Percival Alfred Yeomans (1905 - November 1984) was an Australian inventor known for the
Keyline
A keyline, in graphic design, is a boundary line that separates color and monochromatic areas or differently colored areas of printing on a given page or other printed piece. The line itself, usually consisting of a black (or other dark colored) b ...
system for the development of land and increasing the fertility of that land. As a mining engineer and gold assayer, Yeomans had developed a keen sense of
hydrology
Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is call ...
and equipment design. Upon his brother-in-law's death in a grass fire, P.A. Yeomans assumed management of a large tract of land he later named Nevallan in
New South Wales
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. There he developed improved methods and equipment for cultivation. His designs won him The Prince Philip Design Award Australia in 1974.
His Keyline principles or concepts (
Keyline Design
Keyline design is a landscaping technique of maximizing the beneficial use of the water resources of a tract of land. The "keyline" is a specific topographic feature related to the natural flow of water on the tract. Keyline design is a system o ...
) have been adopted by farm owners in almost every country in the world. Yeomans' Keyline concepts are now part of the
curriculum
In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...
of many
sustainable agriculture
Sustainable agriculture is farming in sustainable ways meeting society's present food and textile needs, without compromising the ability for current or future generations to meet their needs. It can be based on an understanding of ecosystem ser ...
courses in
college
A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...
s and
universities
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...
across the world. His ideas have also been a key factor in the development of
permaculture design. P.A. Yeomans wrote four books: ''The Keyline Plan, The Challenge of Landscape, Water For Every Farm'' and ''The City Forest
''.
See also
*
Keyline design
Keyline design is a landscaping technique of maximizing the beneficial use of the water resources of a tract of land. The "keyline" is a specific topographic feature related to the natural flow of water on the tract. Keyline design is a system o ...
*
Permaculture
Permaculture is an approach to land management and settlement design that adopts arrangements observed in flourishing natural ecosystems. It includes a set of design principles derived using whole-systems thinking. It applies these principle ...
*
Allan Yeomans
External links
Yeomans Plow CoKeyline.com.au
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yeomans, P. A.
1905 births
1984 deaths
20th-century Australian inventors
Australian mining engineers