The permaculture guide to earth surgery, with David “Doc Spice” Spicer

The permaculture guide to earth surgery, with David “Doc Spice” Spicer

Author: Oliver Goshey August 16, 2024 Duration: 49:16
 I spoke with David Spicer, affectionately known as Doc Spice, an accomplished permaculture designer who has specialized in earthworks installation. Having taught and worked on various projects extensively within Australia and internationally, in places such as Morocco, Jordan, Palestine and New Caledonia, Doc has worked in a broad array of different soil types, topographies and climatic zones. He’s also a valued member of the Permaculture Sustainable Consulting team headed up by Geoff Lawton and is registered Teacher #5 with the Permaculture Research Institute of Australia. Doc is a master of practical and logical mainframe permaculture design and he’s pioneered the design of water harvesting and storage earthworks which frames all regenerative farming.In this episode we talk about why it’s so important to invest early on in a project to get your earthworks right because of what it can mean for the health of your land. Doc also shares some insights on his personal design process and what he looks for in a landscape to give him clues as to the most effective interventions on the form of the land. We also cover some of the risks of improperly installed features, the need to draw from as many sources of knowledge as possible and he also gives some valuable advice for people who are new to earthworks on how to get started. 

What does it mean to live a regenerative life, and how do we actually do it? That's the central question explored in Regenerative Skills, hosted by Oliver Goshey. This isn't just about theory; it's a practical dialogue focused on stewardship of the natural world and fostering strong, resilient communities. Every week, Oliver brings conversations with a diverse range of global experts right to your ears, translating their knowledge into actionable steps you can integrate into your daily habits. You'll hear tangible strategies for everything from soil health and sustainable food systems to building local networks and re-skilling ourselves for a better future. The aim is to move beyond sustainability toward active regeneration, providing the tools and perspectives needed to make a tangible difference right where you are. Tune into this educational podcast for a grounded, hopeful, and deeply informative journey. Together, these discussions build a comprehensive guide for anyone looking to heal their relationship with the environment and their neighbors, proving that positive change is woven from countless small, intentional actions.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

Regenerative Skills
Podcast Episodes
The story of soil through a microscope, with Isadora Schmidt [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:48
Continuing with my series highlighting badass local people around my community here in Spain, I was really pleased to be able to share this conversation that I had with a new close friend of mine and soil health advocate…
Keys to successful regenerative farm transition, with Andre Antunes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:45
I have to admit, there is an unsung hero behind many of my favorite interviews of the past couple years. Connections and recommendations to some of the people who I’ve learned the most from in some recent discussions wit…
Farming for both local and regional change, with Anne Van Leeuwen [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:10
Today’s conversation is the first of a two part conversation with Anne Va Leeuwen from Bodemzicht in the Netherlands that I’ve been looking forward to for quite a few years. Anne and her husband Ricardo and I met for the…
Soil health and drought mitigation panel from REVOLVE magazine [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:14
A couple weeks ago I was invited to speak on a panel discussion about soil health for the release of a new issue of REVOLVE magazine. Established in 2010, REVOLVE inspires climate action by keeping you informed about the…
Simplifying gardening and food forests, with David the Good [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:25
Continuing on the theme of last week’s episode in which I spoke with Jessica Robertson about community food forests, we’re going to go deeper into the practical knowledge and skills that anyone can develop to create thei…
Finding the potential in "invasive" species, with Tao Orion [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:59
I’m really lucky that I have been collaborating with book publishers since the early days of this podcast. It gives me access to all of the books from the authors that I interview and the full catalogs of most of the pub…