Such an incredible five days! Here are the pictures from the second part of this year’s Vegan Permaculture Design Course. Thanks so much again to everyone for making it a great experience.
Pictures from Part One of our Vegan Permaculture Design Course 2017
Pictures from our Vegan Permaculture Design Course, Part Two
Keyline Design course with Owen Hablutzel
Last week I attended a three day course in Somerset with Owen Hablutzel from California. The course was about Keyline Design; a template for whole-farm planning using Yeoman’s scale of permanence and other dynamic design tools.
The course was structured around Yeoman’s scale of permanence. We worked through all the different factors that influence land-based decision making, from climate to soils. Owen shared his experiences of consultancy work and we had practical tasks like learning how to use different surveying tools. We looked at how key line design can help us in creating systems that are increasingly resilient in our changing socio-economic and unprecedented physical climate change. Through managing wholes we can navigate complexity.
A key part of key line is understanding geography; observing ridges and valleys, landshapes and water lines. These observations help us identify key points and key lines. The key point is basically the point of deposition, where materials, such as soil participles, are no longer being transported. Something I really enjoyed about the course was the emphasis on social geography and how the social and economic climates are just important to consider as the ecological ones. They aren’t separate and we need to survey and observe all of it extensively to make informed decisions.
We looked at the water aims of a key line system; maintaining household and farm water supply, improving the water cycle and putting water to work. Owen described it as, “Working with the self-organised properties of water”.
The primary ways to meet these aims are keeping the soil covered, optimising transpiration, building soil water holding capacity and utilising the geography of our landscapes to aid water catchment and storage. Through dams, ponds and planting patterns all of this can be strengthened.
We then covered roads and access. There were multiple factors at play but one permaculture principle stuck in my mind – that we can stack functions and make roads multifunctional. Roads can aid us in channeling and diverting water.
Agroforestry was the next area we covered. It reaffirmed to me the power of polycultural assemblies! Owen introduced criteria of what defines an agroforestry system (compared to just say trees in a field). Agroforestry systems are intention, intensive, integrative and interactive. Practices include windbreaks, riparian forest buffers, forest farming, alley cropping and wood pasture. He shared a photo of incredible ribbon forests and the natural patterns of windbreaks that nature has created.
Next up was soils, something I can never get enough of. Thankfully my inner soil geek was satisfied as we looked at soil formation essentials and the impact of the Yeoman’s plough. Owen describes it as a revolutionary piece of agricultural equipment. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see a real-life plough but did witness a sub soiler in action.
Overall I learnt a huge amount and am looking forward to taking on more broad scale projects where I can apply my learning.
For more regenerative agriculture courses in the UK visit: http://www.regenerativeagriculture.co.uk
Regenerative Agriculture – a talk in Somerset
From: http://www.regenerativeagriculture.co.uk/index.php/course-calendar
Regenerative Agriculture – a talk with questions
with Owen Hablutzel, introduced by Graham Harvey
Monday 29th June 2015 at 7.30pm at The Silver Street Centre, Wiveliscombe
How can farming:
– regenerate soils, increasing soil organic matter, restoring mineral cycles and eliminating erosion?
– restore water cycles, preventing flooding and ameliorating drought?
– thrive alongside wildlife?
– help with climate change?
– do this at the same time as being more productive for those farming/managing the land and all of us who rely on it?
What is our part in this – whoever we are?
Owen Hablutzel is an independent international consultant, trainer and facilitator specialising in whole-system transformation toward robust land health, social co-creative capacity, and whole ecosystem stewardship. In particular he integrates different insights into regenerative agricultural practices and resiliency, merging them into his ‘Dynamic Design’ process.
This talk is towards the end of a UK training and visiting tour and is an opportunity to gain an insight to the breadth and spectrum of tools we can use to leverage our agroecological systems. Owen will highlight many of the potentials to realise improved productivity alongside environmental and social benefits, and then he and Graham Harvey (who will also introduce Owen) will take questions from the audience.
Please allow plenty of time to park and arrive for a prompt start at 7:30pm.
Tea/Coffee and biscuits.
Cost: £7.50 (Concessions)
For more details/to reserve a seat please contact:
Natasha: 07866 674205 or email
Nursery Course – Feed Avalon’s first step towards starting a community plant nursery
Last weekend Feed Avalon hosted a Nursery Course, led by Neils Corfield from Edible Cities. Feed Avalon has plants to start a community plant nursery that can supply high-quality, multipurpose and beautiful plants to help restore our local landbase. The course was our first step.
Thanks to Neils for his brilliant teaching and well-designed course, stuffed to the rafters with resources! Overall it was a hugely stimulating and enjoyable weekend.
Vegan Permaculture Talk with Graham Burnett
My colleague & comrade Graham Burnett will be talking at Kebele next week. Don’t miss!
More info:
The very lovely Graham Burnett a vegan pemaculture expert, is coming to Bristol to do a talk and show a short film on vegan permaculture.
He’s just written the Vegan Book of Permaculture = http://spiralseed.co.uk/products-page/product-category/the-vegan-book-of-permaculture-by-graham-burnett/
Copies of book will be available at venue for anyone who wants to buy. It’s worth £13.95
Other Highlights:
– Affordable vegan food available in the cafe.
– Bring instruments for acoustic jam after the talk with Graham.
£3 donation to cover costs. No-one turned away for lack of funds.
Any questions regarding the event, book, Graham and anything related, please feel free to post at wall.
New date confirmed for Nursery Course
January’s Nursery Course was postponed due to a bereavement. Please see the new dates below.
If you would like to participate please email nicole@feedavalon.org.uk to book.
Nursery Course this January 2015
New book – The Vegan Book of Permaculture
Graham Burnett, friend and coworker, has written a book about Vegan Permaculture. After ten years of hard work it is finally here and looks great!
More about it:

Interspersed with an abundance of delicious, healthy and wholesome exploitation-free recipes, Graham provides solutions-based approaches to nurturing personal effectiveness and health, eco-friendly living, home and garden design, veganic food growing, reafforestation strategies, forest gardening, reconnection with wild nature and community regeneration with plenty of practical ways to be well fed with not an animal dead! This is vegan living at its best.
What I wrote about it:
Graham has pioneered vegan permaculture and this book is testament to his knowledge and passion. Graham integrates a desire for social justice for non-humans with the ethics, principles and practices of permaculture in a beautiful and accessible way. Its applications worldwide for social change are clear and I hope this book inspires a movement to change our landscapes and society to radically change how we interact with animals and each other.
Where to get it: http://spiralseed.co.uk/products-page/product-category/the-vegan-book-of-permaculture-by-graham-burnett/