Avalon Permaculture Gardens
Transforming the way
we live together on the earth
About Avalon Permaculture Gardens
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Avalon Permaculture Gardens a five acre permaculture smallholding with wonderful views across the vale of Avalon. We have been developing the site since October 1998 as a personal growth centre where we hold a range of courses and individual sessions that give support or making real an healthy changes in life, relationship and in the world. Its is a response to the ecological crisis facing us, a place to show that we can live lightly on the Earth, in harmony with her. We aim to show that this is more than just possible - indeed a rich and full life results from being a conscious, positive contributor to our ecosystem.
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Bill Mollison, the founder of Permaculture said "for the sake of he earth itself I evolved a philosophy close to Taoism from my experiences with natural systems, a philosophy of working with rather than against nature." He defined Permaculture as: “The conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural eco systems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter and other materiel and non material needs in a sustainable way.”
Following the natural principles of Taoism and permaculture here at Avalon Permaculture Gardens we have tuned what was an over- grazed hose paddock into a diverse and productive feast of naturally growing gardens, orchards, meadows and trees -a rich and natural biodiversity. We grow a wide variety of organic fruit, herbs and vegetables all in ways that support wildlife. Here we live simply, close to the earth with a low carbon footprint, producing our own energy from sun and wind, growing much of our own food. Here we have built our own shelter from natural materials. The gardens now provide a haven away form the busyness of modern life - a place to reconnect with nature and with yourself in a simple and direct way.
When seeking the Tao, look to Mother Nature, Rivers flowing to the sea, trees turning with the seasons, the earth bringing forth food...
Following Mother Nature is the Tao...
Understanding is in the way things are.
From Nu Shu, ancient Taoist women's teachings
Apple Picking
We're Happily Appling at APG, come and join us!!
30th September and 1st October
Every Autumn after the sun has ripened our delicious apples of several varieties, we hold our annual apple picking and juicing days here at Avalon Permaculture Gardens. The apples and juice tastes amazing!
We hold two community pressing days on the dates above - on the first day we'll be gathering apples from the orchards, and on the second day we'll be making juice. It's always fun, children and adults love it, Dan can't resist trailer rides and we all end the day smiling, juiced up and sticky!
Self Built Eco Home
In 2009 Ella and I finished self building our low impact, low cost, strawbale, timber frame, off grid ecohouse. Actually its a cottage - it's simple, small and made of natural local materials. The round wood timber frame is made from local douglas fir and it sits on stone plinths. No cement is used.
The roof is a living roof to the north and oak shakes made from local oak on the front part of the roof, amongst the solar water and electric panels. The floor and ceiling are insulated with sheeps wool. Under floor heating, encased in clay dug from our foundation, provides a giant heat store, and is heated from solar and wood burner, as is the domestic hot water.
The strawbale walls wrap around the round wood frame. They are rendered with lime on the outside and natural earth plaster on the inside, again from clay from the foundations.
This makes an extremely well insulated energy efficient building that requires little heating.
We moved in at the beginning of June 09 but have had a lot of details to finish off, though we are now really slowing down on the pace now to get some rest and take a breather.
We opened the house up as part of the Mendip open green homes and gardens event in September, The next opportunity to see the house will be as part of the Permaculture in Action Course in July 2010
Looking for info on our planning permission process? - visit our Planning Appeal Archive