This is a quick design for a domestic backyard in Alabama. The site slopes downwards towards the east, and the client asked for a design that would allow them to make the most of the site and grow their own fruit and vegetables. The swales in this design are paired with hugelkultur techniques. And IContinue reading “Case Study: Alabama Permaculture Design”
Author Archives: Elizabeth Waddington
Why Grow (and Buy) Organic?
Today, I thought I would focus on why it is so important to grow (and buy) organic. In order to answer this question, we need to look at the problems inherent in modern food producing systems. Unfortunately, the cost of organic produce compared to non-organic options often means that the decision often comes down toContinue reading “Why Grow (and Buy) Organic?”
Start Your Own Organic Garden – 12 Week Course
Due to recent enquiries, I will be starting a 12 week email correspondence course ‘Start Your Own Organic Garden’. This is a simple, practical course designed to help beginners move to the point where they are ready to start their own organic food producing garden in the spring. The course will run from January 4thContinue reading “Start Your Own Organic Garden – 12 Week Course”
DIY Garden Projects To Take on Over Winter
As autumn progresses and colder weather arrives, there might not be quite as much work to do in your garden on plant care. So you might have the luxury of a little more time to spend on other DIY garden projects. I thought that today, I would suggest a few DIY garden projects that youContinue reading “DIY Garden Projects To Take on Over Winter”
Edible Ornamentals and Ornamental Edibles
Many gardeners compartmentalise in their heads. They put edible crops into one category, and ornamental, flowering plants in another. But there can actually be a lot of overlap between these two categories. In a permaculture garden, we integrate don’t segregate. We grow plenty of flowers as companion plants in our polyculture vegetable beds. We considerContinue reading “Edible Ornamentals and Ornamental Edibles”
Windowsill Growing Over Winter
Even if you do not have a garden, there is still plenty you can grow at home. Even when you do have a garden it can be pleasant to have some things growing on a windowsill inside your home – so you can harvest a quick crop in poor weather conditions without even having toContinue reading “Windowsill Growing Over Winter”
Building Forest Garden Guilds
In a forest garden, the goal when choosing different plants is to build guilds of beneficial plants which aid one another and us in a range of ways. If you are familiar with the idea of a forest garden, you will already know that they involve layered planting. The top layer are the canopy trees.Continue reading “Building Forest Garden Guilds”
Case Study: Angola Field System
This design is for a plot along the Kikuxi irrigation canal in the Luanda region of Angola. The client requested a plan that would allow the site to be used for the production of a range of organic fruits and vegetables. The site lies on 75m above sea level The prevailing climate in Luanda isContinue reading “Case Study: Angola Field System”
The Benefits of a Mixed Hedgerow
Hedgerows are a common feature of UK landscapes, but less familiar in other regions. There is a huge difference between a wild and diverse hedgerow and the mono-crop hedges that are more common in suburban and urban settings. There are a huge range of reasons why incorporating mixed hedgerows in agricultural or garden settings isContinue reading “The Benefits of a Mixed Hedgerow”
Identifying Flows and Pathways
Patterns are important in permaculture. Whether we are talking about landscapes, gardens, homes, communities or broader societal systems, it is important to look at patterns in the big picture. Of course, there is an important permaculture principle that we design from patterns to details. We take a holistic, big-picture view before we delve into theContinue reading “Identifying Flows and Pathways”
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