Recently I picked up a book recommended by Alan Savory. It is a beautiful story written by a rancher in Oregon. I would like to quote one of the segments. This takes place in the fifties on the ranch when there is a mouse infestation which has any number of causes:
“Rodent populations are normally cyclic. Various factors had combined to produce an extreme condition, with no one factor to blame. Heavy use of agricultural pesticides may have caused a dearth of flees and other disease vectors which would normally be present in an ascending population. The great predator war of the past decade and the senseless killing of raptors had left the field mice with few natural enemies. Rodent control practices such as poisoning with chemicals had actually kept the existing mouse populations healthy, preventing the build-up of natural diseases, which, more than predators, limit numbers.
All these factors contributed to the existence of an abnormally high base upon which an explosion could begin. A good feed year for mice sent populations climbing, and although a wet, cold, snowy winter might have sent numbers skidding back again, the ensuing winter was one of the mildest on record. Even the tops of the mountains showed only patchy snow. Mice bred all winter, and six weeks after each litter was born, it too was ready to go into production.
Predator populations are effective only when they can keep the rodent population healthy and in line with food supplies and can reduce the highs and lows of normal cycles. Once an explosion is under way, control by larger forms of predators, such as coyotes, weasels, mink, eagles, hawks, owls, herons, cranes, and seagulls, is ineffective and gives way to more subtle forms of control such as disease, starvation, neurotic tendencies affecting production and cannibalism.
Working just beneath the surface of croplands and pastures, the rodents tunnelled frantically, searching for any stalk, seed, or root overlooked by the competition. Irrigation only concentrated the animals on ditch banks, which crumbled into a mass of tunnels, while the voles became ever more neurotic as their density increased and they rushed pell mell for new territories only to find them taken by other voles.”
This segment of the book can be read from so many angles and, yet, it all boils down to one thing: imbalance. When we, as Permaculture designers, go about our designing business what exactly do we look at? Are we simply “Permaculturing” a piece of land (gardening per se) or are we taking in the entire expanse of the property, observing it, making rigorous assessments, observing again and making assessments again? What is actually there? Are we seeing what we are looking at? Are we willing to get under the skin of the land and make the least amount of change for the greatest benefit? Are we willing to take the time to see who and what already lives there and nurture its existence along? Are we deliberately seeking out high yielding species or are we willing to take the time to investigate what is already there and find the yield within what is already there? Protracted observation.