The philosophy
How permaculture works
Food forests are one expression of permaculture — a way of designing human systems to last, developed by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in the 1970s. It rests on three ethics and twelve design principles.
The three ethics
Where every design begins
Earth Care
Tend the living systems
Provision for all life systems to continue and thrive — soil, water, forests, and the web of creatures we depend on.
People Care
Meet human needs
Provision for people to access the resources they need for a decent, dignified existence — food, shelter, community, meaning.
Fair Share
Return the surplus
Set limits to consumption and redistribute surplus — of time, money, and harvest — back into caring for the earth and people.
The twelve principles
Twelve lenses for a good design
Holmgren paired each principle with a folk proverb. They aren't a checklist so much as ways of looking at a problem until a good design reveals itself.
- 1
Observe and interact
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
Spend time watching your land — sun, wind, water, wildlife — before you design or plant.
- 2
Catch and store energy
“Make hay while the sun shines.”
Capture resources when they are abundant — rainwater, sunlight, biomass, fertility — for the lean times.
- 3
Obtain a yield
“You can't work on an empty stomach.”
Design for real, useful rewards. A system has to feed the people tending it.
- 4
Apply self-regulation and accept feedback
“The sins of the fathers are visited unto the children of the seventh generation.”
Discourage what harms the system and listen to feedback so it keeps functioning well.
- 5
Use and value renewable resources
“Let nature take its course.”
Favour renewable inputs and natural services over consuming finite resources.
- 6
Produce no waste
“Waste not, want not. A stitch in time saves nine.”
Value and reuse every output — one element’s waste is another’s food.
- 7
Design from patterns to details
“Can't see the forest for the trees.”
Start with the big patterns of your site, then fill in the specifics.
- 8
Integrate rather than segregate
“Many hands make light work.”
Place elements so beneficial relationships form between them — the right connections do the work.
- 9
Use small and slow solutions
“Slow and steady wins the race.”
Small, slow systems are easier to maintain, use local resources, and produce more lasting results.
- 10
Use and value diversity
“Don't put all your eggs in one basket.”
Diversity reduces vulnerability and opens the system to a wealth of possibilities.
- 11
Use edges and value the marginal
“Don't think you are on the right track just because it's a well-beaten path.”
The most productive, interesting things happen at the edges between systems.
- 12
Creatively use and respond to change
“Vision is not seeing things as they are but as they will be.”
Observe, then intervene at the right moment to shape inevitable change for the better.
Principles into practice
The clearest way to feel these ideas is to plant them. Start with a single guild and watch the principles come alive.