It aims to set up similar self-sustaining communities in gardens, by bringing together plants that meld with one another in a balance: all survive and flourish; weeds are excluded.
Well judged choices lead to the establishment of persistent communities of plants which are diverse, self-renewing, resistant to invasion by weeds, and look attractive.
The strongest matrices consist of a succession of layers of vegetation through which sunlight filters, until at ground level there is enough only to support plants that can cope with very little light.
In the same way, many organic farmers and gardeners draw upon the idea of polyculture, and that plants can work together to form a strong community that requires little to no human intervention.
The idea is that an increased diversity of well-selected species inhabiting the same space will make the plant community healthier and less maintenance-intensive—that is, dogged by a minimum of weeds, insect pests, soil infertility, need for watering, etc.