About

Hi, I’m James Robertson, the founder of Fire Mountain Permaculture, and the owner of Fire Mountain Farm.

I come from a technology background, and have spent most of my life living in the Inner West of Sydney. While my mother was a keen gardener, my first “garden” consisted of a window box on the balcony of my apartment in the suburb that had the least green space of any in Sydney. It was only when I ended up in a freestanding Federation house in Lewisham that it became possible to really start growing food and tending the environment.

I was blessed by the opportunity to complete my Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) in 2010 with the always-wonderful Milkwood Permaculture. Empowered with knowledge, that lead to backyard chickens, beehives on the roof, and guerilla-gardened verges (and beyond).

2017 saw the purchase of Fire Mountain Farm, a 22ha property nestled in rainforest at 400m elevation, 2 hours south of Sydney. While visits were initially just every second weekend, projects kicked off immediately, including the remediation of the most damaged piece of land, to become what’s now the Bee Garden. Since then, enormous changes have been wrought, with the goal of establishing a new “permaculture demonstration garden”.

When the pandemic hit, I was locked down at the farm for six months, and after that I said “I’m not going back to Sydney”. I’m now full-time on the farm, dividing my time between my technology business and nuturing the land.

I’m a skilled educator, a strategic thinker and a passionate advocate for any practice that heals the land (and us). I’m looking forward to many opportunities to share the knowledge I’ve gained, and to help others prosper.