Permaculture Principles

The wisdom of Permaculture can be easily expressed through David Holmgren's Twelve Principles.  Whether planning a garden, a house, a community or even our daily lives, these design principles help us maximize efficiency and harmony with nature.

First, each principle has a brief description in the words of the experts themselves.  Following that is a list of each principle's application here at Permaculture Campgrounds.

The Twelve Principles of Permaculture
1 Observe and interact	A harmonious relationship between nature and people... is not generated in isolation, but through continuous and reciprocal interaction with the subject.[1] For our campgrounds, this principle is the source of knowledge and the determinant of success. Before planting or building, a full year was devoted to observing. During which, the High Pointe observation post at the peak was the first and only structure.
2 Catch and store energy	...We have limited time to catch and store energy before seasonal or episodic abundance dissipates.[2] Water catchment tanks, dams and swales store rainfall. Sun circles and greenhouses catch solar energy for production. Buildings (see Visitors' Center) use passive solar heating and summer cooling. Solar panels store solar energy for electricity. Our roadside "free food" catches the interest of passersby.
3 Obtain a yield	Systems that most effectively obtain a yield, and use it most effectively to meet the needs of survival, tend to prevail over other alternatives.[3] Production area was established prior to campsites and Visitors' Center. Requesting fees from campers produces financial yield. All visitors are encouraged to pick and eat anything they like!
4 Apply self-regulation and accept feedback	Place elements in such a way that each serves the needs, and accepts the products, of other elements.[4] Every event we can detect is a result of a preceding event, and gives rise to subsequent events.[5] Plant guilds and food forests intended as self-regulating systems. Plants and soils constantly monitored for pests, mineral imbalances, pH levels and other adverse effects. Advice on local conditions and native species sought from Department of Forestry and other relevant authorities.
5 Use renewable resources and services	...Minimize our consumptive demand on resources, and emphasise the harmonious interaction between humans and nature.[6] Solar energy is used for heating structures, drying edibles and clothing, powering via photo-voltaic cells and growing plants. Timber from properly managed fuel forest is used for heating and cooking. 'Renewable' life is prioritized, such as perennial rather than annual species and the breeding of livestock. 'Renewable' labor is utilized such as Wwoofers and workshops.
6 Produce no waste	In nature, there is no such thing as waste.  Everything is food for something else, connected in life and death to many other species.[7] Kitchen scraps removed plants are composted. Paper and cardboard are used for mulch. Animal manures fertilize the soil. Greywater systems devoted to flushing toilets and irrigating non-edible plants. Blackwater systems fertilize outlying forests.
7 Design, from patterns to details	Complex systems... evolve from simple ones, so finding the appropriate pattern for that design is more important than understanding all the details.[8] All design details derived from initial zone and sector analyses. Earthworks and water catchment precede any other construction or planting. Suitable plant habitats (herb spirals, keyhole beds) designed prior to any species selection.
8 Integrate rather than segregate	It is not the number of things...it is the number of beneficial connections between them.[9] Livestock integrated with food forests encourage symbiotic relationships (e.g. chickens remove pests and fertilize fruit tree, fruit tree feeds and shelters chickens). Companion planting combine beneficial functions (insect attractors, nitrogen-fixers, deep-root accumulators, mulch producers, pest repellers, etc.). Community cooking and recreation areas integrate visitors, which builds relationships and maximizes happiness.
9 Use small and slow solutions	We cannot order complex functions. They must evolve of themselves.[10] The golden rule is to develop the nearest area first, get it under control, and then expand the perimeter.[11] All production initiatives begin as small trials with successes expanded upon. Campgrounds themselves are a small solution to a sustainable life, being self-sufficient and not dependent on external macroeconomic and geopolitical factors.  As an illustration of this principle, in the Visitors' Center is a donation jar next to the suggestion box.  As enough money is accumulated it will be spent solving the most pressing concern.
10 Use and value diversity	Stupidity is an attempt to iron out all differences, and not to use or value them creatively.[12] All plant guilds, food forests and other productive systems designed for maximum species diversity. Diversity as a planting policy protects against total, "all-eggs-in-one-basket," failure. Plant yields, in turn, attract a diversity of insect and wildlife species. Welcoming of visitors creates human diversity and enriches community.
11 Use edges and value the margins	We can use the naturally-occuring turbulence, trade and accumulations [of edges] to work for us.[13]  Shape of pond maximizes water/land edge. Shape of keyhole beds and herb spiral maximizes garden edge (and minimizes path space). The roadside market and parking lot (the 'edge' between campground and rest of society) encourages trade with and accumulation of visitors.
12 Creatively use and respond to change	We cannot know a fraction of what exists.[14] Nature carries the instruction book for a sustainable world - it is up to us to read it and preserve it.[5] All species (successes, failures, conditions) are cataloged in the library. Complete records of production, finance, etc. are documented. Visitors are encouraged to voice concerns or share expertise.

[1] David Holmgren, Essence of Permaculture: A Summary (Holmgren Design); p. 9
[2] Holmgren, p. 11
[3] Holmgren, p. 11
[4] Bill Mollison, Permaculture: A Designers' Manual (Tasmania: Tagari Publications, 1980); p. 69
[5] Mollison, p. 81
[6] Holmgren, p. 14
[7] Toby Hemenway, Gaia's Garden (Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing, 2009); p. 29
[8] Holmgren, p. 16
[9]  Mollison, p. 32
[10] Mollison, p.57-58
[11] Mollison, p. 53
[12] Mollison, p. 80
[13] Mollison, p.78
[14] Mollison, p. 58
[15] Hemenway, p. 67