memex/0_inbox/books/PDM/Bill Mollison - Permaculture A Designer's Manual text/045.txt

Sl'llUCrURE
We can inuraie she strum": ol namral sysrems ll we
hsve palms, wins, large evergreen nees, an edge“ ol
herbaceous perennials, a groundcover of bulbs or
iubers, and a rich bird launa in the rialural syslem 0!
are region, «heir we can resonslruci or imibue such a
syslern srruerure cm our sue, using some nanve sped§
lor pioneers, bird lorage, or vine supports We earr add
so rhis rlie palms, viies, lrees, mbers, and poulrry ihar
are ol greal ure lo our selrlemene lover lhal broad
range ol uses ihal rovers loud, rralls, mediernes, and
luelsl

Arlee sludylng rhe naiural plaremeni bl woody
legumes or windbreak in naiural sysrerns, we can
rmilale rhese in designed sysleins We can improve on
loeal species by hnding omdqtgllon or some species
even berrer suiied lo rhose roles lhan rhose of an
impoverished or degraded native llora and launr
Ceruinly, we can carelully seleer species ol a wider
range or use lo selllernenls rhan lhe namral assembly

Pliocms

Apan [mm she slruelure or naniral syslems, we need
mosr ol all lo sludy prueess Where does warer run?
How does l| absorb’ why do lrees grew in some
speeral sires m deserrs7 Can we (ansrmd or use sueh
prueesses la suil ourselves? some ol lhe processes we
observe are processes "eoergrsed" by animals, wlnd,
waler. pioneer lrees or lorbs, and lire How does a bee
or hub propagale rlsell in rhis nglo'n’ As every design
is a ronrinuous prbeess, we should mosi ol all rm m
ereare "ml semgmrmng sysrerns some examples
would be

- on lake clielan lWashinglon slaie, USN, walnuls
sell~genernz lrom seed rolling downhill in she valleys
ol rnlermilrenr slrearns similar Selle propagalion
syslems work lor palms in lhe lropres, Aleurrles
lenndlenull in Hawairl and asparagus along sandy
rrrrgalion channels. Thus, we save ourselves u lol ol
work by selling up headwaler planlalions and
allowrng ihese l0 sell-propagare downslkxm las lor

ws, Russian olive, and hundreds ol Witty-plank
species, ineludrng raro in unsrable Hondrwaler
Iuwhnds), as long as lhese are nm a probleru locally

- Birds spread uselul leraxes such as Elder
berries, Copmsm, Lyaum, aulumn oliye, pioneer bees
or herbs, and prelerred grains such as clienoprdrrrnr
species ll we place a lew bl rhese plants, and allow in
lreeranging pigeons or pheasanis, elrey will plan:
more. The same applies ro dogs or loxes in ihe mum
ol loquais, bears lor small halls, and came lor hard
seeds suen as honey locusls. bur-rowers and hoarders
sueh as gnphers will earry bulbs and reel eullings ineo
prairie, and iays and squirrels, ehoughs, or eurrawoiigs
spmd oaks when lhey bury aeonrs,

ll, in gresslands or old pariures, we see lhar a
“planner such as lobaeeo bush, a pine, or air Anna
providesa sire lorbrids lo roool, inibaring a soil mange
so lhae clumps or eoppicer bl lorese lorm shere, we ran

 

 

use ihe sarne |echmqurs and allied spades ro pioneer
our lood loreib, bui seleeiing species 0! more drreei
use ro us Many nanve peoples do nrse ihrs, evolving
seallered lorese nucleli hired on a see ol pioneer bees,
rerrniie mounds, composl heaps, and so on We ran
provrde perehes lorbrrds id drop pioneer seeds, and so
an up plam nueler in degraded lands around simple
perches placed rm drsrurbod sires

- We can promde nesr holes so um owls may rhen
move in lo eunhol rodeius, purple marirns iu reduse
mosquilms. or woodpeckevs m eonirul rodhng rrrolh
Many nurse plaurs allnw inseel predaiors lo
overwrnrer, reed, or shelrer wrlhin our gardens, as do
small ponds lor hogs and roek piles lor lizards. II we
wani lhese aids lo pesl eonrrol, we need lo provide a
plaee lor ihem Some ol lhese naiural workers are very
elleenve lwoodpeckers alone reduce eodlmg molh by
sci—bolls».

- To mm a rampanr plani or io deleai rnyasrye
grasses, we need only to look lo namre Narure lm.
posessueeessrons and lirniisonevery Specks, and onee
we know ihe rules, we can use rhis sueeessrnn m lrmli
or exclude our pmb‘em spears. Many son yrrus will
smoiher pnddy shrubs Bmwsed or cui oul. ihey allow
irees lo pormanenlly shade uul ihe shrub, or ror iis
seeds in rouleh Kikuyu grass is blocked lrorn
spreading by law hedges al eerolrey. lemongrass,
arrowruul {Calm/l 5W l, or naslurhums. We can use
some or all el ihese spceres ai iropreal garden borders,
or around young lrurl bees We ran smolher rampage
ous species such as lurrrorirr by y nes such as chayoie
lserhrrrm rdrrlrsi and sureeed rhern wrlh palm/legume
laws. by eulnng or rolling naels and m... piarumg
legumes. palms, and ernes oi our ehoice Where
rampageous grasses smoilier rhe lrees. we sel our irees
our in a pmmung rone ol "sofl' barrier planrs sueh as
eomlrey, nasiurlrum, or indeed any Flam we loeally
observe In “beat lhe grass“, and we surround our
mulehed gardens wiih bells ol such plams

There are hundreds ol sueh bolanrral lessons abdur
us. Look long enough, and me melhodologres ol narure
become elear Th design by analogy we selecl
analagous or bouniuuyrauled species lor lrials ll
lhislles grow around a rabbrl warren, rhen perhaps il
we dislurb lhe soil. supply urine and manure, and sow
seed, we will gel globe amehokes land so i have!) Or
we can pen goals or sheep on a plaee, lhen snul lhem
our and planl n H was by such dunklug lhal lhe idea
ol ehieken or pig "uaaors' evoled eo remove such
siubborn weeds as nulrsnss, Conrinluulus,
onianrwzld. and [witch belore plaolin, a new
smassmn ol useful plan-s. Or we ean provide lences
or piss ru rrrp windrblnwn debris ldired leaves, rubbrl
and sheep manuies, seagrassesl, whreh ean be gailiered
lbr garden use And soon

All lhese slraiegies can be derived lrorn nhiervlnx
narural proeesses. and used consciously in deaign lo
aehreve a gunk reduction in work henee energy inpuls

 

45