Design Services
Design Assistance for Your Residence, Homestead, Farm or Land
We have set up our design services to provide our clients with what they want and really need. If you wish to get better educated so that you can do much of your own design work, with our watchful eye and input, our courses are available. If you would rather have us put our full focus on your home/land/project, our consultation/design services are available too. Here are the seven avenues to start with your design.
Permaculturally Designing Your Property
7-Options
1. The 15-20 Hr. Property Design Mini Course (Online)
The Crash Course…! Get Just the Info You Need to Design Your Property Now.
We designed this Property Design Mini Course (PDMC) to give home or landowners a condensed version of the intensive 72-hour Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) Course with just the content specific to creating a good framework design for one’s own property. We’ll walk you through it, step-by-step, through this jam-packed video series. You can always hire us for private consulting to review your work once you’ve done your best work.
Pricing
Residence
Up to 1-acre
$245
Homestead
1-10 acres
$320
Small Farm
Over 10-acres
$395
2. The Full 72-hr. Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) Course
Either Online (on your own schedule), or In Person (8-full days with prestudy).
This is the world recognized PDC course that we have been delivering since 2006. If you have the time and resources this is the course that not only assists you in creating a framework permaculture design for your own property (large or small) but also gives you a solid grounding in the philosophy, approach and promise of permaculture. The course shows us, as humans, how we can create an abundant and healthy world. This training is incredibly hopeful, practical and loaded.
Pricing
Online $695
Less $200 if you do not want to earn the PDC Certificate
Full Course - Recorded - Start Now - Free Live Review Sessions with Bill
In Person $1795
$1595 for early registration 60-days out
Pre-Training Webinars plus 8-Days on Site
3. Phone/Zoom Site Assessment
It is surprising how much information is available on the internet about climate, topography, soils, prevailing winds, and sun angles for almost any spot in the US (and beyond). As a land or homeowner, we invite you to send us your address and a simple tracing of the property lines, along with what your desire or vision is for the property. We then do our research and a design assessment.
On a follow-up call (zoom works well) we will share what we have concluded regarding the greatest opportunities and challenges for your property related to your vision. We will also field any questions you might have. Our goal is to give you the assistance you need to continue to move forward on your property design. If you would like us to create a digital framework or even full design for your property, following this call, those options are described below.
Pricing for Phone Assessment
Residence
Up to 1-acre
$695
~1.5 hrs.
Homestead
1-10 acres
$845
~1.75 hrs.
Small Farm
Over 10-acres
$995
~2 hrs.
For More Information and Next Steps, Please Email:
4. WalkAbouts – We Explore Your Property in Person
Bill Wilson (or someone we explicitly trust) walks the property in question with the owner and explores what sort of permaculture design strategies and techniques would be most appropriate. This is a verbal assessment with recommendations, and sometimes, rough sketches. Some useful resources and tips are always included.
Pricing for WalkAbouts
Residence
Up to 1-acre
$900 plus $1/mile travel to and from
2-hour minimum
Homestead
1-10 acres
$1200 plus $1/mile travel to and from
3-hour minimum
Small Farm
Over 10-acres
$1,500 plus $1/mile travel to and from
4-hour minimum
For More Information and Next Steps, Please Email:
“Bill, thank you so much for the time you spent with us on Friday. It was a great pleasure. Kris and I both enjoyed your company and conversation in addition to all of the great information you provided. We will surely take advantage of the many resources you suggested as we move forward. Again, thank you.”
5. Framework Permaculture Design
Our framework designs include our best recommendations from our initial site assessment whether from an online/phone connection or from an actual site visit (WalkAbout). Our goal with these framework designs is to give you as much information as possible for the least amount invested.
What is included in a Framework Design?
- All of the site data we use that is available from the internet and the client
- A basemap of the property that includes existing roads, ponds, structures and the property lines.
- A basemap water layer – might include swales, raingardens, hugelkultur, cisterns, etc.
- A basemap plant layer – guilds, food forests, production areas, overstory, understory, etc.
- A basemap hardscaping layer – paths, fencing, pergolas, raised beds, greenhouses, etc.
Price Ranges for Framework Design
Residence
Up to 1-acre
$1,600-$3,000
(Price for a quote: $100)
Homestead
1-10 acres
$2,400-$7,500
(Price for a quote: $300)
Small Farm
Over 10-acres
$3,200-$15,000
(Price for a quote: $600)
For More Information and Next Steps, Please Email:
Note 1: There are no fees for a price quote if you have already paid for a PDC, a Phone Assessment or a WalkAbout.
Note 2: If you have already purchased a Site Assessment or a Walkabout, that full amount is subtracted from the cost of our Framework Designs.
6. Full Permaculture Designs
A full permaculture design requires a more in-depth study of the site and more detailed conversations with you the client as we explore and discuss the best suited options for you. It also includes more design time for the thoughtful consideration and integration of key and secondary design elements. The goal is to create a functional, productive and beautiful site design with a high probability of a successful implementation by you or a quality and experienced landscaper.
Besides all of the site data analysis and the basemap layers, a full design usually includes:
- Specific plant lists with quantities needed including noted suppliers and their prices.
- Specific tools, equipment and structures to consider for implementation, use and maintenance
- Implementation task lists that includes a practical time table
- An estimated cost analysis for the full implementation of the design that might also include the cost of earth moving and landscaping.
Price Ranges for Full Design
Residence
Up to 1-acre
$4,000-$7,500
(Price for a quote: $100)
Homestead
1-10 acres
$6,000-$20,000
(Price for a quote: $300)
Small Farm
Over 10-acres
$8,000-$40,000
(Price for a quote: $600)
Note: There are no fees for price quotes if you have already paid for one of our PDC Courses, a Phone Assessment or a WalkAbout.
For More Information and Next Steps, Please Email:
Examples of what is typically explored on a residential property
- Create a beautiful, edible landscaping
- Manage excess rain (hold or remove)
- Drought-proofing the landscape
- Use of permaculture rain gardens
- Possible placement of key design elements
- Create balanced natural systems
- Use of vertical landscaping techniques
- Increase soil fertility
- Eliminate some of the lawn
- Starting a productive garden
- Reduce energy use
- Lower carbon footprint
- Possibly all of the above
Examples of what is typically explored on a homestead or small farm
- Where to situate home and other buildings
- Where to place roads, swales, hügelkulturs and ponds
- Find the key point and keyline and design earthworks where helpful
- Where to place orchards, linear food forests, pastures, gardens, etc.
- What livestock options would fit neatly into system.
- Identify income generating possibilities
- Restoring soil and fertility naturally
- Estimated costs to implement design
- Implementation timetable
“Hi Bill. Thanks for the fantastic plans that you and your team developed for us. Shirley and I feel that you have created something that will guide us beautifully. The plan clearly shows us the resources needed to move forward in a reasonable fashion. We will keep you updated on our progress and look forward to you stopping by periodically to see how the project is coming together. Let’s have a beer on the back deck next time!”
7. Management Oversite of Design Implementation and Maintenance
This can be as simple as working with you to find and train the right people and answer the inevitable and multitude of questions that come up when implementing a design. It might also include overseeing the installation of the design, working with contractors/installers on your behalf, ordering supplies and plants, trouble shooting challenges as they arise, organizing and overseeing the care and maintenance in the early months/years, assessing the results, fine-tuning the design strategies and possibly staying on with the project until everything is running as projected.
Our preference is to train and work with you directly or someone you have hired to do all of this, because somebody eventually needs to understand each element of the design for it’s long-term care.
We do not take on many of these projects (we are selective as we balance everything else we are doing) but if we do, we will give you and your project our full attention as if it were one of our own.
We typically provide project management quotes to our Full Permaculture Design clients when requested.
Price Range Averages
Simple Residence
$2,500 - $5,000/yr.
Homestead / Farm
$5,000 - $25,000/yr.
For More Information and Next Steps, Please Email:
Not sure what you really need?
You can always just hire Bill to consult with you over the phone or Zoom at $300/hr.. He will brainstorm your property with you or discuss any questions you might have about your property design.
Our minimum charge to set an appointment with Bill is a 30-minute session of $200, paid in advance.
Thank You and the best of luck on your permaculture dreams and projects. We encourage you to move forward with the long-term care and health of your property, family and community regardless of whether or not you use any of our services. This work is important.