Cecil Rye Olsen has a PDC (Permaculture Design Certificate) from Regenerative Leadership Institute in Oregon and offers designs of permaculture systems according to Holmgren’s principles and the permaculture ethics – often in collaboration with Birgit Rothmann from LAND Center “Kærbakkens Permahave”, who also holds a PDC.
Every design is unique and depends on endless variables and is made in a close dialogue with the land owner. A permaculture design will help you keep and overview of where you are going in the establishing phase where it is easy to loose your way in all the smaller projects.
Below you will find examples of designs of some very different perma-systems – large and small, some with high and some with low complexity.
Inspiratoriet’s Forest Garden
Design of Inspiratoriet’s Forest Garden with primary focus on the top 2 layers and the structural features in the garden – pond, vegetable spiral, mound, main paths etc. The trees have been placed according to their full-grown width, height and collaboration. Right now we are working on maximizing the use of the open areas under the very young trees and bushes stacking as many perennial crops as we can until the trees and bushes mature and give higher yields.
Planting started in fall 2013 but we can already notice a wild increase in birds, insects and other life following the introduction of around 350 new plants, bushes and trees in this relatively small area (4.000 sq m)
Birgit Rothmann has made this beautiful design :o)
Inspiratoriet’s propagation and learning facility
This design is the next branch on the perma-tree :o) In our own project we have experienced how time consuming it is to find all the plants, rees and bushes necessary to create a permaculture food.system. This is why Birgit and Cecil have designed a 5.000 sq m propagation and learning facility right next to Inspiratoriet’s Forest Garden. The garden will function as a learning- and demonstration garden at the same time as being the basis for propagation of the most important perma-plants which will be available for visitors and course participants in Inspiratoriet’s “plant-swap-central” that functions with the principle “take what you need – give what you can”.
A greenhouse – 380 sq m – will be established to serve as teaching facility, propagation and growing of plants that would otherwise not thrive in our climate. Rain water collection, soil regeneration and experimentation with different methods of growing are also part of the project.
We also want to establish an information café with everything about permaculture, the experience and insights we gather along the way, biomass cycles, carbon sequestration, plants, etc. etc.
We are currently seeking funding to realize the project.
The design is made by Birgit Rothmann and Cecil Rye Olsen
Søholm Opera in Nordby
Lise and Mike – both opera singers – are planning a beautiful and exciting project on their 5 ha estate in Nordby. The project contains an opera house, opera festival, opera and classical music in nature following English tradition, opera for children, master classes and much, much more. They want to establish a traditional English garden, public nature playground, self-feeding chicken run and a forest garden to benefit the guests and students at the opera house, the local community as well as animals, birds and insects in the area.
The design is made by Birgit Rothmann and Cecil Rye Olsen
Søren’s Perma-have
Søren has a wonderful house in the village of Besser on Samsø with a large unused plot of land next to it where he wants to establish a permaculture garden. The house is let out all summer so the design should ensure very early crops, a system that takes care of itself in July and August as well as generating late autumn crops when Søren has access to the house again. That’s why the design focuses on early perennial vegetables that require little to no care when they have established themselves and many different berry bushes, fruits and nuts will make good late crops. Søren wants to support a diverse insect and animal life in the village, so the design has a small pond and rain water harvest in swales with piles of stone and branches nearby to encourage toads, insects, hedge hogs, birds etc.
The design is made by Birgit Rothmann and Cecil Rye Olsen
