1. Landscape design
2. Alternative agriculture
3. Fruit Trees
4. Cultivating mushrooms
5. Gardens
6. Projects
Josef ("Sepp") Holzer was born in the province of Salzburg,
Austria. He is a farmer, author, and an international consultant
for natural agriculture. He took over his parents' mountain farm
business in 1962 and pioneered the use of ecological farming, or
permaculture, techniques at high altitudes (1,100 to 1,500 meters
above sea level) after being unsuccessful with regular farming
methods. Called the "rebel farmer" because he persisted in these
practices despite being fined and even threatened with prison for
practices such as not pruning his fruit trees (unpruned fruit trees
survive snow loads that will break pruned trees). He has also
created some of the world's best examples of using ponds as
reflectors to increase solar gain for passive solar heating of
structures, and of using the microclimate created by rock outcrops
to effectively change the hardiness zone for nearby plants. He has
also done original work in the use of Hugelkultur and natural
branch development.
He is conducting permaculture ("Holzer Permaculture") seminars at
his farm and worldwide, while continuing to work on his alpine
farm. His farm now spans over 45 hectares of forest gardens,
including 70 ponds, and is said to be the most consistent example
of permaculture worldwide. He is author of several books and the
subject of the film The Agricultural Rebel. He works nationally as
permaculture activist in the established agricultural industry and
works internationally as adviser for ecological agriculture. He is
the author of Desert or Paradise: Restoring Endangered Landscapes
Using Water Management, Including Lake and Pond Construction, and
Sepp Holzer's Permaculture: A Practical Guide to Small-Scale,
Integrative Farming and Gardening.
Patrick Whitefield (1949 – 2015) was an early pioneer of
permaculture, adapting Bill Mollison’s teachings with a strong
Southern Hemisphere bias to the cooler, maritime climate of the
British Isles. He wrote a number of seminal books, including
Permaculture in a Nutshell (1993), How to Make a Forest Garden
(1996), The Living Landscape (2009), How To Read the Landscape
(2014) and his magnum opus, The Earth Care Manual (2004), an
authoritative resource on practical, tested, cool temperate
permaculture. Patrick appeared in several BBC TV programmes,
popular gardening videos, and taught many permaculture and other
practical courses, throughout the UK.
"A fascinating book written by a man who has devoted a lifetime to
working with nature and creating extraordinarily diverse
polycultures. His work is breathtaking."--Maddy Harland, editor of
Permaculture Magazine
"There, at an altitude which everyone else has abandoned to
low-value forestry, what is probably the best example of a
permaculture farm in Europe stands out like a beacon."--Patrick
Whitefield, permaculture author and teacher
ForeWord Reviews-
Holzer's beautifully designed and illustrated book is essential
reading for all who care about the land and the vast interrelated
web of living beings who inhabit it, and it is especially timely,
since small and organic farmers in the United States are being
threatened by agribusiness, chemical companies, and others who view
nature as something to conquer and ravish rather than honor and
learn from. Large- and small-scale farmers, home gardeners, and
even those who only have room to grow in a few pots on a city
balcony will find Holzer's methods applicable and effective, his
reasoning and knowledge impeccable, and his spirit pure and
honest.
*Kristine Morris*
"The real story of a 110+ acre commercial permaculture farm
featuring 14,000 fruit trees with diverse understory plants,
complete integration of rotationally grazed livestock, terraces and
rainwater harvesting, and so much more. Anyone interested in taking
permaculture to a larger scale in a cold climate will benefit from
Sepp Holtzer's 40 years of practical experience implementing
permaculture principles."--Eric Toensmeier, author of Perennial
Vegetables and co-author of Edible Forest Gardens
Here's great news for fruit-loving gardeners everywhere! Most of
the work of establishing, pruning, and tending fruit trees by
'modern' methods is unnecessary and even counterproductive. Sepp
Holzer's Permaculture is the One-Straw Revolution for tree
crops.--Carol Deppe, author of The Resilient Gardener: Food
Production and Self-reliance in Uncertain Times
"After reading this book, all I can say is Sepp Holzer is a
Superstar Farmer. Holzer turns out an absolutely remarkable volume
and variety of food products, all without one smidgen of chemical
fertilizer, and on land in Austria that an Illinois corn farmer
would pronounce too marginal for agriculture. American farmers and
gardeners will be particularly interested in Holzer's raised
beds--which are quite different in construction from ours in the
U.S.--as well as his inventive water well irrigation systems,
unique methods for integrating livestock into his fruit and
vegetable gardens, and practical, low-labor way to grow mushrooms.
A fascinating book for anyone who aspires to become the ultimate,
champion professional of sustainable farming."--Gene Logsdon,
author of Holy Shit: Managing Manure to Save Mankind, and The
Contrary Farmer
"As the era of cheap energy, stable climates and surplus fertilizer
stocks comes to a close, the principles of permaculture will become
increasingly attractive as one way to design our future food and
agriculture systems. Sepp Holzer's Permaculture provides important
insights for applying these principles, for both rural farming and
emerging forms of urban agriculture."--Frederick Kirschenmann,
President, Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture
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