Episode-579- Permaculture as a Solution for Modern Survival
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Today we will once again delve deeply into the topic of permaculture. Permaculture in its’ modern form is the result of the combined efforts of two men, Bill Mollison and David Holmgren.
Very few people in the main stream world even understand the basics of what permaculture is, its mission and how it extends far beyond agriculture.
My hope today is to bring some of that knowledge to the audience and present permaculture to you as a solution to many of the very problems we prep for.
Tune in today to learn…
- What the word permaculture really means
- Why the only real rules revolve around the prime directive and the ethics
- Prime Directive -The only ethical decision is to take responsibility for our own existence and that of our children.
- Ethical Principle 1 – Care of the earth
- Ethical Principle 2 – Care of people
- Ethical Principle 3 – Return of surplus
- Twelve Principles of Design
- Observe and interact
- Catch and store energy
- Obtain a yield
- Apply self regulation and accept feedback
- Use and value renewable resources
- 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
Additional Resources for Today’s Show
- Members Support Brigade
- TSP Gear Shop
- Join Our Forum
- Silver and Gold Shop – (sponsor of the day)
- ShelfReliance.com – (sponsor of the day)
- Permaculture Designer’s Manual
- Bill Molisons “Global Gardner” Series – Tropics, Cool Climates, Dry Climates, Urban Environment
- Backyard Permaculture – Great Video by an Aussie on permaculture in a suburban environment
- Farming With Nature – (Sepp Holzer grows lemons in the alpine mountains and far more!)
- Alpine Aquaculture – (More from Sepp Holzer)
- Greening the Desert – (Amazing video by Geoff Lawton)
- Greening the Desert Revisited – (Follow up to the video above)
- A 300 Year Old Food Forest
- A 2000 Year Old Food Forest
- Forum Thread With Listeners Back Yard Swale Project
- Members Support Brigade
- Ron Hood’s Survival.com Magazine
Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK and you might hear yourself on the air.
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Jack, the more I think about it, the more I think my father would have liked permaculture. He grew up on a farm in the backwoods of Mississippi late 1930s through early 50s). He told me stories about learning new ways produce crops in school and surprising his father with the increased yields he could get. Once you explained the decreased waste and long term increases in production, he would love. He loved new techniques for farming and haw they could make things better in the long run. Keep in mind, this was immediately after the dust bowl, and they were just implementing measures to reduce erosion.
Sorry, I got 15 minute into it and couldn’t listen anymore. Got way too preachy and frankly, boring.
@Paul
Sorry you found solving problems preachy and boring. Hopefully others felt differently.
You’ve done permaculture before and it was nothing like this. Franky you sounded more like you were trying to convert people than anything.
Sorry you got so hurt over my comments.
@Paul if you think I was “hurt” you are sadly mistaken.
@ModernSurvival, you are a lot nicer to Paul than I would have been. Personally I found today’s show to be amazing, the analysis of how all of these things can impact more than agriculture was just awesome. Thanks for all you do.
@Paul, you came across like a jerk. You say Jack sounded like he was trying to “convert” people, well isn’t that what he does all the time? Convert the unprepared into the prepared. Convert the dependent into the independent.
Today he was speaking about solving problems, I didn’t find it preachy at all, he was actually speaking the message of another man, Bill Mollison. Paul you know, just because a man has passion and a command of facts doesn’t make him preachy.
Personally this was one of the best presentations on permaculture I have ever heard.
@Debby R,
Thanks for your kind words but please don’t call other posters names. Paul is entitled to his opinion. Clearly I don’t agree with it but he is entitled to it.
@Paul,
Different is the intent, I have no interest in just redoing the same 50 odd topics over an over the same way every time. Perhaps you would have learned something if you listened to more than 15 minutes of the show? Also if you claim I am trying to convert people to practicing permaculture, I stand guilty as charged and proudly so.
As almost ever jack I liked the show. I was really interested in the link you spoke about of the listener and his/her swale but couldnt see the link. Did i miss it?
Another great show in my book.
I was actually rather inspired. Enough so that when I got home from work I started looking up permaculture organizations in my local area, in search of some good education/guidance etc..
I get why people see permaculture as tree hugger’ish (from biased superficial culturally trained perspective), and why some are upset by the discomfort of owning the responsibilities of their own lives. But,,, so far I am yet to hear anything regarding the permaculture “paradigm” that isn’t spot on when it comes to either survival or the wellbeing of the human condition overall.
Thanks again Jack
@Paul A, my oversight! The link has been added.
Jack, this episode is now on my top list. I am on my 3rd listening and am trying to commit as much of I to memory as possible. Resposibility for yourself and your own action with regard to how it reflects upon others is rarely discussed in this day of “it’s not my fault” culture. I have been trying to get back to my Native American culture Nd have discovered that this “permaculture” was just every day life back then. They understood that “mitakuye oyasin” or all things are related. This is not bush hippie mumbo jumbo, but a common sense, reality for how to live on this planet and contour to do so in a sustainable and healthy way. I appreciate what you do very much, Jack. This episode has inspired me to join the msb. which I will do this week. Thank you for fighting through your voice issues to get through this episode. Keep up the excellent and essential work and preach on brother.
Topher
Jack, I have been listening for a few months now and have been wondering for some time what this permaculture thing really is. I think I have enough understanding that I can really start researching it further. Great show Jack, Thanks.
@Topherlee,
Thank you and let me fix something I left out of the show. As you know I am sick this week and due to the voice strain I have drifted from intent at times. At one point early on I was discussion how Mollison and Holgram did not “create permaculture” only really created the term permaculture and formalized it.
What I meant to say after that and lost my train of thought on is that the entire point is permaculture is really ancient, it was how we all grew things and managed forests for thousands of years before the dawn of modern agriculture.
So yes your ancestors practiced permaculture in North America, just as my ancestors did in what is today the Ukraine.
What modern permaculture has done is basically try to rediscover the knowledge of all indigenous people and marry them together collectively and added to it the responsible use of modern technology.
To me it is a bridge back to the wisdom of our ancestors (which we all need) that connects to our modern scientific knowledge (which we are blessed to have).
I sure wish I had said that, stupid cold!
Jack,
This was an AMAZING SHOW. One of my favorites in a long time. I’m doing some catch-up and backtracking on some that I’ve missed in the past month or two but I’ve been listening since the early days and this is seriously one of my favorites ever. Thank you so much for this and keep up the amazing work.
@John,
Glad you liked it brother! I know passion can sound preachy to some but hell I 100 percent believe in what I do so it will come across with real passion. If it didn’t this business of mine would be nothing but a self employed job rather than the mission that it really is.
Like I said converting people to permaculture, yep guilty as charged and proudly so.
Thanks for your kind words.
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Great show and one of the best introductions to permaculture design we’ve come across. The connection between permaculture and survivalist ethics/practice really does need to be more clearly emphasised – especially here in the UK.
@Paul, maybe you shoulda tried stretching your childlike attention span beyond 15 minutes – far from preachy this one one of the most balanced arguments for permaculture we’ve ever heard.
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a word of warning – the Australian backyard video uses “backwards” N-S positioning information. I found myself translating it to the northern hemisphere every time the guy mentioned it! Very confusing after a while.
Haha, the confusing part for me was actually when he kept calling the chickens “chooks.” I’d never heard them called that before and I still never quite got used to it even after I realized what he was talking about.