Days 4 and 5 of the PDC we are teaching in the Eastern Province of Rwanda saw us giving lessons on all things trees, from pruning to food forest to agroforestry.

Before we did this though, we finished off the hillside that we had begun to swale, terrace and use other water strtegies on the day before.....in the same fashion as the day before the course participants had finished the work in a fraction of the time it would take a group of Aussies!

We then planted our bananna circles and terraced veg. garden.

There is a wealth of knowledge in the group so I utilised the skills of a local agronomist who specialises in Agroforestry, to enhance the sections on pruning, coppice and pollard management.

At the end of day 4 we set a design task which was then worked on and presented the next day.....with amazing results, they all just 'got it'

Ricks blog from yesterday:

Permaculture is not just about fruit and vegetables.

Looking at the whole picture is important. Eg Improving the efficiency of the stove reduces the amount of smoke in the cooks lungs. Reduces the firewood needed to be cut. Which cuts down on environmental damage.Less trees removed.

An efficient stove means a little more freetime for the cook and the chopper. Designing more freetime means time to think and develope. When you work all the time ,then it's hard to break out of the paridigm.