by Anne StClair

Created on: January 31, 2009

Permaculture is a system of designing sustainable settlements for people, and it includes (but is much more than) sustainable gardening. In designing a permaculture system the concept of zones is an important one since it ensures that elements of the system are placed in the most efficient location.

Permaculture zones are regions at different distances from the house, but they are not regular or concentric circles, and the edges between zones can be uneven and blurry.

Zone 0

Zone 0 is not usually included, but it is actually the house. If you were building a house, this is actually an extremely important zone in the permaculture system, since it would be designed to be as energy efficient as possible. It would also aim to harness sunlight to provide electricity and to heat water, and to recycle and reclaim as much as possible. The house would be connected to systems in the garden such as waste water treatment wet areas and ponds. Plants can also be grown in zone 0, in pots or in window boxes.

Zone 1

Zone 1 is the closest zone to the house, and can include areas such as a patio or deck, intensely weeded and mulched beds, a small lawn, archways or trellises. Zone 1 is where the plants that are used most often are located, along with those that require the most frequent visits. Plants for zone 1 could include saladings, annual vegetables, herbs, flowers, delicate plants, perhaps some dwarf fruit trees, a grape over a patio, and trellised plants.

The size of zone 1 depends on the size of the land and the arrangement of the house, and it can be anything from a balcony of an apartment to an area up to 40 feet from the house.

Zone 2

Zone 2 is further away and contains the plants that are used less often than those in zone 1, and which need fewer visits and less attention. Here plants such as fruit trees, berry bushes, shrubs, small ponds or hedges are located. Big production items such as potatoes, pumpkins or rows of tomatoes or corn can also be grown here, along with vegetables that are less frequently picked, such as cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, or globe artichokes. You might also keep chickens, rabbits or a bee hive in zone 2, and a greenhouse may also be located here.

Depending on the size of your land, zone 2 could start 40 feet away from your door, or 10 feet. In many suburban gardens, this zone would probably end at the fence or boundary.

Zone 3

In properties large enough, zone 3 is the next zone, and this is basically a farm zone, containing large fruit or nut

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