permaculture

[Robyn Williamson <rz.williamson@optusnet.com.au>]

The "recipe" I use for plant guilds, and I have communicated this to 
JB, is the following:

Firstly stack your plants for vertical edge according to height and 
width, i.e. use tree(s) together with shrub(s), vine(s), ground 
cover(s), grass(es)/cereal(s) and bulbs or tubers underground.  This 
will enable a large amount of food in a small space.

Secondly, get to know (not easy because they are in Latin or Greek and 
keep changing) or search through the plant families to choose a species 
that does well in your area.  e.g. all legumes (family Leguminosae/now 
called Fabaceae) fix atmospheric nitrogen in the form of nodules on 
their roots which becomes available in the soil for use by other plants 
and therefore play an important part in any guild.  Garlic, onions, 
chives etc. all belong to the family Alliaceae (I think they have been 
recently re-classified from the Liliaceae) and help to deter pests.  
The Umbelliferae family (has a new name I can't remember) has flower 
heads that are shaped like little umbrellas, e.g. dill, parsley, 
carrots, they attract "carnivorous" beneficials who can easily stand on 
the umbels with their long legs and "harvest" smaller insects for 
breakfast.  Nettle and comfrey are good companions for anything.  A 
book about companion planting is a good idea, but be aware that myths 
and legends abound on this topic.  According to Bill Mollison, trees 
will eventually overcome grasses and a deciduous tree will provide all 
the mulch you will ever need in situ, i.e. you won't have to cart it.

Keith is right however, your own observations are critical in the 
construction of guilds, have a look around other gardens in your area 
and see what is doing well.  Talk to other gardeners in your local area 
to help you get started.

Robyn

On Tuesday, February 15, 2005, at 11:50 am, Keith Johnson wrote:

> This guild business is consistently overcomplicated in many folks 
> minds who seem to think it has hard and fast rules when it is really 
> only a young science suggesting a rough outline to create a 
> cooperative polyculture family of elements that get along with each 
> other by including plants that provide nutrients, attract beneficials, 
> create mulch, control diseases, suppress grasses, etc. We could, and 
> will most likely, create hundreds of "recipes" for guilds that work 
> with persimmons (or almonds or sassafras)  and they would all be 
> right, or not, for the region in which we are working.

CONTACT DETAILS:

Robyn Williamson
PDC, Urban Horticulturist
Hon Sec, Fagan Park Community Eco Garden Committee
Local Seed Network Coordinator
NORTH WESTERN SYDNEY COMMUNITY SEED SAVERS
mobile:  0409 151 435
ph/fx:  (612) 9629 3560
email:  rz.williamson@optusnet.com.au
http://www.seedsavers.net/lsn/32.html
http://www.communityfoods.com.au
http://www.au.gardenweb.com/directory/fpceg
http://www.sydney.foe.org.au/water