memex/0_inbox/books/PDM/Bill Mollison - Permaculture A Designer's Manual text/026.txt

ASPECIS or THE 11M: $50qu
'nrne is a resource which can aeeumulare in eco
syseerns. ll can be "losl' lo an evolving or evolved
sysm by seibaels «adverse dLiIuvbam), )us| abool «he
same way u we all! ser buck «he hands oi a clock Such
schaacld are oer-med defleelion sinus by ecologist;

sereysierns, especially lhose we are in process oi
consaniciing or desooying, are always preceding «o
some orher s«a«e or evolrnion Len alone. «hey may
evolve an «heir own pace lo some unknowaole lor
imaginary) endpomi, which we once called a chrnar
slale However, lores« clirnnic scales are «emporary
evenis in «he long apan oi geolnglal imre

Ausnalran srudies show «ha« old done lores«s lose
«he barele ro mahlfln nurrieno, and begin «o show a
nel nonriem lose, aided by iarnlau and occasional lire,
unol «hey begin «o reeede no a less vigorous shrubbery
sysiem Mosl oiher (disturbed) ioresrs appear «o be
building, bul iii disrurbed «do ohm) never reach «he
previous vigour, heighi, or yield, This is obvious lo
many 04 us who have seen original, regaowm, and
seeond legmwua lm s«andr These show signs 0!
decay a« progressively lower herghrs, and no doubl
«hse loo are losing vrialily wilh age. lean sympailnse

'ilme can work as a rehabiliraoye resource, lor ac«iye
in«erven«ion in such soceesdons unable: us lo analyse
and lo supply key nu«rren«r and soil «rea«men«s. il
needed lo assrsi oraairnum loreel reruvcnanon.

A second orne concep« is lhai ol lire—lime. or «he
'oualrly «ime- lml we have «o enloy, examine, and
ondersland our world. lo «he inlevrfilzd obwrver, i«
would seern lha« lilHime is very shorl indeed ior
«hose inoliile, power-using. bombarded, employed,
make—work. and busy homnns who make up
nunrlyibal societies, while many lribal peoples siill
nranage «o prserve a high ouora or lhe eelelarairons,
discussions, conlemplaiions, momal preening, and
creanye arrwork on which many ol us "wish we had
lime lo Ipuld ~

This erosion oi lhe incomes oi people, eracerbaled
by lhe media and messages olahr consumer sociery, is
perhaps lhe moe« seoous elleeioi lhai sociery.

late is loo much with us, lare and soon
celurrg and pulling, we lay where our ym...
(W. 3 Years)

People so harried iha« «hey have ‘no «one ior anyming
else“, may lind «ha« «ime has run our «o save
«lvernselvea, «heir liver, or «hose or lheir children

A NICHEINTIMEANDSPACE.
Nim is a place he be, lo m in and load iood, sheher,
and room or operare Many such niches are oniilled
due lo chance iaeiors Many are wiped am by agri-
culnire or urbul sprawl Many can be erealed BM in
pursui«ola simple lood producr, moel laroiers 9v: no
place ior wrldliie. no nesong sues or unbrowsed grass
ior quail or pheasm (boah indoau-iour rnsecr earersi,

26

and olden no lime lor any mielligeni assessmenl oi Lie
poienoal benefits oi orher species

Exrsrence is nol only a marrer oi producl yield. bur a
quesrion oi appreciaring variery in landoape. EvaIVs
mg plarn sysrenis and errslmg animals provide niehee
«or new species. lhe came egrel lollows carile, lhe
lam-rows olraobns are occupied by pissom, bdmimm,
snakes, lrogs, and ieral cals, and «he growing iree
becomes a oelhs, shade spor. and a hoe« ro iungus and
epiphyres.

:vrry large «iee is a universe in * sell. A «ree orlers
many speeial«yeiorage niches lo bird. mammal. and
inverlebrale species. Fm insrance. yellnwdhmakd
honeyea«ers (in Tasmania) sun‘h «he kno«.holes «or
insecis. ireeereepers lhe bark irssures, sirongbilled
honeyealeis «he rolls Mbrdnrh laarkand hanging sinps
ol bark, and blackheaded honeyealers lhe loliage.
where pardalons speeily lhe scale iriseers as «heir iield.
As ior iimeshanog «he yellow—ihroais are per-manenl
and ierriioryeholding residenis, lhe ireeereepers
migranls, «he siiongoills and blackheads roving noek
species. and all oi ihem scauer as breeding pairs in lhe
spring and sommer, so «rial r« is rare lo «ind any one
«ree iully occupied ai any one lime Then is also a
pronounced posrebreeding «endeney «or several bird
species «0 ioror ronsoeiailons lor loraging and
«rayelhng in aurunin and winrer fihe «o erglu speeres
«ravel rogerher, some leg ily-caichersl garnering
rnsecis drslurbed by lhe o«hers, wuh all speeies
reaciing «o «he alarm calls ol any one species, bul some
species lmyrrahs iorerarnplel aeiing as sennnels «or lhe
whole mlxed company,

Here, we see lime, space, and lunclrons all used in a
complex and non—eornpenliye way. and glimpse
somerhrng oi «he poienual lor designers lo enrich
human socieiies prodding that no individual or group
claims a rrgki lo sole rise or all lines «or an area. we
lailuie 0! a monoculnire lo pnrduee, suslaire or persisi
is «hos easily ekplamed, as many species are invading
or i mg lo use more eionemly lhe compkx resources
oi «one and spaoe

A combined spaeenme lacror is called a lrhrdulz‘ a
orne lo be in rhal place. Any observer ol public park
use sees lhe usage change hour by hour. Mdrrung yep
gcrs give way lo lurrrheome oiliee workers, who are
suceeeded by older, reiiied people playing draugh«s,
la«er displaced by evening enrer«ainmen« crowds, and
la«e a« nighl. «he people on «he edge or «ime» lhe
semi—legal, lhe unemployed, and me lonely Towards
dawn, only «he lame and isolaled i«rolleis, olien wrin
dogs «or companions, remain on lhe sneois,

Many mammals. iorced co develop lucid and resring
places, do run eonlrol ”awas‘, bur ra«her limp—skis in
space. My own siudres or wild wallaby. urban people,
and porsooi show llus lo be lhe ease Frghnng occurs
when one ire-ii a/ schedule, and ceases when irral place
rs vacaled lor use

Schzdulrs may run on long cycles, runed lo «he level
or browse or suceession oi iegeiaiion, eg. a sequence
ol grazrng has been observed ior didcan herds. so lha«