Join us this Fall 
Sept 1-3        ✺        ​Sept 30 - Oct 1        ✺        ​Oct 14-15        ✺        ​Nov 4-5

​Learn real world, hands-on, practical permaculture
​Discover design strategies to work with nature instead of fighting it! You'll get your hands dirty and your wheels turning as we walk through the theory, concepts, tools, and techniques of permaculture design, from observation to execution!
Permaculture is an ethically based design approach to creating sustainable human communities. Although rooted in agriculture, Permaculture design also touches on ecological restoration, community development, urban planning, energy systems, and architecture.

This Permaculture Design Course (PDC) is geared towards serious homesteading and commercial Permaculture farming in the Mid-Atlantic, while leaving plenty of room for the hobbyist and the simply curious. This is an opportunity to learn Permaculture Design from professional farmers who are doing the work!

We base our courses in hands-on, practical Permaculture, and we focus on demystifying foundational concepts to give our students the confidence and skills to jump right into their own projects.  We work to hone design skills as a group and as individuals, and we also really lean in to social Permaculture, giving students important framework for success in their communities.

Registration 

Details

Over 4 Weekends Fall 2023
  • Fri-Sun, September 1-3    
  • Sat-Sun, September 30 - October 1
  • Sat-Sun, October 14-15
  • Sat-Sun, November 4-5
9am–6pm: In person in the Greater Shenandoah Valley Area

Tuition
  • $1,375 standard registration
  • $200 early registration discount until June 15
  • 10% discount for couples & veterans​
Learn Hands-on Skills on Working Farms
Tailored to the Mid-Atlantic Bio-Region
Connect with a Community
Curriculum Overview
​Below are some, but not all, of the topics covered in the course:​
​Permaculture Foundations
  • History of Permaculture
  • Principles & Ethics
  • Permaculture Around the World​
Soils 
  • ​Soil Ecology
  • Soil Testing & Analysis
  • Soil Management
Water
  • Water Ecology
  • Understanding Water on Your Site
  • How to Sink, Store & Spread Water
Food Forests
  • Orchard Design & Placement
  • Organic Orchard Management
  • Designing Plant Guilds
The Human Sector
  • Living the Ethics
  • Communication skills
  • Permaculture Cities
  • 8 Forms of Capital​
Livestock
  • Holistic Managed Grazing
  • Livestock for the Homestead
  • Silvopasture
 Fungi
  • ​Mushroom Cultivation
  • Mycoremediation
​​The Conscious Design Process
  • Zone & Sector Analysis
  • Crafting a Goals Statement
  • Client Interactions
Design Skills 
  • Reading the Landscape
  • Developing the Pattern Eye
  • Mapping 101
Permaculture Health
  • Herbal Medicine
  • Medicinal Herb Cultivation
  • Fermentation
Earthworks
  • Understanding Contour
  • Swales & Keyline Patterning
  • Ponds
​Plants
  • Our favorite Permaculture Plants
  • Plant ID
  • Plant Propagation
Permaculture Business
  • Market Gardening
  • Permaculture Farms at Many Scales
What you should know
Course structure
Our days will run from 9am - 6pm, with an hour off for lunch midday.  The course will be taught, in Permaculture fashion, by moving from patterns to details.  We will learn foundations and core concepts first, drilling down into the details as we move along.  Each day we will spend time both indoors and outdoors as we focus on observational skills and hands-on activities.  Field trips and farm tours help cement concepts and allow on-the-ground learning to take place in real time.  Typical days will see us both indoors and out, often at multiple locations. 

Who should take the course
Anyone interested in developing a productive, efficient, and ecologically sustainable landscape, including backyard gardens, farms, homesteads, and communities. Permaculture Design applies to projects of all sizes and scales!  This course will benefit the novice and the seasoned practitioner alike and is open to all regardless of experience.  We have had students from many walks of life, including college students, extension agents, professional designers, homesteaders, soon-to-be retirees looking to plan their projects, apartment dwelling professionals, master gardeners and more.  If you're uncertain where you fit into a course like this, please reach out to us at [email protected].  Whoever you are, there's a place for you in our Permaculture Design Course.

Location
The course will be held at farms throughout the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia. Exact locations and field trips will be announced closer to the start of the course.  

Field Trips & Guest Speakers
This course will be packed with field trips to regional permaculture projects and hands-on guest workshops.  Students often tell us that these are some of their favorite parts of the course. 
​
Perks
  • Students receive free plant materials to take home to start their own projects.  This varies seasonally, but previous examples include:  Elderberry cuttings. Comfrey cuttings.  Pawpaw seeds. Scion wood for grafting. 
  • Students will create and take home some sort of mushroom product.  This could be an inoculated log, bucket, cardboard roll, etc.
  • We will facilitate a seed swap during the course so that students may learn about new varieties and share their own seeds with the group.
  • There will be a potluck on one of the Saturday evenings that students are invited (optionally) to attend.  This is always a highlight.
  • Students receive a free custom t-shirt.
​
The Shenandoah Permaculture Alumni Network is active, expansive, and growing all the time.  You'll be one of many regional Permaculturists who share skills, knowledge, stories, labor and resources to build community and get the good work done!

For more information contact Jamaica Gayle at [email protected]


Scholarships
There are a small number of need-based scholarships available for the Fall '23 course. Each candidate is asked to write a personal statement demonstrating need, current work, and vision for their future with permaculture. The application should not exceed 1200 words. Scholarship applications will open on May 1 and close June 1, 2023.