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In agricultural societies, and among growers today, winter is often the time for rest, relaxation, and reflection. Just as the dark and cold encourages us to find comfort within our homes, we can use this time to find comfort within our own minds. In the spirit of this reflection, I’d like to go back to basics, and ponder for a while, just what is permaculture.

In Permaculture: A Designer’s Manual, permaculture Co-founder Bill Mollison (right) introduces the concept: “Permaculture (permanent agriculture) is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems.”

Let’s take this bit by bit, with a somewhat critical eye. We have to start by saying that whatever agricultural system we (as individuals, communities, or society as a whole) design and employ, it wouldn’t be permanent in the literal sense. Everything in material existence is always changing and fundamentally impermanent. Mollison must mean permanent as a kind of rhetorical flourish, or permanent in a relative sense. Certainly, the landscapes he and other permaculturists designed and created were intended to mature over decadal timescales, perhaps even centuries. But even that isn’t truly permanent. No food forest around today will be here in 600 million years!

Rhetorical flourishes aside, what stands out to me is that Mollison defines permaculture as an activity; the act of design and maintenance. It is not a food forest, it is not a berm and swale, and it is not an herb spiral. These are the trappings of permaculture, but in itself it is a kind of design, specifically, Mollison includes the qualifier conscious design. In doing so, he is invoking a mindfulness, a thoughtfulness, a sense of attention. But attention to what?

The land. We are at tremendous pains to understand the land, how it came to be, and where the trajectory of the land is heading. This includes things like the soil: is it clay or sand, compacted or loose; is it dry or wet, is it polluted or not; topography and hydrology: what are the slopes like and where does water flow, where are the frost pockets; and existing ecosystem properties: is the site most like a grassland, an open woodland, or a forest? 

Although there is a tendency to confine site analysis to strictly pragmatic goals, a good designer will also pay attention to aesthetics. How does a site make one feel? Is it inviting, foreboding, or mysterious? Can we make a good view? Can we create illusions and sequences of experience that make the site more delightful than it otherwise would be? And how can we do all this while minimizing the inputs required offsite? Bad design is usually the result of not thinking things through. By paying attention to landscape, we can hopefully avoid this most major pitfall.

In the next edition, I’ll continue to unpack Mollison’s definition of permaculture, turning toward his philosophy of maintenance, and asking some critical questions about the ecology of permaculture systems. 

Jared Aslakson

Permaculture Specialist

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On the clear, frosty nights in fall and winter, we can easily spot one of the most famous of constellations, Orion the Hunter. Orion is a figure from classical Greek mythology, but the constellation was recognized by ancient civilizations across the world. The Sumerians, the Babylonians, the Egyptians, the Indians, the Chinese, and the Mesoamerican civilizations all recognized this constellation, and it features heavily in their astronomical and religious lore. 

Like all the other stars and planets, Orion rises in the east, and slowly proceeds across the sky, before setting in the west. It is a fall and winter constellation, because it becomes visible in the early fall and is the most prominent constellation throughout the winter months. It is not visible in spring and summer. The bright stars and easily recognizable shape of Orion make it one of the best to learn for beginning stargazers. But finding Orion allows you to locate several other constellations with a few simple tricks.  

Start with the three stars marking Orion’s belt. If you imagine the stars forming a line that leads down and to the left, your eye will be drawn to a very bright star. This is Sirius, in the constellation Canis Major (the Great Dog). Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky, so it is very unlikely you will mistake this star for any other! Orion is fully risen around 8:00 p.m. this time of year, with Sirius becoming visible around 9:30 p.m. 

Back to Orion. Look for his right shoulder. With good viewing, you may notice that this star has a faintly red appearance. This star is Betelgeuse, and it appears brighter and redder than most stars because it is nearing the end of its lifecycle and entered the so-called “Red Giant” phase.

So you’ve found Betelgeuse, excellent. Now, trace a line from Orion’s left knee (Rigel) up through Betelgeuse. Your eyes will be drawn to two fairly bright stars. These two stars are Castor and Pollux, named after the mythological twins that make up the constellation Gemini.

About halfway between Sirius and Gemini, you will notice another fairly bright star, Procyon. This star, along with Sirius and Betelgeuse, are the three visually bright stars that form the Winter Triangle.

Let’s look at Orion one more time. This time look for his left shoulder. Imagine a line going from his right knee, up through his shoulder. This line will take you to another bright star that has a reddish color. This is another red giant, named Aldebaran. Aldebaran is the brightest star in the constellation Taurus, the bull. As a bonus, if you extend the line from Orion to Taurus even further, you will notice a faint cluster of stars. These are the Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters. As of mid-December, the Pleiades are almost at the highest point in the sky.

If you’re familiar with astronomy, or astrology for that matter, you may recognize that Gemini and Taurus are members of the Zodiac. The Zodiac is a group of 12 constellations that are located on or around the ecliptic.

The ecliptic? That’s the path that the sun takes through the sky as viewed from Earth. The sun, moon, planets, and all 12 of the zodiacal constellations are located on or near the ecliptic! This is a very powerful piece of astronomical knowledge. Familiarize yourself with the ecliptic, and you can easily find more obscure constellations, distinguish bright stars from planets, and deduce the directions.

Stargazing Tips

• The Quadrantids meteor shower peaks on January 3 and 4. Quadrantids are named for the constellation Quandrantis Muralis, which is named after an old-fashioned astronomical tool called a quadrant. The same constellation is more commonly known as Bootes, the Shepherd. This shower is known for bright fireballs coming from the northern sky.

• January 30 is a rare opportunity to spot the elusive planet Mercury. Look for it low in the east, just before sunrise.

White pine, Pinus strobus

In Michigan’s wintry landscapes, there are few sights quite as iconic as a country hillside graced with a stand of mighty, snow-laden evergreens. Because of their dramatic appearance this time of year, I’m pleased to introduce this edition’s species spotlight: the Eastern White Pine.

The Eastern white pine is one of two pine species native to Michigan, the other being red pine. The white pine is the state tree of Michigan and one other state. Care to take a guess? The answer is below!  

Although still a common tree, this evergreen once dominated the forests of Michigan, particularly in the mid and northern parts of the state. Early records describe trees over one hundred feet tall and with trunks several feet across. There are very rare vestiges of old-growth white pines, usually in the rural northeast. This tree was the primary export during Michigan’s heyday as a major logging state. It was a prime target for logging because of its abundance, large size, and lightweight, straight-grained wood. Different Native American peoples used the tree in different ways: some using the young cones in stews, some eating the inner bark as a survival food, and some using the sap to waterproof baskets and heal wounds. The needles can be brewed into a tea high in vitamin C. 

The seeds, shoots, and inner bark are eaten by a variety of birds and mammals. Like other evergreens, this tree provides excellent cover and habitat for many animals.The Latin name is pinus strobus. Pinus is the Latin word for pine trees, and it is believed to come from a Sanskrit word for swelling, likely a reference to the sap that “swells up.” The meaning of strobus is a bit unclear; but according to the Missouri Botanical Gardens, the word may mean something like “incense-bearing tree.” Why incense? In the ancient world, fragrant tree saps were burned as an incense. Frankincense is the most common example. So, the literal name in Latin would mean something like “incense-bearing pine” or “swelling incense-bearer.”

It is our only pine tree that has needles in clusters of five. (One common trick is to remember that white also has five letters, so the five needles are a giveaway!) The other pines have needle clusters in two or three. The needles grow be 2 to 5 inches and are much finer than the other pines, giving the tree a much softer texture than any other conifer growing in Michigan, native and otherwise. This tree is fast-growing and long-lived, and its shape and texture make it an excellent specimen in the landscape, although the tree needs to be grown with some care. 

White pine prefers fertile, moist, well-draining soils, and is intolerant of clay and compacted soils, making it difficult to establish where heavy equipment has compacted the soil. It is also intolerant of air pollution, making it a poor choice for urban contexts. Further horticultural challenges include the tree’s intolerance of hot summers. Several introduced pathogens and insects are causing declines in white pine populations as well. That said, at a global scale it is listed as a species of least concern, meaning it is at no risk of extinction.

We are lucky to have several healthy white pines on our campus; my favorite is on the eastern side of the cemetery and can be found just off the main paths. It really is a lovely tree!

This tree is the state tree of Michigan and Maine!   

Adrian Dominican Sisters

Permaculture Program

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