Monday 10 November 2014

Permaculture Garden - The Benefits Of Growing Your Permaculture Food Forest

Hello! Where do you go when you feel stressed out, anxious or just tired from the days work?  How do you keep your body healthy and full of energy in years to come?

Growing a Permaculture garden with a Food Forest in your property gives you a peaceful environment and provides you a delicious, nutrient dense food which helps you to keep your body healthy and energetic for years to come.

What is a Permaculture Food Forest?  It is a food forest that is designed the way it mimics a natural forests ecosystem.  It produces food without too much human intervention when it's established.  There is no need for pesticides, fertilizers and only a little watering. 

Here are some benefits in growing your own Permaculture Food Forest:
  • You feel physically and mentally healthier by eating a nutrient dense food.
  • Biodiversity brings you food to eat in every day of the year.  Growing annual vegetables as well, give you food almost straight away, while waiting trees to mature (approx. 4-6 years).
  • With a food forest you bring beneficial insects to do your 'dirty' work and there is no need for pesticides.  Give a home for your 'helpers' and they stay look after for your pest problems
  • You can turn your organic waste into a compost and build a living soil with 'happy' microbes.
  • With a chop & drop method you can feed and build your soil to be healthy which keeps your plants healthy and productive.
  • Preserve your soil in any way you can - by having walking paths, avoid compaction of a garden beds, avoid pulling plants out instead cut off from the base and leave a root system to rot in the ground. All garden 'waste' goes back to the soil.
  • Planting diversity of plants which support one another is a system that gives you and a wildlife a place to enjoy many years to come.  Not all the plants and elements are meant to benefit only a human but a whole ecosystem.
  • Energy saving methods:  With plants in the right places you can passively cool or warm your house.  Some other plants can form a wind break.  There are plants for wet and dry spots in your garden.  Even shady places have their purpose. 
  • Creating an ecosystem for human, plants and animals which can be enjoyed by future generations.  Helping to heal the earth starts in our own backyard.
Creating a Permaculture garden in your property is not hard when you know basic principles in ecological gardening and designing.  

There are great courses available and learn from but if your budget is low, by reading books and watching videos on Youtube will get you started.  And then take action!

Start with drawing a rough plan. Observe how the sun moves in your property in different times in the year.  How can you harvest the rain water? 

Start building a compost straight away. Compost any waste organic material from your home. Collect organic materials e.g ask your neighbors if they have any garden waste.

We collect leaves from the local parks.  Ask juice bars their fruit and veggie scraps etc.  Join your local Permaculture group to volunteer and go their workshops. 

The soil is the most important part of any gardening practice.  Keep taking care of the soil and it will take care of your plants :-) 

Helping to heal the Earth starts in our own backyard!

Here is a great video from Johnny Mars again tittled with Permaculture Paradise: Val & Eli's Summer Abundance Part 1!

Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1BpauXRp6U 

Are you ready to create your own Permaculture Paradise?  

If you enjoyed this article, please be sociable and share :-)  Thank you.

Heli Iso-Aho

www.twitter.com/GrowOwnFood  

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