Bios

~ ORIGIN OF A PERMACULTURIST ~
by Bonnie Willow

My husband Gary thinks his story of how he got into Permaculture would be boring to
you. I think it makes an interesting map, for those who wonder what steps they could
take to begin on this path. Here is Gary's story, from my perspective.

Gary had always been a semi-organic gardener and environmentalist. In the 1990's
Organic Gardening Magazine inspired us to integrate more of those ideas into our
current gardening methods, and to learn more about organic gardening. When we
both read the book "Behaving As If the God In All Life Mattered", by Machaelle Small
Wright at Perelandra Gardens (and then her book "Co-Creative Science"), we began
expanding our considerations to include interactions within the greater web of all life,
and the planet itself.

Around this time, careful stewardship of the Earth became a more central theme in
Gary's life. He became involved in year-round Earth Day activities, recycling, and with
the Pesticide Action Network. Alternative energy sources (wind, solar, etc) and
alternative non-toxic and earth-friendly housing were subjects he studied thoroughly.
His personal interests included how businesses could change their methods to go
from polluting and wasting, to clean and green and productive. As he read dozens of
books on related subjects, he discovered "Introduction To Permaculture" by Bill
Mollison, and recognized it as an important turning point in his life. He became more
serious about his calling, then.

We bought a home with 1/3 acre in Colorado Springs in 1999. The yard was almost
entirely weeds as tall as our heads. We began to garden and restore the place in an
organic manner. My perennial interest in edible and medicinal indigenous plants and
lack of belief in "weeds" meant that our methods included those native plants, rather
than pulling everything out and starting over. We have a large vegetable garden
which is tended according the the principles of organic gardening and Permaculture.

In 2000, Gary enrolled in an internet course with Windstar Wildlife Institute in
Maryland. Right away he put his lessons into practice in our yard, creating or allowing
habitats for various forms of wildlife. In 2001 he was certified as a Wildlife Habitat
Naturalist. Early in 2002, he participated in a discussion group/class on Sustainable
Living. In the summer of 2002, he attended a two-week High-Altitude Permaculture
course at the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute in Basalt, CO. Our friend
Becky Elder (already a gardener and award-winning environmental activist) attended
the course too. Both came back invigorated with new direction and purpose.

Since that course, Gary has dedicated the next year to re-building the hard clay soil in
our yard in a big way. He has created more wildlife habitats around our yard, removed
almost all the grass in favor of drought-tolerant edible groundcovers. As a large
greenhouse seemed necessary but was not within our budget, Gary designed and
built an affordable strawbale greenhouse. He is planning a backyard forest garden
now, and has invited a pair of rabbits to live in our roomy hutch. Next he will build a
worm bin beneath the hutch, to create our own super-fertilizer!

Pikes Peak Permaculture resource and education center is the result of our many
brainstorming sessions, to determine just what Gary's deepest earth-stewardship
desire is. We hope it lights your path somewhat and helps you along your way, just as
it is doing for us.

BECKY ELDER's AUTOBIOGRAPHY

I was was first introduced to organic gardening in 1975. A few years later I tended
much larger vegetable gardens, grapes, fruit trees and herbs. My intimate contact
with the Earth tuned me into the Environmental Movement of the 70's. I became an
activist for wilderness and ancient forests.

As a Colorado State University Master Gardener (1995) my homespun gardening
intuition became a solid foundation. I speak from experience on backyard habitats and
the ethics of wild gardens, enhanced by my years as a wildlife rehabilitator. Certified
in permaculture design (2002) by Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute, I
have taken the path toward sustainable design and sustainable living for the future.

As a professional gardener, I have many opportunities to practice my organic craft.
Living in Manitou Springs, CO at 6500 feet, I tend my own backyard habitat and am
creating a new permaculture garden.

As a freelance writer, I share my vision with others, writing for several local
magazines and newspapers. Organic gardening, protection of the soil, and the fauna as
well as the flora, and learning more about sustainable living, is clearly my passion and
my path.

Pikes Peak Permaculture
Sustainable Organic Living