--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Permaculture is something with a million…" description: "\"Permaculture is something with a million heads. It's a way of thinking which is already loose, and you can't put a way of thinking back in the box.\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/bill-mollison-4213_agriculture_permaculture-is-something-with-a-million_1272603.png" --- # Permaculture is something with a million heads. It's a way… ![“Permaculture is something with a million heads. It's a way of thinking which is already loose, and you can't put a way of thinking back in the box.” quote by Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/bill-mollison-4213_agriculture_permaculture-is-something-with-a-million_1272603.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/bill-mollison-4213_agriculture_permaculture-is-something-with-a-million_1272603.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/87a/bill-mollison-4213_agriculture_permaculture-is-something-with-a-million_1272603.png) > “Permaculture is something with a million heads. It's a way of thinking which is already loose, and you can't put a way of thinking back in the box.” [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Permaculture embraces diverse ideas, resisting rigid categorization and encouraging flexible, holistic thinking **In simple terms:** Permaculture is about flexible, open‑minded design Key Takeaway Adopt adaptable, systems‑thinking approaches Themes sustainability creativity flexibility Mood hopeful inspired Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - gardening - urban planning - community projects - education programs Key Concepts ecology design thinking systems theory Questions to Reflect On - How can you apply flexible thinking to a stubborn problem? - What limits arise when ideas are forced into fixed boxes? A Different Perspective Rigid frameworks can stifle innovation in complex ecosystems ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agriculture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) [Permaculture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/permaculture/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Way of thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Permaculture is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/permaculture-is-the-conscious-design-and-maintenance-of/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [“. . . every society that grows extensive lawns could produce all its food on the same area, using the same resources, and .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/every-society-that-grows-extensive-lawns-could-produce-all-its-food/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Anarchy would suggest you're not cooperating. Permaculture is urging complete cooperation between each other and every other thing, animate and inanimate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/anarchy-would-suggest-you-re-not-cooperating-permaculture-is-urging/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Permaculture is not the movement of sustainability and it is not the philosophy behind it; it is the problem-solving approach the movement and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-hemenway/permaculture-is-not-the-movement-of-sustainability-and-it-is-not-the/) [Toby Hemenway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toby-hemenway/) > [What permaculturists are doing is the most important activity that any group is doing on the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/what-permaculturists-are-doing-is-the-most-important-activity-that/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [Traditional agriculture was labour intensive, industrial agriculture is energy intensive, and permaculture-designed systems are information and design intensive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-holmgren/traditional-agriculture-was-labour-intensive-industrial-agriculture/) [David Holmgren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-holmgren/) > [National Permaculture Day is a chance to share thoughts, visions and lots of common sense ways that we can all make a positive difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/costa-georgiadis/national-permaculture-day-is-a-chance-to-share-thoughts-visions-and/) [Costa Georgiadis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/costa-georgiadis/) > [“Permaculture land-use ethics invite us to protect intact ecosystems where they remain and, where ecosystems have been destroyed, to help restore them. Permaculture design…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliana-birnbaum-fox/permaculture-land-use-ethics-invite-us-to-protect-intact-ecosystems/) [Juliana Birnbaum Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliana-birnbaum-fox/) > [Sitting at our back doorsteps, all we need to live a good life lies about us. Sun, wind, people, buildings, stones, sea, birds and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/sitting-at-our-back-doorsteps-all-we-need-to-live-a-good-life-lies/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [You don’t have a snail problem, you have a duck deficiency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/you-don-t-have-a-snail-problem-you-have-a-duck-deficiency/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [“Each such cycle is a unique event; diet, choice, selection, season, weather, digestion, decomposition and regeneration differ each time it happens. Thus, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/each-such-cycle-is-a-unique-event-diet-choice-selection-season/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [The worst thing about permaculture is that it's extremely successful, but it has no center, and no hierarchy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/the-worst-thing-about-permaculture-is-that-it-s-extremely-successful/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [I confess to a rare problem - gynekinetophobia, or the fear of women falling on me - but this is a rather mild illness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/i-confess-to-a-rare-problem-gynekinetophobia-or-the-fear-of-women/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [I probably lead a very spoiled life, because I travel from people interested in permaculture to people interested in permaculture. Some of them are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/i-probably-lead-a-very-spoiled-life-because-i-travel-from-people/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Few people today muck around in earth, and when on international flights, I often find I have the only decently dirty fingernails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/few-people-today-muck-around-in-earth-and-when-on-international/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) ## More by Bill Mollison > [There is one, and only one solution, and we have almost no time to try it. We must turn all our resources to repairing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/there-is-one-and-only-one-solution-and-we-have-almost-no-time-to-try/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Women spend the money of society on its goods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/women-spend-the-money-of-society-on-its-goods/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Wealth is a deep understanding of the natural world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/wealth-is-a-deep-understanding-of-the-natural-world/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [That we don't design agriculture to be sustainable is totally eerie. We design it to be a disaster, and of course, we get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/that-we-don-t-design-agriculture-to-be-sustainable-is-totally-eerie/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Why is it that we don't build human settlements that will feed themselves, and fuel themselves, and catch their own water, when any human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/why-is-it-that-we-don-t-build-human-settlements-that-will-feed/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Anything that's left that's remotely like wilderness should be left strictly alone. We have no business there any more. It's not going to save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/anything-that-s-left-that-s-remotely-like-wilderness-should-be-left/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [The important thing is not to do any agriculture whatsoever, and particularly to make the modern agricultural sciences a forbidden area - they're worse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/the-important-thing-is-not-to-do-any-agriculture-whatsoever-and/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [The tragic reality is that very few sustainable systems are designed or applied by those who hold power, and the reason for this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/the-tragic-reality-is-that-very-few-sustainable-systems-are-designed/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [We are surrounded by insurmountable opportunities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/we-are-surrounded-by-insurmountable-opportunities/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/though-the-problems-of-the-world-are-increasingly-complex-the/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [I can easily teach people to be gardeners, and from them, once they know how to garden, you'll get a philosopher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/i-can-easily-teach-people-to-be-gardeners-and-from-them-once-they/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [If you get someone who looks after himself and those around him, that's a deep ecologist. He can talk philosophy that I understand. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/if-you-get-someone-who-looks-after-himself-and-those-around-him-that/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [You can't cooperate by knocking something about or bossing it or forcing it to do things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/you-can-t-cooperate-by-knocking-something-about-or-bossing-it-or/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Women are the holders of all knowledge, everything a man knows he stole from a woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/women-are-the-holders-of-all-knowledge-everything-a-man-knows-he/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [Another thing I find extremely eerie is that when people build a house, they almost exactly get it wrong. They don't just get it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/another-thing-i-find-extremely-eerie-is-that-when-people-build-a/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) [Explore all 114 Bill Mollison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) ## More Agriculture quotes > [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/) [Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/) > [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [As the first Member of Congress from western Washington to serve on the House Agriculture Committee in over 50 years, I am proud to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-larsen/as-the-first-member-of-congress-from-western-washington-to-serve-on/) [Rick Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-larsen/) > [Conventional agriculture has never succeeded in feeding the world, and it's never produced anything good to eat. For the future, we need to look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-barber/conventional-agriculture-has-never-succeeded-in-feeding-the-world-and/) [Dan Barber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-barber/) > [I would say my fraternity was nothing but a bunch of farm boys; we weren't really in the whole fraternity scene, but yeah, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-would-say-my-fraternity-was-nothing-but-a-bunch-of-farm-boys-we/) [Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/) > [I grew up in Italy, and our country is a country of great agriculture and food produce. It wasn't like I was urban and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/i-grew-up-in-italy-and-our-country-is-a-country-of-great-agriculture/) [Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/) > [Farmers, get out your sense of humor. Congress meets to relieve you again next week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/farmers-get-out-your-sense-of-humor-congress-meets-to-relieve-you/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [Because Iran understands Afghanistan far better than Americans do, making Iran a partner in a long-term effort to transform Afghan agriculture makes sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/because-iran-understands-afghanistan-far-better-than-americans-do/) [Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/) > [Sara Scherr and Jeff McNeely have given us a thoughtful, sensible book about a topic of great importance to the world. There is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-serageldin/sara-scherr-and-jeff-mcneely-have-given-us-a-thoughtful-sensible-book/) [Ismail Serageldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-serageldin/) > [People want development, modern thinking. They want to encourage and support research in agriculture and other fields.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharad-pawar/people-want-development-modern-thinking-they-want-to-encourage-and/) [Sharad Pawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharad-pawar/) > [Growing corn, which from a biological perspective had always been a process of capturing sunlight to turn into food, has in no small measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/growing-corn-which-from-a-biological-perspective-had-always-been-a/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [When politicians talk of loan waiver, they are accepting that agriculture is not economically viable. They are giving a wrong signal that farming is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-s-swaminathan/when-politicians-talk-of-loan-waiver-they-are-accepting-that/) [M. S. Swaminathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-s-swaminathan/) > [Nitrogen-based fertilizers, which came into wide use after World War II, helped prompt the agricultural revolution that has allowed the Earth to feed its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/nitrogen-based-fertilizers-which-came-into-wide-use-after-world-war/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [Agriculture is one economic activity that does not obey the laws of demand and supply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/agriculture-is-one-economic-activity-that-does-not-obey-the-laws-of/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [More than a mere alternative strategy, regenerative agriculture represents a fundamental shift in our culture’s relationship to nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-eisenstein/more-than-a-mere-alternative-strategy-regenerative-agriculture/) [Charles Eisenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-eisenstein/) [Browse all 889 Agriculture quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agriculture/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Permaculture is something with a million heads. 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