Just to aid my own understanding, I'm starting to compile a list or lexicon of permaculture concepts and practices (not including the ethics and principles, of course) and would greatly appreciate any corrections or additions.  My hope is that this might become a handy additional tool as we go about applying the permaculture ethics and principles in every area of society, from land care to people care, health care, politics, economics and even psychology and spirituality.

 

Cheers,

Linda

 

PERMACULTURE CONCEPTS AND PRACTICES: A LEXICON

 

Compiled by Linda Buzzell   lbuzzell@aol.com

 

In addition to the permaculture ethics and principles, the following are some useful permaculture concepts and practices that can be applied in many of the different sectors of society like land care, people care, community practices and even psychology and spirituality:

 

BERM.  A area of elevated soil, usually on the downhill side of a swale. (see “swale”)

 

CHOP AND DROP.  The practice of not moving resources far from their source.  In garden care, chopping up trimmings and leaving them in place as a mulch.

 

ENERGY FLOWS.  Careful observation of natural energy flows on a piece of land or in social or economic situations can help us make decisions about where to place various elements.

 

GABION.  Rocks contained within a wire or other porous container to divert or block a stream.

 

GUILD. A community of elements working harmoniously together to perform a function or various functions.

 

KEYLINE.  Wikipedia: “a technique for maximizing beneficial use of water resources of a piece of land. The Keyline refers to a specific topographic feature linked to water flow. Beyond that however, Keyline can be seen as a collection of design principles, techniques and systems for development of rural and urban landscapes.” Some say that land above the keyline should be considered sacred land.

 

NEEDS & RESOURCES.  In assessing any situation, it is wise to make a list of needs and available resources before beginning a redesign.

 

LOW TECH SOLUTIONS. Exhaust biological solutions before using technological solutions.

 

NATURAL SUCCESSION.  Design for harmony with natural succession: the pattern whereby pioneering plants (or people) are naturally followed by other species, leading up to a climax forest.

 

PATTERNS.  Observing the patterns in nature, we can then apply these to new situations.  The circle and the spiral are key patterns for this purpose. For example, time is a spiral based on the movement of the earth around the sun and the movement of other celestial elements. The straight line is not a common natural pattern.

 

REDUNDANCY.  It is wise to include multiple elements to perform a single function.  Good backup creates resilient systems.

 

RESILIENCE.  The ability of a system to survive various shocks. See “redundancy.” Permaculture teacher Rob Hopkins' "The Transition Handbook" is based on applying the concept of resiliency to community systems.

 

SPIRAL.  A common natural pattern used in many permaculture designs.

 

STACKING. Stacking functions involves a single element in a design performing multiple functions.  This element could be a plant, an animal, a person or a social system.

 

SWALES.  On-contour ditches which capture and hold water, making it available to trees and perennials planted on berms built up on the downhill side of the swale with the soil from the ditch. (see “berm”)

 

ZONES.  Designing by zones involves starting at Zone 0 (the self), expanding to Zone 1 (the habitation), and outwards to Zone 5 (wilderness).  This pattern can be applied to psychological and social systems as well.