Permaculture Garden

History of Permaculture

Bill Mollison and David Holmgren started developing

ideas about stable agricultural systems on the southern

Australian island state of Tasmania in the 1970’s.

This was a result of their perception of rapidly growing use

of industrial-agricultural methods.

In their view, these methods were poisoning land and

water, reducing biodiversity, and removing billions of tons

of topsoil from previously fertile landscapes.

Permaculture can be defined as a theory of ecological

design which seeks to develop sustainable human

settlements and agricultural systems, by attempting to

model them on natural ecosystems.

Holmgren's 12 design principles

Observe and interact.

Catch and store energy.

Obtain a yield.

Apply self-regulation and accept feedback.

Use and value renewable resources and services.

Produce no waste.

Design from patterns to details.

Integrate rather than segregate.

Use small and slow solutions.

Use and value diversity.

Use edges and value the marginal.

Creatively use and respond to change.

The design that is

used in the

permaculture

garden in Durban

botanical gardens

is a combination

of both formal

and informal

designs called

Mandala garden

design.

Mandala garden is

a great way to break

up your garden

beds into a uprising

of living colour,

allowing easy

accessibility and

visual interest.

Characteristics of Permaculture

The design is divided into Zones.

The first zone is nearest to the house, the location for those

elements in the system that require frequent attention, or

that need to be visited often, such as salad crops, herb

plants, worm compost bin for kitchen waste.

Vermicomposting

Zone 2

This area is used for siting perennial plants that require

less frequent maintenance, such as occasional weed

control or pruning, including currant bushes and

orchards.

This would also be a good place for beehives.

Permaculture Garden

Orchard

Zone 3

The area where main

crops are grown, both

for domestic use and

for trade purposes.

After establishment,

care and maintenance

required are fairly

minimal (provided

mulches and similar

things are used), such

as watering or weed

control maybe once a

week.

Spinach, Comfrey, Egg plant,

Beetroot, Onions, Capsicum

annum (Paprika), Amadumbe,

Cucurbit (Pumpkin), Sweet

potatoes.

Chicken Tractor

The term chicken tractor

comes from the chickens

performing many functions

normally performed using a

modern farm tractor:

functions like digging and

weeding the soil in

preparation for planting

trees or crops or fertilizing

and weeding to enhance the

growth of crops and trees

already planted.

There are less hard

landscaping elements that

are used in permaculture

compared to other garden

styles.

It includes brick walls for

paving floors and mesh

wire for fencing with

plantings of Tetradenia

riparia (Iboza) that act as

wind-breaks.

Mash wire

Brick walls

Hard

landscaping

elements

There is a recycling of

motor tyres that are

used for planting. The

use of mulch keeps the

soil moist, add organic

matter to the soil and

suppress weed growth.

Grass clippings used for

mulching

Plant profile

Botanical name : Tetradenia riparia

Common name : Iboza

Family name : Lamiaceae

Country of origin: South Africa

Characteristics of Ginger bush

The ginger bush is a tall, aromatic shrub

up to 3 m in height.

The stems are brown and smooth and

green foliage.

The Zulu people have many uses for the

plant including the relief of chest

complaints, stomach ache and malaria.

Inhaling the scent of the crushed leaves

apparently also relieves headaches.

Botanical name : Allium cepa

Common name : Common onion

Family : Amaryllidaceae

Country of origin: East Asia

Characteristics of onions

It a herbaceous bulbous plant,

with a biennial seed production,

annual bulb production, the latter

being the edible part.

Plant profile

Botanical name :Rosmarinus

officinalis

Common name : Rosemary

Family : Lamiaceae

Country of origin : Mediterranean

region

Characteristics of Rosemary

Rosemary is an aromatic evergreen shrub that

has leaves similar to pine needles.

The leaves are used as a flavouring in foods

like stuffings and roast lamb, pork, chicken and

turkey.

The leaves are 2–4 cm long and 2–5 mm

broad, green above, and white below, with

dense short woolly hairs.

Botanical name : Beta vulgaris

Common name : beetroot

Family : Amaranthaceae

Country of origin: Mediterranean, the

Atlantic coast of Europe,

the Near East, and India.

Characteristics of beetroot

Beta vulgaris is a herbaceous biennial or,

rarely, perennial plant with leafy stems

growing to 1–2 m tall.

The leaves are heart-shaped, 5–20 cm

long on wild plants (often much larger in

cultivated plants).

The flowers are produced in dense

spikes; each flower is very small, 3–5 mm

diameter, green or tinged reddish.

Plant profile

Bulbine natalensis – Natal bulbine

Strelitzia reginae – Wild banana

Solanum lycopersicumTomatoes

Brassica oleraceae - Cabbage

Capsicum annum - paprika

Tagetes erecta – French margold

Psidium x durbaniensis - Durban guava

Solanum malogena - Egg plant

Asimina triloba -Paw paw

Spinacia oleracea - Spinach