One of the design elements for this site was the installation of three swales to capture and redirect water from road runoffs to soak it and create the conditions for the creation of food forests and improved pastures on this site as a demonstration of what is possible in this climate. Below is a link…
The 17th century Versailles Vegetable and Fruit Garden
The 17th century Versailles vegetable and fruit garden that used to serve King Louis XIV his daily fresh vegies and fruits . Now producing 50 tons of food a year on the 22 acres . With walls acting as heat traps , sun traps and espalier trellises, vegetables grown between trees , willow coppicing systems,…
Permablitzing a London backyard
Permablitzing a backyard garden in London, small spaces have bigger production per area that rural big scale farms , but it all goes back to thoughtful design, using and filling niches, adapting to micro climates and continuously building fertility. A Permablitz is an event where a group of volunteers meet up for the day to…
Swale Construction, harvesting water for a faster growing forage and fruit forests systems in Rakiraki, Fiji.
The first step in the design is deciding on the mainframe design, i.e Water, Access, Structures, where we decided how water is harvested, slowed downed, stored and used. After that we decided how the movement in the site will occur, through designing the best possible access roads for vehicles, people and animals, and followed that…
Turning a Sugarcane Monocrop into a Polyculture, Rakiraki, Fiji.
Sugar is the biggest killer in Fiji , and guess what’ the most cultivated crop in Fiji , yes its Sugarcane. More people die of diabetes and heart attacks in Fiji than any other country in the world except for Mauritius. What we are doing here is creating an abundant poly-culture of grazing animals, food…
Hand Digging Swale in Tanna Island, Vanuatu.
Part of the design we are working on in MAA International School in Middle Bush , Tanna Island, Vanuatu was the construction of water harvesting swales to capture and infiltrate water runoff to establish food forests and grazing pasture around them. After researching the cost of hiring heavy machinery to do the work we opted…
Sacred Life, Sacred Death
This is a nice panel discussion with my friend Muhsen Hassanin and a number of animal farmers in regards to the attitudes and practices for humane treatment and slaughter of animals and how we can be more connected to the process from the Harmony Conference, UK. A nice idea mentioned is that Ecological comes…
Kerbside Gardening in Sydney
As I was going for my morning while visiting family in Sydney I encountered this kerbside vegetable garden, full of lettuce, cabbage, sweet peas, some potato and some artichokes. It was a nice example of what could be done with small space, growing food for the family instead of expensive toxic useless turf. An example…
Design for an Organic Farm in Jordan
I was invited to help design an organic multi cropping system including vegetables, fruits and small animals as market garden farm on the outskirts of the Jordanian capital Amman. The land will be divided into parcels from growing vegetables and salad greens on raised beds, surrounded with rows of mixed fruit trees and legumes creating…
Tropical Permaculture Buffet
Lunchtime is our favourite time on the farm . Mak Engku our permacultured chef tries to cook from what we are growing or harvesting . Today it was sweet potato with sweet leaf stir fry , pigeon pea sambal , fried long bean and steamed snapper fresh from the ocean and never without Ulam Ulam…
Diversifying Old Durian Terraces
On our project in Kuantan/Malaysia we have a lot of monoculture Durian orchards , the plan is to diversify them as much as possible slowly turning them into a tropical food forest majoring in Durian. If you would like to know more about the work we do please do get in touch.
