Featured Species and Principle

Recent articles

Sunchokes and the Permaculture Principle: Work with Nature Aug 2, 2010: The sunchokes (Helianthus tuberosus) that we planted many years ago have provided us perennially with abundant crops for eating and sharing, a beautiful stand of 8 - 10' tall plants which we love looking at and are later used as a carbon crop for the compost, and small flowers which offer pollen and nectar to bees and other insects. All these outputs require very little input and most of that is in the form of harvesting the tubers.

Jersey Milk Cows and the Permaculture Principle: Catch and Store Energy Jul 4, 2010: I am going to relate a milk cow with one of the 12 principles David Holmgren defines: Catch and store energy. By developing systems that collect resources when they are abundant, we can use them in times of need. A milk cow is a great example of storing sunlight, transferred through the grass she consumes then to the milk we drink. By having a milk cow allowed to forage on grasslands, we are drinking a little sunshine in every glass.

Watercress and the Principle: Relinquish Power Jun 1, 2010: It is the full moon and the frog ponds are exploding in chorus. Often times at this time of year I go down to the pond and gather watercress to add to salads and soups. This year I decided I would try to propagate the plant so I could have it close to my backdoor for harvest.

Oyster Mushrooms and the Permaculture Principle: Everything Gardens May 1, 2010: Mushrooms are excellent examples of letting nature do her work. Oyster mushrooms in particular are excellent at getting the regenerating work done on our planet if we direct them in the appropriate ways. With mycoremediation, toxic wastelands that cover a vast amount of land in the world can be reborn into beautiful green pastures, forests and gardens.

April Featured Species: Chicory and the Permaculture Principle: Succession of Evolution Apr 8, 2010: Chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a great permaculture plant that works tirelessly to dig heavy clay soil and move nutrients around even while I sleep. Chicory is a pioneer species which grows in difficult and disturbed environments. When the chicory has done a good job loosening the soil by digging with its deep taproot, I can come in afterwards and replace the chicory with other plants.

March Featured Species: Edible Acorn Oaks and the Permaculture Principle: Make the Least Change for the Greatest Possible Effect Mar 4, 2010: The oak tree demonstrates the permaculture principle: Make the Least Change for the Greatest Possible Effect. By planting oak trees (oaks need cross pollination in order to bear fruit), you are not only ensuring that you will have an excellent source of food for your permaculture design, but you are also providing habitat and food for wildlife and domestic animals, cooling the earth, providing potential harvestable wood and planting trees that will outlive your great, great grandkids.

February Featured Species: Chickens and the Permaculture Principle: The Yield of the System is Theoretically Unlimited Jan 28, 2010: I have been keeping chickens throughout my life. I have many fond childhood memories of going out in the morning excited to collect eggs and feed the chickens. Chickens have so many purposes and benefits in a permaculture system and I often give the example of the permaculture principle: The Yield of the System is Theoretically Unlimited when talking about chickens. The only limit on the number of uses of a resource possible within a system lies within a lack of information and the imagination of the designer.

Grasses and the Problem is the Solution Jan 5, 2010: This month we will focus on grass as our featured species. We will take a look at backyard lawns and larger acreage covered in grass and how to turn a resource-draining problem into a resource-gaining solution, all powered by the sun!

Tree Collards and the Permaculture Principle Cyclical Opportunity Aug 27, 2009: This month I am going to introduce Tree Collards as the perennial vegetable that continues to thrive, reproduce and nourish humans and animals in my permaculture landscape.

Tree Collards represent the permaculture principle of Cyclical Opportunity: every cyclical event increases the opportunity for yield to be increased. Increasing cycling is to increase yield.

February 2009: Permaculture Species of the Month: Sheep Jan 29, 2009: Welcome to our first Species of the Month. We will explore sheep inputs, outputs, breeds and pasture management.