This page is from an older permaculture design workshop in the "old days" before the lockdowns.  So, feel free to use this daily schedult or adapt parts of it to your own permaculture classes and workshops.  I suggest that you also teach your students how to teach others.  That often is neglected.

Session Day Schedule:

9:00-10:30am
10:30-11:00am
11:00-12:30pm
12:30-1:30pm
1:30-3:00pm
3:00pm-3:30pm
3:30pm-5pm
Section 1
Break
Section 2
Lunch
Section 3
Break
Section 4
The Day: Each Saturday Session is broken into four hour-and-a-half sections.  In between the morning sessions and afternoon sessions is a tea break (tea and light snacks will be provided).  There is an hour lunch break in the middle of the day.

NOTE: Lunch will NOT be provided.  Please plan on bringing a packed lunch as some session site will be remote and not near a place to purchase lunch.

Saturday Session Dates:

TBA

Workshop Schedule:

Check the Workshop tab for more detailed description of the workshops, including exact times, locations, and topics.

Workshop 1
Tree Grafting Workshop

Workshop 2 
Garden Permablitz 1: Summer Planting

Workshop 3
Natural Building Permablitz

Workshop 4
Garden Permablitz 2: Perennial Vegetables

Recommended Reading:

The original course curriculum is based off of:
Bill Mollison,
Permaculture: A Designers’ Manual.
Tyalgum, Australia: Tagari Publications, 1988.
Additional key references for the SLO Community Permaculture Design Course:
Toby Hemenway,
Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture
River Junction, Vermont: Chelsea Green Publishing Co., 2001.
Rosemary Morrow,
Earth User’s Guide to Permaculture
Kenthurst NSW, Australia: Kangaroo Press, 1997.
Aranya,
Permaculture Design - A step-by-step Guide.
USA :Chelsea Green Publishing Co., 2012.

Session 1 - Permaculture Ethics and Principles; Soil Food Web
Location: beeWench Farm in Paso Robles; 198 San Juan Rd, Shandon, CA 93461  See Locations page for more info.

Topics Covered Include: 
  • Welcome and Participant Introductions; 
  • Activity- Guided Site Tour, Observation and Discussion;
  • SLO Permaculture Course Overview and Expectations; 
  • Introduction to permaculture; history and philosophy; why do we need such a permaculture design system;
  • Permaculture ethics and principles; Ecological principles;
  • Activity- Team Building and Sharing of Participant Designs 
  •  Soil Food Web
  1. Healthy Soil, Plant & Human Nutrition
  1. Legumes as nitrogen fixers and the phosphate accumulating plants.
  2. Soils types, Biological & Biochemical Properties; Difficult Soils
  3. Soil Ecology & helpful Creatures
  4. Mulching Strategies & Soil Amendments
  5. Compost, Vermiculture & Compost Tea
  6. pH, organic matter content and primary nutrients; Soil testing;

Session 2 - Design Basics: Methods, Applications, Patterns, Zones, Elements
Location: Kathryn Santoyo's Home & Garden, Arroyo Grande, CA
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

In Session 2, we will take the lenses through which we see the world and give them a new filter.  Counter to reductionist view, permaculture encourages us to look beyond the details to the relationships between elements and the cyclical occurrences that define how people and environments behave.  In addition to a paradigm-rocking lesson on the patterns that exist around us, the day will be full of activities to train our new way of seeing, including a observational hike.   The day will conclude with a look at the larger climatic patterns of our planet and how the global cycles affect our lives and environments here in San Luis Obispo County.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Design Basics: Methods, Applications, Observations, Patterns, Zones, Elements and Functions
  1. Activity- Guided Site Tour, Observation and Discussion;
  1. Holistic Design Philosophy, Applications & Methodologies;
  2. Observations, Microclimates; Soils; Flow of Energy & Materials, Succession; Human & Nature Patterns; Wildlife & Fire, Sector Planning;
  3. Observing patterns in nature; flow patterns; edge effect, geometries of boundaries & edges; human behavior patterns and design implications; 
  4. The methods of design, resources, yields, cycles, food webs, growth, stacking in space and time
  5. Systems Integration- Elements, Functions, & Components
  6. Topography, Landforms, Slope, Key Points, orientation, aspect, data overlay, Zones and their placement
  7. Designing in zones 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
  8. Client Goals & Human Factors Analysis 
  9. Random assembly of element lists and subsets cross referenced
  10. Activity- Selection and Formation of Design Teams; Discuss Site & Resource Mapping Homework Assignment
  11. Activity- Site Mapping by Teams and Organize Sharing of Results

Session 3 - Living Ecology 1: Systems, Water & Forest Ecology; Site Mapping;
Location: Central Coast Salmon Enhancement 229 Stanley Ave; Arroyo Grande, CA 93420 
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Activity- Nature Hike in Arroyo Grande Creek
  • Water Flow in Landscape & Gardens; Rainwater Capture
  1. Regional water cycle and watershed characteristics; fish habitat in local streams [7]
  2. Sources of water on site; strategies for using water as many times as possible before it leaves the site;
  3. Rainwater harvesting in landscapes; swales; keyline irrigation design; earthworks for ponds.
  4. Rainwater capture from buildings and hardscape; biological water cleaning systems, garden irrigation including gravity designs.
  5. Graywater use in gardens & landscape; water reduction in sewage treatment. 
  • Forest Ecology 
  1. Function of Forests, Weather & Climate Impacts.
  2. Trees and Temperature Impacts 
  3. Tree & Forest Ecology, Soil Building and Water Cleaning‚Ä®
  4. Root, mineral and rain interactions. Implications for design.
  • Activity- Teams Meet to Share Results of Participant Site & Resource Mapping Homework in Working Session

Session 4 - Living Ecology 2: Garden Design; Animals in Gardens & Orchards;
Location: Centrally Grown; 7432 Exotic Garden Drive Cambria, CA 93428
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Activity- Guided Site Tour
  • Garden Ecology & Design
  1. Ecological principles and goals in designing Zone 1 Food Gardens and Zone 2 Food Forests
  2. Assessing Client Needs & Resources
  3. Observations: Energy & Materials Flows;  Nature & Human Patterns;
  4. Site Analysis: Sun, Water, Soil, Plant Selection Considerations; Attracting beneficial insects & birds; planning for and/or adapting to growth of weeds;
  5. Designing Zone 1 & Zone 2 Gardens- Stacking in Space & Time; 
  6. Forest Gardens as Super Guilds; 
  7. Design Process- Integrating Observations, Goals, Conceptual & Schematic Design; Implementation and Maintenance; Planning for Changes.
  • Integrated Design of Animals in Gardens and Orchards
  1. Integrated home garden, orchards, farm forestry, free range forage systems.
  2. Design Analyses to match needs and yields of animals to perennial plant species needs and yields, and these are integrated with all aspects such as water and land characteristics.
  3. Design analyses considering health, safety, companionship, animal behaviors, numbers and products.
  • Group Activity: Preliminary Design of Participant Gardens and Sharing of Initial Results

Session 5 - Living Ecology 3: Holistic Land & Pest Management; Natural Building;
Location: Passive Solar, Straw-Bale Home of Ken Haggard and Polly Cooper and their San Luis Obispo Sustainability Group Office 16550 Oracle Oak Way Santa Margarita, CA 93453; 805-438-4452
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Group Activity- Site Tour of Passive Solar, Straw-bale Home & Forest
  • Building Eco-homes, Suburban & Urban Permaculture
  1. Natural building, passive solar and other permaculture strategies for new buildings.
  2. Built Environment; Focusing on the home center, permaculture principles are applied to harness natural resources to reduce energy and water needs, and generally creating a harmonious, sustainable environment in which to live and work. 
  3. Analyzing the entire system including landscape, human needs, home characteristics, nature, plants and animals, and designing a more sustainable and healthy model of living while enhancing the ecology; includes energy and water conservation, capturing solar energy, integrating food growing and other occupant needs. 
  4. Urban Community Design; transforming urban and suburban landscapes, roof-tops, patios and structures into more sustainable food-producing gardens;  creating community gardens; strategies for converting neighborhoods into a more sustainable community (e.g. City Repair). 
  •  Holistic Rangeland Management
  1. Holistic grassland, rangeland and soil management. 
  2. Integrated crop and rangeland management systems; rotating cell grazing
  3. Animal tractor systems and Grassland and rangeland management. 
  4. Integrated home garden, orchards, farm forestry, free range forage systems. 
  • Group Activity: Sharing Designs of Participant Gardens
  • Group Activity: Sharing Preparations for Selection and Design of Appropriate Technologies

Session 6 - Living Ecology 4: Invisible Economic Structures; Exchanges & Guilds
Location: A Place to Grow Business Office and Fabrication Facility 445 B Prado Road San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Activity- Guided Site Tour, Observation and Discussion;
  • Social Permaculture: Resilient Human Exchanges & Guilds, Invisible Economic Structures
Social permaculture refers to the "invisible economic structures" such as our relationship to money, how its earned and how we use it to meet our needs, and the many unintended consequences of current corporate and government practices.  

In this session, we will explore how permaculture principles can be used to adapt invisible social structures to keep money earned and saved, local skills, expertise and knowledge, and other resources circulating within our community and building local self-reliance.

Existing SLO County examples include: local farmers' markets; local community supported agriculture (CSA), community gardens, food cooperatives, numerous non-profits,  time banking ( e.g. Central Coast Hour Exchange), ethical local investing (SLOW Money SLO), Community Choice Aggregation (for local renewable energy), the SLO City Farm, the SLO Permaculture Guild, SLO Seed Exchange and SLO Grange.

Other potentially promising opportunities for building local self-reliance that are being developed in other communities throughout the US and globally include local currencies, local exchange trading system (LETS), community land trusts, community banks, and permaculture credit unions.

A major challenge for individuals and families that are seeking to live "off-the-grid" and into more holistic lifestyles is meeting one's daily needs. The design and development of social permaculture strategies for meeting these daily needs will be explored including collaborate networks of people utilizing time banking, local exchange trading system, community gardens, intentional communities, eco-villages and other strategies will be explored, including legal structures and sociological ramifications.
  • Group Activity: Exploring How to Develop Collaborative Networking Options for Meeting One's Daily Needs
  • Group Activity: Exploratory Discussion of Potential Community Opportunities for Final Design Project

Session 7 - Appropriate Technology, Resource Reuse & ReSkilling
Location: Tread Lightly Farm in Santa Margarita
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Appropriate Technologies such as energy conservation measures;  ventilation cooling; solar cooking and hot water; passive solar; ponds; ecological waste treatment; biofuels and biogas; solar electric; herbal medicines and natural cleaning products.
  • Types of earthworks, earth constructions and earth resources; techniques of designing and building a pond, dam, swales, earth banks, terraces, roads, drains and aquaculture configurations
  • Activity- 10-15 minute summary presentations of 6-8 appropriate technologies by teams of 3-4 members interested in a particular technology.
  • Local Crafting and ReSkilling includes relearning the self reliance skills our grandparents took for granted such as teaching and learning basic earth-skills such as food preservation, animal husbandry, home doctoring, repairing and re-using, making our own clothing and our own shelters, and learning to harvest our own energy from the sun, wind, and water.
  • Group Activity: Discussion of Community Opportunities for Final Design Project

Session 8 - Design Project 1A: Stage 1A Design of Local Collaborative Project
Location: Oak Creek Commons Cohousing Community 635 Nicklaus St. Paso Robles, CA 93446; 805-591-9646
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Activity- Guided Site Tour, Observation and Discussion;
  • Selection of SLO Appropriate Community Design Projects
  • Permaculture Design Approach & Expectations for Community Projects
  • Activity- Teams Organize and Conduct Community Project Design Work
  • Application of Permaculture Design Principles in Different Climate Zones 

Session 9 - Design Project 1B: Stage 1B Design of Local Collaborative Project
Location: San Luis Obispo Grange Hall 2880 Broad St. San Luis Obispo, CA 93401; 805-543-0639
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Activity- Guided Site Tour, Observation and Discussion;
  • Project Permaculture Design Approach & Expectations
  • Activity- Groups Interview Client Representatives & Continue Project Design Work 
  • Project teams plan, organize and schedule project work & preparation of project presentation during time period prior to Session 10.

Session 10 - Completion: Final Project Design Presentations & Celebration
Location: Karen Merriam's Home, Edna Valley
See Locations page for more info, directions and map.

Topics Covered Include:
  • Welcome and Session Overview;
  • Final Project Presentations by Design Groups & comments by Community Partners.
  • Diploma presentation, Acknowledgements & Celebration
  • Potential Next Steps in Permaculture Practice, 
  • Feedback from 2015 PDC graduates about course teaching, materials, site selection and other PDC course attributes.