Subject: Hello Russ Grayson.

From: "S.J.Gowland" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 23 Aug 1996 12:46:03 +0100 (BST)

Hi Russ,
	At the moment I'm doing an MSc. in Environmental Forestry at
Bangor University, North Wales (UK).  I'm doing my dissertation on
homegardens of tropical areas and forest gardens of temperate regions. To
explain briefly:  Tropical homegardens are an agroforestry practice
whereby an area (of around 0.5 ha) around the house is planted up with
useful (usually multi-purpose) trees, shrubs, herbs and climbers and are
arranged in 3-5 vertical strata in a way that makes optimal use of light
and space.  It's a sustainable, ecologically sound system that provides
fruit, vegetables, medicines, spices, fuel wood, timber and virtually every
thing that subsistence requires.  Staple foods are grown in fields around
the homestead.  Animals are usually part of the system, there are nearly
always poultry of some sort and often goats/cattle etc penned near the
house.  Sounds like permaculture doesn't it? although these have been used
for hundreds if not thousands of years - long before the word permaculture
was created by Bill Mollison!  It's thought that it evolved as a practice
when population pressure got too high to allow a sufficiently long fallow
period in shifting agriculture/bush fallow systems to maintain soil
fertility.  As far as temperate forest gardening goes it's a relatively
new concept, pioneered in Britain by Robert Hart.  Interest is mainly from
the permaculture movement as it's not a system suitable to mechanisation,
although it is flexible to various degrees of commercialisation. 
	So that's what I'm doing upto the end of September.  I really 
need to get my scates on as I've got to write around 20,000 words and do 
a design for a new forest garden which will be made at our University 
farm.  
	What is the focus of your interest in permaculture?  I do like 
getting the e-mails from the mailing list and find it reassuring that 
there are people all over the world with similar views and who are 
actually doing it.
	Best wishes - Sarah (Gowland).

---

From: Permaculture Extension Services <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 26 Aug 1996 21:02:18 +1000

S.J.Gowland wrote:
> homegardens of tropical areas and forest gardens of temperate regions.

...Wow! What a resource this will be! How can we obtain a copy?

 To
> house. 

...This is an image of traditional Javanese home gardens (Indonesia). 
As well as the above, they incorporate fish culture fed on waste and 
yielding food.

Somewhere, I have an article or two on these gardens which, if you 
need them, I can attempt to locate and post to you. I imagine you 
already have plenty of information on them.

 Sounds like permaculture doesn't it? although these have been used
> was created by Bill Mollison! 

...Sure have! Permaculture acknowledges a great debt to traditional 
agriculture. It has drawn heavily on traditional systems and I believe 
that we have only scratched the surface in what we can learn from 
traditional systems. This is where your research becomes so valuable. 
Do you plan to make it available as an information resource?

 It's thought that it evolved as a practice
> fertility. 

...This process continues today. The organisation I work for - APACE 
(Appropriate Technology for Community and Environment) as a project 
manager is presently involved in implementing a development assistance 
project in the Solomon Islands (off NE coast of Papua New Guinea). 

There, our field officer, Tony Jansen, is assisting islanders to learn 
settled agriculture using permaculture as a planning framework and 
methodology. 

With a growing population, fallow periods in the traditional slash and 
burn swidden agriculture have become too short to allow fertility 
recovery. Just as you say.

 As far as temperate forest gardening goes it's a relatively
> the permaculture movement

...Agroforestry is  of great interest to Australian permaculturists as 
well. The Australian federal and state governments are also 
encouraging it as a form of ecologically sustainable farming which is 
profitable to farmers.

As well, they encourage, through the Farm Forestry scheme via which 
they offer financial assistance, the growing of timber as a crop on 
degraded farm land.

Further to this has been the formation last year of the Subtropical 
Farm Forestry Association which promotes farm forestry and, this year, 
the Australian Rainforest Bushfood Association came into being to 
further the interest of growers, processors and others involved in the 
emerging indigenous bushfoods industry. These are commercial 
applications of tree cropping and agroforestry.

> a design for a new forest garden which will be made at our University

...What an opportunity! I've read a couple of Robert Hart's books (not 
his new book which is not yet available in Australia) and have seen 
his cool temperate forest garden in the UK on Global Gardener. Be 
interested in seeing your design!

In Sydney, we can grow both temperate and subtropical species which 
creates opportunities for interesting tree cropping polycultures.

My interest in permaculture is as a permaculture teacher - I co-teach 
Permaculture Design Courses and introductory courses and teach 
permaculture as a subject in the horticulture course at TAFE 
(technical tertiary education).

My other interests are as a writer/ publisher on permaculture, as 
state co-ordinator of the Australian City Farms, Community Gardens and 
Enterprise Centres Network and for permaculture in schools projects.

Write back if there's anything I can help with and stay in touch about 
your studies.

...keep on greening...

...Russ Grayson

-- 
PERMACULTURE EXTENSION SERVICES
Russ Grayson and Fiona Campbell
PO Box 446, Kogarah NSW 2217 AUSTRALIA

Phone	02-9588 6931	(IDD-61+2+9588 6931)
Fax 	02 330 2611 (Mark fax: ATTN: RUSS GRAYSON - APACE) 
	(IDD-61+2+330 2611)
Email: [email-masked]

Permaculture education, publishing, design. 
NSW co-ordinator, Australian City Farms and Gardens Network.

---

From: Permaculture Extension Services <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 1996 10:48:20 +1000

> homegardens of tropical areas and forest gardens of temperate regions.

Wow! What a resource this will be. 

 To
> always poultry of some sort and often goats/cattle etc penned near the

This is an image of traditional Javanese homegardens. They 
incorporate, in addition, aquaculture. Fish are fed on household waste 
and eventually become food for the household.

Somewhere I have an article or two on this and, if you would like a 
copy, I could sent it by post. You probably already have heaps of 
information on them.

> was created by Bill Mollison! 

Permaculture acknowledges an information debt to traditional 
agriculture. It has drawn heavily upon traditional systems and I 
believe that there is much more to learn. 

This is where your research becomes so valuable. Do you plan to make 
it available for distribution?

> period in shifting agriculture/bush fallow systems to maintain soil

This process continues today.

The organisation I work for, APACE - Appropriate Technology for 
Community and Environment - as a project manager is presently involved 
in the implementation of training for village health and nutrition 
through the development of home gardens and small scale market gardens 
in the Solomon Islands (NE of Papua New Guinea).

Using permaculture as a design and planning tool, our field officer, 
Tony Jansen, is training villagers in settled agriculture because 
their swidden (slash and burn) agriculture has hit the wall of 
increasing population and fallow periods too short to allow sufficient 
fertility recivery. It's just as you say.

> the permaculture movement

Agroforestry is of great interest to permaculture designers in 
Australia too. 

Fortunately, governments are interested in agroforestry and in the 
growing of commercial timbers on private farm land - farm forestry -  
and make grants to farmers planting tree crops on degraded farm land 
as an income earner and as a means of reversing land degradation. This 
is the Farm Forestry scheme.

In northern NSW the Subtropical Farm Forestry Association was formed 
over a year ago to further the adoption of farm forestry and, more 
recently, the Australian Rainforest Bushfoods Association was formed 
to further the emerging industry in indigenous food crops and the use 
of indigenous species for industrial products such as the extraction 
of aromatic oils. Both these tree cropping systems fit the 
agroforestry model.

>         What is the focus of your interest in permaculture?  

My interest in permaculture is as a co-teacher of permaculture design 
courses, short courses in permaculture and as a teacher of 
permaculture in the TAFE (technical and further education) in the 
horticulture certificate.

I also write about permaculture and publish permaculture related 
material, work with a design team implementing permaculture in schools 
and as NSW co-ordinator of the Australian City Farms, Community 
Gardens and Enterprise Centres Network. Then htere's my work in 
development assistance in the Pacific with APACE...

>         Best wishes - Sarah (Gowland).

Thanks for the communication Sarah. Let's know if there's anything I 
can help with.

Oh, you're temperate forest garden - sounds interesting. Seen the work 
of Robert Hart on video (Global Gardener) and have a couple of his 
books - not his latest which is not yet available in Australia. Would 
love to see your design.

...Russ Grayson