In May 2018 I was invited to work in Western Australia, which was quite the milestone for me, as it was the last state in Australia for me to say I’ve worked nation wide in permaculture design and installation. It was meant to be a short trip, only 5 days, to repair a leaky dam, which seemed a bit odd for me to fly from the east coast to the […]
As the world continues turning into a new calendar year, many people may be reflecting on what actions they can personally take for a healthier year ahead, both on a personal and an environmental level. The European Commission seems to have made ending deforestation one of their new year’s resolutions, with a newly-published report aimed at ‘stepping up EU action against deforestation and forest degradation’ (1). This can be seen […]
Here are the results from the fourth year of our Market Garden Polyculture Study. This study looks at the differences between growing annual vegetables and herbs in polycultures vs growing them in traditional blocks. In this post you will find an overview of the trial garden and the polycultures we are growing, a description of what we record and the 4th year results from the trial. You can find results […]
Geoff’s message is about creating wealth and abundance through ethical design while walking through his home, Zaytuna Farm, home of the Permaculture Research Institute. The next farm tour at Zaytuna Farm will be held on the 2nd of March 2019, the Autumn Tour. Click here to view all tours courses and events
If you follow our project you will probably know that I like to name our gardens after concepts and terminology from the classical period of Ancient Greece or at least you may have noticed that the gardens have weird names . Ezekiel who joined us last week asked why the market garden did not have a such a name which prompted me to fix that, so from now on the […]
In crop gardens, we sometimes get into a spatial race with weeds, and the solution is to replace the weeds with “designed weeds” to take up the space. This can be done with green manure mulches to fertilize the gardens and supply quality mulch. This is an example of how understanding the inner workings of weeds allows us to harmonize with natural systems to both repair the earth and create […]
Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world, with 38% of Australian households owning dogs. Dogs improve the quality of our lives, and studies show that exposure to dogs can even improve our immune system. However, one medium sized dog produces about 180 kilograms of poo a year. With about 9 million dogs in Australia, it can really start to pile up. Rather than wrap […]
I have often found myself wincing as I hear people talking about saving the planet. It’s felt wrong! I can hear the voices of condemnation screaming at me now … ‘What a horrible person you are not to agree with saving the planet.’… but let me explain. I’m the same age as Geoff Lawton! Though I think he’s doing better than me! I was brought up in the 50s/60s. I had two […]
Too often plants are left to dry up and suffer, eventually dying. An unglazed clay pot can work as a great, simple irrigation system. It can be buried with its opening at soil level. Covered with a lid, the water will be protected from the sun, and it will slowly seep into the soil. At the same time, if the soil is already wet, osmosis back pressure will prevent it […]
Compost toilets are extremely efficient and don’t use any water, unlike flush toilets which use 30,000-plus liters of water per person each year. Instead, we can turn humanure into a sustainable waste system. Compost toilets can be made with materials found just about anywhere. For a wheelie bin toilet, begin by drilling a hole at the bottom of the bin to attach a ball valve that will allow […]
The Polyculture Study 2018 has now officially come to a close for the year, and we will be publishing the annual report and results by December. Once again we have been supported by a truly amazing team of people, without whom, the study would simply not be possible. This year we have been able to work on two trials across two gardens, as well as developing a plan for a […]
Samuel Alexander, University of Melbourne and Brendan Gleeson, University of Melbourne Suburban affluence is the defining image of the good life under capitalism, commonly held up as a model to which all humanity should aspire. More than half of the world’s population now lives in cities. Yet with the global economy already in gross ecological overshoot, and a world population heading for more than 11 billion, this way of living […]
