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How to Build a Timber Forest Area
I have installed two areas that I would consider my timber forest area and my zone 4. I originally planned for three areas, but I decided against making a timber area in front of the pond as I already...
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Intro to Permaculture
Permaculture is literally permanent culture. It started out literally as permanent agriculture, but it is now being applied to other areas besides agriculture. Bill Mollison wrote, “Permaculture is the...
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Weeds as Soil Indicators
The types of “weeds” that grow seemingly spontaneously in your garden are telling you valuable information about your soil and microclimate if you care to listen. There are certain “weeds” that appear...
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Patterns of Design in Permaculture
Permaculture design works to copy many patterns and shapes that occur in nature. This tends to enhance energy flow or slow it down, depending on the needs of the inhabitants. This also adds diversity...
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Swales (Surveying & Installation)
Swales are simply ditches on contour (contour is a level line across the landscape), with the excavated soil from the ditch being placed downslope to form a berm. The purpose is to rehydrate...
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Nitrogen Fixing Trees, Shrubs, and Ground Covers
For those of you into permaculture, you know the importance of nitrogen fixing plants. These plants, especially when pruned release nitrogen into the soil, helping to boost fertility to the plants...
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Please Stop the Lawn Care!
Americans spend about 40 billion dollars per year on lawn care. Why do people devote all that time, effort, and money? The Origin of the Grass Lawn I have read accounts of the first lawn being at the...
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Rocks & Stone in the Garden
Rocks & stone can be a great addition to a garden or an orchard. Most gardeners will take the rocks out of their garden, but many times that is a mistake. In “Sepp Holzer’s Permaculture”, Sepp...
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Bamboo (Multifunctional Permaculture Plant)
Bamboo is actually a member of the grass family. There are over 1000 types of bamboo worldwide. Some grow as tall as 100 feet, and others only a few inches. Many do well in the tropics, but some can...
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Where to Place your Bee Hives
I decided to get a couple of bee hives to help with pollination, support the dwindling bee population, and eventually harvest a little honey and honeycomb. My first concern was where is the best place...
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How to Build a Bee Shelter
I built a simple shelter for my bee hives. My shelter was to provide cover from snow and rain, protection from wind, and a level stone floor for the hives to safely sit on. Please bear in mind that I...
View ArticleThe Permaculture Project Recap Video
See swales, zone 2 & 3 food forests, zone 4 farm forestry, and the pond eight months after the project completion.
View ArticlePermaculture in Pictures Video
See pictures from the past couple of years: earthworks, swales, pond, mandala garden, hugelkultur, keyhole beds, chickens, & much more.
View ArticleHow to Install a New Queen Bee Video
See how to install a new queen bee in a queen less hive.
View ArticleProof Swales Work Video
See a row of fruit trees that I planted in 2009. Some are closer or further away from a couple of swales. See the different growth rates based on their proximity to the swale.
View ArticleGarden Tour July 2014′ Video
Take a tour of my permaculture site. See swales, bees, chickens, a pond, spillway, food and farm forestry, and my zone 1 garden.
View ArticleHow to Add Space to a Warre Bee Hive Video
In a Warre Hive, like in nature the bees build from the top down. In this video, see what to do when they run out of space.
View ArticleDesign (Commercial Permaculture Farm)
Below is a link to a design for a commercial permaculture farm I recently designed for a local client. Commercial Permaculture Farm Design Specifications Zone 6 North Facing Slope 4 acres Currently cut...
View ArticleGrey Water Wetland & Silt Pond Project Video Part 1
See part 1 of the installation of a grey water wetland system that overflows to a lined silt pond, that overflows into an earthen fish pond.
View ArticleGrey Water Wetland & Silt Pond Project Video Part 2
See the 2nd part of the grey water wetland and silt pond project. Also see the waterfall spilling into the feature fish pond. In the video below I mention that I planted reeds for my cleanup plant....
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How to Build a Grey Water Wetland
How much almost clean water is wasted down sinks, washing machines, and showers? At my house, my wife and I use thirty to forty gallons a day, but the typical household can use up to 200...
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How to Build a Lined Silt Pond
Silt ponds are small ponds that catch water before overflowing into a larger feature pond. The purpose is for runoff and silt to accumulate in the bottom of the silt pond before getting...
View ArticleWildlife Clay Lined Pond Project Video
See the construction of a clay lined pond. This pond is approximately 300 square feet, 2 feet deep designed to add diversity to the permaculture site. The catchment comes mostly via the driveway...
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How to Build a Clay-Lined Pond
If you have loam soil like I do, with very little clay, you can still build a pond, but it is certainly more difficult. You can simply use a liner, mix in sodium bentonite, or bring in...
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The Benefits of Direct Seeding Trees & Shrubs
I have planted well over a thousand trees and shrubs on my permaculture site. I have tried bare root, potted, long tap root pots, and seedlings. The problem with all of these options for...
View ArticleHugelkultur Project (Part 1 Building the Berms Video)
See part 1 of my hugelkultur project which includes laying down the wood on contour, and adding the subsoil, and compost. I mention in the video that the wood is from tree tops, but that is incorrect,...
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How to Build & Plant Large Hugelkultur Beds
Hugelkultur is basically soil over wood. Hugel beds can be any size, use different sizes of stumps and branches, and different decomposition stages of the wood & different types of wood. There are...
View ArticleHugelkultur Project (Part 2 Planting the Polyculture Video)
Plants on the South or Sunny Side (Arranged from the top, which is dry to the bottom which is moist) White Yarrow- Nutrient accumulator, pollinator attractor, insectary Cilantro- Edible, Insectary,...
View ArticleZone 1 & 2 Food Forest Video
Included in the video: Sheet mulchingSourcing cardboardInoculating clover seedCovering seed with strawPlanting bare root treesNitrogen fixersGrafted vs. UngraftedAppropriate trees for zones 1 & 2...
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How to Build a Zone 1 & 2 Food Forest
Zone 1 & 2 Food Forestry Project I’ve been planning a food forest project over the winter. My plan was to reduce the size of my annual garden, remove grass space, add diversity, and future habitat...
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Permaculture with Paul Wheaton
Over the years Paul Wheaton has written some excellent articles about hugelkultur, raising chickens, rocket mass heaters and stoves, lawn care, earth sheltered housing, and much more. They are all...
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Fruit Tree Guilds
Polyculture or the growing of many different plants in a given area is a popular permaculture principle. Fruit tree guilds are a specific polyculture technique used to improve fertility, confuse pests,...
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Farmer Phil’s Permaculture
Farmer Phil’s Permaculture: The Original Permaculture Children’s Book Most of the permaculture books and material you see is geared toward adults with at least a basic knowledge of the design science....
View ArticleGarden Tour July 2015 Video
See my permaculture site July of 2015. Featured in the video: -Young Farm Forestry -Young Food Forestry -Zone 1 Gardens -Ponds -Swales -Top Bar Bee Hives -And Much More….
View ArticleFarmer Phil Book Trailer
Farmer Phil’s Permaculture is a bushel of fun for ages 2-8. Future farmers will enjoy the rhyming narrative, stunning artwork, animals, and adventures. Let Mother Nature be your guide. Try working...
View ArticleFire the Landscaper Book Trailer and Free Download
My new book Fire the Landscaper is available on Amazon. As a gift to the few, the proud … my subscribers, I am offering the book for free download on Amazon this Friday and Saturday, 9-11 and...
View ArticleEpisode 133 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 2
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 2: Origins of the Grass Lawn 2. Chapter 3: Mother Nature Never Stops, the Story of Succession 3. Chapter 4: Monoculture versus Polyculture *If you’re enjoying this book, please...
View ArticleEpisode 134 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 3
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 5: Our Obsession with Order and Conformity 2. Chapter 6: Pesticide Toxicity *If you’re enjoying this book, please consider purchasing the E-book. It’s only $2.99, audiobooks are...
View ArticleEpisode 135 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 4
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 7: The Pesticide Treadmill 2. Chapter 8: Water *If you’re enjoying this book, please consider purchasing the E-book. It’s only $2.99, audiobooks are typically $20 or more. If you...
View ArticleEpisode 136 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 5
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 9: Fire the Landscaper *If you’re enjoying this book, please consider purchasing the E-book. It’s only $2.99, audiobooks are typically $20 or more. If you don’t have the funds,...
View ArticleEpisode 137 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 6
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 10: Fire the Lawn Mowing Company (Yes, the Neighbor’s Kid Too) 2. Chapter 11: Stop Poisoning Your Property 3. Chapter 12: Kill the HOA *If you’re enjoying this book, please...
View ArticleEpisode 138 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 7
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 13: Local Ordinances and My Legal Problems *If you’re enjoying this book, please consider purchasing the E-book. It’s only $2.99, audiobooks are typically $20 or more. If you...
View ArticleEpisode 139 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 8
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 14: A Tale of Two Communities, Part 1 2. Chapter 15: A Tale of Two Communities, Part 2 *If you’re enjoying this book, please consider purchasing the E-book. It’s only $2.99,...
View ArticleEpisode 140 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 9
DownloadMP3 1. Chapter 16: Living Healthier and Happier by Doing Less 2. Chapter 17: I Want to Live in Natural Beauty and Abundance 3. Chapter 18: That Was Then. This is Now.-S.E. Hinton 4. Your To-Do...
View ArticleEpisode 141 Fire the Landscaper Audiobook Part 10
DownloadMP3 1. Bonus Chapter: Conclusion to My Legal Problems *If you’re enjoying this book, please consider purchasing the E-book. It’s only $2.99, audiobooks are typically $20 or more. If you don’t...
View ArticleEpisode 142 Second Appearance on The Survival Podcast
DownloadMP3 Below is the write up from The Survival Podcast interview I did with Jack Spirko. Thanks Jack, I enjoyed talking to you. Phil Williams is a permaculture consultant, designer, and author. He...
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Harvesting and Processing Chestnuts
I planted 4 chestnut trees in 2010. This past fall was the first time they produced any nuts. There wasn’t a ton, but I wanted to try harvesting and processing the nuts by hand to see if it was a...
View ArticleEpisode 143 The Food Production Podcast 11-28-2015
DownloadMP3 1. Harvesting and processing chestnuts. 2. Elderberries: the medicinal powerhouse.
View ArticleGarden Tour July 2016
Follow along on a tour of my permaculture site. You’ll see: swales, ponds, gardens, chickens, bees, and much more.
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