2017 Courses: August 19-20 and November 18-19
Whether you have a tiny garden, smallholding, a large farm, community garden or just a pot, permaculture design techniques will revolutionise your space, increase your yields and teach you sustainability, abundance and regenerative skills that are not just for gardening and can be used to re-design your life or any project.
Permaculture is a design system that operates within natural systems – the word comes from ‘permanent culture’ originally meaning sustainable agriculture but broadened to culture since it has been used to design many other sustainable systems for living, working and problem solving creatively and ecologically.
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It’s essentially a design system for sustainability and regeneration in harmony with nature – sometimes known as ‘a revolution disguised as gardening ‘- it teaches design principles that can be applied to food growing and all areas of life.
In food growing natural systems rather than traditional are followed – integrating different crops that grow well together rather than segregating as in mono culture, sustaining and improving the living soil by not digging or ploughing, composting, close planting, water harvesting and management with swales and mulching. Increasing yields especially from perennial plants, using least effort for greatest rewards and eliminating any chemicals or poisons by restoring natural balance. Yes even slug control! If there are too many slugs (we need to accept some) there are too few beetles to eat the eggs and too few frogs, toads, hedgehogs or maybe ducks – restore a balance, we don’t try to eliminate parts of an ecosystem.
The three ethics that guide permaculture and its 12 principles are
Earth Care – People Care – Fair Shares
Join the Permaculture Association 
to stay in touch and hear about projects, innovations, courses, events and offers – our fees also helps support permaculture projects in countries in Africa and the global south – £36 per year – special price £24 if you join when booking a permaculture course.
