PHILOSOPHY
Hungry Gnome Gardenscapes is dedicated to empowering people to grow their own food. Growing food connects us to the fundamental processes of life and can fulfill us in ways that little else can. Growing your own food (even if it is just a small amount) has wide ramifications ranging from a personal sense of achievement and the delightful taste of food harvested minutes before eating, to a deep sense of spiritual connection with creation.
We are at a strange and unprecedented point in our civilization where very few of us have any idea how to grow food. We generally know what fruits and vegetables look like, but we don't know what the rest of the plant that grew them looks like. We don't know how tall or wide the plant is (how much garden space it takes), how much one plant produces (how many to plant), or even how to harvest food from it when it's ready (and just when is it ready?).
Learning how to grow food is similar to learning a new language, it is a vast system of knowledge and thinking that can be disorienting and intimidating if we have no guidance. Hungry Gnome Gardenscapes seeks to provide this guidance. Just as the best way to learn a language is to actively engage in speaking it, the best way to learn how to garden is to get out and grow things and we can help you overcome the hurdles to get you growing.
PERMACULTURE
Permaculture is a philosophy of designing human ecosystems that mimic and integrate peacefully with natural ones. Originally coined as a form of Permanent Agriculture by Aussies Bill Mollison an David Holmgren, Permaculture was intended as a way of rethinking sustainable food production by looking at how native & aboriginal tribes survived successfully for thousands of years; however, both soon realized that sustainable systems must also work to redefine community interaction as well.
Both Kevin & Salem of Hungry Gnome are diligent students of Permaculture, and have attended several workshops and design courses. The garden is often the first step in creating a more sustainable home, and other components include rain water catchment, waste management (compost, greywater), small-scale animal husbandry, and renewable energy design.
For more information about Permaculture, please contact us, come to an Athens Permaculture meeting (Monday's 6:30pm @ Ben's Bikes, or check out these helpful links below:
Permaculture Principles (great informational site)
Georgia Permaculture
Permaculture Research Institute of the USA
Permaculture Activist
Permies.com
A THOUGHT ON AESTHETICS
Many people think of vegetable gardens to be solely a domain of practicality and to lack aesthetic consideration. The Hungry Gnome laughs at such absurd notions and pronounces, "Let there be flowers everywhere!" The last thing we need in our lives is another realm that is all business and no play. The vegetable garden can be fulfilling and delightful in every sense - from your tongue and tummy to your eyes and nose, and all of our edible plants have their own sense of beauty and grace. One way to bring extra beauty into the garden is to plant flowers. When you catch a glimpse of these blooming beauties, they will bring YOU into the garden. They will also bring all kinds of beneficial life from insects to birds into your garden, and these friends will help control the pests that might otherwise eat your food before you do. You can also harvest these flowers to bring beauty into your home, or you can pass them on to others.
Hungry Gnome Gardenscapes strives for beauty and harmony in all things, and we will work to incorporate your garden into the existing landscape and your personal aesthetics.
ABOUT US
Kevin Yates helped found the Roots Farm CSA in 2007 with Sara Callaway and Chris Lutz, and managed the farm with Sara through the 2008 season. Hungry Gnome Gardenscapes grew out of my experience at Roots of connecting people to their food. Now I am blessed to connect people not only to their food, but to their immediate landscape. I love that my work creates these opportunities!
Salem Willard The myth of Salem Willard is mysterious indeed. Legend has it that he originated in the dream of our hero, Hungry Gnome. Sensing that the good deed of providing people with the knowledge and inspiration to envision and create their own sustainable gardens and landscapes was more than just one Gnome could manage, he dreamed up a partner in magical do-goodery. Enter the Dream. Salem's powers include a Permaculture Design Course Certificate to aid in creating holistic home systems, discipline & acuity he acquired as Sensei in the distant land of Japan to educate aspiring greenthumbs, and a B.S. of Psychology from the UGA to fan himself with on sultry summer days.