The Structure of Permaculture Landscapes: A Literature Review

Main text: Permaculture in the Philippines: Landscape Structure, Practices, and Perspectives

Mollison and Holmgren (1981) defined permaculture as “consciously designed landscapes which mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature, while yielding an abundance of food, fiber, and energy for provision of local needs.” This systems thinking approach (Peeters, 2011) to designing landscapes gave permaculture landscapes a distinct appearance and function similar to ecosystem mimicry (Malezieux, 2012). In a study of permaculture farms in Indonesia, Putro and Miyauro (2020) reported that one distinguishing feature of a permaculture landscape is its biodiversity which mimics that of a forest ecosystem. Unlike the homogenous landscape of conventional farms that consist of only 1 to 2 main crops in a monoculture design, a permaculture farm has significantly more biodiversity (30-54 plant species) as well as a diversity of farm services and functions being offered (Putro and Miyaura, 2020). Dominated mostly by perennial crops, plant and tree species are used for food, forage, fuelwood, windbreaks, and wildlife habitats. Other studies reported that permaculture farms are characterized by polyculture cropping (Roberts, 2017) using organic farming techniques (Hirschfeld & Van Acker, 2019) and integrated crop-livestock systems (Lovell et al., 2010).  On the other hand, natural greywater treatment systems are applied in urban residential landscapes to grow crops and fruit trees in Malaysia (Ismail and Affendi, 2015) as well as rural communities in Malawi using borehole-garden permaculture (Rivett et al., 2017). 

Another unique feature of permaculture is its farm layout (Putro and Miyaura, 2020) and how landscape components are arranged according to zones (Mollison, 1988).  This strategy for efficient flow of energy and movement patterns has been mentioned in the literature review of several studies (Hemenway, 2009; Whitefield, 2004; Kruger 2015; Hirschfeld & Van Acker, 2019; Bhandari and Bista, 2019) but has yet to be the focus of scientific literature. A probable reason for this is the current trend of most research to focus on the socio-political dimensions of permaculture rather than the biophysical and ecological aspects of the farm landscape. However, a more well-studied topic is the traditional Japanese concept of satoyama landscapes (Buot and Osumi, 2004) which resemble that of permaculture landscapes as pointed out by Chakroun and Droz (2020) in a comparative study of sustainable landscape strategies in Japan. 

There is scientific and ecological evidence to support the validity of practice of permaculture as highlighted by Krebs and Bach (2018). And yet how permaculture landscapes mimic the patterns (Rothe, 2014) and relationships in nature in the design of landscapes should be further investigated in actual case studies of permaculture landscapes as in the case of hugelkultur (Laffoon, 2006), for example, which is a common permaculture design component. Permaculture is even extending its applications to the design of seascapes called ‘marine permaculture’ (Von Herzen et al., 2017).  ‘What kind of patterns are visible and what relationships between landscape components exist?’ are research questions that need to be answered in this study.  In addition to these two issues is the need to further explore how permaculture landscapes can improve the food security of people without compromising the health of the environment.  

A study in a school landscape by Dewey et al. (2014) in Butula, Kenya has reported an improvement in school attendance and academic standing of orphans and vulnerable children (OVCs) through a long-term permaculture program that provided accessible food sources and livelihood. The program included education on sustainable agriculture, revenue sources from livestock, fish, and tree nurseries, and community gardening with students and teachers. After a year of implementation, 1,200 students were regularly fed with crops in season including maize, beans, rice, vegetables, fruits, and nuts that were grown in the permaculture landscape. Another study in Kenya conducted by Thiong’o (2017) looked into the food security status of pastoralists in the Samburu County landscape. Though permaculture has yet to be practiced, findings of the study suggest that permaculture can harness the advantages of pastoralist culture and become a model for smart farming in arid and semi-arid landscapes. This illustrates how permaculture design principles can be landscape-specific and culturally relevant.

Another example from Africa, in Karamoja, a region in Uganda struggling with poverty and unpredictable rainfall, Namululi (2011) reported that the Karimojong (people of Karamoja) who practiced permaculture in the Abim District (referred to as the Green Warriors) agricultural landscape were more food secure than the conventional farmers of nearby Moroto district. Results of the study revealed that thirty percent (30%) of permaculture practitioners rely on the garden for food while only 8% get their food from food aid.

Shifting to an Asian landscape in Nepal, Mayer (2018) reports on the increased consumption of fruits, vegetables, and pulses of respondents since joining the Himalayan Permaculture Center—a grassroots initiative that capacitates farmers to use permaculture as a strategy for food security, health, education, and livelihood in a mountainous landscape. Although results showed that animal milk consumption has decreased due to labor shortage and livestock rearing, applying permaculture has somehow mitigated the effects by increasing the supply of fodder and water while improving breeds of livestock.

Permaculture landscape design for food security is not limited to farmers. A study by McCleary and Moran (2019) reported the potential of establishing guild food forests for satisfying the caloric requirements of indigenous communities that are vulnerable to climate change.  A ‘food forest’ is a common landscape component of a permaculture design wherein an assemblage of edible plant species is grown to mimic a forest landscape. It is characterized by low-maintenance perennial crops and multistory cropping to maximize vertical space and provide year-round food production.

Food security in urban landscapes can also be addressed by permaculture design. A study by Wang (2017) in Virginia, United States proposed the conversion of a golf course landscape for urban agriculture. A permaculture approach in this context seeks to establish and maintain an urban agriculture landscape wherein open spaces are constantly sought and utilized to address the food security of cityfolk.

How the diversity of the landscape translates to dietary diversity is a research gap that the study seeks to address. What kind of food are they growing? And do they actually eat what they grow? In the Philippine context, we investigate how the characteristics of permaculture landscapes affect the food security status of household members. 

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