I constantly get asked about Permaculture- some people aren't sure if it's some sort of new-age-hippie-gardening technique, or if it's scientifically based, and how does the Native Hawaiian planting techniques tie into Permaculture. So...here is a brief introduction.
Permaculture is is to Agriculture what Spirituality is to Religion. It is all inclusive, it recognizes individual cultures, practices, and environments and can literally be used in all systems around the world because it is based on the Natural Systems. It reminds us to go back to the master-artist of creation, to take a look at the systems around us, and to create man-made systems that work with nature, instead of against it.
In a forest system, there are multiple layers of vegetation growing together in a very diverse setting. We see many types of trees, shrubs, plants, insects, animals, and various other things all living together in a system that continually strengthens itself. All of these components of a natural ecosystem serve a function (or several functions) that support each other like the strands of a web. One strand on its own may be weak, but the combination of all the strands together add to the overall strength and usefulness of the web.
In order to mimic these natural systems and to provide for human needs (i.e. food, building supplies, fuel, fibers, etc.) we must learn to identify and work with the various functions of our natural resources. This is where the concept of the “Permaculture Guild” comes from. A guild is usually defined as an association of people working toward a common goal- like a community. In Permaculture, a guild is a grouping a plants, animals, insects, and other natural components that also work together to help enable each other to flourish in the same way that communities support the whole. Instead of planting gardens, Permaculture teaches us how to “build guilds”. Instead of teaching about specific plants, we teach about the plant’s functions. This is why Permaculture can work throughout the whole world. It is a guide for design rather than a “how-to” type of agriculture. (For more information onPermaculture Design, click here.)
A good Permaculture guild generally has a variety of components that are easy to remember if you just think about what YOU would need in a community in order to thrive.
1.)- We all need Food to live...So I think about this first category in terms of ....
FOOD FOR PEOPLE: When building a guild we need to think about maximizing the health and nutritional benefits that we will be getting from our systems. Planting nutrient dense foods, and long-term perennial vegetables, fruit trees and herbs is a sustainable low-maintenance way to begin a garden. In order to eat a diversity of foods we need to plant a diversity of foods. In Hawaii this is easy to be based on our 6 food groups. This means including fruits, vegetables, staples, legumes & nuts, fats, and even fish. With good planning, we should be able to receive foods from all of the 6 food groups throughout the entire year.
AND- food for the soil. I always want to provide a food source for my plants because I don't know about you, but I have better things to do with my days then to just fertilize my plants with stinky manure all the time. All plants need nutrients to grow, just like we do. One of the main nutrients that plants use for growth is nitrogen. An easy way to get nitrogen into the soil is by planting Nitrogen-fixing plants such as legumes (i.e. beans, peas, groundnuts, leguminous trees, etc). All legumes are considered “nitrogen-fixers” and are able to take nitrogen from the air (which is not usable by plants- hence the name nitrogen-FIXER)-and convert it to a usable form of nitrogen in the soil. Using legumes actually helps to ”feed” the plants that they are growing near. The leaves and other organic matter from legumes may also be added to compost to increase the nitrogen content. Any organic matter that is added back to the soil will eventually help to act as food for the soil This includes: leaves, kitchen scraps, market resources, decaying matter, compost, compost tea, mulch, manure, etc.
2.)-We all need some good Medicine:
Just as in a healthy community you will always find some sort of Doctor, Healer, or medicine man. Our plant communities need doctor plants too. I look at this category in 2 ways-
MEDICINE FOR PEOPLE: Planting medicine for people and planting medicine for our plants. I always plant medicinals for people in all of my gardens. This can be as simple as planting a variety of medicinal/culinary herbs and spices. Interestingly, many of these same herbs that are medicinal for humans, are also medicinal for plants...meaning that they help to keep pests and diseases away.
MEDICINE FOR PLANTS: Things like onions, chives, spices, lemon grass, and pungent flowers can help to repel insects and even confuse them making it difficult for them to find their food. Natural predators can also be very helpful in controlling the insect problems in a guild. Beneficial animals and insects such as frogs, birds, lizards, praying mantis, ladybugs, etc should be attracted to the garden with various types of habitat and plants that they prefer.
Here are a few examples of my doctor guilds:
Keeping Ants away:
Pennyroyal, Spearmint, Tansy and Nasturtium flowers
Repelling Aphids: Anise, Chives, Coriander, Garlic, Nasturtium, Pennyroyal, Petunia, Spearmint, Southernwood, Tansy.
Asparagus beetle: Tomato
Cabbage maggot: Hemp, Mint, Tomato, Rosemary, Sage.
Cabbage Moth: Catnip, Celery, Hemp, Hyssop, Nasturtium, Rosemary, Sage, Southernwood, Thyme, Wormwood
Carrot fly: Black salsify, Coriander, Rosemary, Sage, Salsify, Wormwood.
Chinch bug: Soybean.
Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, Dead nettle, Flax, Green beans, Horseradish.,
Cucumber beetle: Radish, Tansy.
Japanese beetle: Garlic, Pelargonium geraniums, Larkspur, Rue, Tansy.
Leafhopper: Pelargonium geraniums, Petunia.
Mexican bean beetle: Marigold, Petunia, Potato, Rosemary, Summer Savory, Garlic, Rose chafer, Pelargonium geraniums
Onion, Petunia.
Squash bug: Nasturtium, Petunia.
Striped pumpkin beetle: Nasturtium
Whitefly: Marigold, Nasturtium, Nicandra (Peruvian Ground Cherry.)
Wireworm: White Mustard
Cutworm: Tansy
Fruit Tree Moth: Southernwood
Tomato hornworm: Borage, Marigold, Opal Basil
Eelworm: French & African Marigold
Mites: Chives, Garlic, Onion
Nematode: Asparagus, Dahlia, Calendula, French & African Marigold, Salvis
Slugs & Snails: Prostrate Rosemary,Wormwood
Mice: Mint, Neem cake
3.) We all need shelter- Protection from the storm
Any thing that helps to protect your guild is a protector. Again...lets think about this category in terms of planting plants and trees that provide shelter for PEOPLE, as well as plants that provide shelter for our plants.
SHELTER FOR PEOPLE: This can be as literal as planting sustainable building materials such as construction grade bamboo and fast growing timbers, to planting windbreaks and even simple shade trees that provide a welcomed refuge from the hot sun on a summers day. You may also need protection from other animals and people which you can do by planting things with thorns or sharp ends or brambles like bouganvilla, hau bush, and kiawe. Some living fences that we have seen are even more effective than the razor wire that many people put along their fences.
SHELTER FOR PLANTS: When plants and trees are young, they often need the greatest protection. I liken this to a baby that stays in the nursery, in a crib...and then moves up to a walker, then even a childs first bike has training wheels...we wouldn't expect a child to just be sent out into the world to fend for itself. So, we want to create an environment that is can help to protect our young plants from heavy winds, sun-damage, as well as damage from humans or animals. One example of this is planting fast growing nitrogen fixing plants like pidgeon-pea around a young fruit tree. It not only is feeding the tree and providing structure beneath the soil, but it is also acting as a wind block, and it shoots up to 8 feet in just months and will protect young trees from sundamage during their first year of life.
4.)-It's always nice to have some big-strong-helping-hands. Rather than killing your back or using heavy machinery, might as well use natures tillers and diggers instead.
Deep rooted plants, such as trees, comfrey, amarynth, Alfalfa, and nettles will reach deep into the earth’s soil (like a miner) and bring minerals up to the surface so the other plants can dine on then. These deep rooted plants also act as diggers to break open the soil, make it soft, and allow for air & water to be easily absorbed. Some diggers also take the form of root crops that can be used as staple foods. Examples of diggers include: cassava, sweet potatoes, yams, Irish potatoes, trees and other deep rooted plants, etc. And some of the best diggers of all- insects and animals that burrow through the soil, or till up the soil, turning in compost...like chickens, worms and beneficial insects. These diggers not only help the plants and the soil, but they help to loosen up the soil and creates more fertile workable soil so that we don't have to do all the work ourselves.
5.)-Groundcovers- I have a rule about never weeding without following up with some sort of groundcover (whether it is living or not)...never leave bare soil exposed to the elements it will only cause the fertility to go down.
Groundcovers protect the soil from the sun, help to hold moisture, and help to keep “weeds” (good plants in the wrong place) down. There are many types of groundcovers available in the tropics. These include: peanut grass, sweet potato vines, pumpkin, cucumbers (minkaka, zinkhananga, fwifwi, etc), nasturtium, cow-pea, and anything else that will vine or spread across the soil. Mulch is also a form of groundcover.
6.)-Climbers-Because we should always be reminded to grow in new directions
Climbers help to maximize food production, especially in areas where land resources may be scarce or limited. In most forest sytems you will generally see examples of climbers, because nature uses all of its layers to their fullest potential. Examples of climbers that you can use in Hawaii include: beans, lilikoi (passion fruit), loofa (chinkupule), air potatoes, cucumbers (zipwete, minkhaka), etc.
7.)Supporters-
This is a category that life has been reminding me of more and more lately....that part of the cycle of giving...is to also be able to be supported in return. Sometimes our abundance in the garden also needs some extra support, and why not make it a good mutually beneficial relationship- while also making the most of our space. Supporters can be living things like trees, bushes, stalks such as a corn or sunflower, or they can be non-living things like a sculpture, a trellis, the side of a house, or staircase, Outdoor showers, walls, fences, etc. The main thing to be careful of is choosing the right supporter for the right climber. Some climbers are very aggressive and can bring down a fence, or take over a tree. If you put a passion fruit vine into a delicate mangosteen, you may not end up with any mangosteen at all. This is where thinking ahead and planning become very important. Get creative...think of new ways to support abundance in all areas of our life- and while your at it...think of who have been the supporters in your life who have enabled you to flourish? <3
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