Permaculture, or making the most out of little

Papayas grown using permaculture. Permaculture can be a bridge between traditional knowledge systems and new scientific techniques. PHOTO | COURTESY

What you need to know:

  • In permaculture, we find multiple functions rather than disregarding something we feel is useless.
  • In Kenya, which is grappling with problems of deforestation, food and water scarcity and frequent droughts, permaculture offers low-cost production enhancing methods which can lead to self-sufficiency in growth of food crops.
  • Our experience with this much-needed project has led me to believe that permaculture is the need of the hour especially in a country like Kenya. As Bill Mollison says “The world’s problems can be solved in a garden.”

Permaculture, derived from the words 'permanent agriculture', is a farming practice that can sustain itself for a long time before it requires maintenance.

It is a design system for creating sustainable human habitat and is based on the philosophy of a farming practice that works with rather than against nature. A more technical definition of permaculture is creating sustainable human habitats by following nature's patterns without disruption.

The word was coined by two Australian ecologists, David Holmgren and Bill Mollison in the mid-seventies.

The ethics of permaculture has three main tenets. First, care for the earth. It is a fact that without a healthy earth humans cannot flourish.

It is necessary to feed the soil so that in turn it can feed us. This includes use of organic manure and compost to enrich the soil by building useful microorganisms.

Second, care for the people. There is need to collaborate with our neighbours and communities so that all can use the resources and produce to their benefit.

The third principle is return of surplus, or fair share. This means creating a balance by simply taking what we need and sharing what we don’t, thereby providing positive examples for others so that they can find their own balance.

PRINCIPLES OF PERMACULTURE

One of the 12 core principles of permaculture is that every element of nature works harmoniously in more than one way and has more than one function.

Take weeds for example. They are usually considered harmful and useless, but not if one is practicing permaculture. When seedlings are germinating and weeds are growing in the soil, they can be removed and piled into long rows, where they dry in the sun and form natural ridges thus preventing soil erosion.

Also the weed piles can be recycled back into the soil as natural mulch and manure.

When we simply observe nature, everything works harmoniously with everything else and that is exactly what permaculture is about, we find multiple functions rather than disregarding something we feel is useless.

A crop of kale. Amrita Children's Home in Athi River has successfully implemented principles of permaculture to benefit the community. PHOTO | COURTESY

Permaculture encourages us to find solutions rather than looking at the problems.

For instance, in areas where wild elephants can be a menace to the crops, bees can be cultured in the apiaries at the perimeter of the farm which helps discourage the elephants from entering the cropped area.

These simple steps are appropriate and practical for today's needs. By learning and using these principles, one can attain valuable tools, helping become flexible in times of change and can help rebuild communities even on a small scale!

In Kenya, which is grappling with problems of deforestation, food and water scarcity and frequent droughts, permaculture offers low-cost production-enhancing methods which can lead to self-sufficiency in food crops.

Permaculture can be a bridge between traditional knowledge systems and new scientific techniques. With this system in place, one can maximise food production by enhancing soil fertility, use only organic, cost-effective fertilizers and even preserve water.

THE NEED OF THE HOUR

An example of a site where principles of permaculture have been successfully implemented to benefit the community is the Amrita Children's Home in Athi River, which was established in 2011.

It is a day and boarding school where more than 100 children from nearby surroundings from the ages of 6-13 receive quality education and nutritious meals.

The land on which the home was constructed was of poor quality because of dumping of construction material. The quality of the soil was improved by composting and mulching.

Nitrogen-fixing trees, such as Moringa trees, were planted to enrich the soil and trench-like swales were created to harness water.

Today the school's garden provides vegetables such as spinach, kale, cabbage, tomatoes, onion, eggplant and fruits such as papaya and banana.

Besides this, a herb garden has also been created where a variety of medicinal and food herbs grow.

Mulch is used to grow crops. With permaculture, one can maximise food production by enhancing soil fertility, use only organic, cost-effective fertilizers and even preserve water. PHOTO | COURTESY

These include mint, coriander, basil, thyme, oregano, lemon grass, parsley etc. The surplus produced is sold to the markets to generate more income for the project and resources.

The children in the school are also involved in the process by conducting gardening workshops to educate them about the need for such farming initiatives.

The children now enjoy fresh nutritious garden produce as a part of their daily diet. The home has become largely self-reliant for its food needs.

The home also has a cow which provides milk for the children as well as manure for the project. A biogas digester system has also been installed to minimize the purchase of expensive gas for cooking the meals for the children.

The success of these initiatives has prompted the initiation of other eco-friendly projects this year which include the setting up of a greenhouse and water harvesting system.

Our experience with this much-needed project has led me to believe that permaculture is the need of the hour especially in a country like Kenya. As Bill Mollison says “The world’s problems can be solved in a garden.”

Sheena is a permaculture practitioner at Permaculture Research Institute of Kenya. Shivansh is an IB student at International School of Kenya and a trained permaculture enthusiast