https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/permaculture-at-farm-scale-webinar-tickets-1151902273709?aff=oddtdtcreator

I have been collaborating with a local farm over recent years, helping them diversify and bring permaculture into the core of the farm work and planning, it has been an interesting journey so far. I feel like i have learned a lot, but there is so much more to add to the story too, I hope to share this far and wide.

Hello all,

My grandmother has about 5ha land in the Carpathian basin, her children don't want it so she plans to sell it. She could also give it to me if I wish so.

I was planning to get it and plant some kind of orchard there, maybe an apple one. The thing is, it's in the middle of nowhere. The land is not the best and the fields there are used to grow grass for animals or potatoes.

I want to do it for no other reason other than I really want to do it

I was looking at a way to plant them and leave them there through various methods that don't require me being there very often, as I moved to a different country.

Do you have any tips if this is feasible?

Hey everyone, just genuinely curious why this is the case. Is it because of the high cost of buying a drone? The technical complexity in operating one? Why aren't there companies operating precision ag as a service in developing countries? Seems to me like there is huge room for improvement, I just saw this statistic that said malaysia uses 2000kg/ha of fertilizer while the U.S. uses 100

Hi! I’m moving to southern Manitoba this fall, and I have a pretty large lot that’s a fairly blank canvas to do whatever gardening/permaculture I want. I’m coming from Vancouver island, so struggling to find things that will survive in a hardiness zone of 2b/3a.

Has anybody grown one in this zone? What can you tell me?

I need to store roughly ~30,000L of water over a 6 month period in my semi-arid homestead. I can fill that in the winter season when it rains, from the roof and other structures.

What kind of water storage solutions have you guys done? I was thinking of building a smaller pond (~2m x 3.5m x 5m), but I think evaporation will be a big problem. So perhaps build a cistern of similar size, but then I need to figure out how to water proof the bricks/cement etc.

The simplest idea, but most expensive, is just to buy 3x 10,000L underground tanks at ~4000euros each.

Thoughts?

Hi everyone,

I'm exploring the idea of establishing a permaculture site and need some advice. One of my main concerns is noise pollution from nearby agricultural equipment like tractors, combine harvesters which can get extremely loud (often exceeding 90-100 dB).

For those who’ve dealt with similar issues:

1. How much land or buffer zone would be ideal to create a peaceful environment? Is there a general rule of thumb for distance when it comes to mitigating loud machinery noise?
2. Landscaping strategies: Are there specific tree species, hedges, or combinations that work best for reducing noise? Would creating berms, earth mounds, or natural sound barriers significantly help?
3. Other considerations: Should I factor in things like wind direction, terrain, or seasonal foliage changes when designing for noise reduction?

I’d love to hear about any experiences, tips, or resources that could help guide me in planning this.

Thanks in advance for sharing your insights!

My county is doing a sale and I think I'm going to grab one or two of these bundles, but I'd love to have some semblance of a plan before I buy and plant. Is anyone able to throw out some ideas for how to integrate them together?

Context: I just moved onto 2.4 acres in the suburbs. Property is tree lined but the center is mostly clear (grass), so there's lot of room to work with.

I'm planning to plant a lot of the usual stuff down the line, so am down for that being included in the guild(s).

(by usual stuff I mean blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, asparagus, garlic chives, grapes, comfrey, currant, etc...pretty much any stuff that comes up in permaculture discussion)

https://preview.redd.it/u1vgjia5hzce1.png?width=571&format=png&auto=webp&s=262f8704909ccd5e6ccc9138b3e78aa2950de601

Starting first growing season in the dome on our home place and reading up on Ruth Stout: Have any of you done her mulch method in your beds? Wanting to use only what we have, we would struggle to find pesticide free straw or hay. But kitchen scraps, leaves, etc, we have in droves. Do you think this would pose problems we don't foresee? Right now I only have a cover crop of clover going, but several plants in my house waiting to be moved in.

I've not planned or planted a fruit tree guild before, so I'm hoping for feedback on the design.

Zone / Conditions:
My zone is up for debate, but I'd say 6-7 is a safe bet. I'm in a valley in Southeastern BC, Canada; cool (not super cold) winters, and hot droughts in mid summer. The area I plan to put this in gets sun from mid day through to sunset (~6hrs/day)

Main Tree:
Fig! I've heard from local gardeners that we can grow fig trees here, so I'd love to try.

Guild plants are outlined in the image. I have a feeling that this is crowding too much into one space - that is generally my downfall in gardening.

Let me know what you think!

https://preview.redd.it/vn633ic48zce1.png?width=651&format=png&auto=webp&s=51e461443ff2ddfe9fb41b6465e9a70c3f4b387b

https://preview.redd.it/yr431hc48zce1.png?width=1300&format=png&auto=webp&s=1bc1c36c3bb3e3ddc87b1b9bd2afea2c79fa1404

Hello!

I used to watch a Youtube channel that would consistently do long form interviews with all kinds of knowledgeable figures related to permaculture, self reliance, etc. I remember he was a hopeful channel - talking about the flaws in society but trying to use his platform to educate and prepare people with real world solutions. I remember a specific video in which the guest talked about how he made money from a variety of sources with his lifestyle - raising and selling koi/goldfish on his property was one of them. I've browsed this reddit & all over Youtube and have yet to find it. Does anyone have any ideas on who it could be?

I am just starting my market gardening business and would like to find a professional market gardener (i.e. someone who makes a living selling their own produce) whom I can learn from.

I have read books from authors like Jean-Martin Fortier, Richard Perkins, Jesse Frost; but the amount of plastics used by these so-called "organic" and "regenerative agriculture" growers (silage tarps, row covers, polytunnels, etc.) is absolutely shocking.

As far as I can see, they haven't even tried to find better solutions, they started out using all this stuff and they justify it with some kind of bullshit like: "After a lot of considerations, we decided to use... It is not a black and white issue... The research is not entirely clear about..." And a lot of people copy their methods without making a real effort to come up with something environmentally acceptable.

I am not a fanatic, but I really don't see how this is fundamentally better than traditional agriculture. It is simply another form of polluting the soil.

So, is there a professional market gardener out there who really tries to be different and has some videos/books to share their experiences?

Being in the agarwood investment business. It seems possible to me to buy up and estate with ready trees - at price "x", inoculate and eventually flip the harvest after a few years of waiting for 4 years at around "1.175x"..

That return is tad low for agarwood investments at competitors offering 6~11%+ per annum.. However, imagine flipping the whole thing on it's head?

Imagine buying up an agarwood estate, flipping the harvest around for a low margin.. And then permaculturing the estate with multiple layers. As per practices described by Wes Jackson (perennial polyculture). That way.. It's turning into a carbon sink.. If 1/2 of the estate is intercropped with agarwood to give the carbon credits company something back after 15 years of investment into the project..

Wouldn't a 4.375% return for the first 4 years (initial monoculture harvest)
+ 7 years of waiting (tree growth) + 3 years acting time (inoculant) + 1 year harvest and eventual sale time (all while having just half the trees as before.. Meaning half the harvest - approx same cost - explained in NOTE - below) I'd put the number at >2.18% RoI average over 15 years be a solid investment for a carbon capture service provider? I mean.. When they replant jungles in the Amazon/Borneo or wherever they do business, there's no guarantee that it'll ever remain that way. And they make nothing out of it.

Here it's protected farm.. It's not using harmful pesticides, insecticides or anything of the sort.. It's increasing the food security of countries where agarwood can grow.. And, finally.. It's actually capturing carbon. And.. After 15 years that farm is pretty much independent and capable of giving a VERY low RoI to the company that sold the credits. It's essentially a man-made forest at that point.. What's more is that in all this.. CARBON IS BEING CAPTURED AND PERMACULTURE IS BEING PROMOTED IN THESE COUNTRIES..

I'm looking to pitch this idea to carbon capture companies.. Please critique my idea. Tell me the flaws and reasons as to why it wouldn't work.

NOTE: If it costs USD 160 to buy a ready tree from an agarwood plantation and USD 40 to inoculate and process it.. Total USD 200. Harvest can be sold, 1 kilo of agarwood @ USD 235 in the Singapore/HK market.. It costs exactly the same to buy a plantlet, fertilize it for 4-7 years, inoculate it and finally process and sell the end product.. And, you can double that cost USD 85 * 2 = USD 170.. Because it would take the same amount of time to grow perennial native trees and they'd not be worth their value and then some after the first harvest but would require the same effort/cost - maybe a little lesser.. But let's err on the side of caution.

If you think this idea is good.. Do help me find and pitch the concept to carbon capture companies :)

Being in the agarwood investment business. It seems possible to me to buy up and estate with ready trees - at price "x", inoculate and eventually flip the harvest after a few years of waiting for 4 years at around "1.175x"..

That return is tad low for agarwood investments at competitors offering 6~11%+ per annum.. However, imagine flipping the whole thing on it's head?

Imagine buying up an agarwood estate, flipping the harvest around for a low margin.. And then permaculturing the estate with multiple layers. As per practices described by Wes Jackson (perennial polyculture). That way.. It's turning into a carbon sink.. If 1/2 of the estate is intercropped with agarwood to give the carbon credits company something back after 15 years of investment into the project..

Wouldn't a 4.375% return for the first 4 years (initial monoculture harvest)
+ 7 years of waiting (tree growth) + 3 years acting time (inoculant) + 1 year harvest and eventual sale time (all while having just half the trees as before.. Meaning half the harvest - approx same cost - explained in NOTE - below) I'd put the number at >2.18% RoI average over 15 years be a solid investment for a carbon capture service provider? I mean.. When they replant jungles in the Amazon/Borneo or wherever they do business, there's no guarantee that it'll ever remain that way. And they make nothing out of it.

Here it's protected farm.. It's not using harmful pesticides, insecticides or anything of the sort.. It's increasing the food security of countries where agarwood can grow.. And, finally.. It's actually capturing carbon. And.. After 15 years that farm is pretty much independent and capable of giving a VERY low RoI to the company that sold the credits. It's essentially a man-made forest at that point.. What's more is that in all this.. CARBON IS BEING CAPTURED AND PERMACULTURE IS BEING PROMOTED IN THESE COUNTRIES..

I'm looking to pitch this idea to carbon capture companies.. Please critique my idea. Tell me the flaws and reasons as to why it wouldn't work.

NOTE: If it costs USD 160 to buy a ready tree from an agarwood plantation and USD 40 to inoculate and process it.. Total USD 200. Harvest can be sold, 1 kilo of agarwood @ USD 235 in the Singapore/HK market.. It costs exactly the same to buy a plantlet, fertilize it for 4-7 years, inoculate it and finally process and sell the end product.. And, you can double that cost USD 85 * 2 = USD 170.. Because it would take the same amount of time to grow perennial native trees and they'd not be worth their value and then some after the first harvest but would require the same effort/cost - maybe a little lesser.. But let's err on the side of caution.

If you think this idea is good.. Do help me find and pitch the concept to carbon capture companies :)

https://preview.redd.it/mmyvj6p7upce1.png?width=620&format=png&auto=webp&s=8f0f8b14ed3d8a299bdc008bd7e0960aa8336ab8

Hello everyone

I'm new to permaculture, but I would love to apply it in my front garden.
I have watched multiple videos about the topic already, but haven't read any books (only some articles online). That's why I come to the pros for guidance :)

General info:

• Size: Approx. 500 m² / 5400 ft² could be used for a food garden. The dream is to feed 2 people with this.
• Soil: Its moderately dry sand soil, with evident humus and/or iron B horizons (not sure if this is the correct translation). The house and parking are highest so water drains from east to west, slope is steepest close to the house.
• climate: temperate maritime climate

The sketch i provide shows the layout of how i would like to organize the garden. Light brown (~0.6 m / 1.97 ft width) are the pathways, dark brown (~1.2 m / 3.94 ft width) are the garden beds. I'm planning on not using raised beds and just grow everything in the soil (sheet mulching to get rid of the grass and wood chips for pathway).

In the middle of the circular section is a herb spiral. At the 'entrance' is a greenhouse, along with 3 compost bins (and storage for brown material) and also where i plan to have a animal coop for housing free roam chickens, ducks and geese (close to compost bins for ease of cleaning). These structures can only be placed in the 'side or back' garden due to national laws.

My entire garden shall be fenced and on the road side a hedge of ~2 m / 6.56 ft (European beech) height shall be planted to reduce the road noise as best as possible. This together with tree nr. 11 (English oak) and nr. 8 (peach) shall cast a shadow, so this is where i intend to place plants that require a shaded section. The neighboring plot (left) is more or less a forest, so close to this I'd plant some edible hedges/small trees. Right of the food garden (where the compass is located) will be a flower bed for pollinators (maybe eventually also a bee hive). of course flowers will also be planted in the food garden itself.

Not included in the sketch, but on the right of the driveway I already planted an orchard of cherry, apple, pear and plum trees. in between these trees I'll also be planting some additional edibles hedges/shrubs/plants.

1. Based on your knowledge/experience, is this a garden layout a good and practical idea? (I've heard a few times that rectangular beds are easier for placing netting and by equally sizing them making it easier to plan how many plants can be placed etc.)
   • Where are improvements required?
2. Can the wood chips also be used instead of cardboard for sheet mushing or shall this cause issues with the nitrogen content?
3. Is there any reading material you recommend before I start converting the garden?

Thanks a lot!

NEW AI RULE

The results are in from our community poll on posts generated by artificial intelligence/large language models. The vast majority of folks who voted and expressed their opinions in the comments support a rule against AI/LLM generated posts. Some folks in the comments brought up some valid concerns regarding the reliability of accurately detecting AI/LLM posts, especially as these technologies improve; and the danger of falsely attributing to AI and removing posts written by real people. With this feedback in mind, we will be trying out a new rule banning AI generated posts. For the time being, we will be using various AI detection tools and looking at other activity (comments and posts) from the authors of suspected AI content before taking action. If we do end up removing anything in error, modmail is always open for you to reach out and let us know. If we find that accurate detection and enforcement becomes infeasible, we will revisit the rule.

If you have experience with various AI/LLM detection tools and methods, we'd love to hear your suggestions on how to enforce this policy as accurately as possible.

A REMINDER ON OLD RULES

• Rule 1: Treat others how you would hope to be treated. Because this apparently needs to be said, this includes name calling, engaging in abusive language over political leanings, dietary choices and other differences, as well as making sweeping generalizations about immutable characteristics such as race, ethnicity, ability, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, nationality and religion. We are all here because we are interested in designing sustainable human habitation. Please be kind to one another.
• Rule 2: Self promotion posts must be labeled with the "self-promotion" flair. This rule refers to linking to off-site content you've created. If youre sending people to your blog, your youtube channel, your social media accounts, or other content you've authored/created off-site, your post must be flaired as self-promotion. If you need help navigating how to flair your content, feel free to reach out to the mods via modmail.
• Rule 3: No fundraising. Kickstarter, patreon, go-fund me, or any other form of asking for donations isnt allowed here.

Unfortunately, we've been getting a lot more of these rule violations lately. We've been fairly lax in taking action beyond removing content that violates these rules, but are noticing an increasing number of users who continue to engage in the same behavior in spite of numerous moderator actions and warnings. Moving forward, we will be escalating enforcement against users who repeatedly violate the same rules. If you see behavior on this sub that you think is inappropriate and violates the rules of the sub, please report it, and we will review it as promptly as possible.

CALLING OUT FOR NEW MODS

If you've made it this far into this post, you're probably interested in this subreddit. As the subreddit continues to grow (we are over 300k members!), we could really use a few more folks on the mod team. If you're interested in becoming a moderator here, please fill out this application and send it to us via modmail.

1. How long have you been interested in Permaculture?
2. How long have you been a member of r/Permaculture?
3. Why would you like to be a moderator here?
4. Do you have any prior experience moderating on reddit? (Explain in detail, or show examples)
5. Are you comfortable with the mod tools? Automod? Bots?
6. Do you have any other relevant experience that you think would make you a good moderator? If so, please elaborate as to what that experience is.
7. What do you think makes a good moderator?
8. What do you think the most important rule of the subreddit is?
9. If there was one new rule or an adjustment to an existing rule to the subreddit that you'd like to see, what would it be?
10. Do you have any other comments or notes to add?

As the team is pretty small at the moment, it will take us some time to get back to folks who express interest in moderating.

I laid about 6" of wood chips on my sandy loamy soil over the summer to try to increase the organic matter and get it to a point I can plant in ground. I can see the fungi doing their job when I pull it back.

Would adding used coffee grounds right now provide any benefit? I would like to help the wood chips break down faster, but I have read that if grounds don't go in a traditional compost pile, the caffeine can hurt future plants. Is there a risk of caffeine hurting my seedlings ~3 months from now?

Open to other ideas. I can just put it in my compost pile then use my compost in rows within the wood chips come springtime.

Does anyone here eat bush/shrub/tree leaves? Preferably native to the Ozarks/Eastern US

I am trying to grow hablitzia this year and it's got me thinking about what other leaves can I eat. I worry I have been thinking too much about growing fruits because those only really can be harvested a few weeks a year. But leaves grow all season long

Buffalo NY area. I'm starting to help take care of a 2 acre area that was previously a crop field (I believe soybeans and/or corn).

I would like to overseed something that will help build biomass and improve soil but also, if at all possible, not require manual termination. Ideally it's something we can just let grow and die back naturally for a couple of years before turning we have time to turn it into a food forest. I can't spend much maintenance on it for a couple of years after seeding it.

I've heard that ryegrass, buckwheat, clover, and tilling radish could be a good mix to generally improve soil, reduce compaction, etc. But I am not experienced with the process of cover crop termination and I get the impression that these may get out of control if not maintained correctly.

Thanks in advance

So I'm starting a personal gardening business. I'm going to be doing everything from breaking ground on the in ground/raised bed, setting up irrigation, managing planting/care/pruning/weeding/harvesting (and optional processing harvest), cleaning everything up in the fall. Multiple clients, visiting each weekly as needed. I also offer orchard, mushroom log/plot, chickens, and honeybee installation, management, and harvesting for clients who have already hired me for gardening. (I am well versed in all of these dw lol)

I'm in a wealthy area, kind of the country estates outside D.C. Pretty much all of the houses in the area go for $1m (except the tiny rentals like mine 😂😂). Looking online, there aren't any competing people who actually manage the gardens throughout the season, just people who install them. Basically all of the pricing is held behind consultations so I don't know what they're charging. Looking online at 1 man landscaping companies, I'm seeing people charging anything from $30/h-$150/h not including materials. I have no idea where to place myself. I am experienced and have worked in agriculture for 5 years, managing actual field crops and a hydroponics greenhouse basically fully for the last 2 years. Im confident i can handle this, Ive encountered tons of diseases and problems in my time in gardening and the other services I'm offering, and Ive been able to solve basically all of the solveable problems.

The most I've ever been paid was $16/h and I'd like a pay raise 😂😅 what do you all think?

Hi everyone, I started a permaculture / native landscaping company a little over 2 years ago. We are based in PA just north of Philadelphia. I’m not asking anyone to be a customer, just for you to check us out if you have time and provide any feedback for how we could improve. Our mission is to make permaculture and native plantings the norm. Any advice or help with how we can make that happen will be greatly appreciated. If you feel so inclined, please give us a follow on Instagram @keystone.permaculture. Our website is keystoneperm.com if you care to look that over too. Thanks for you time! I hope to hear from some of you.

https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/planting-prairie-strips-soil-erosion-reduction/

Not even kidding. I'm sooooo tired of people waking up and "realizing" that doing simple things like treating the land and environment in general with respect is beneficial to the land and environment.

It's the most lazy, brain dead realization someone could come to at this point.

Sorry if I'm being negative, this kind of stuff just gets my goat.

I was reading a new book I got "Land Stewardship for Birds: A guide for Central Texas".

It's been an awesome read and highly recommend. When talking about water erosion on land, the book authors suggest not using culverts on the land, but create a low crossing with rocks. I have a cracked concrete culvert on my driveway that's needed replacement. But now I'm going to look into alternative options. Whenever I search the internet, all I get are adds for culvert repair/replacement or how to install a new one.

Have any of y'all done this or have examples of removing a culvert and creating a natural low water crossing? It seems pretty straight forward IMO, but I like to see what others have done before I give it a try.

Maybe some important details for my circumstance:

The land is undeveloped, not driven on regularly. The water shed comes from a low area on neighbors property, not a creek or stream, so it only flows in major rain events. However, downstream of the culvert has been eroded over the years and I've been working to repair and slow water in the area for a while.

We have a small vineyard in a stone terrace and Madeiran wall lizards eat more than half of the grapes. We may add nestbox habitat for a local raptor that eats lizards and maybe spray garlic oil in the stone terraces….

Any biological / animal ideas to make the lizards decide to leave, be eaten by a predator or otherwise stop eating one grapes?

We don’t want to net the grapes or wrap the base of the vines (the vines lay flat in many cases).

Thoughts?

Salpichroa origanifolia (pampas lily-of-the-valley) has a stronghold across my backyard as well as neighbours yards. It’s considered a highly invasive species here. While we’ve ripped up a chunk of it and regularly mow the above ground portion, there are so many underground rhizomes/runners and seed-bank creating new plants…

I’ve been in the property for less than 6 months so don’t know when it was established, however seeing how overrun the neighbours yards are on both sides with it I figure it’s been here a fair while and crept across properties

I’d love to take a “work with nature” approach and plant something that could outcompete it, or create conditions to halt it in its track.

Suburban block in Melbourne, australia, dry sandy soil, growing in both sunny and shady spots, in a patchy weedy lawn.

Any ideas? 🙏

Edit: rest assured I am working on swapping the suburban lawn for a more diverse and permaculture informed garden 😀