[Scpg] draft of list of permaculture concepts and practices

[LBUZZELL at aol.com]

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 at aol.com_ (mailto:lbuzzell at 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. 
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