News & Events
London Permaculture Festival
Sunday 7th July, 11am-6pm
Cecil Sharp House, 2 Regent’s Park Road, London NW1 7AY
The London Permaculture Festival is held in the beautiful Arts & Crafts building of Cecil Sharp House, Camden, London. Come along for 20 workshops, a stalls market and a ‘families at the festival’ zone. Enjoy discussions, networking and learning about creative solutions for a sustainable, healthy future. Browse the stalls market and enjoy the award-winning permaculture garden that demonstrates edible, sustainable and wildlife-friendly gardening surrounding Cecil Sharp House.
The list of workshops, stalls, the workshop timetable, a video taster and more information is at the festival website https://
Early-bird: £5 discount on £20 tickets: only £15 until May 31st. Click here to book tickets
Three Acres And A Cow
Thursday 2nd May, 7pm-9:30pm
Cecil Sharp House, London
Three Acres And A Cow connects the Norman Conquest and Peasants’ Revolt to contemporary issues via the Enclosures and Industrial Revolution, drawing a compelling narrative through the people’s history of England in folk song, story and poem. Come and share in these tales as they have been shared for generations. Tickets £15, £10 Under 30. More information and booking at the website
Gardening with Nature sessions at Cecil Sharp House
Friday 3rd May and Friday 31st May, 11am-1pm
Cecil Sharp House, 2 Regent’s Park Road, London NW1 7AY
Come and join these Gardening with Nature sessions at the permaculture garden. We will be planting salad and edible flower seeds for the summer and propagating plants to sell at the London Permaculture Festival – taking cuttings and dividing plants. Cecil Sharp House is a Permaculture Learning and Demonstration Site (LAND project). If you’d like to come along please RSVP to info@permablitzlondon.com.
How to Run a Community Gardening Session for Volunteers
Thursday 9th May, 10am – 4pm
Kentish Town City Farm, 1 Cressfield Cl, London NW5 4BN
Join us in Kentish Town City Farm’s beautiful garden, as Kayode and Susannah from Permablitz London guide us through their processes for bringing together groups of volunteers.
This session will be exploring how to create a sense of community from practical gardening sessions involving volunteers. We will be discussing how we use permaculture ethics and principles to facilitate volunteer sessions and what impact that has on the experience of participants and the practical outcomes from the day. The session will look at the Permablitz London approach, which incorporates skills sharing and learning as a key part of a community gardening volunteer session. Cost: £20 per organisation – more info and booking at event web page.
Permablitz at London’s Community Kitchen
Saturday 11th May, 10am-5pm
Harrow, near Harrow & Wealdstone station (Bakerloo, Overground, Rail – 15 mins from Euston)
Paddington Garden at London’s Community Kitchen was designed by Permablitz London and opened by the King and Queen Consort in December 2022. London’s Community Kitchen saves approximately 50 tonnes of surplus food that would otherwise go to landfill to feed up to 14,000 people every week. They run free cookery schools to teach people cooking skills on a budget using surplus ingredients. The garden is used for educational purposes to demonstrate sustainable and regenerative wildlife-friendly food growing, integrating sensory/wellbeing areas.
Join us for this permablitz in the garden where we will be planting the ‘People’s Pantry’ section with summer vegetables and laying down an irrigation system. We will also be renovating the signage and setting up the tool shed. You’ll also have a chance to meet the chickens.
Mini workshops will include:
- Designing a summer vegetable polyculture
- Setting up a soaker hose irrigation system
RSVP Essential: if you want to come along you need to let us know so we know numbers for lunch, which is provided, and so we can give you all the specific details. Contact us here letting us know you want to join London’s Community Kitchen Permablitz
Grow Back Better – Permaculture Design Course
starts Saturday 11th May for 6 weekends
Hawkwood Plant Nursery, 115 Hawkwood Crescent, Chingford, E4 7UH
London’s Permaculture Design Course offers positive design for your life, your community and your world by empowering the genius inside all of us!
Running during 2024 at OrganicLea’s Hawkwood site in Chingford, this course is about regenerative learning, enabling individuals, organisations and communities to come together over six weekends to create empowering solutions to the real world challenges we are all facing in these times of change. The course will be taught by Graham Burnett (Dip. Perm Des) and some great guest teachers. Full cost £590 for 12 days. Note that we are able to offer a strictly limited number of subsidised/bursary places for people on lower incomes. For lots more information and booking see the event page
Hackney Herbal workshops in May
start Saturday 11th May
Join Hackney Herbal for their programme of workshops that show you how to use herbs in a creative way
Saturday 11th May, 11am-12:30pm – Growing Herbs Workshop at Toast Bloomsbury – Toast Store, 59 Lamb’s Conduit St, London WC1N 3NB
Sunday 19th May, 2:30pm-5:30pm – Grow Your Own Herbs Masterclass – Hackney Herbal Garden, The Trowbridge Centre, 1 Trowbridge Rd, London E9 5LD
Saturday 25th May, 3pm-5:30pm – Herb Walk at Hackney Marshes – Hackney Marshes, 18 Homerton Rd, Homerton Rd, London E9 5PF
For more details and booking see website
From pests to partners: natural pest and disease management
Sunday 12th May, 10am-1pm
Cody Dock, 11c South Crescent London E16 4TL
We all want our plants to be thriving and free of pests and diseases. Chemical solutions once promised a quick fix, but we now understand the devastating effects that pesticides have not only for our own health, but for wildlife and the wider environment. So what are we to do?
Camila Barboza is a food and herb grower, holistic gardener and forager. She currently works at Hackney Herbal, spreading the love for plants, soil, and the natural world through community gardening, courses, and workshops. More details and booking at Capital Growth website
Introduction to Permablitz Design
Starts Monday 13th May
Cecil Sharp House, Camden and Kentish Town City Farm NW5
Permaculture designers from Permablitz London Design Guild are holding another Introduction to Permablitz Design series focused on creating designs for forthcoming permablitzes that will take place at a variety of sites across London. All welcome: suitable for experienced designers, gardeners and complete beginners. Please note: the previous series was over-subscribed.
Each session is free and runs from 7pm to 9pm on the following dates: 13th May, 20th May, 27th May, 3rd June, 10th June, 17th June, 24th June, 1st July, 15th July, 22nd July
Pre-booking essential: if you would like to come along you will need to have attended 2 permablitzes beforehand. Please email Kayode or Susannah to register at info@permablitzlondon.com
Natural dye course
starts Monday 13th May
Kentish Town City Farm, 1 Cressfield Close, Camden NW5 4BN
This course is being run as a partnership between Kentish Town City Farm and Permablitz London. As well as learning about how to dye different fabrics using a range of different plant colours, you’ll also learn how to create a permaculture dye garden design that will be installed at Kentish Town City Farm.
5 sessions on Mondays – 6.30pm-8.30pm, on 13th May, 27th May, 10th June, 24th June, 22nd July. Cost £90 including materials More information and booking at the event page.
Growing Food in Small Spaces online course
Course opens 15 May, 7pm-8:30pm
online
The Permaculture Association Learn Team developed a course designed to cater for urban gardeners- a food growing course framed around climate, equity and food security, for those with any sized space. The next teacher-led version is run by Propagate.org.uk founder Abi Mordin. On this course you will benefit from Abi’s unique life experiences as a grower and food activist working across community and local food projects since the mid-90s.
Four live sessions on Wednesdays 19:00-20:30 22 May, 5 June, 19 June, 3 July. For non-members, this course costs £135 and includes a one year Permaculture Association membership, as well as membership to our exciting new online Permaculture Community Hub. Permaculture Association members receive a 25% discount. More details and booking on the website
Decision-making for small groups: Beyond cultures of domination and individualism
Thursday 16th May, 6:30pm-8pm
Online
Permaculture is much more powerful when we collaborate with others. Yet, how can we collaborate and make decisions together when we’ve been conditioned in top-down cultures of domination? What could be a more mature approach, despite the temptation of individualism? And what about our emotions and bodily experiences? Can they be a gift in working with others, rather than an obstacle to fight against, marginalise, or a driver that runs the show?
(Dr) Muzammal Hussain is an experienced Facilitator and Permaculture Designer specialising especially in social permaculture and organisational change. Muzammal has spent many years applying and refining consensus decision making processes especially in activist settings. More info and booking at the website.
Plant Health
Saturday 18th May, 10:30am-3pm
The Victorian Walled Garden, Ecolocal, The Lodge, Honeywood walk, Carshalton SM5 3NX
From mini-beasts to mega-beasts, diseases and nutrient deficiencies, it can feel as though our plants are under constant attack! In this information-packed workshop we will help you identify friend from foe and bid farewell to chemical interventions as we take you through the organic way of plant health management. Created and delivered by our RHS qualified tutor, this workshop will give you the knowledge you need to navigate your way to a thriving and pest-free plot. More details and booking on the event website.
Create your food growing curriculum
Wednesday 22nd May,2pm-4:30pm
Paper Garden, Teredo Street, London, SE16 7LW
Explore Global Generation’s Paper Garden to learn through interactive activities and gain practical insights into structuring your school food-growing site with the curriculum. This session is tailored for educators, public health professionals and anyone interested in food growing in schools and community spaces. More details and booking at Capital Growth website
Permablitz at Kentish Town City Farm Community Garden
Sunday 19th May, 10am-4.30pm
Kentish Town, Camden
This permablitz is being organised as part of the partnership between Permablitz London and Kentish Town City Farm. We will be planting up the Community Garden with vegetables and herbs using a permaculture plant community design, mixing plants that play different roles for a garden that feeds both people and wildlife. We will also be setting up watering systems: both rainwater catchment and a soaker hose irrigation system.
Mini-workshops will include:
- Setting up a rainwater catchment system
- Using a soaker hose irrigation system
- The different roles that plants play in the permaculture design
RSVP Essential: if you want to come along you need to let Permablitz London know so we know numbers for lunch, which is provided, and so we can give you all the specific details. Contact us letting them know you want to join the Kentish Town City Farm Permablitz.
Empower Climate Action with Permaculture: Donate Today
The Permaculture Association has launched a Crowdfunder to develop critical climate resources for schools, making permaculture more visible in local communities. Support them to empower more people to take climate action through permaculture. Donate today and your donation will not only be doubled by Aviva, but you can choose from one
of their amazing rewards. From soil testing kits, memberships, online courses and one-to-one consultancy, now is the best time to support this critical work.
Permaculture Magazine
The new issue of Permaculture magazine, PM120 Summer 2024, starts to arrive with subscribers this week and will be in stores for the weekend in the UK (a little later overseas).
This weekend, our friends at Permaculture magazine are offering our networks FREE digital access to their current issue, PM119 issue. Simply click on this link to view.
Their brand new issue PM120 is out this weekend. This link explains about the sudden passing of Permaculture magazine founder Tim Harland, the work they continue to do and how you can support them by buying a Legacy Subscription … I hope you can subscribe, it is ace!. Also, all subscribers get a whopping 25% discount off of their Permanent Publications books – Buying from them directly is the equivalent of shopping locally and helps to keep revenues within the permaculture community.
Forthcoming Events
Gardening with Nature – Martine Drake
starts Saturday 1st June
Edible Landscapes London, Finsbury Park
Martine Drake is a permaculturist with a degree in Agricultural Botany. Her previous Gardening with Nature courses have sold out at ELL and we are excited to host her in 2024. She has come to realise that understanding plants as being like people makes gardening easier and more likely to succeed.
June Sessions Session 1 : Saturday 1st June 11am-4pm, Session 2 : Saturday 8th June 11am-4pm, Session 3 : Saturday 15th June 11am-4pm
for more information and booking see events page
Individual actions lead to collective impact: 100 voices for our planet with Guest Sonono and Lumbie Mlambo.
Wednesday 12th June,5pm-6:30pm
Online
A story of remarkable individuals and organisations whose commitments to eco-conscious living are shaping a sustainable future for our planet. Lumbie, founder of JB Dondolo, and author of 100 Voices for Our Planet, is on a 7-year mission to collect 100 stories about people who are passionate about protecting the environment. Guest Sonono, permaculture designer, educator and PAB member was recently featured in the UN Report, 100 Voices for our Planet. More information and booking on the website.
21st Century Permaculture Radio
Archive programmes available at https://www.mixcloud.com/21stcenturypermaculture/
Brighton Permaculture Trust
Head to the Brighton Permaculture Trust. Check out their website for news of courses, events and Permaculture by the sea. They are running a number of Online permaculture, Eco Build, and gardening courses. See the website for more details and booking.
London Permaculture Network – Interactive Project Map
The London Permaculture network has launched a map of permaculture, and permaculture-friendly projects in London. Go to https://www.londonpermaculture.com/map/ to see it. Use the map to guide yourself around the projects in your local area, and the whole of London.
This map is still being developed, and we would love your project to be included! If you would like your project added to the map please contact us at info@londonpermaculture.com
How do I get events and webinars in the newsletter?
If you want your webinars, offline & online events, and announcements to be in the London Permaculture Network newsletter (sent out at the start of each month), please email them to us, at info@londonpermaculture.com before the 15th of the month, and they will go into the next month’s newsletter.