The Lost Stories are Bill Mollison’s articles published in the print magazine originally named Permaculture, then International Permaculture Journal and finally the Permaculture International Journal that was published between 1978 and 2000.
All stories and other content ©Permaculture Australia unless otherwise noted.
Story by Bill Mollison, 1980. Autumn Edition.
WELL, things at Tagari are starting to get a little hectic, but nevertheless exciting developments are taking place.
First of all, Permaculture Two‘s printing costs are virtually paid off so now we can expect some money back to put into developmental work.
Workshop helps develop a permaculture network
Back in the middle of January we held a consultant designers’ workshop to which 18 people came from all over Australia.
These people — among them architects, an Aboriginal community worker, a botanist, a design draughtsman, a landscape designer, a horticulturist — will become franchised permaculture design consultants around Australia, having completed the course and after submitting a number of design reports.
This is a further step in setting up an Australia-wide network of permaculture association members, regional permaculture groups, regional permaculture consultant designers (listed below), communities, alternative groups and interested people in order to foster information and resource sharing.
Bill Mollison is writing a pamphlet about this concept and its benefits for all which you will see within the next three months or so.
Short-term plans
We are holding a set of one week courses in April in Stanley for people who want to design their own property, for nurserymen or gardeners seeking contracts to build or supply permaculture plantings (advertised elsewhere in this issue).
Bill M, a group of Tagari communards and associates from around Australia are heading off to the USA in May for about three months to begin spreading the word as well as initiating a network over there by franchising designers contacted and interested and like-minded groups, and selling the books, quarterly subscriptions and some hardware. The feedback from this trip should be incredible.
On the way, Bill is doing a consultancy job in Hawaii for an island leper community. There is a possible broadscale design job in north India on the books too.
So, permaculture is spreading internationally.
Compiling the standard designs
The standard designs written of in Permaculture Two are now being put together for printing (with additional standards), the preliminary catalogue of which is printed opposite and will be available, finally, within three months from Tagari.
Also the Species Index written of in Permaculture Two is being worked up and will take quite a time to come together because its production entails a lot of methodical research and collation. We’ll keep you in touch by way of this magazine.
Much happening at Tagari
So, as you can see there is a lot happening apart from the building of a visitors’ centre, running a community, gardening, work on ‘the swamp’ etc.) at Tagari.
Consequently, with all this work and having come through a financially tight period we are looking for more members (we haven’t really stopped). At this stage looking for adaptable singles or young couples or older families who can afford to accommodate themselves. Tagari is a total commitment community with a minimum probationary period of three months.
For more information contact ‘The Gate’, Tagari Community, PO Box 96, Stanley Tasmania, 7331.
Permaculture consultancy
The Permaculture Consultancy services include:
- urban, small  and broadacre country permaculture design (involving total self-reliance design in energy, food, water, fire control, commercial enterprises, etc. and includes a species documented and diagrammed report)
- town/village siting and services design
- low-energy housing and structures design (‘The Permaculture House’Â etc).
Fees are $300 minimum (covering transport, on-site consultation and report production). Fees, or similar, will be negotiated with unemployed groups disadvantaged groups, Aboriginal groups, etc.
Low-energy housing and structures design has a separate fee scale with prices on application.
Head office covering at present Tasmania, Victoria, large contracts, overseas contracts and low-energy structures design, at P.O. Box 96, Stanley, Tasmania, Australia, 7331. (004) 58-1142.
Consultants:
- Simon Fell
- Andrew Jeeves
- Ted Lament
- Bill Mollison
- Earl Saxon.
And at 15 Niagara Lane, Melbourne, Victoria 3000. (03) 602-3624 (Low-Energy Structures Design).
Consultants:
- Denis Sweetnam
- Jenny Bolwelt.
Regional Consultants:
- Western Australia – 102 Holland St, Freemantle.
Ginger Gordy, Kirsten Beggs. - South Australia – 26 Buller St, Prospect, 5082.
Doug Swanson, John Fargher and David Blewett. - Queensland – 56 Isabella Avenue, Nambour.
Max Lindegger, Bill Peak. - Rainbow Region – Rolands Creek Road, Uki. 2484.
Bob Roe, John Palmer. - NSW – 12 Mansfield Road, Galston 2154.
Ruby Kynast. John Llewellyn. - ACT – 12 Greenaway Street, Turner, 2601.
Judith Turtev, David Watson.
Please send all correspondence to Permaculture Consultancy at the above addresses.
A further consultants’ franchising course is planned for October 1980. People are particularly sought for northern Queensland, Kimberleys and Top End, Pilbara and Goldfields WA and western NSW and Queensland.
Preliminary design catalog for the alternative nation
The Permaculture Consultancy Head Office, PO Box 96, Stanley, 7331, Tasmania, Australia is the design repository of the alternative nation, which means that they receive, edit, publish, mail order and wholesale any sort of design for the alternative nation (network), and at six-monthly intervals pay royalties of 15 percent to the authors, as a proportion of the retail price.
The consultancy prices each design, taking the advice of the author in this but having the final say on pricing as large-volume sales will mean price reductions and designs will therefore become cheaper as they are more in demand — sort of a self-pricing system.
Designs are standardized to A4 size and may be supplied punched or unpunched on a 4-post folder system. Folders can be bought from the consultancy, spine and front printed Permaculture Consultancy Standard Designs. Hand punches and 5-cut index sheets (packs of 10) can also be supplied. All these things can be bought at good stationery suppliers.
Kits and booklets are also supplied for specific areas and some of these may be handled on a retail basis only.
For some designs (eg. houses, boats and complex structures), a set of full-scale drawings are also available (at higher prices). Good books on specific design areas are retailed by mail order and entered into the general catalogue.
At long intervals (2-5 years) it is proposed to collapse all designs into a single volume publication and then to recommence new standard sheets. Microfiche and other condensed storage may later be available.
We appeal to any person with expertise to submit designs to the catalogue. Criteria are that they:
- are harmless to the environment
- use minimal energy or better, produce energy
- are clear, plain and well draughted
- are well-specified as to materials and usage.
We can draught for designers to a limited extent but prefer to receive A4 size sketches of good quality, with type written or clear handwritten copy.
A study of the preliminary catalogue will show that our designs and kits cover a wide range of alternative needs and will extend a lot further with time.
Code/Standard Design/Price($)
- A1 Tomato/Asparagus Polycutture $4
- A2 Culinary Herb Spiral $4
- A3 Home Production ot Potatoes $4
- D1 Complete List of Poultry Forage Species $6
- D2 Collecting Water from Rock Dome Seepage $6
- D3 Cattle Forage Species $6
- D4 Pig Forage Species $6
- D5 Sea Coast Species for Salt, Wind Resistance $6
Entrepreneurial Designs and Kits
- E1 How to Publish and Export Books (Australia) $20
- E2 How to Run a Festival Without Losing Money $20
- E3 How to Start and Run a Community $20
- E4 Criteria for Starting and Financial Enterprise $$6
- E5 How to Run a Trust (retail only) $40
- L1 Rock Dome Planting $4
- L2 Tidal Flats Ponds $4
- L3 Flatland dam and House Site $5
- M1 Farm Link $4
- M2 Wayside Marketing $4
- M3 Self-pick Sales $4
- P1 Mosquito Control $4
- P2 Blackberry Control $4
- P3 Fox Predation prevention $4
- P4 Planting in the Presence of Rabbits $4
- P5 Traps: 1-Rabbits $2; 2-Government Sparrow
- Trap $2; 3-Blowfly $2
- S1 Trellis Structures and Planting, Sun Traps $4
- S2 Collecting Water $4
- S3 Shade House (documented) $8
- S4 Attached Glasshouse (documented) $8
- S5 Flatland House Designs with Dam (and variations) P.O.A.
- T1 Pruning in Permaculture $4
- T2 Domestic Sewage Disposal $4
- T3 Community Sewage Disposal $7
- T4 Planting on Broactscale $4
- T5 Uses for Tyres $4
- T6 Fuel Production from Plants: 1-Alcohol Distillation Design Layout $8; 2-Diesel Oil Seed Processing $8.
- U1 Contact Cropping in Neighbourhoods $5
- U2 Dispersed Tree Crop with Contract Sates $5
- U3 Dispersed Livestock With Contract Sales $5
- U4 Types of Public Allotments $5
- U5 Urban City Farm Development $8