Permaculture is a philosophy that urges us to live in equanimity with nature and to follow its patterns. The patterns that are already present in nature are most sustainable and excessive human involvement might destroy them. If we start thinking that we can exploit nature for our own selfish reasons then we are wrong. Ultimately we’ll end up suffering for our own misdeeds.
First step in embracing Permaculture is getting in equanimity with your house and its surroundings. You can do that simply by maintaining a Permaculture garden. If you already have a garden then you can turn it into a Permaculture garden. All you’ll have to do is to remove every artificial thing from it. You can start by switching from inorganic to organic fertilizers. Here are some steps that will help you in doing that.
Finding out the needs of your plants
There are three prime nutrients that all the plants generally need; Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P) and Potassium (K). Deficiency or overabundance of any of the three will have dire effects on the growth of your plants. Plants also need other secondary nutrients like Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg) and Sulphur (S).
There are many other nutrients that your plants may require depending upon their species and the type of your soil. But you shouldn’t worry. Your plants have evolved in nature and nature is capable of supplying all their needs.
Giving your plants what they need
Here is a list of some organic fertilizers that you can use to supply the required nutrients to your plants.
Grass clippings can provide your garden plants with a good deal of Nitrogen. Try using fresh grass clippings instead of old ones and don’t use the grass clippings from a region that has been treated with herbicides or pesticides.
Grass clippings have multiple benefits. Not only they promote the growth of your plants they are also helpful in preventing the growth of the weeds.
Depending upon your needs, you can choose from a wide variety of manures.
- Cow Manure: Manure made from cow dung lacks nutrients but it is rich in vital microorganisms. These microorganisms will help in increasing the humus content of your soil which promotes decomposition and helps in plant growth.
- Horse Manure: Horse manure is relatively rich in nutrients and also provides fibres that increase the binding capacity of your soil.
- Poultry Manure: Poultry manure is very rich in Nitrogen. But too much Nitrogen might be harmful for your plants. So make sure you make compost of it before supplying it to your plants.
- Rabbit Manure: You can add droppings of rabbits to your soil to give it a quick Nitrogen boost.
- Goat and Sheep manure: The manure from goats and sheep are rich in Potassium and Nitrogen. As already stated, Potassium and Nitrogen are two of the most vital nutrients that you need to ensure healthy growth of your plants.
No matter which manure you add, just be sure of two things. Make sure that none of the animals are fed on plants that are treated with herbicides or pesticides. And don’t use the droppings of animals like cats and dogs as they contain harmful pathogens.
Compost is the most widely used fertilizer. You are just basically supplying your plants with organic waste from your house. It greatly increases the microbial activity in your soil which in turn improves your soil’s health.
Vermicompost is a higher form of normal compost. You just add earthworms to your compost and in turn they aerate it and provide it with vital microorganisms and nutrients.
Just like compost, mulches of plant leaves will also help in increasing the organic content of your soil. They will slowly decompose over time and fulfil all the future necessities of your plants.
Maintaining a Permaculture garden might sound like a trifle. But it’s not. The time that you’ll spend in maintaining your garden will bring you closer to the peaceful harmony of which nature is composed of. You’ll realize how deep an effect something so simple can have. You’ll see how nurturing and full of beauty our Mother Nature is.