Glossary
A glossary is a simple list of words and phrases with clear explanations.
It helps you understand key terms used throughout our site, especially those from natural farming, permaculture, and seed-saving traditions.
The glossary is here to make things easy to follow and for the information to be meaningful.
It is distributed in 3 sections for your ease of use.
Growing Practices & Techniques
How we grow: methods, tools, and practical techniques used in regenerative gardening and farming.
A-Frame Level
A simple tool made from sticks and a string, used to find level ground when designing gardens on slopes. Commonly used for swales or terraces.
Broadcast Seeding
Scattering seeds evenly over a soil surface rather than planting them in rows or holes. Often used for cover crops, wildflowers, or naturalized planting.
Broadfork
A long-handled tool with metal tines used to loosen soil deeply without turning it. Preserves soil layers and life while improving drainage and root growth.
Chinampas
Ancient raised or floating garden beds developed in Mesoamerica. Built on shallow lakes to maximize food production and water efficiency.
Chop and Drop
A practice where plants (like cover crops or support species) are cut and left to decompose in place as mulch. Adds organic matter, protects soil, and feeds microbes.
Cold Frame
A low-to-the-ground, transparent structure that uses sunlight to warm the soil and air, helping protect seedlings or extend the growing season.
Companion Planting
The practice of growing certain plants together to support one another through pest control, shade, improved flavor, or nutrient exchange.
Compost
Decomposed organic matter made from food scraps, leaves, and garden waste. Used to feed plants and improve soil structure and biology.
Compost Tea
A liquid fertilizer made by steeping compost in water. It contains beneficial microbes and nutrients, often sprayed on leaves or added to soil.
Contour Lines
Lines that follow equal elevation on sloped land. Used in planting and design to manage water flow and reduce erosion.
Cover Crop / Cover Cropping
Planting fast-growing crops like clover or rye between harvests to protect and enrich soil, fix nitrogen, suppress weeds, and prevent erosion.
Deep Mulch
A thick layer of organic material like straw, leaves, or wood chips placed on the soil. It conserves moisture, blocks weeds, and supports soil life.
Direct Sow / Direct Seeding
Planting seeds directly into the garden or field where they will grow to maturity, rather than starting them indoors and transplanting.
Earthworks
Intentional shaping of the land—such as digging swales or building berms—to manage water, prevent erosion, and increase fertility.
Foliar Feeding
Spraying liquid nutrients directly onto plant leaves for fast absorption, often used with compost tea or seaweed extract.
Green Roof
A roof covered with growing plants. It insulates buildings, reduces stormwater runoff, and brings greenery to urban environments.
Greening the Desert
The use of regenerative techniques—like swales, mulch, and polyculture—to restore ecosystems and grow food in arid or degraded areas.
Guild / Plant Guild
A group of plants grown together that support one another. Each plant serves a function, such as attracting pollinators, fixing nitrogen, or providing shade.
Hügelkultur
A raised-bed method that layers logs, branches, compost, and soil. It stores water, generates heat, and creates long-term fertility as the wood breaks down.
Intercropping
Growing two or more crops in the same space to maximize productivity, suppress weeds, or improve nutrient use.
Keyline Design
A land design technique that uses the natural shape of terrain to direct and retain water. Often includes plowing or planting on contour.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
A pest control strategy that combines observation, prevention, and minimal intervention. IPM uses natural predators, healthy plant selection, physical barriers, and only resorts to treatments (like sprays) when necessary. The goal is long-term balance, not eradication.
Keyline Design
A land design technique that uses the natural shape of terrain to direct and retain water. Often includes plowing or planting on contour.
Liquid Seaweed
A fertilizer made from ocean plants. It contains trace minerals and growth stimulants that benefit plant health and resilience.
Living Mulch
Low-growing plants used to cover soil instead of dead material. They protect soil, prevent erosion, and can sometimes be edible or pollinator friendly.
Mulch
Any material placed on soil to protect it like straw, leaves, wood chips, or fabric. Helps retain moisture, reduce weeds, and support soil health.
Mycorrhizae
Fungi that form partnerships with plant roots. They expand the plant’s access to water and nutrients, especially phosphorus.
Natural Farming
A hands-off farming approach that avoids tilling and chemicals. Focuses on observation, local inputs, and letting natural systems do the work.
No-Till
A growing method that avoids turning the soil. It preserves soil structure, retains moisture, and protects microbial life.
No-Work Gardening
A philosophy of minimal intervention, promoted by Masanobu Fukuoka. Focuses on letting nature lead and reducing unnecessary effort.
Open-Pollinated Varieties
Plants that reproduce naturally through wind, insects, or other pollinators. Seeds can be saved and will grow true to type.
Permaculture
A design system based on nature that creates regenerative, self-sustaining landscapes. It integrates water, plants, shelter, and people.
Sheet Mulching
A soil-building method that layers cardboard or newspaper, compost, and mulch directly on top of grass or weeds to suppress them and build new soil.
Shade Cloth
A woven or knitted fabric used to reduce sunlight exposure for plants during hot or intense conditions. Helps prevent sunburn and stress.
Swale
A shallow, level ditch dug along contour to capture rainwater and allow it to slowly soak into the ground.
Terrace
A flat planting area cut into a slope to slow water runoff and make hillside growing possible.
Trap Crop
A plant intentionally grown to attract pests away from a main crop. Helps protect vegetables or fruits without chemical sprays.
Vertical Farming
Growing crops in stacked layers, often indoors. Used to save space, reduce water use, and grow food year-round.
Worm Castings
Rich organic material produced by composting worms. Full of beneficial microbes and nutrients that help plants thrive.
Ecology, Soil, & Land Relationships
Abundance
The natural potential of land and life to provide more than enough. When ecosystems are healthy, they support beauty, food, and resilience all at once.
Agroecology
A field that blends ecology with agriculture. Promotes farming systems that are environmentally sound, socially fair, and based on local knowledge.
Agroforestry
Combining trees with crops or pasture. Trees offer shade, shelter, nutrients, and biodiversity while supporting food or animal production.
Allelopathy
A biological phenomenon where one plant affects the growth of another by releasing chemicals—sometimes helpful, sometimes harmful.
Aspect
The direction a slope faces. It affects sunlight, moisture, and plant choice, for example, north-facing slopes are cooler and shadier in the Northern Hemisphere.
Biomimicry
Designing farming or land systems by observing and imitating nature’s strategies such as nutrient cycling, energy use, or plant cooperation.
Biodiversity
The variety of life in all forms. A diverse garden is more resilient, productive, and capable of supporting long-term balance.
Bioturbation
The natural mixing and movement of soil by living organisms such as worms, beetles, and plant roots. Helps aerate soil and distribute nutrients.
Bolting
When a plant, especially leafy greens, begins to flower and go to seed early—usually triggered by heat or stress. The leaves often turn bitter.
Brownfield Remediation
Restoring land that has been polluted or abandoned, making it safe and usable again, often for growing food or rebuilding ecosystems.
Capillary Action
The movement of water upward through soil or plant roots. Key to how plants access moisture and nutrients from the ground.
Carbon Sequestration
The process of pulling carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in soil, trees, or plants. A natural climate solution tied to healthy land.
Damping Off
A fungal or bacterial disease that affects young seedlings, causing them to rot at the base and collapse. Common in overwatered or poorly ventilated conditions.
Desertification
The transformation of fertile land into desert-like conditions caused by erosion, overgrazing, poor water practices, or climate changes.
Ecosystem Gardening
Approaching your garden as an interconnected living system where plants, soil, insects, and fungi all contribute to health and growth.
Edge Effect
The increased biodiversity and productivity found where two ecosystems meet, such as field and forest. Designing gardens with more edge boosts resilience.
Land Stewardship
Caring for land with respect and responsibility. Includes protecting soil, conserving water, and honoring long-term health.
Microclimate
A small area where conditions (light, wind, moisture, or temperature) differ from the surrounding space. Useful for specialized plantings.
Permaculture Zones
A design tool that divides space into Zones based on frequency of use. Closest zones include daily-use herbs and vegetables; farthest are left wild.
Rewilding
Letting land recover its natural state—often by planting native species or removing barriers to ecosystem health.
Rhizosphere
The narrow area of soil surrounding plant roots. It’s a hotspot for microbial life and essential nutrient exchange.
Slope Grade
The steepness of land, measured as a percentage or angle. Influences water movement, erosion risk, and how gardens should be shaped.
Soil Biological Succession
The evolving community of microbes, fungi, and insects in soil as organic matter increases. Healthy succession leads to rich, fertile ground.
Soil Horizon
The distinct layers of soil (topsoil, subsoil, etc.), each with its own color, texture, and nutrient makeup.
Soil pH
A scale (0–14) that measures how acidic or alkaline soil is. Most vegetables grow best in soil with a pH between 6.0 and 7.0.
Soil Seed Bank
The natural store of dormant seeds lying in the soil, sometimes for years or even decades. These seeds can sprout when conditions are right: after rain, fire, disturbance, or cultivation. They reflect a site’s history, potential, play an important role in natural succession, and potential rewilding.
Spiritual Ecology
The understanding that healing the Earth and healing ourselves are deeply connected. Recognizes the sacredness of land and life.
Succession Planting
The practice of planting new crops as others finish harvesting. Extends your harvest window and makes full use of available space.
Sustainable Gardening
Growing plants in a way that protects ecosystems, builds soil, and uses water and resources wisely ensuring long-term success.
Tilth
The physical structure and feel of soil. Good tilth means soil is loose, crumbly, and full of life, making it easy for roots to grow.
Volunteer Plant
A plant that grows on its own without being intentionally sown, often sprouting from last season’s seed or compost. Some are welcomed, others managed as weeds.
Water Table
The underground level where soil becomes fully saturated with water. Knowing the depth of the water table can influence planting depth, drainage, and tree health.
Seeds, Culture, & Community
Community Garden
A shared growing space where neighbors, schools, or groups grow food together. Supports connection, education, and local food security.
Drying Down
The process of letting seeds fully mature and dry before storage. Critical for long-term viability.
Ethnobotany
The study of how different cultures relate to plants—through food, medicine, ceremony, language, and tradition.
Food Forest
A cultivated garden designed like a forest. Layers of edible and beneficial plants work together—trees, shrubs, vines, herbs, and groundcovers.
Food Security
The condition of having regular access to enough nutritious and culturally appropriate food to live a healthy life.
Food Sovereignty
The right of people and communities to control how and what they grow, distribute, and eat—based on cultural values and local needs.
Forest Gardening
A method of cultivating food in layers like a natural forest, where plants support one another over many seasons.
Germination
The beginning of a seed’s growth into a plant. It happens when conditions like temperature, moisture, and light are right.
Heirloom Seeds
Old seed varieties that have been saved and shared for generations. Valued for flavor, resilience, and cultural importance.
Indigenous Farming Practices
Traditional, time-tested growing methods based in ancestral knowledge and relationships with land. Often regenerative by nature.
Intuitive Gardening
Letting observation, rhythm, and relationship with the land guide your planting decisions—beyond rigid rules or formulas.
Land Back
A movement to return land to Indigenous stewardship. Deeply tied to food sovereignty, cultural renewal, and ecological care.
Land-Based Healing
The process of reconnecting with land to restore personal, cultural, or community wellness. Often includes gardening, ceremony, and stewardship.
Plant Succession
The natural sequence of plant growth over time, from pioneer species like grasses to long-term ecosystems like forests.
Polyculture
Growing multiple crops together instead of one. Mimics natural systems, increases diversity, and strengthens resilience.
Regenerative Agriculture
Farming that gives back more than it takes. Builds soil, restores biodiversity, improves water cycles, and strengthens communities.
Resilient Food Systems
Community-driven ways of growing and sharing food that can adapt to climate, economic, or social changes.
Seed Library
A community-based system where people can check out, grow, and return seeds. Like a lending library, but for biodiversity.
Seed Saving
Harvesting seeds from your own plants to grow again. Builds self-sufficiency and preserves local adaptations.
Seed Sharing
Trading or gifting seeds between growers. Encourages diversity, community connection, and cultural exchange.
Seed Sovereignty
The right to save, grow, and share seeds, especially those with cultural, regional, or spiritual significance.