How does permaculture work? - Page VI

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                                           Permaculture therefore has an expanded concept

                                           of what exactly constitutes a resource. Lets now

                                           look at organising the plants themselves.

 

                                           Polyculture, Guilds and Perennial plants.

 

Polyculture is agriculture using multiple crops in the same area, in imitation of the diversity of natural ecosystems and avoiding large stands of single crops, or monoculture. Conceptually it includes crop rotation, multi-cropping and inter-cropping.

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Guilds are groups of plants which work particularly well together. These can be those observed in nature such as the White Oak guild which centres on the White Oak tree and includes 10 other plants. The Three Sisters of maize, squash and beans is another well known guild. Guilds can thought of as an extension of companion planting. The original plants in a guild can be substituted by plants more suitable for man's use, as long the new plants satisfy the original plant's guild relationship.

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​Perennial plants do not need to be planted every year they require less maintenance and organic fertilisers. As such they are often used in permaculture design. They are especially important in the outer zones and in layered systems.

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