Creating a Forest Garden

Growing food sustainably is becoming more and more important in the light of our changing climate. Forest gardening is a way of working with nature that is not only productive and requires minimal maintenance, but also has great environmental benefits. A forest garden is a managed ecosystem modeled on the stucture of young natural woodlands, with a diversity of crops grown in different vertical layers. Unlike in a conventional garden, nature does most of the work for you.

Creating a Forest Garden tells you everything you need to know - whether you want to plant a small area in your back garden or develop a larger plot. It includes advice on planning, design (using permaculture principles), planting and maintenance, and a comprehensive directory of over 450 trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, herbs, annuals, root crops and climbers - almost all of them edible and many very unusual.

As well as more conventional plants you can grow your own Nepalese raspberries, chokeberries, goji berries, almonds and hops—while creating a beautiful environment that benefits both you and the ecosystem. Forest gardens offer one solution for a long-term, sustainable way of growing food without compromising soil quality, food quality or biodiversity.

About the Author

Martin Crawford

Martin Crawford has spent over twenty years in organic agriculture and horticulture and is director of The Agroforestry Research Trust, a non-profit-making charity that researches into temperate agroforestry and all aspects of plant cropping and uses, with a focus on tree, shrub and perennial crops. It produces several publications and a quarterly journal, and sells plants and seeds. See www.agroforestry.co.uk for more information.

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