Garden Smarter with These 3 Permaculture Principles

By Jennifer Bennett, Harris County Master Gardener

Jennifer writes, edits and is the coordinator for the Harris County Master Gardener Newsletter, Urban Dirt. She believes many of the world's issues can be solved in the garden.

3 Principles of Permaculture and Why You Should Be Using Them in Your Garden

What is Permaculture and how can we use it in our own gardens? Permaculture is a system that considers the environment, resources, people and nature’s own design in a way that doesn’t produce any waste. By allowing nature to guide your hand, you can maximize your garden space and make it more sustainable and adaptable to change. Permaculture focuses on building up the soil and the nutrients it provides.

Bill Mollison, an Australian researcher, teacher and biologist, developed a system for sustainable agriculture based on multi-layer crops of perennial trees, shrubs, herbs, vegetables, weeds, and fungi. This idea of permanent agriculture evolved to include the idea that without a healthy landscape, no culture could survive. Thus, there are three permaculture ethics: take care of the earth, care for its people, and take no more than your share.

Here are 3 principles of permaculture that we can easily incorporate into our own garden spaces.

1. Catch and store energy. Rainwater harvesting or setting up rain barrels to capture rainwater for use in our gardens is a great example of something we can easily do. In our Texas climate, my four rain barrels are a huge help, especially during the summer.
2. Produce no waste. Composting is a fun and easy way to reuse food wastes and other greens from the garden. My kids and chickens are helpful with composting.
3. Use renewable resources. Go native and garden with plants that attract helpful bugs and native species to aid in renewing your soil. Companion planting is easy, too. Planting tomatoes and basil together benefit both plants. Basil repels aphids from the tomatoes, and the tomato plants provide shade for the basil.

But why use permaculture in our garden? Permaculture builds a self-sustaining system that requires less water and work while growing more food pesticide-free in a smaller space. The key benefits of permaculture include healthier soil, the variety of foods that can be grown, saving water, less work, benefits to nature and less waste. Permaculture is good for the earth and in turn, good for people.

“Permaculture is the art of hope. It’s about cultivating more than just a garden. It’s about cultivating a positive future.”—Huw Richards

If you’d like to learn more about how permaculture benefits our planet, our society and creates community, check out the following resources:

Resources:

1. What is Permaculture? by Kim Rainey
2. "Permaculture Guild" by Peggy Doerschuk

For More Great Advice

WATCH: This month's Green Thumb -- Robin Kendrick-Yates talks about "Introduction to Permaculture"

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