2015 Midwest Permaculture gardening and landscaping project

Hey everyone, Midwestweedist here with a little project I'm working on that I wanted to share in hopes of inspiring someone else to create their own example of permaculture.

First, I think it would be beneficial to explain what the concept of permaculture is: Permaculture is a branch of ecological design, ecological engineering, environmental design, construction and integrated water resources management that develops sustainable architecture, regenerative and self-maintained habitat and agricultural systems modeled from natural ecosystems. Essentially it is allowing nature to do as it would with little to no interruption.

My goal is to take the property that I've been allowed to work with and transform it into a Midwest example of permaculture while increasing the productivity of the garden that's been partially established in the year prior. For starters I'll be implementing compost piles for both table and yard waste as well as a leaf compost pile. There will be raised beds for gardening, as well as patches/beds of non/native grasses and flowers. Recycled containers will be used for planters and rain catches. Plus much, much more.
The end goal is a small piece of land that is more naturally beautiful and can help ease the burden that food has on the wallet.

The property is less than an acre and in town. The back of the property faces North and thankfully borders a natural wooded area. I'll be collecting leaves and forest humus along with rotting wood from from there.



This will be a learning experience for me more than anything, so drop some advice or just keep an eye out for the updates. I hope to have a lot of fun with this and I hope you all enjoy the process as well.

Great project, looks like you have nice plot to work on.

What are your ideas for plants?

SwankyDank said:

Great project, looks like you have nice plot to work on.

What are your ideas for plants?

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Thank you! It's a great little piece of land.
For none edible plants I'm going to try to focus on native species that you'd find in my area of the Midwest, like the tall grasses, wildflowers, etc. As well as some different ornamentals that I'm sure the property owner will buy. I'm compiling a list of dynamic accumulators currently that I'll have planted either in one big raised bed or around the lot in various places. Comfrey and alfalfa are at the top of that list.
As for edibles, the owner has a small list of plants that she would like to have. Which includes bell peppers, various hot peppers, tomatoes, beans, etc. Herbs and spices are a big request though.
The choice of plants won't be special in my opinion, it'll be more so the placement and their function that will be what shines. I intend to use the concept of companion planting a lot. The biggest example of that will probably be the Marigolds that I'll plant throughout the garden to attract bees and to repel root attacking nematodes.

Midwest here too, I'm turning my backyard into vegetable gardens mostly with some raised beds and some spots on the ground, 2nd year here. Today I found the goldmine, the county composting place... mountains of compost and woodchips... all free... as much as you can haul... the compost looks awesome too, rich and black.

Is this your first project like this? I would be interested to see pics and info about other sites if you have them. Either way, I'll be watching this thread to see the progress.

Last year was my first year here and I hit the trees first, trimming off branches with a pole saw to let more light into the garden and taking out a few smaller ones. This will also give you some wood to work with that you can use for borders etc. and what you don't use you can always burn for some potash to mix into the soil.

Bit of an unfortunate update on the project, sadly the property owner has decided that she no longer wants a garden or any landscaping done. Instead she's purchasing a massive pool.
I don't like to say it, but this project is essentially dead in the water as it currently stands. I'm going to try to make a few informational posts on different permaculture methods though. I'll try to cover methods like the Korean notill, the German Hugelkultur, the Keyhole garden concept, different dynamic accumulators, fermented plant extracts, in depth companion planting, composting, etc.