Fernmount Food Forest: Permaculture Zones applied to the Fernmount Food Forest

Friday 19 May 2017

Permaculture Zones applied to the Fernmount Food Forest

Aloe Vera in Zone 1

On a large property it might be easier to designate clearly the various zone related to permaculture principles. On the one acre (0.4 hectare) land of The Fernmount Food Forest zones tend to blur. Our Zone 4 area is tiny and we don't have a Zone 5 with original native bush.

However, we are surrounded by patches of native forest and situated near the Tarkeeth Forest, part native timber plantation and part almost original forest so we regularly see bandicoots, goannas, pythons, Black, Brown and Tree snakes, lizards and plenty of native birds.

The Red Italics font below indicates material from PermaWiki. See the original description of Permaculture Zones via the link below if you want more information.

From PermaWiki

Zoning in permaculture design refers to a method of ensuring that elements are correctly placed. Zoning is about correct placement- positioning things in ways that are the most appropriate; Zones are numbered from 0 to 5, and can be thought of as a series of concentric rings moving out from a centre point, where human activity and need for attention is most concentrated, to where there is no need for intervention at all...

Zones (Permaculture)

Summary of Permacultural Zones

ZONE 0 — The house, or home centre. Here permaculture principles would be applied in terms of aiming to reduce energy and water needs, harnessing natural resources such as sunlight, and generally creating a harmonious, sustainable environment in which to live, work and relax.

ZONE 1 — Is the zone nearest to the house, the location for those elements in the system that require frequent attention, or that need to be visited often, e.g., salad crops, herb plants, soft fruit like strawberries or raspberries, greenhouse and cold frames, propagation area, worm compost bin for kitchen waste, etc.

ZONE 2 — This area is used for siting perennial plants that require less frequent maintenance, such as occasional weed control (preferably through natural methods such as spot-mulching) or pruning, including currant bushes and orchards. This would also be a good place for beehives, larger scale compost bins, etc.

ZONE 3 — Is the area where maincrops are grown, both for domestic use and for trade purposes. After establishment, care and maintenance required is fairly minimal provided mulches, etc. are used, e.g., watering or weed control once a week or so.

ZONE 4 — Is semi-wild. This zone is mainly used for forage and collecting wild food as well as timber production. An example might be coppice managed woodland.

ZONE 5 — The wilderness. There is no human intervention in zone 5 apart from the observation of natural eco-systems and cycles. Here is where we learn the most important lessons of the first permaculture principle of working with nature, not against.