Permaculture systems thinking is about acknowledging the constant flux of energy flows. Organic waste, sun and water are a form of natural renewable energy flows that surround us. Knowing where the sun rises and the contour of the land sloping in which direction would help inform some decision making as to what plants to go with at which section. This is important so that we can maximise the chances of crop plants to be successful and productive. More importantly, this working knowledge ensures a constant supply of naturally-occurring nutrients onsite without needing to transport them in from far away.
Armed with this realisation, we started work on a section of the farm that has been neglected for quite a bit. Mat and I cleared this entire area in about a day and a half (photo above). In the process of this one clearing action, it has led to these outcomes:
- Generation of biomass to regenerate soil fertility (primarily from ice cream bean, sugarcane and torch ginger litter).
- Assess, review and take corrective measures on the system elements. This leads to better ideation resulting from the reaffirmation of what works and what doesn’t.
- Harvest produce to sell (tapioca and sugarcane)
The concept is simple. Heavy biomass plants are placed at the highest point near the fence to a) shield from prying eyes, and b) provide soil fertility. When chopped-dropped, this resource can be easily transported downhill and positively affect other target plants below. The position of these biomass elements uphill will also allow the target plants (durians, coffee, apple custard, pineapple) below them to reap the full benefits of morning sun before they are protected against the harsh afternoon sun (from the shadow cast by the biomass/support plants). The cash crop short-term nature of sugarcane and mulberry lend themselves well to being constantly pruned and checked in height so as not to deprive target plants from full sun.
The pineapples are starting to be in abundance. I could easily fit about 300 pineapples here and have started harvesting some. The challenge is to optimally cram as much food crops and supporting plants to enhance fertility, preserve soil structure and prevent erosion on hill slope. It’s an ongoing balancing act to ensure the light requirements of a multistrata agroforestry system is met.
This could be child’s play in terms of conventional understanding of production yield and returns. In the perspective of climate action, this is biodiversity and resilience. With the coming together of economic support, governmental policy changes and large scale replication, this works wonders.
It’s common to think about harvesting good yield from plants. That’s just the resulting outcome. If we can acknowledge and think about harvesting the natural energy cycles in a permaculture food production system and getting that right, there will certainly be no shortage of a good crop harvest. In other words, let’s harvest the inputs first, before we talk about the outputs.
