Permaculture Farming on 100+ Acres: Applications & Examples

Aerial view of the 17-acre Food Production Zone of the Hyderabad Collective

The agricultural sector undoubtedly witnesses the best applications of permaculture through permaculture farming. It is a promising solution to agricultural challenges by designing resilient, sustainable, and self-replicating food-growing systems guided by specific ethics and principles. These systems aim to produce healthy, nutritious food while preserving soil fertility for future generations. Following a set of ethics and principles, permaculture farm designs are what can guide us towards food security.

The founding ethics are – Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share (sharing the abundance/yield fairly). In addition to ethics, 12 strong principles put together by David Holmgren, derived from the natural way of life, help shape the designs. These principles form the backbone of permaculture farming and can also be applied to other non-material aspects of our lives.

The 12 Principles of Permaculture

1. Observe and interact – Better living systems are designed by observing and engaging with nature and surroundings.
2. Catch and store energy – Conserving both material and spiritual energy leads to an efficient system.
3. Obtain a yield – Sustenance and inspiration come from rewarding returns for energy and resource investments.
4. Self-regulation and feedback – Analyze, keep what works, discard what doesn’t, and mitigate risks.
5. Use and value renewable resources – Make the most of solar power, biomass, and others to develop self-sustaining systems.
6. Produce no waste – Minimize waste production and use the produced waste as a resource by using biodegradable materials and designing closed-loop systems.
7. Design from patterns to details – Understand larger patterns before delving into smaller details for efficient designs.
8. Integrate rather than segregate – Add elements to existing systems for strength and support.
9. Use small, slow solutions – Gradual changes fare better, minimising risks.
10. Use and value diversity – Diversity builds strength, richness, and resilience.
11. Use edges and value the marginal – Edges are often the most productive zones in a system.
12. Creatively use and respond to change – Adapt and respond to changing conditions for long-term success.

One of the most common permaculture farming applications using the above ethics and principles is creating food-growing systems called food forests. At Beforest Collectives, food forests are the core of attaining food security for the community. Shaping food forests is a slow and gradual process that can take years to form. Let’s understand the making through the examples of the Hyderabad and Poomaale 1.0 Collectives.

Building Food, Water & Energy Security at The Hyderabad Collective, Bodakonda, Telangana

Growing heirloom rice varieties at in the paddy fields of the Hyderabad Collective

The 138 Ac Hyderabad Farming Collective sits on rocky terrain at the heart of the Deccan Plateau, which is made up of a series of hills and valleys. To understand the landscape, we conducted studies based on permaculture principles – biodiversity studies, hydrology mapping, slope analysis, solar patterns, etc. All of this determined the land’s ‘carrying capacity’. The carrying capacity tells us how many people/families the land can support while being self-sufficient and self-reliant. 

The land uses a maximum of 15% of the total area for non-farm uses like housing clusters, community kitchens, etc. Of the remaining 85%, some of the area is planned as a perennial food forest (Food Production Zone of about 17 acres), which grows diverse regional and seasonal grains, millets, crops, fruits and vegetables. 50% of the landscape is left as a minimal intervention zone. 

Aiming to provide complete food, water and power security for 100 families, the land is divided into three zones based on the permaculture studies carried out  – the economic zone, the mixed-use zone and the nature (wilderness) zone. The economic and mixed-use zones account for the food production necessary for the people living at the collective (families and the staff). The wilderness zones contain all the built and preexisting natural elements (watersheds, lakes, springs, etc) and other ecosystem services that are necessary to maintain biodiversity. This zoning was inspired by the 4 Returns Framework for landscape restoration.

Food Security Strategies

Growing various veggies, fruits and flowering species in layers on the swales of the Hyderabad Collective

The permaculture farming activities that are being carried out aim for a constant (and sufficient) supply of grains, pulses, seasonal vegetables, and other natively grown foods to all members and staff of the Hyderabad Collective. Some of the design strategies applied are:

• Introduction of species like marigolds and neem that are known for pest resistance.
• Utilisation of temporary wetlands to cultivate paddy and other wetland crops.
• Growing vegetable patches at lesser maintained spaces within the housing clusters.
• Building ‘bio fences’ around zones with a large number of plants that include sizeable amounts of native species (15000 plants spanning 20 native species).
• Biofences also ensure the welfare of wild animals. The fences have 4 layers, with the outermost one exclusively for wild animals. This approach keeps them contained in their own zones without depriving them of their share.
• Growing only seasonal and native variants of crops so that the soil can support them. What the land allows is always preferred to what we desire.

Water and Power Security

Hear it from our Ecological Designers: How water management is done on the vast landscape pf the Hyderabad Collective

The need for water security comes naturally with food security. Subsequently, a constant and independent power supply also becomes integral in the times we live in. Some of the water and power security strategies being applied:

• Building and nurturing a lake, based on slope analysis, with a water capacity of 50+ million litres.
• Planning of 55 check dams across the site for effective water percolation.
• Growing grasslands to increase soil carbon. A higher percentage of soil carbon increases the water absorption capacity, turning it into a giant sponge. Over time, this would increase the region’s groundwater levels.
• ‘Solar farms’ are assemblies of solar panels close to the housing clusters that assist in providing power supply. 
• Bio heaters assist in fulfilling the heating requirements.
• Climate-responsive traditional home designs ensure the indoors are cooler, reducing the power load to an extent. This way, we can try to renew ecosystems by combining renewable energy and energy-efficient designs.

Reimagining Coffee as a Layer of the Rainforest Ecosystem at the Poomaale 1.0 Collective, Coorg

Robusta coffee growing under the rainforest canopy at the Poomaale 1.0 Collective in Coorg.

The 128 Ac Poomaale 1.0 Collective in Coorg is the 1st Wilderness Collective of Beforest. True to its name, it houses a few hundred species of birds and animals and is ample with fresh wild foods and natural elements. The location is at a height of 1040 m amidst the alluring Western Ghats of India – one of the 36 biodiversity hotspots in the world. Half the estate is left untouched, owing to its preexisting rich biodiversity. The lack of maintenance from the previous owners of the land has provided the land with a forest-like ecosystem.  

The landscape of the collective contains 3 hillocks, 2 lakes, a perennial stream, countless natural springs and monsoon trenches. It is now home to a functioning coffee plantation, mixed food and fruit trees, and native plants interspersed across the state. There is, and has been, absolutely no use of pesticides/fertilisers to grow the produce currently and for the past decade. The 50% of undisturbed zones are abundant in wildlife, including elephants, small-clawed otters, bat colonies big cats, big 4 snakes of India, and many more exemplifying coexistence.

Coffee Growing Wild

Supporting the preexisting ecosystem, the coffee growing here is wild (does not need external interventions). Besides the robusta coffee plantation, spice and fruit plantations, both pre-existing and planted, make a part of the food-growing system. All activities at the estate are driven by our will to bring ecological & economic sustainability in the long run, which led us to adopt the permaculture framework for coffee farming. Permaculture ethics and principles that keep us aligned with our eco-conscious values while producing fine-quality coffee.

We are in the process of creating an interconnected system to improve the health of the robusta coffee plant, which, in turn, yields fine-quality cherries & beans. We are trying various kinds of pruning, soil building and water harvesting interventions, and biodiversity improvement methods, which together complete and complement each other, making a closed circular loop. The processes of observing and interacting with the system frequently, experimenting in small patches, studying it for a year and then applying it to the entire estate has been a major learning for the team.

Our Permaculture Interventions in Coffee Farming

Bee boxes installed along the wilderness trails at the Poomaale 1.0 Collective, Coorg.

Diligent Soil Care

Building soil with forest floor mixes along with microbes and fungi to provide nutrition to the plant for a prolonged period and reduce dependency on external timely inputs.

Water Harvesting Trenches 

Forest floor mixes are added to the trenches, which hold moisture from water flowing from the slopes. Together, they build soil and unique microclimate in the trenches.

Customised Interventions 

Customising the depths of the tree pits, and trenches in existing coffee blocks based on percolation, soil composition and terrain.

Introducing bees for pollination

Promoting open-pollination of canephora coffee blooms to allow a natural, healthy & timely fruit-bearing.

Transforming Monoculture to Polyculture Cropping

Introducing endangered herbs and medicinal plants, and wild flora to attract pollinators, and impart forest microclimate by bringing diversity to the coffee blocks.

Using Waste as a Resource 

All the leaf and plant litter at the estate, along with cow dung, act as a sustainable and self-sufficient source of nutrition for the soil.

While these are examples of permaculture farming on 2 diverse landscapes from our Collectives in India, we are excited to implement more such landscape-suitable systems in our new collectives in Coorg and Mumbai. If you are a permaculture enthusiast or are looking to embark on a journey towards self-sustainability, join a Beforest Collective.