Post on 13-Jan-2017
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