience and productivity.
Sustainability: Designing systems that are environmentally sustainable, economically viable, and socially equitable.
2. Layout of site:
Permaculture design often utilizes the concept of zones and sectors to organize and plan the layout of a site based on the frequency of human interaction and the flow of energy and resources.

Zones: Areas of the site are organized into zones based on their proximity to the primary living space and the frequency of human activity. For example, high-intensity gardening or food production areas are located closer to the house (Zone 1), while less intensively managed areas, such as orchards or forests, are located further away (Zone 4 or 5).
Sectors: Sectors represent external influences, such as sun, wind, water, and wildlife, that impact the site. Permaculture design aims to harness or mitigate these influences to benefit the site's productivity and sustainability.
3. Perennial Plants and Agroforestry:
Permaculture emphasizes the use of perennial plants, trees, and shrubs, which have deeper root systems and require less maintenance compared to annual crops. Agroforestry, the integration of trees and shrubs with crops or livestock, is often practiced in permaculture systems to enhance biodiversity, improve soil fertility, and provide multiple yields from a single area.

4. Soil Health and Regeneration:
Permaculture places a strong emphasis on soil health and regeneration through practices such as composting, mulching, crop rotation, and no-till farming. By improving soil structure, fertility, and microbial activity, permaculture aims to create a resilient and productive growing environment.

5. Community and Social Equity:
Beyond agriculture and land management, permaculture also encompasses social and community aspects, promoting collaboration, education, and shared resources. Permaculture design often seeks to build resilient and inclusive communities that support each other and the natural environment.