There’s a lot of interesting things happening downtown this weekend.  I’m probably attending this class before I peek at the Summer Sale at Avalon.

WHAT:

Introduction to Permaculture Workshop

WHERE:

Florida School of Holistic Living Education Annex
1109 E Concord St
Orlando, FL

WHEN:

Saturday, July 25, 2009 from 10 AM to 12 PM

WHO:

Hosted by Central Florida Urban Homesteaders

MORE INFO

The word “permaculture” was coined and popularized in the mid 70′s by David Holmgren, a young Australian ecologist, and his associate / professor, Bill Mollison. It is a contraction of “permanent agriculture” or “permanent culture.” Permaculture is about designing ecological human habitats and food production systems. It is a land use and community building movement which strives for the harmonious integration of human dwellings, microclimate, annual and perennial plants, animals, soils, and water into stable, productive communities. The focus is not on these elements themselves, but rather on the relationships created among them by the way we place them in the landscape. This synergy is further enhanced by mimicking patterns found in nature.

A central theme in permaculture is the design of ecological landscapes that produce food. Emphasis is placed on multi-use plants, cultural practices such as sheet mulching and trellising, and the integration of animals to recycle nutrients and graze weeds. However, permaculture entails much more than just food production. Energy-efficient buildings, waste water treatment, recycling, and land stewardship in general are other important components of permaculture.

More recently, permaculture has expanded its purview to include economic and social structures that support the evolution and development of more permanent communities, such as co-housing projects and eco-villages. As such, permaculture design concepts are applicable to urban as well as rural settings, and are appropriate for single households as well as whole farms and villages. “Integrated farming” and “ecological engineering” are terms sometimes used to describe permaculture, with “cultivated ecology” perhaps coming the closest.

ABOUT NATASHA MCINTOSH

Natasha McIntosh received her certfication in Permaculture Design from the renowned Permaculture instructor, Scott Pittman two years ago. She traveled in Central and South America for 1 1/2 years working on various organic farms, permaculture farms and urban agriculture projects as well as several ecovillages. She returned in February ’09 and has been actively involved with the Local Food Alliance and various garden projects.

COST AND RSVP

$25 tuition includes materials. Register with a friend and save $5 each ($20 tuition).

Call 407-595-3731 or info@holisticlivingschool.org to save your seat as space is limited.

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