"Permaculture draws from the wisdoms of sustainable indigenous and traditional cultures and synthesises these with contemporary earth and design sciences. Permaculture is growing and being constantly enriched by the experiments, insights, creativity and experience of the individuals and communities that practice it. Permaculture is design – a conscious process involving the placement and planning of elements, things and processes in relationship to each other. As such it is a way of thinking, and it is our thought patterns that determine our actions, so permaculture becomes a way of living." --- Robyn Francis
What is a Permaculture Design Certificate Course?
The Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) course is an internationally recognized training program that covers key elements of permaculture practice and design and includes a minimum of 72 hours of instruction time. PDCs are taught all around the world, and attended by people of all ages and walks of life, and from many different career and interest trajectories. Our PDC course is currently offered as an 11-day intensive format here at Fern Hollow Farm, a living laboratory for permaculture theory and praxis over the past decade. Our curriculum reflects the original PDC materials set forth by founders Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, as well as recent guidelines issued by the Permaculture Institute of North America. We are clear in our centering of Indigenous wisdom, and on the importance of Traditional Ecological Knowledge's influence in permaculture. In addition to learning in this living classroom, we offer diverse and interactive teaching styles and methods, and maximize opportunities for hands-on demonstrations, experiential activities, and field visits. The PDC curriculum covers a great deal of territory (see below) and should be viewed as a launching pad for further, deeper study in the different topics and skills presented that connect with you and your particular path. Each of the teachers and guest teachers have a depth of expertise in the course areas presented and there are opportunities for students to connect with them throughout the course for deeper inquiry and consultation.
What will I learn and take away from this course?
By attending this course, PDC graduates will have gained: an introduction to the principles and ethics of permaculture; hands on experience with site analysis and landscape design; an understanding of how climate patterns, soils, and water and earthworks interact with design; experience with designing and planting a food forest; methods of natural gardening, composting, and homesteading; a regenerative agriculture approach to working with livestock; exposure to natural building techniques; community building and mutual aid; alternative energy systems, regenerative business design, climate change mitigation and adapatation strategies; urban and suburban permaculture, and more... In-person, on-location courses offer the opportunity and benefit of a cultral and educational immersion experience. We will be living in community and as a part of a working permaculture farm for the duration of the 11-day course. Many of our course graduates over the years have spoken to the power of this shared experience in particular.
What is unique about the Fern Hollow Farm Permaculture Course?
Well, we do think it's pretty special that Fern Hollow Farm was born out of a PDC! Erik and Olivia met at their PDC training in 2014, and over the past ten years, they have been in relationship with this land, observing and designing, planting and building, experimenting and learning, and growing community in their corner of Appalachia. To say that taking a PDC changed their lives would be an understatement, and teaching courses here at the farm is a full circle, and an incredibly inspiring experience for them. Fern Hollow Farm was designed as a teaching site, specifically to demonstrate Permaculture principles and design practices, making it a unique, living and breathing classroom. The farming system includes a 3/4 acre forest garden, 1/4 acre vineyard, 1/4 acre market garden, two large high tunnels, several beehives, medicinal herb and mushroom cultivation, rotationally grazed Kune Kune pasture pigs, chickens, geese, and ducks, earthworks and rain-water catchment, a super-adobe style, earth-bag roundhouse, solar powered outdoor kitchen, and a 30' yurt that Olivia and Erik call home. It's common for PDCs to take a primarily chalkboard and powerpoint approach (chalk and talk), but the farm and our teaching philosophy invites these topics to be explored up close and interactively. Fern Hollow Farm is fortunate to be a part of a vibrant community of fellow farmers, permaculturalists, and community organizers, and many of these folks participate and help bring our course to life, whether it's guest teaching and sharing their expertise, taking a site visit to their farm, serving as “clients” in our course design practicum, including and enjoying their locally raised produce in our meals, or sharing a meal together -- we believe this community greatly adds to the course experience.
Course Tuition & How to Register
The tuition for the 72+ hour Permaculture Design Course is $1,500. Tuition covers: full PDC course curriculum and design practicum experience; post-training educational materials; certificate of PDC completion; farm-to-table meals and snacks for course duration (30 meals); Farm Camping & Amenities. We ask for a course deposit of $300 to secure your registration and full payment completed by May 1st. To register there are TWO steps. First, please use the Paypal button below to make your $300 course deposit payment (you can also pay the full tuition amount at this time). (You can also mail a physical check if preferred - please contact us for this method). Secondly, click the registration form link below to complete a short questionnaire. Please complete both of these steps to complete your enrollment in this course. Once received, we will contact you via your provided email to confirm and provide additional course information. Course cancellations received 30 days prior to the course start date will receive a full refund, and cancellations received within 30 days of course start date will receive a full refund less $300. Once the course has commenced, there will be no refunds available for cancellations or withdrawals. Registration is now open through June 6, 2025.
Registration Part 1) Course Deposit or Full Tuition Payment
Registration Part 2) Click the link to complete this form
“Attending the PDC at Fern Hollow has been truly a transformative experience. I feel like I’ve made lifelong friends and been given a foundation for a life connected to nature, my fellow humans, and myself…. Fern Hollow is magic – a place for healing & growth.”
“I have not only learned more about permaculture, but see it as a framework for living that has been missing from life. I am so glad I took the leap and signed up for this course”
“I was blown away by the information. We covered so many subjects!... I am so grateful for all of the love and support from this team. I plan to take this new knowledge and skills and make a difference in the natural world and in people’s lives.”
“I feel what I’m getting most out of this course is the connections I’ve made with the community we created here…. “
"The farm is magical! This being Olivia and Erik’s home gives students an opportunity to see first hand the processes of building a permaculture property.”
“I’m much more at peace with the world and myself than I have been in years”
Our Teaching Team
Sharon has been studying and practicing permaculture for the past twenty years in both temperate and tropical climates. Building on her extensive background as an environmental educator, she received a design certificate while living at Earthaven Ecovillage, a teaching certificate through Midwest Permaculture in Illinois, an advanced design certificate in Designing for Climate Resilience through Oregon State University, and a Home Horticulture Certification also through Oregon State. Sharon lived at Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage for 10 years where she and her partner built a timber frame straw-bale home with a gardenable roof. Natural building is in her bones and was one of the teachers of their Natural Building Workshops. Sharon is presently living in Durham, North Carolina, and is passionately involved in citizen advocacy on climate change. She is the author of a permaculture curriculum for children and a step-by-step permaculture manual for low-literacy Malawian farmers.
Olivia is a designer, fourth-generation farmer, mother, artist, and healer. She has been studying and working within the sustainability and Permaculture movement for 14 years. She earned a degree in Environment, Economics, Development, and Sustainability and during her studies contributed to thesis work on deforestation, climate change policy, and the Permaculture movement. After completing her PDC in Athens, Ohio, Olivia and Erik moved off-grid and began designing and building Fern Hollow Farm, their 10-acre Permaculture oasis, which they have been stewarding for the past decade and have welcomed over 2,000 community members and visitors from across the country for on-site programming. Along the way, she completed her Permaculture Teacher Training with Midwest Permaculture and returned to Ohio State to complete a Masters in Social Work specializing in Mental Health and Community and Social Justice, and enjoys bringing this “people care” lens to her Permaculture design work and teaching. Olivia spent several years working as a therapist in the community specializing in horticulture and nature-based therapy, somatic psychotherapy, and complex trauma, while continuing to work with regional food projects and teaching permaculture. Presently, Olivia works full-time on the farm with her wild & wonderful toddler, Samara, in tow. In the Summer of 2025, Olivia is launching a wellness collective, Cura, which offers personal and group coaching and retreats. She is excited to draw on her diverse knowledge and experience to collaborate with folks in discovering and walking the path between where they are to where they want to be.
Erik Peterson is a co-founder and steward of Fern Hollow Farm, a working permaculture designer and educator, natural builder, and advocate for community food security and resilience. After graduation from Ohio University, he continued to live in the Athens, Ohio area working in the non-profit realm with Community Food Initiatives, developing local food security through farmers’ market programs, and school and community gardens. During this time, Erik first came across permaculture, and undertook the PDC training at Solid Ground Farm in spring of 2014, where he also met Olivia, his wife and co-founder of Fern Hollow Farm. In the spring of 2015, Fern Hollow Farm was launched on family land just outside of Somerset, Ohio. In that same year, Erik began 5 years of teaching apprenticeship with Midwest Permaculture, studying under long time permaculture teachers Becky and Bill Wilson. Erik currently runs the permaculture design and installation wing of the farm business, and to date has taught or co-taught in 19 Permaculture Design Courses across the US and Canada at various farms, colleges, and other sites. As of October of 2023, Erik has primarily focused on his role as the Resilient Communities Program Director at Rural Action, a regional non-profit. In this position, Erik works on community scale resilience through small business development, management of a rural community makerspace (the Builder’s Club of Somerset), increasing sustainable agriculture education and uptake of practices, watershed work, and bringing alternative energy to Appalachia.
What can I expect of this 11-day, on-the-farm course format?
Most notably, this is primarily an all-outdoor course, and you will be immersed in life on the farm. Rising with the roosters, sleeping under the stars, and with very full days in between. With that, please be prepared for all kinds of seasonal weather and bring what you need to feel comfortable. Course sessions will begin at 8:30am and conclude most evenings around 8:30pm, with an hour for lunch and a longer break for dinner. Though we schedule additional short breaks periodically throughout the day, please prepare for these to be intensive days. In order to receive a certificate of completion, we ask that students be present for 90% of course content. We understand that there may be periods throughout the course where you need to prioritize self-care and rest and we encourage that as well.
What can I expect of course lodging options?
Farm camping is included for all registrants with several private and shared camp sites spread across our farm and forest with two, private outdoor shower options and clean Port-O-John toilets on site. If a soft bed, air-conditioning, and a flushing toilet is more your style, we have two private rooms (1-2 people per room) with bathrooms, available up the street at our family members' homes. These are available on a first-come, first-serve basis for an additional $150 to your registration fee. Additionally, there are a few Airbnbs rentals in the village of Somerset, a few miles away,
What can I expect of course meals?
Much love and attention goes into our course meals. Most ingredients are organic and many ingredients were grown and raised here on our farm, or on other local farms, for a full farm-to-table course experience. We prepare omnivore and vegetarian options for all meals and can accommodate most other dietary preferences and restrictions with ample notice. If you are vegan and/or gluten-free, please indicate that in your registration, as well as any food allergies. If we are unable to accommodate your dietary needs (ie: severe allergy, very specific requirements), we will let you know ASAP and we can discuss alternative options.
We acknowledge and honor that attending a PDC is an important investment of your time and money, and we would like for you to have all of the information you may need to be confident in your decision to enroll and attend. If you would like to schedule an exploratory phone call please fill out the contact form linked below and we will promptly connect you with one of lead instructors and farm hosts, Erik, who will be able to answer any questions you might have. Thank you for considering our course.