Take a look at the images above. Beautfiul aren’t they?
If you’re into permaculture they are instantly recognizable as a permaculture design. But if you’re new to permaculture you might be asking…what makes it permaculture….and perhaps, what am I looking at?
This year on the trail we are incredibly fortunate to be able to show you this design in real life! Habitat and Harvest in Killarney Vale is opening for the trail. 18 months old and already very productive, this is a wonderful opportunity to see a permaculture design plan that has been implemented and realised, and to talk to the garden hosts AND the designer, Leslee Brown.
We asked Leslee what she saw as the key differences between a landscape garden design and permaculture design.
“A permaculture design prioritises the three ethics of permaculture: Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share. This is a key difference between landscape design and permaculture design. This is not to say a landscape designer cannot offer this, of course they can, but a permaculture design uses the three ethics as the backbone of their design, understanding the significance of their application in every design decision”
These three ethics guide the use of 12 practical principles of permaculture.
“These principles become the designer’s tools, which in turn guide many of the decisions we make. A permaculture designer will not only work to give the client what they want, they work to give clients what they need; for every action there is an impact and permaculture design has a heightened realisation of this.”
Leslee went on to explain that “Every design takes ecological principles into account and uses the patterns in nature as inspiration. Permaculture design is holistic; it includes sustainable systems that help create independence and resilience, it can solve problems, it focuses on achieving a variety of yields and is hyper-tailored to the client whilst remaining focused on the design’s impact on all life systems”
Habitat and Harvest’s hosts, Colleen and Ernie are thrilled with their new space and say that going through the process of having a permaculture design done has helped them to consolidate their ideas.
“We were impressed with Leslee’s attention to detail. She made sure she completely understood our vision before undertaking the design and communicated with us regularly throughout.”
The design process included a thorough site and sector analysis and in-depth questionnaire that delved into goals, interests, strengths and limitations.
“Our dream was to have a garden that is both attractive and productive and to provide habitat. We only began our garden a little over 12 months ago, so we are pleased to report that we are already growing and harvesting a variety of vegetables, herbs and flowering plants, and establishing fruit trees. We are seeing Peron’s tree frogs, lizards and increasing numbers of insects, such as ladybugs, several types of native bees, European bees, hoverflies, etc. Our garden gives us immense pleasure”
Habitat and Harvest will be open on Saturday 3 May from 10am to 3pm.
Leslee Brown is a proud Aboriginal woman of the Yuin Nation.
She completed a permaculture design course / PDC with Permacoach on the NSW Central coast in 2023.
Leslee’s garden ‘Blue Swimmer Cottage’ in Summerland Point opened for the Central Coast Edible Garden Trail in 2022 and 2023.