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| http://tinyurl.com/kzq5euj |
Since the term permaculture was first coined in the
1970s by Bill Mollison, it has grown and become more encompassing. First
starting out with sustainable agriculture, the idea of permaculture is a way of
life. It includes ideas and concepts on food, land, information and legal
systems. The whole concept of permaculture originates from three main ethics,
care of the earth, care of the people and taking what is needed and reinvesting
waste back into the system. Permaculture has become a way of life based on
integration of each system and nature with everything else. There are several key
aspects of permaculture that are needed to truly be self- reliant and
integrated, some of them are as follows.
Backyard
Animals
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| http://tinyurl.com/kejxho6 |
Backyard animals such as poultry are a large part of
permaculture. These animals can help not only with your compost pile but they
also help fertilize your garden and eat bugs, weeds and fruit and vegetables that may have fallen and rotted. By doing this the animals help form a
sustainable ecosystem in your backyard. Soil cultivation is also a large part
of permaculture, and poultry is a large factor of that.
Food
Forests and Guilds
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| http://tinyurl.com/majfdqr |
A food forest combines the natural benefits of the
relationship between animals, and plants within a centralized location. The
food forest, or guild, utilizes pieces of various ecosystems so to ensure all
organisms (plants, animals, fungi, bacteria, and insects) are equally able to
sustain themselves based on what is located around within the habitat. By
combining food plants with nitrogen fixing plants, nutrient accumulators, and
beneficial insect attractors, one can design and build a thriving edible
ecosystem that reduces work and inputs on behalf of the gardener.
Rain
Water Harvesting
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| http://tinyurl.com/nrjj624 |
Rain water harvesting is the practice of gathering
and then reusing rainwater before it can be deposited in some sort of
collection point like an underground reservoir. The practical uses of this
surplus water supply are irrigation, drinking water for domesticated animals,
and indoor heating for homes. The advantageous application of rain water
harvesting is that it can be used as a supplement for a main water supply with
restrictions placed upon it. Another benefit of rain water is that it is
generally more sanitary than surface water due to the fact that it has never
come into contact with the earth’s terrain. Rain water harvesting is an
effective renewable resource because it serves as a supplement to other water
sources and may even be of a better quality.
Waste
Management
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| http://tinyurl.com/n38h3zs |
In
permaculture nothing is truly “waste.” Everything is reinvested back into the
system to be of use. This might include recycling, composting, or reuse. For
example, some waste products may be recycled to be used as building materials,
etc. Composting is utilized both for use in agriculture and for capturing
methane from composting toilets for use in cooking. And many things can simply
be reused. Wastewater is cleaned and then put back into the system to be of
use. Waste in permaculture is something that a use has not been found for yet.
Sources
