Gardening is a wonderful way to upgrade your home and landscape, and as long as the plants are alive and thriving, there’s no real “wrong” way of going about it. For the people who want their gardens to reflect the “wildness” of nature while still controlling how it looks, there’s an old horticulture trend known as permaculture, and it’s making a comeback!
Permaculture gardening is simulating natural ecosystems as you’d find them in the wild, for reasons that are ornamental, environmental, and agricultural all at the same time. It combines many gardening pleasures you’d think would normally have to be separated. If you’re looking for something different, permaculture gardening might be for you!
Permaculture: A Garden of Many Uses
Many people use their garden strictly for one use; either it’s for flowers, or it’s for rows and rows of neatly organized fruits and/or veggies. Permaculture gardening turns the conventional wisdom about what a garden should do on its head, making the outdoor space you have into an original, balanced home for many types of plants. A permaculture garden can provide food for you and your family, a great look for your home, a habitat for native plants and animals, and a relaxing, immersive space in which you can enjoy the outdoors.
One of the features of local gardening and permaculture is that it is self-sustaining, meaning that the parts you put into it all work to keep each other alive in a small ecosystem. Using tactics found in agriculture, waste management, water harvesting, and other far-flung philosophies and professions related to raising plants and animals, the garden you set up works with nature to set up its own functions. This “closed loop” provides all the benefits your plants will need in a stable order.
A permaculture garden works based on how it is designed. While much of what you’re doing mimics nature, it’s not about completely surrendering your land to the whims of the environment. You’re still making choices about what goes where; however, the plants you choose can help fight pests, the water you capture will help the garden grow, and the waste you collect and keep will provide nutrients for the soil.
The Benefits of Permaculture Gardening
One of the great benefits of permaculture gardening is the self-sustainment of your garden environement. If you set up your garden for success, you’ll have a space that can take care of itself for long stretches of time. This is perfect for those of us who love tending gardens and reaping the benefits of growing vegetables but can’t always find the time and energy necessary. You’re also not spending a lot of money on extra water, fertilizer, or other inputs that many gardens are dependent upon. Permaculture is also a great option for people with limited space who don’t want to choose between flowers and vegetables.
Permaculture gardening does require an initial investment of time and energy. You have to plan out your little ecosystem, come up with a system of water capture, and know what plants will help each other to avoid the ones that will choke out everything else. But when you choose to make a permaculture garden, you’re completely remodelling your outdoor living space so that it accommodates with local wild plants and animals. Everything stays local, and if you’re the right kind of person, that could be just the thing you need! Contact us for more great gardening tips.
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