About PermaPlants
PermaPlants is a free, open botanical reference built specifically for permaculture designers, food foresters, and regenerative gardeners. Every plant in our catalogue includes information on design roles, companion planting relationships, kitchen and herbalistic uses, ecology, identification, and more.
Our Mission
We believe knowledge about useful plants should be freely accessible to everyone working toward resilient, regenerative landscapes. By providing high-quality plant data in one place, we aim to lower the barrier to whole-system permaculture design.
Terra Alta
PermaPlants is created by Terra Alta, a permaculture education centre in Sintra, Portugal, offering certified Permaculture Design Courses since 2010. With over 16 years of hands-on teaching on a mature permaculture site, Terra Alta has trained students from around the world through more than 50 immersive residential courses covering food forest design, water systems, natural building, soil science, and regenerative agriculture.
PermaStudio
Our companion tool, PermaStudio, is a permaculture design application that lets you draw site boundaries, place elements on a canvas, define zones and sectors, build plant guilds, and generate comprehensive PDF reports.
Plant Monographs
Each plant may include a detailed monograph with seven sections: Design Role, Herbalistic, Kitchen, Ecology, Identification, Building & Timber, and Curiosities. Monographs are being written and added progressively. If a plant does not yet have a monograph, basic data (category, layer, companions, growing requirements) is still available.
Disclaimers
Medicinal use: Herbalistic information on this site is for educational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before using any plant medicinally. Do not self-diagnose or self-treat based on information found here.
Plant identification: Never consume a plant based solely on written descriptions or photographs. Many edible plants have toxic look-alikes. Always consult a local botanist or experienced forager when in doubt.
General: PermaPlants is an educational reference tool. Information provided should not replace professional botanical, medical, or agricultural advice. Terra Alta accepts no liability for actions taken based on information on this site.
Contact
For questions, corrections, or contributions, get in touch with us.
Send us an email