The word "permaculture" comes from "permanent agriculture"; it is an approach to producing food by working in harmony with the land, in order to minimize the labor involved in doing it. Permaculture is involved with both growing crops and raising animals for food. Some people have called it "the lazy person's farming" because its objectives are to grow/raise the food you need with minimal work.
How is that possible? Well, first of all, notice I didn't say "no work" - but the principles of permaculture allow us to be as self-sufficient as possible (given the resources we have - land, etc.) without having to devote full time to just food production. Here are some books to help you understand what Permaculture is all about:
Introduction to Permaculture
by Bill Mollison
Bill Mollison, one of the two creators of Permaculture,
wrote this book as a introduction to the concept and its
implementation.
To quote from one reviewer on Amazon.com:
"This book is amazing and written from the guy who started
it all. He puts things in very simple logical terms that
make permaculture available to all of us. The logic of it
is overwhelming. This is a must read."
(Warning: it's also fairly expensive.)
Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability
by David Holmgren
This book takes permaculture "out into the world," by discussing
the need for it, and the uses of it, in society today.
As one reviewer states,
"Amid the cacophony of scholarly and political debate
surrounding this issue, the hushed emergence of permaculture
has by and large gone unnoticed. Defined as the use of systems
thinking and design principles to consciously design 'landscapes
which mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature,
while yielding an abundance of food, fibre and energy for
provision of local needs,' the permaculture concept is nothing
less than the science of sustainability."
Permaculture: A Designer's Manual
by Bill Mollison and Reny Mia Slay
The key to permaculture is design - meaning that the effort
you put in up front in understanding your land and its
inhabitants (plant and animal) will be repaid manyfold in
productivity.
This book is the text and curriculum for the 72-hour
Certificate course in Permaculture Design.
(But this one's even more expensive.)
Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture
by Toby Hemenway and John Todd
OK, now that we've looked at the two standard (but expensive)
books on permaculture, what's available for people who want
to learn about it and use it, but not become experts or
teachers in it?
Gaia's Garden is a good (and reasonably priced)
introduction to permaculture for individuals.
The primary author is the associate editor of The Permaculture
Activist, and the scale of the book is ideal for creating the
edible yard.