Kareen Erbe

Kareen Erbe
Broken Ground Permaculture

Montana, USA

Top 3 Areas of Expertise

Cold Climate Permaculture
Food Forests
Greenhouse growing and design (season extension techniques)

Advice for Students

“This course takes some self-discipline to complete. I would decide when you want to obtain your certification and reverse engineer a schedule for yourself that’s realistic and feels spacious. Also, if you can find another student or accountability partner to give you some structure, that is always helpful.”

Teacher Bio

I live on a 3/4 acre suburban homestead in Bozeman, Montana, USA (USDA hardiness zone 4b). I have large kitchen gardens, a food forest, a greenhouse, a pond, and chickens. I am well-versed in cold climate design strategies and season extension techniques. I live in an agricultural community and am well-connected to our local food system, as well as the market farmers who grow in our valley. I am most well-suited to students who have urban, suburban or small acreage sites, as opposed to larger farm properties.

I have been teaching permaculture and consulting with clients for over a decade. I have found that I can distill down permaculture concepts and design methods in a way that is understandable and easy to digest. I was one of the original mentors in this permaculture design course and have graduated multiple students. I also host a monthly online meet-ups for my students to give them some structure, support and accountability (this is unpaid time).

2006 -Received my Permaculture Design Certificate in New Zealand
2007-2010 – Obtained a Grow Biointensive Certificate from Ecology Action, Master Composter Certification from Denver Urban Gardens, and Master Gardener Certification from Montana State University
2011 – Completed an Advanced Permaculture Training at the Permaculture Research Institute with Geoff Lawton
2011 – Present – Founded my permaculture design business, Broken Ground, and have been teaching permaculture and gardening workshops, consulting with clients, and creating edible garden designs for over a decade.
2013 – Participated in a design charrette with Dave Jacke, author of Edible Forest Gardens.
2016 – Organized a Montana PDC and co-taught with Penny Livingston-Stark of the Regenerative Design Institute
2018-Present – I have been teaching design practicums and design courses with Jerome Osentowski, author of Forest Garden Greenhouse and founder of the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute.
2018-present = Permaculture Women’s Guild course mentor.

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