A Sprout of Permaculture in Edmonton
- Brittany Taylor
- Apr 5, 2015
- 3 min read
Perma…what?
Image: Artichoke that was grown at Parkallen Community Garden. Image from parkallendiggers.org
In the spring of 2012, Edmonton welcomed the first growing season in the Parkallen Community Garden. Alongside a hockey rink, a unused strip of lawn was transformed into an oasis of corn, beans, squash, kale, tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, apple trees and sunflowers. Unlike most community gardens, where individual plots are maintained by individual gardeners, the Parkallen Community garden is owned and tended by the community.
Parkallen was designed with permaculture in mind. In order to create their garden, a local permaculturist, Dustin Bajer, was hired to design the edible food forest. Permaculture is a new ideology that promotes holistic practices which strive to enable ecological harmony. Permaculture believes in giving more to the earth than taking from it. This project has transformed the community and spread gardening appreciation. This garden was created to be self-sustaining and requires minimal labour from the gardeners themselves, but still provides maximal yields.
The purmaculture principles. Image from https://nurturegreen.wordpress.com/2013/09/11/permaculture-principles/
The Dirt
Instead of purchasing soil, they built their own. Yes, they BUILT soil. By providing the right conditions, they allowed the soil to build itself. Machines were not used in the construction of the garden ground, instead soil was created by sheet mulching. Sheet mulching is basically arranging layers of mulch over top of pre-existing grass. Using cardboard, straw and compost, the garden plots were ready to be used.
They understood the soil as an organism, whereby the layers should be disturbed minimally in order to seal in the nutrients and juices. You know, the good stuff. This meant no tilling, and more energy saved by humans and machines
The Details
The thing with permaculture is that you have to pay attention to the details. Intentional design is a core value, therefore you have to view the area in zones and understand the garden’s relationship with its environment. For example, this particular garden is as ‘self-watering’ as possible. Swales and rain barrels collect water and distribute the water into the garden. Without swales and rain barrels, rainwater would be lost through street drains. Putting in the extra careful consideration into every component makes the garden as efficient as possible. In the case of water, it is not a separate component. It should be considered a unified element that is essential for the whole system’s success.
Why they Dig ‘it’
Research has found that community gardens that follow sustainable models experience the highest sense of well-being from their gardening experiences. By minimizing rules for the garden, people are allowed to experience and explore the garden freely. It was first thought that minimal rules would cause the destruction of the garden. However, they found that it is more difficult to convince people to take home produce, rather than people taking too much. The garden promotes the integration and growth of the community and its members. The garden unified people as they spend time together in the garden doing various activities.
Permaculture is a fascinating ideology. I recall taking a class in my second year of studies where we went into the ideology on a deeper level. I strongly recommend you to research the topic if it fascinates you. Overall, permaculture has shown to be useful in designing this particular garden, as well as integrating the community. More community projects could use the techniques and viewpoints from permaculture theory in order to improve cohesion and connection to each other and the environment… Oh and don’t forget about providing scrumditiliumptious food with little work! I mean who doesn't love a free snack that didn't require you to break your back :)
References
Wurfel M. (2013). Roots, tendrils, seeds and shoots: A case study of Parkallen’s community garden, a permaculture project. Earth Common J. Regular Issue. 3(1), 1-12.
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