A. Broad Scale Site Design
http://www.permacultureproject.com/permaculture-and-the-three-epochs-curriculum-38/
Methodology of Design
Permaculture design emphasizes
patterning of landscape, function, and species assemblies. It asks the
question, “Where does this element go?
How is best placed for maximum benefit in the system?”
Permaculture is made up of
techniques and strategies:
·
Techniques are how we do things (one-dimensional)
·
Strategies are how and when (two-dimensional)
·
Design is patterning (multi-dimensional)
Permaculture is all about the
science and ethics of design patterning
Approaches to design:
-Maps:
“where is everything?”
-Analysis of
elements: “how do these things connect?”
-Sector
planning: “where do we put things?”
-Observational
-Experiential
Maps: A main tool of a designer, but “the map is never
the territory”. Be careful not to
design just from maps, no map tells the entire story that can be observed on
the ground. A sequence of maps is
valuable to see clearly where to place elements: Water, Access, Structures,
Topology etc.
The analysis
of elements: List the needs, products, and
the intrinsic characteristics of each element. Lists are made to try and link
the supply needs of elements to the production needs of others.
An
example that is easy to understand is the lists needed to link a chicken into a
system:
Experiment on paper, connecting and combining the elements (buildings,
plants, animals, etc) to achieve no pollution (excess product), and minimum
work. Try to have one element
fulfill the needs of another.
Observational: Free thinking or thematic thinking (e.g. on weed
species)
a) Note
phenomenon
b) Infer
(make guesses)
c) Investigate
(research)
d) Devise
a strategy
Experiential: Become conscious—of yourself, feelings, and
environment. Can be
free-conscious or thematically-conscious.
Zazen-walking without thinking, unreflective.
PUTTING IT TOGETHER: Use all the methodologies of design
Select elements – pattern
assembly
Place elements – pattern
relationship
B. Applying Specific Methods, Laws and Principles to
Design
Methodologies
of Design
Permaculture
design emphasizes patterning of
landscape, function, and species assemblies. It asks
the
question, “Where does this (element)
go? How is it placed for maximum benefit in the system?
Permaculture
is made up of techniques and strategies:
•
Techniques: concerned with how to do
things (one dimensional) e.g. organic gardening
•
Strategies: concerned with how and when
(two dimensional) e.g. Fukuoka system
•
Design: concerned with patterning (multi-dimensional)
e.g. permaculture
Approaches
to Design:
1.
Maps (“Where is everything?”)
2.
Analysis of elements (“How do these things connect?”)
3.
Sector planning (“Where do we put things?”)
4.
Observational
5.
Experiential
Maps
(be careful- the “map” is not the
territory”) Must make
observations.
Sequence
of maps valuable to see clearly where to place many elements. Clear overlays to
plan: Access,
Water,
Buildings, Topology.
Analysis
of Elements
An
analytical approach: list the needs, products, and the intrinsic characteristics
of each element. This is
done
on paper. Lists are made to try to supply (by some other element in the system)
the needs of any
particular
element.
Experiment
on paper with connecting and combining the elements (buildings, plants,
animals, etc) to
achieve
no pollution (excess of product) and minimum work. Try to have one element
fulfill the needs of
another
element.
Observational
Free
thinking or thematic thinking (e.g. on blackberry or bracken)
(a)
Note phenomenon
(b)
Infer (make guesses)
(c)
Investigate (research)
(d)
Devise a strategy
Experiential
Become
conscious of yourself, feelings, environment. Can be free-conscious or
thematically-conscious.
Zazen-
walking without thinking, unreflective.
Putting
It Together: Use all the methodologies of design.
Select
elements - pattern assembly
1. Analysis: design by listing characteristics of
components
2.
Observation: design by expanding on direct observations of a site
3.
Deduction from nature: design by adopting lessons learned from nature
4.
Options and decisions: design as a selection of options or pathways based on
decisions
5.
Data overlay: design by map overlays (see above)
6.
Random assembly: design by assessing the results of random assemblies
7.
Flow diagrams: design for work places
8.
Zone and sector analysis: design by application of a master pattern
Sector Planning
Sector
planning includes (a) zones, (b) sector, (c) slope, and (d) orientation
Zones: It is useful to consider the site as a series of
zones (which can be concentric rings)
that form a single pathway through the system that moves outward from the home center.
The placement of elements in each zone depends on importance, priorities, and number
of visits needed for each element. E.g. a chicken house is visited every day,
so it needs
to be close (but not necessarily next to the house). An herb garden would be
close to
the kitchen.
Zone 1:
·
Home centre
·
Herbs, vegetable garden
·
Most built structures
·
Very intensive
·
Start at the backdoor
Zone 2:
·
Intensive cultivation, main crop
·
Heavily mulched orchard
·
Well-maintained
·
Mainly grafted and selected species
·
Dense planting
·
Use of stacking and storey system design
·
Some animals: chickens, ducks, pigeon
·
Multi-purpose walks: collect eggs , milk, distribute
greens and scraps
·
Cut animal forage
Zone 3:
·
Connects to zone 1 and 2 for easy access
·
May add goats, sheep, geese, bees, dairy cows
·
Plant hardy trees and native species
·
Un-grafted
for later selection, later grafting
·
Animal forage
·
Self-forage systems: poultry forest etc
·
Windbreaks, firebreaks
·
Spot mulching, rough mulching
·
Trees protected with cages, strip-fencing
·
Nut tree forests
Zone 4:
·
Long term development
·
Timber for building
·
Timber for firewood
·
Mixed forestry systems
·
Watering minimal
·
Feeding minimal
·
Some introduced animals: cattle, deer, pigs
·
Zone 5:
·
Uncultivated wilderness
·
Re-growth area
·
Timber
·
Hunting
Species,
elements, and strategies change in each zone.
SECTORS: the aim of sector planning is to channel external
energies (wind, sun, fire) into or away from the system.
The zone and
sector factors together regulate the placement of particular plant, animal
species and structures.
SLOPE: placement of an element on slope so that gravity
is used to maximum capacity:
-water storage
-mulch and
other materials (kick down)
-cold air
falls, warm air rises
ORIENTATION: placement of an element so that it faces sun-side
or shade-side, depending on its function and needs.
9.
Zoning of information and ethics
10.
Incremental design
11.
Summary of design methods
12.
The concepts of guilds in nature
13.
Succession: evolution of a system
14.
The establishment and maintenance of systems
15.
General practical procedures in property design
C. Ideas and Applications
(give examples of some of
these principles in your site)
1.
Relative location
2.
Each element performs many functions
3.
Each important function is supported by many functions
4.
Efficient energy planning
5.
Using biological resources properly
6.
Energy cycling
7.
Small-scale intensive systems
8.
Accelerating succession and evolution
9.
Diversity (poly-cultures)
10.
Edge effects
11.
Water Conservation and the Keyline System (swales, dams, ponds, etc.)
12.
Attitudinal principles in practice
D. Draw Basic Design
based on initial observations of your site (use bubble diagrams and drafting
tools)
Principle Summary: Definition
of Permaculture design: Permaculture design is a system of
assembling conceptual, material, and strategic components in a pattern which
functions to benefit life in all its forms. It seeks to provide a sustainable
and secure place for living things on this earth.
Functional design: Every component of a design should function in many
ways. Every essential function should be supported by many components.
Principle
of self-regulation: The purpose of a
functional and self-regulating design is to place elements or components in
such a way that each serves the needs, and accepts the products, of other
elements.
References:
-Barrat, Krome, Logic and Design, Design Books, Guilford, CT, 1980.
-Birkeland, Janis, Design for Sustainability, Earthscan, Sterling, Virginia, 2004.
-Fuller, Buckminster, Synergetics, Macmillan Publishing Company, NYC, 1975.
-Grillo, Paul, Form Function Design, Dover Publications, NYC, 1960.
-Hemenway, Toby, Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale
Permaculture, Chelsea Green Publishing
Company, White River Junction, Vermont, 2001.
-Holmgren, David, Permaculture: Principles and Pathways
Beyond Sustainability, Holmgren Design
Services, Victoria, Australia, 2002.
-Lyle, John Tillman, Regenerative Design for
Sustainable Development, John Wiley and
Sons, NYC, NY, 1994.
-Lyle, John, Design for Human Ecosystems, Island Press, Washington DC, 1999.
-McHarg, Ian, Design With Nature, American Museum of Natural History, Garden City,
NY, 1969.
-Mollison, Bill, Introduction to Permaculture, Tagari Publications, Tyalgum Australia, 1991.
-Mollison, Bill, Permaculture: A Designer’s Manual, Tagari Publications, Tyalgum Australia, 1988.
-Schneider, Michael, Beginner’s Guide to Constructing
the Universe, Harper Collins, 1994.
-Todd and Todd, Nancy and John, From Eco-Cities to
Living Machines, North Atlantic Books,
Berkeley, CA, 1993.
-Van der Ryn, Sim and Cowan, Stuart, Ecological Design, Island Press, Washington DC, 1996.
-Yeang, Ken, Designing With Nature, McGraw Hill, Inc., NYC, 1995.
