Loeks Zach - The permaculture market garden: a visual guide to a profitable whole-systems farm business

Praise For

Bringing permacultures holistic thinking to the problems of market farming,
Zach Loeks has done this burgeoning economic sector a world of good with his pithy
words and lovely drawings. Not a book about carrots, but one in which vegetables,
children, customers, trees, vision, and earthworms shape a matrix of success.
Business planning was never before this colorful, soulful, or needed for the times.

Peter Bane, author, The Permaculture Handbook

A commendable permaculture guide. If youre serious about generating
a livelihood in partnership with the land, this book is your compass. Zach Loeks
details an approach to informed ecological decision-making so close to my own
work I can be sure this book will improve agricultural landscapes and lives.

Jason Gerhardt, permaculture designer, Real Earth Design

A legacy of grateful land is surely a memorial that can capture both our
imagination and our physical effort. Such a sacred mission deserves the level of
thought Zach beckons us to pursue. Engaging in this discovery and planning
process is worth the effort, and Zach gives us another tool to engage more
strategically. Now get out paper, pencil, ruler, and graph paper.
Its that simple, and that rewarding.

Joel Salatin, Polyface Farm

A permaculture market garden is a living thing, with many moving parts,
tied to the breath of the seasons and the pulse of the earth. To grow good food while
regenerating the soil and nature is a noble endeavor. To do it profitably is essential for both
the farm and the community it serves. The Permaculture Market Garden clearly demonstrates,
with lavish illustrations and intricate details the processes of applying permaculture
theory to the design, creation and management of these evolving systems.

Darrell E. Frey, Three Sisters Farm, author,
Bioshelter Market Garden: A Permaculture Farm

There are few books that delight the senses, satisfy the scientific itch and
leave the inner environmentalist contented. Im indebted to Zach for his work,
not only for my own education, but for the many clients that seek a tome
of collected wisdom as they embark into their own farming dreams.

Javan K. Bernakevitch, B. Comn, All Points Land Design

Zach strikes me as the guy you want to spend a week on your property.
Not just for his company, but to access his wealth of knowledge and experience in
learning to understandthe natural systems at work in any given landscape. The Permaculture
Market Garden is playful in approach yet completely pragmatic in reasoning and methodology
and should be seen as the permaculturists guide to placemaking through Homesteading.
This chewy tome of goodness will help you assess the ecology, geological history and
potential future of the land you live on and work with. A wonderful guidebook
to help anyone with land big or small to thrive not just survive,
in tandem with their natural environment.

Sharon Kallis, author, Common Threads

Copyright 2017 by Jedediah Loeks.

All rights reserved.

Cover design by Diane McIntosh.

Cover art by Jedediah Loeks.

All interior art Jedediah Loeks.

Printed in Canada. First printing December 2016.

This book is intended to be educational and informative. It is not intended to serve as a guide. The author and publisher disclaim all responsibility for any liability, loss or risk that may be associated with the application of any of the contents of this book.

Inquiries regarding requests to reprint all or part of The Permaculture Market Garden should be addressed to New Society Publishers at the address below. To order directly from the publishers, please call toll-free (North America) 1-800-567-6772, or order online at www.newsociety.com

Any other inquiries can be directed by mail to:

New Society Publishers

P.O. Box 189, Gabriola Island, BC V0R 1X0, Canada

(250) 247-9737

LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA CATALOGUING IN PUBLICATION

Loeks, Zach, 1985-, author

The permaculture market garden : a visual guide to a profitable whole-systems farm business / Zach Loeks.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Issued in print and electronic formats.

ISBN 978-0-86571-826-5 (softcover).--ISBN 978-1-55092-620-0 (ebook)

1. Permaculture. 2. Horticulture. 3. Sustainable agriculture.

I. Title.

New Society Publishers mission is to publish books that contribute in fundamental ways to building an ecologically sustainable and just society, and to do so with the least possible impact on the environment, in a manner that models this vision.

Joel Salatin

B ecoming acquainted with a piece of land is a never-ending journey, especially when you come to it with a mindset of receiving its subtle messages. As an early fan of permaculture, when Mother Earth News Magazine first interviewed Bill Mollison for the iconic Plowboy interview, I remember well the notion that nothing should be done to a piece of land until the caretaker walks it monthly for a year. That made a deep impression on me, even though I was just a teenager.

Of course, American sustainability laureate Wendell Berry and prairie iconoclast Wes Jackson both extol the virtue of knowing a place before working a place. All of these great evangelists of practical land stewardship presuppose a two-way conversation between the land and the caretaker.

Listening to the land sounds mystical and the stuff of fairytales, to be sure, but those of us whose lifes work has been caressing a place know that this ear to the ground is the foundation of responsible stewardship. Its also the catalyst for massaging more out of the earth, as a lover and friend rather than conquered foe.

The more land under a persons control, the longer it takes and harder it is to discover all its nuances. Wet spots, dry spots, hot spots, cold spots, soil profiles and everything in between is a bit like the intrigue and sustaining joy of a good, healthy marriage. Although I grew up on our Polyface Farm and have lived here for nearly 60 years, just a couple of years ago I found a brand new spring nearly at the top of our highest elevation area, up in the forest.

On a late fall day I had gone up to this remote area to dream and think. The leaves were freshly off the trees, opening up the forestal understory to its winter nakedness. The setting sun at my back suddenly glistened on something through the trees that caught my attention. What was that? A piece of metal? Water?

Intrigued, I hiked down over the road embankment and stumbled upon a trickling spring. We were in a typical late-fall drought, but this spring, 900 feet higher than our farmstead house and outbuildings, offered beautiful clear water from a rocky mouth in the side of the mountain. Running at about 5 gallons per minute, this treasure was worth more than gold. Clean, high water is a godsend.