Hi Gavin. Congrats on trying to get into
permaculture! I'm not an expert, but I can tell you a few things. For starters, there's no one right way to "do"
permaculture. Every site and situation is different, and what makes something
permie is, broadly speaking, that it is
sustainable. Once you pick out your site, your circumstances and vision will inform where you go from there.
So to narrow down your choice of site, start by thinking about what your goals are. Do you want to produce as much food as possible? Or do you want to supplement with fresher food? Do you want an attractive space to look at? are you hoping for fruits, or leafy greens?
Chickens?
If you want much food, especially fruits, the more sun, the better. Pay attention to buildings or
trees to the south of any potential purpose. There are augmented reality apps for your phone that can show you the sun position at any time and any date of the year. If your season is short, a conservatory certainly couldn't hurt, IF it gets winter sun. How much space do you want/can afford? Do you plan on bringing in materials, such as
compost? Think about carrying it through your home. Is it possible to have access from the rear of the property? These are all factors to look at.
A good book to get your head into what maximum food production can look like in a small space at a moderately high latitude, pick up Toenmeiser's Paradise Lot. It's a great memoir with tons pf practical information. There's a book called
Gardening Like a Ninja about hiding edibles amongst decorative landscaping. And you can't go wrong with
Gaia's Garden.
My two cents. Good luck!
Daniel
