16 Best Permaculture Books for Sustainable Food Production
Permaculture stands as a hope against the earth’s degradation due to unsustainable land use, land exploitation, food insecurity, and pollution. In a world where natural resources continue to deplete, people have to become more aware of ecologically sustainable ways of living.
Permaculture is a term combined from two words; permanent and agriculture. Two Australian ecologists, Bill Mollison and David Holmgren coined the word in 1978. Permaculture describes ‘an integrated, evolving system of perennial or self-perpetuating plant and animal species useful to man1.’
Ecologist Bill Mollison discovered the sustainability and integration of natural ecosystems like forests and wetlands by critically observing nature.
Today, several permaculture books and courses are studied worldwide. We have curated a list of some of the best permaculture books that provide education, insights, and practical methods to get involved in permaculture principles and practice.
If you are new to permaculture, you can check out our article on permaculture and its principles for some background knowledge on the subject. Or, for more sustainable reading, click on to our guide to the best books on foraging next.
16 Best Permaculture Books List
Quick links to our picks of the best permaculture books for sustainable food, growing, and gardening read:
- 1. Introduction to Permaculture
- 2. Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture
- 3. Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability
- 4. The Earth Care Manual: A Permaculture Handbook for Britain and Other Temperate Climates
- 5. Earth User's Guide to Permaculture
- 6. The Permaculture Promise
- 7. Practical Permaculture: for Home Landscapes, Your Community, and the Whole Earth
- 8. The Basics of Permaculture Design
- 9. Permaculture Design: A Step-by-Step Guide
- 10. The Permaculture Garden
- 11. Creating a Forest Garden: Working with Nature to Grow Edible Crops
- 12. Edible Forest Gardens: Ecological Design And Practice For Temperate-Climate Permaculture
- 13. Bioshelter Market Garden: A Permaculture Farm
- 14. Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond: Guiding Principles to Welcome Rain into Your Life and Landscape
- 15. Farming the Woods: An Integrated Permaculture Approach to Growing Food and Medicinals in Temperate Forests
- 16. The Permaculture City: Regenerative Design for Urban, Suburban, and Town Resilience
1. Introduction to Permaculture
by Bill Mollison
The Author
Bruce Charles ‘Bill’ Mollison was the originator of the concept of permaculture. He is an Australian biologist, teacher, scientist, author, and researcher. Using permaculture design principles, he has taught thousands of people to produce food sustainably. He died in Hobart, Tasmania, in 2016, at the age of 88.
The Book
Introduction to Permaculture goes over the basics of permaculture. It explains the concept, basic permaculture principles, designs, and how to get started. The book also covers a list of permaculture plants and their uses.
It uses simple language and many illustrations and diagrams to help beginners gain the knowledge to get started. As the title implies, Mollison will introduce you to the topic of permaculture and why it is important.
2. Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture
by Toby Hemenway
The Author
Toby Hemenway was an American author and educator. He wrote mainly on permaculture and other ecological matters. He presented lectures at various sustainability conferences and workshops. He also worked as a researcher in genetics and immunology. He died at the age of 64 in 2016.
The Book
Reviewers describe Gaia’s Garden as one of the best permaculture books for home gardeners. In this book, Hemenway explains that creating an ecological system doesn't have to be on a large scale. This book demonstrates that even a beginner can create a backyard ecosystem by gathering a community of plants that can work together.
It provides a comprehensive guide to perform various functions, including maintaining soil fertility, conserving water, providing a habitat for animals, and growing an edible “forest” that yields fruits. It also touches on the subject of urban permaculture for people who live in cities and have limited space. This book teaches you how to create a beautiful ecological garden.
3. Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability
by David Holmgren
The Author
David Holmgren is one of the co-originators of permaculture with ecologist Bill Mollison. He is an Australian environmental designer, educator, and writer. Holmgren channels his efforts toward refining his theories and teaching on the subject of permaculture.
The Book
David Holmgren gathers lessons from 25 years of experience to deepen the readers' knowledge of the ever-growing permaculture concept. This book takes a more scientific approach, covering more technical aspects of permaculture. The Book expands on concepts and thought processes from Bill Mollison. It comes with graphical illustrations, references, and practical solutions. In this book, you are sure to get an in-depth knowledge of different permaculture topics backed up with scientific proof.
4. The Earth Care Manual: A Permaculture Handbook for Britain and Other Temperate Climates
by Patrick Whitefield
The Author
Patrick Whitefield was an initial pioneer of permaculture in Europe. He modified Bill Mollison’s teachings with a bias toward the cooler maritime climate of the British Isles. He has also taught several permaculture courses around the UK.
The Book
The Earth Care Manual presents a practical guide on applying permaculture to any situation, from buildings to gardens, farms, and woodlands. This book serves as a designer’s permaculture manual.
For anyone committed to a sustainable future, this permaculture book includes topics essential to sustainability, including food, energy, water, shelter, and microclimate - explaining the permaculture design process.
5. Earth User's Guide to Permaculture
by Rosemary Morrow
The Author
Rosemary Morrow is an Australian author known globally for her effective methods of developing a permaculture system over various environments. Rosemary has worked extensively with farmers and villagers across different continents.
The Book
Earth User’s Guide to Permaculture is an excellent resource for both beginners and expert permaculture practitioners. This permaculture book outlines permaculture design principles and techniques for self-sufficiency. You can apply these techniques and principles to urban and rural settings. This book is excellent for beginners who want a practical lesson on permaculture.
6. The Permaculture Promise
by Jono Neiger
The Author
Jono Neiger is a biologist, permaculture educator, and designer. Jono teaches at various colleges, workshops, and conferences drawing on over 30 years of professional experience in permaculture.
The Book
The book briefly explains why permaculture could be the key to a habitable future on our planet. The book reveals 22 ways that permaculture can create a more sustainable future for all living things. Jono emphasizes that humans can live while making the earth healthier. This book inspires implementing permaculture principles in your daily life.
7. Practical Permaculture: for Home Landscapes, Your Community, and the Whole Earth
by Jessi Bloom & Dave Boehnlein
The Author
Jessi Bloom is an ecological designer, author, and speaker with a strong background in environmental sciences.
The Book
Practical Permaculture gives authoritative and in-depth knowledge for a more universal approach to sustainable living. Both authors explain the basics of permaculture and share their design processes. They also examine different permaculture systems, including water, food, energy, plants, animals, and so on. Also, the book covers useful plants for permaculture landscapes.
8. The Basics of Permaculture Design
by Ross Mars
The Author
Ross Mars is a permaculture teacher, consultant, and designer with many years of experience actively involved in permaculture education. He has also created an educational video on energy-efficient housing called Passive Solar Design of Buildings.
The Book
This book dives into the principles of permaculture, its design processes, and the tools needed to design sustainable gardens and communities. It presents illustrations and valuable tips to guide you through designs for gardens, water harvesting systems, animal systems, as well as permaculture in small spaces like balconies.
Some chapters also cover the subject of appropriate technology, wind and hydro-power, pumping water, and cooking devices. This book is an excellent guide for enthusiasts and permaculture designers.
9. Permaculture Design: A Step-by-Step Guide
by Aranya
The Author
Aranya has since been exploring what permaculture can do since his design course. He has designed many gardens, along with some other non-land-based designs. He has now pursued teaching that involves delivering around ten two-week design courses a year. Aranya is also a barefoot enthusiast.
The Book
This unique, step-by-step guide leads you through the design process from beginning to end. It uses practical examples, flowcharts, and diagrams. This book is based on course worksheets that have been designed and tested on students over some time.
He links theory to practice by placing the ethics, principles, philosophies, tools, and techniques into the context of the design process. This is a great book for anyone with a basic understanding of permaculture. It is also an excellent resource for experienced designers. If you want to take a permaculture course, this book will be an excellent reference.
10. The Permaculture Garden
by Graham Bell
The Author
Graham Bell was the former editor of Permaculture News. He also worked for the Prince’s Trust and is now a freelance environmental consultant.
The Book
The Permaculture Garden is one of the best permaculture books full of practical ideas that will help you turn bare land into a beautiful and sustainable garden. In this book, you will learn how to plan your garden and crops. It will also teach you to save energy, water, and other natural resources. It is informative and easy to understand. With this book, you will be able to create your own garden.
11. Creating a Forest Garden: Working with Nature to Grow Edible Crops
by Martin Crawford
The Author
Martin Crawford is a British author and founder of the Agroforestry Research Trust. This non-profit charity focuses on researching temperate agroforestry and other areas of plant cropping with a focus on shrubs, trees, and perennial crops.
The Book
This book is a practical guide to forest gardening and permaculture. It teaches you how to create a forest garden, from its planting to its design and maintenance. It further explains how to design a forest garden from the top to the bottom layer.
This book provides a gardener’s guide to over 500 trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, annuals, tree crops, and climbers. It also features more familiar plants like figs and apple trees that are suitable for temperate forest gardens. With this book, you can learn to create food forests and forest gardens.
12. Edible Forest Gardens: Ecological Design And Practice For Temperate-Climate Permaculture
by Dave Jacke with Eric Toensmeier
The Author
Dave is a passionate teacher of ecological design and permaculture. He is also a designer and consultant and has designed landscapes, homes, farms, and communities in the United States and abroad.
The Book
This is a two-volume permaculture book that looks at the concept of forest ecology and how it affects the needs of natural gardeners in temperate climates. Volume I provides a great overview of the concept of forest gardening and the basic ecological principles that make it work.
In volume II, the book takes it a step further to explain how to design, build and maintain your forest garden. It presents case studies, tables, illustrations, and a list of the best plant species. Both books are excellent resources for those who want to pursue an advanced course in ecological gardening.
13. Bioshelter Market Garden: A Permaculture Farm
by Darrell Frey
The Author
Darrell Frey is an author and a permaculture design consultant. He owns and manages a permaculture farm in Western Pennsylvania. He has also been a permaculture teacher and consultant for years.
The Book
If you want to make a living from the permaculture lifestyle, this book is a great inspiration. This book explains creating a sustainable food system using an in-depth case study of Pennsylvania's Three Sisters Farm.
It uses illustrations and details of a permaculture design and, at the same time, the management of a permaculture farm. You are sure to get a wealth of information on permaculture principles to guide your organic gardening ambitions.
14. Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond: Guiding Principles to Welcome Rain into Your Life and Landscape
by Brad Lancaster
The Author
Brad Lancaster is an author, teacher, and designer of regenerative systems. He has taught across several continents, including Africa, Asia, Europe, and Australia. He has worked to legalize and provide guidance for water harvesting systems in several cities. He aims to boost the health and wealth of many communities.
The Book
This two-volume set book goes through various rainwater harvesting techniques. It guides you on conceptualizing, designing, and creating natural harvesting systems for your home and community.
The book contains strategies and illustrations that teach you to conserve natural resources like water. With skills on how to control your water harvesting system, you can reduce your cost of living and notch up the skills that enable you to become self-reliant.
15. Farming the Woods: An Integrated Permaculture Approach to Growing Food and Medicinals in Temperate Forests
by Ken Mudge
The Author
Ken Mudge is a teacher and researcher with twenty years of experience in agroforestry research and teaching. He teaches various courses, including a practicum in forest farming, plant propagation, and grafting.
The Book
This book provides a detailed guide for farmers and gardeners with an established woodland. It is in search of innovative ways to build a natural forest ecosystem that provides year-round food, medicine, and other products.
This is a must-read for farmers and gardeners who want to incorporate various aspects of agroforestry, permaculture, and sustainable woodland management into their whole farm.
16. The Permaculture City: Regenerative Design for Urban, Suburban, and Town Resilience
By Toby Hemenway
The Author
Toby Hemenway was an American author and educator. He wrote mainly on permaculture and other ecological matters. He presented lectures at various sustainability conferences and workshops. He also worked as a researcher in genetics and immunology. He died at the age of 64 in 2016.
The Book
This book focuses on permaculture in cities and urban areas. It teaches readers how to design an urban home garden, illustrating methods and techniques for gardening. It also gives practical examples of how to create enough food, close communities, and a sustainable policy for towns and cities. With this book, you can understand the harmony between nature and how we can make better decisions for our world.
Conclusion
Permaculture is a concept that has been around for many years. Whether you are looking to create a backyard farm or an entire farmhouse, you will find one book to help you on your journey to sustainable living. These books stem from famous authors and experts in permaculture, including its originator, Bill Mollison.
| 1 | David Holmgren (2020) Essence of Permaculture (pdf) Revised edition 2020. |
Jen’s a passionate environmentalist and sustainability expert. With a science degree from Babcock University Jen loves applying her research skills to craft editorial that connects with our global changemaker and readership audiences centered around topics including zero waste, sustainability, climate change, and biodiversity.
Elsewhere Jen’s interests include the role that future technology and data have in helping us solve some of the planet’s biggest challenges.
