Search the docs, videos, blog, apps, teams, skills and release notes.
At a glance
What it is
Guide to permaculture design including core principles, zone planning, food forests, companion planting, water management, soil building, seasonal planning, and community garden design.
A skill is a written procedure a bot loads when a job calls for it. This one is a single file, SKILL.md, and the whole file is on this page.
The whole file, exactly as it downloads. Read it before you rely on it.
SKILL.md
376 lines · 2,493 words
Gather requirements. Ask the user clarifying questions about their specific context, goals, constraints, and experience level.
Analyze the situation. Review the information provided and identify key factors, challenges, and opportunities relevant to permaculture designer.
Guide to permaculture design including core principles, zone planning, food forests, companion planting, water management, soil building, seasonal planning, and community garden design.
Nothing. It ships with Murage, which is open source. Your bots run on the AI plan you already have.
Yes. Open it in Settings → Skills to read, edit or duplicate it. Skill Guard scans it again after every edit.
Download the app, connect the AI you already pay for, and tell your Chief of Staff what needs doing. Plan on about ten minutes from install to a working team.
No account needed · Runs on the AI plan you already pay for
Paste it into your agent's instructions (CLAUDE.md, AGENTS.md or a custom GPT), or add it to a bot in Murage.
Ask Ember for the bot, then switch the skill on in its settings.
Step 1
Send your Chief of Staff this message. It proposes the bot and its role first, and creates it when you say go.
Send this to Ember
“Create a bot that uses the Permaculture Designer skill, and show me the plan first.”
You're done when your Chief proposes the bot and its role, and the bot appears in your sidebar once you say go.
Step 2
You're done when you see the bot’s skills and the library.
Step 3
You're done when the skill shows as on for that bot.
Step 4
You're done when the bot takes the job and opens the skill when it needs it.
Prefer to do it yourself? Choose + in the sidebar, then New Bot.Read the full guide to skills and Skill Guard
What it teaches a bot, what it covers, and the whole file to read.
What it covers
When to Use
Process
Questions to Ask First
Permaculture Design Principles
Zone Planning
Food Forest Design
Companion Planting Guide
Water Management
Soil Building
Seasonal Planning
Community Garden Design
Safety Considerations
Progression Path
Resources
Output Format
Example
Edge Cases
Develop the framework. Create a structured approach tailored to the user's needs, incorporating best practices and domain-specific considerations.
Deliver actionable output. Present specific, implementable recommendations with clear rationale, timelines, and success criteria.
Address edge cases. Proactively identify potential issues, alternative approaches, and contingency plans.
Use this skill when:
User needs guidance on permaculture designer
User asks about permaculture designer best practices or techniques
User wants a structured approach to permaculture designer
Do NOT use this skill when:
A more specialized skill exists for the specific subtopic
The request is outside the scope of permaculture designer
Before designing a permaculture system:
What is your site like? (Size, slope, sun exposure, soil type, climate zone)
What are your goals? (Food production, wildlife habitat, water management, beauty, all of the above)
How much time can you dedicate to maintenance? (1 hour/week, 5 hours/week, full-time)
What is your experience with gardening or land management?
Do you own the property, or is this a rental/community space?
What is your budget for initial implementation? ($100 / $500 / $2,000 / $10,000+)
What is your USDA Hardiness Zone? (Find at planthardiness.ars.usda.gov)
What are your water sources? (Municipal, well, rainwater, irrigation access)
Are there any restrictions? (HOA rules, local ordinances, deed restrictions)
Who else will be involved in the project?
Earth Care: Work with natural systems, build soil, protect biodiversity
People Care: Meet human needs sustainably, build community
Fair Share: Limit consumption, redistribute surplus, share abundance
Observe and interact: Spend a full year observing your site before major changes
Catch and store energy: Harvest water, sunlight, biomass, and nutrients
Obtain a yield: Ensure every element produces something useful
Apply self-regulation and accept feedback: Learn from mistakes, adjust
Use and value renewable resources: Prefer perennials, solar, wind, biological
Produce no waste: Every output becomes an input elsewhere
Design from patterns to details: Observe natural patterns, then apply locally
Integrate rather than segregate: Every element serves multiple functions
Use small and slow solutions: Start small, scale what works
Use and value diversity: Polyculture over monoculture
Use edges and value the marginal: Edges between ecosystems are most productive
Creatively use and respond to change: Work with succession, adapt to conditions
Zones organize your landscape by frequency of use and maintenance needs:
Zone 0: The Home
Indoor food production (sprouts, herbs on windowsill)
Energy efficiency
Thermal mass and passive solar design
Indoor air quality plants
Zone 1: Intensive Use (Daily visits)
Kitchen herb garden
Salad greens and frequently harvested vegetables
Compost bins
Rainwater collection
Worm farm
Small animal housing (chickens, rabbits if allowed)
Typically within 50 feet of the home
Zone 2: Semi-Intensive (Regular maintenance)
Main vegetable garden
Perennial vegetables
Small fruit trees and berry bushes
Larger compost system
Beehives
Small pond
Cover crops and green manures
Zone 3: Farm Zone (Occasional maintenance)
Orchard and food forest
Staple crops (corn, potatoes, grains on larger sites)
Pasture for livestock
Hay meadow
Larger water storage (dam, large swale)
Zone 4: Semi-Wild (Minimal management)
Managed woodland for timber, mushrooms, nuts
Wild food foraging areas
Grazing land managed with rotational grazing
Wildlife corridors
Zone 5: Wild (No management)
Unmanaged natural area
Wildlife habitat
Observation and learning area
Seed source for native plants
Watershed protection
Map external energies affecting your site:
Sun sector: Track sun path across seasons (shade patterns shift dramatically)
Wind sector: Prevailing wind directions by season
Water sector: Where water flows during rain, flood risk areas
Fire sector: Wildfire risk direction and buffer needs
Noise/visual sector: Screen undesirable views, buffer highway noise
Wildlife sector: Animal movement corridors, pest entry points
A designed ecosystem mimicking a natural forest structure, with all layers producing food, medicine, or useful materials.
Canopy layer: Large trees (apple, pear, pecan, chestnut, walnut)
Understory tree layer: Small trees (plum, cherry, persimmon, pawpaw, hazelnut)
Shrub layer: Berry bushes (blueberry, elderberry, gooseberry, currant, hazelnut)
Herbaceous layer: Perennial herbs and vegetables (comfrey, rhubarb, artichoke, sorrel, mint)
Ground cover layer: Low-growing edibles (strawberry, clover, creeping thyme, violets)
Vine layer: Climbing plants (grape, kiwi, passionflower, hops, hardy kiwi)
Root layer: Root crops (Jerusalem artichoke, groundnut, horseradish, turmeric)
Mycelial layer: Mushrooms (shiitake on logs, wine caps in mulch, oyster mushrooms)
Site assessment: Sun, water, soil, microclimate
Choose canopy trees first: These define the system (plant spacing matters most)
Select understory trees: Choose species that tolerate partial shade
Plan shrub and herbaceous layers: Fill gaps with productive species
Add ground covers: Living mulch that suppresses weeds and feeds soil
Install vines: On trees, trellises, or fences (be careful of smothering smaller trees)
Incorporate mushroom cultivation: Inoculated logs and wood chip beds
Mulch heavily: 4-6 inches of wood chip or straw mulch everywhere bare soil exists
Large fruit trees: 20-30 feet apart
Small fruit trees: 12-18 feet apart
Berry bushes: 4-8 feet apart
Herbaceous plants: 1-3 feet apart
Plant the north side of the food forest with tallest trees (Northern Hemisphere)
Corn: Tall stalk provides support for beans
Beans: Fix nitrogen in soil for corn and squash
Squash: Large leaves shade soil, suppress weeds, retain moisture
| Plant | Good Companions | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Tomatoes | Basil, carrots, parsley, marigolds | Fennel, brassicas |
| Peppers | Basil, onions, spinach, tomatoes | Fennel, kohlrabi |
| Beans | Corn, squash, cucumber, carrots | Onions, garlic, fennel |
| Carrots | Onions, leeks, tomatoes, peas | Dill, parsnips |
| Lettuce | Carrots, radishes, strawberries, chives | None significant |
| Brassicas | Onions, garlic, beets, celery | Strawberries, tomatoes |
| Cucumbers | Beans, corn, peas, radishes, sunflowers | Potatoes, aromatic herbs |
| Roses | Garlic, chives, lavender, marigolds | None significant |
Plants that mine deep nutrients and make them available at the surface:
Comfrey: Potassium, calcium, phosphorus (the "king" of permaculture plants)
Yarrow: Potassium, phosphorus, copper
Dandelion: Potassium, calcium, iron
Borage: Potassium, calcium, attracts pollinators
Chop and drop these plants as mulch around fruit trees and vegetables
Trees: Black locust, alder, autumn olive (caution: invasive in some regions)
Shrubs: Siberian pea shrub, goumi
Herbaceous: Clover, vetch, lupine, alfalfa
Interplant nitrogen fixers throughout the food forest and garden
Swales: Level ditches on contour that catch and infiltrate rainwater
Dig a ditch along the contour line (level from end to end, NOT running downhill)
Pile excavated soil on the downhill side (the berm)
Plant the berm with trees and shrubs (roots stabilize and absorb)
Swales slow, spread, and sink water into the landscape
Spacing: 30-60 feet apart on gentle slopes, closer on steeper slopes
Shallow depression planted with native species that tolerate wet and dry
Capture runoff from roofs, driveways, and paved areas
Size: Roughly 20% of the area draining into it
Depth: 4-8 inches deep
Native plants with deep roots preferred (coneflower, switchgrass, iris)
Overflow outlet for major storms
Roof collection: 1 inch of rain on 1,000 sq ft roof = 623 gallons
First flush diverter: Removes initial dirty water from roof
Storage: Tanks, cisterns, barrels (55 gallon to 10,000+ gallon)
Use: Garden irrigation, livestock, toilet flushing (check local codes)
Check regulations: Some states restrict rainwater harvesting (most allow it)
Advanced water management system for farms and large properties
Uses the natural topography to spread water from valleys to ridges
Keyline plow creates shallow channels that redirect water
Dramatically increases soil water-holding capacity
Requires professional survey for proper implementation
Healthy soil is a living ecosystem containing billions of organisms per teaspoon:
Bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, arthropods, earthworms
Mycorrhizal fungi form networks connecting plant roots (the "wood wide web")
Building soil biology is more important than adding fertilizers
Sheet mulching (lasagna gardening): Layer cardboard, compost, straw/wood chips directly over grass or weeds. Plant into it after decomposition (3-6 months).
Composting: Hot compost (thermophilic, 130-160F) for fast results, cold compost for less effort
Vermicomposting: Red wiggler worms process kitchen scraps into castings
Cover cropping: Plant clover, rye, vetch, or buckwheat during fallow periods
Chop and drop: Cut plants (especially comfrey) and leave on soil surface as mulch
Biochar: Charcoal mixed with compost and added to soil for long-term carbon storage
No-till / minimal disturbance: Avoid turning soil, which disrupts fungal networks
Get a soil test before major planting (through local agricultural extension office, $15-30)
Test for: pH, nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), organic matter, micronutrients
Retest every 2-3 years to track improvement
Most vegetables prefer pH 6.0-7.0
Most fruit trees prefer pH 6.0-6.5
Blueberries prefer pH 4.5-5.5 (acidic)
Start seeds indoors (6-8 weeks before last frost)
Sheet mulch new garden areas
Divide and transplant perennials
Plant trees and shrubs (while dormant or just breaking bud)
Apply compost to established beds
Set up rainwater collection before spring rains
Succession plant quick crops (lettuce, radishes) every 2-3 weeks
Mulch heavily to retain moisture
Chop and drop comfrey and dynamic accumulators
Monitor and manage pests (beneficial insect habitat is your defense)
Harvest and preserve (canning, drying, freezing)
Plan fall plantings
Plant garlic, onions, and overwintering crops
Seed cover crops on empty beds
Plant trees and shrubs (good root establishment before winter)
Collect seeds from successful plants
Build soil with leaf mulch (fall leaves are gold)
Clean and store season-extension equipment
Plan next season's garden design
Order seeds and bare-root plants
Prune dormant fruit trees
Build and repair infrastructure (beds, trellises, paths)
Study and take courses
Start indoor microgreens and sprouts
Minimum 6 hours direct sunlight
Water access (hose bib, irrigation connection)
Reasonable distance from participants' homes
Secure (fencing, visibility from street or buildings)
Not contaminated (test soil for lead, especially in urban areas)
Individual plots: 4x8 or 4x12 feet typical (raised beds in contaminated soil areas)
Shared/communal areas: Herb spiral, perennial beds, tool shed
Pathways: 3-4 feet wide for wheelbarrow access, ADA accessible
Water stations distributed throughout (every 50-100 feet)
Gathering space: Picnic table, shade structure, bulletin board
Compost area: Central, with clear usage guidelines
Perimeter: Fruit trees, berry bushes, or pollinator hedgerow
Written rules and agreement signed by all participants
Plot assignment process (waitlist, lottery, priority for returning gardeners)
Maintenance responsibilities (individual plots + shared areas)
Water usage policy
Organic-only policy (recommended, prevents neighbor chemical drift)
Conflict resolution process
Seasonal cleanup requirements
Test soil for contaminants before growing food (especially urban sites, former industrial land, near old buildings with lead paint)
Use raised beds with imported soil if contamination is found
Be aware of poisonous plants on your site (castor bean, foxglove, hemlock)
Wear gloves when handling compost (tetanus risk from soil bacteria)
Use appropriate sun protection during long outdoor work sessions
Secure water features to prevent drowning hazard (especially for children)
Be aware of local wildlife: Snakes, ticks, poison ivy/oak/sumac
Phase 1: Observe your site for one full year, build soil, start sheet mulching
Phase 2: Establish Zone 1 garden (herbs, salad, compost), install rain barrel
Phase 3: Plant first fruit trees, establish perennial beds, build swales
Phase 4: Develop food forest layers, expand to Zone 2-3
Phase 5: Integrate animals (chickens, bees), advanced water management
Phase 6: Design for community, teach others, earn PDC (Permaculture Design Certificate)
Books: "Gaia's Garden" by Toby Hemenway (best beginner book)
Books: "The Permaculture Handbook" by Peter Bane
Books: "Edible Forest Gardens" by Dave Jacke (comprehensive food forest reference)
Courses: PDC (Permaculture Design Certificate) - 72-hour course available worldwide
Online: Oregon State University permaculture courses, Verge Permaculture YouTube
Organizations: Permaculture Institute, local permaculture guilds
Software: Google Earth for site analysis, Sun Surveyor app for solar analysis
Deliver the response as a structured document with clear headings and actionable content. Use tables for comparisons, numbered lists for sequential steps, and bullet points for options. Include specific examples where applicable.
[Permaculture Designer deliverable]
1. Context and objectives
2. Analysis or framework
3. Specific recommendations with rationale
4. Action items with timelineInput: "Help me with permaculture designer for a mid-size project."
Output: A complete permaculture designer framework tailored to the specific context, with actionable steps, relevant considerations, and measurable outcomes.
Incomplete information: Ask clarifying questions before proceeding rather than making assumptions
Conflicting requirements: Identify trade-offs explicitly and present options with pros and cons
Scale mismatch: Adapt recommendations to match the user's context (individual vs. team vs. organization)
Domain crossover: When the request overlaps with other skill domains, address what falls within scope and reference specialized skills for the rest
SKILL.md
376 lines · 2,493 words
The text of SKILL.md is shown as it downloads, under the Apache-2.0 license, by Ferrox Labs. The license is the one in the file's own frontmatter.
Your new bot
Permaculture Designer bot
Waiting in your sidebar once you say go.
No account needed · Runs on the AI plan you already pay for