Become Self-Sufficient With A Food Forest
A food forest is a diverse, perennial garden that mimics a forest ecosystem and patterns found in nature. Through layers of design, life extends in all directions producing food, medicine, sanctuary, and habitat.
Food forests incorporate 7 layers of edible plants including fruit and nut trees, shrubs, herbs, vines, rhizomes, mushrooms, and perennial vegetables. A food forest is thoughtfully designed to produce maximum nutrition, beauty and abundance.
Food forests integrate and draw from the disciplines of permaculture, regenerative agriculture, ecology, biology, and other natural sciences. Together, these disciplines create a living set of tools and practices that can help us engage with nature and our food production in a meaningful way.
A diverse community of life can grow in a small space, making food forests especially suitable for urban and suburban environments. At a deeper individual level, the practice of food forestry can help us cultivate ourselves and transform the ways in which we see and live in the world.
This is the largest layer of a food forest system and acts as a productive windbreak crop. It is composed of trees that are typically 40+ feet once fully mature.
1 of 8 Understory LayerThis layer is made up of small productive trees, or large shrubs, designed to increase crop yield. This layer is usually 10-25ft once fully mature.
2 of 8 Shrub LayerA perennial crop, consisting primarily of berries and medicinal varieties but also used to build habitat and pollinator support. These plants are usually kept at 10ft once mature.
3 of 8 Herb LayerA mix of annuals and perennials, this layer is smaller plant varieties that die back in Winter but return in Spring. These are generally culinary and medicinal herbs used to confuse pests and minimize disease.
4 of 8 VinesAn additional layer of productivity, the vining layer is vertical grow space. This increases yield and pollinator attraction as they climb through the larger layers of the food forest system.
5 of 8 Root ZoneAn underground layer of edible plants is used to increase soil texture and fertility. These are usually medicinal and culinary roots and tubers.
6 of 8 Mycelial NetworkThis is an underground communication network which ties all of the layers together. The mushroom is the fruiting body, while the mycelium assists in carbon sequestration, is a decomposer, and builds a dynamic community of essential microorganisms in the soil. This is the foundation of the whole system.
7 of 8 Ground CoverCreeping, living mulch layer. These plants are an essential part of the forest floor and are implemented to increase yield diversity, soil protection, and habitat for insects and wildlife.
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