My guest for this episode is Peter Bane, author of The Permaculture Handbook: Garden Farming for Town and Country. We talk about his background, the book, his upcoming tour schedule, and he answers two listener questions. The first is about how much Zone 5 Wilderness we need for sustainable civilization. The second is a discussion of the third permaculture Ethic: Fair Share. Book Tour Dates and Locations Friday, Dec. 7th: Columbus, Ohio. A free lecture at Ohio State University from 7-9pm in the Agricultural Engineering Building, Rm 100 located at 590 Woody Hayes Dr. Saturday, Dec. 8th: Cleveland, Ohio. A permaculture seminar from 1-3pm. For more information contact Jonathan Hull: 330-559-4628 Sunday, Dec. 9th: Dundas, Ontario. A permaculture workshop at Old 99 Farm, 1580 Old Hwy 99, Ontario, from 1-5pm. Contact Ian Graham for more information: 905-537-0163 Monday, Dec. 10th: Ithaca, New York A free lecture at the Cornell Cooperative Extension at 615 Willow Street, Ithaca, from 7-9pm. Tuesday, Dec. 11th: Albany, New York A free lecture at the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Albany at 405 Washington Ave., Albany, from 7-9pm. Wednesday, Dec. 12th: Montpelier, Vermont A lecture at the Unitarian Church of Montpelier, 130 Main St, Montpelier, from 7-9pm. A donation of $3-5 is requested. Thursday, Dec. 13th: Brattleboro, Vermont An author reading and book signing at the Brattleboro Food Coop, 2 Main St., Brattleboro, from 1:30-3pm. Please bring a lunch. Thursday, Dec. 13th: Amherst, Massachusetts A free talk at Food for Thought Books, 106 N. Pleasant St., Amherst, from 6-730pm. Friday, Dec. 14th: Brooklyn, New York A free lecture at The Commons Brooklyn, 388 Atlantic Ave., Brooklyn, from 7-9pm. Saturday, Dec. 15th Philadelphia, Pa. An urban permaculture workshop co-taught with Phil Forsyth. This will be held at the Awbury Arboretum, 1 Awbury Dr, Philadephia, from 1-4pm. The contact is Phil Forsyth: 917-371-0547. You can also visit the workship page at the Arboretum's Website to register. The cost is $20. Saturday, Dec. 15th: Philadelphia, Pa. A free lecture at the Ethical Humanist Society of Philadelphia, 1906 S. Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, from 7:30-9pm. Sunday, Dec. 16th: Harrisonburg, Va. A free talk at The Clementine Cafe Lounge, 153 S. Main St., Harrisonburg, from 7-9pm. You can also check out Peter's updated tour schedule at PermacultureHandbook.com.

Listen to the episode for the full review. In the meantime, for those of you who decided to stop by the website, here is the short version: This book is good. Quite good in fact. Another definite to place on a permaculture practitioner's or enthusiast's bookshelf next to the works of Mollison, Whitefield, Morrow, and Fukuoka. An easy read, the pace of the prose grabbed my attention from the introduction by David Holmgren and kept me reading through to the appendices: A, B, and C. For anyone just starting out, or someone whose sown seed, transplanted trees, and integrated form and function, "AH HA!" moments abound. New knowledge hides within these pages for anyone who seeks it out. Of most value is the Garden Farm Pattern Language gifted to us through this work. This single chapter, and the proceeding one, make this book worth more than the cover price. The integration of ideas and design elements into practical placement via a common language integrate the sometimes seperate parts of our design towards a more cohesive whole. If you've made it to this point and haven't done so yet: Buy This Book!