The Forested Garden: What is a Food Forest?




The Two Categories of the Tree Layer in a Food Forest 
  • The understory – Smaller trees and larger shrubs such as apples, plums, cherries, peas, Cacao, Coffee etc. 
  • The canopy layer – Taller trees that rise above the understory like Mango, breadfruit, ackee, tamarind, coconut etc.

 

Please note is not trying to get rid of water from the property but trying his very best to control and retain water. Yes the excess will have to go eventually but water should always be on the property.  



How do we deal with mosquitoes with so much standing water? Mosquitoes do breed in water, but the larvae have to wriggle up and down to get air at the surface. That makes them perfect fish food. They won’t survive where fish is in water. The ideal spot for mosquitoes is too small for fish, something more like a muddy hoof print or little saucers under plant pots. Deal with those small bodies of water and the mosquito population will be greatly reduced. You can also design in other mosquito predators: bats, birds, frogs, lizards, and dragonflies. Favor the predator and disfavor the pests.  

What exactly is contour planning? Contour is a level line in landscape, and following it helps us harmonize with the land. Water can be the most destructive or most creative component of a landscape. Designing on contour pacifies water flows and spreads it, slowing down energy to soak it gently into the landscape. Life, then, thrives. One (contour) swale on Zaytuna Farm connects four dams so that, in a rain event, the water is even distributed and, afterwards, the moisture in the swale soaks into the landscape. Swales on contour also make easy walking because they are flat and level. The advantages of working on contour can also be applied to vegetable gardens, roads and other elements to get better results from our design.






1. Observe and interact. Keep a journal
2. Catch and store energy, I.e., rain water, leaf and grass compost
3. Obtain a yield, aesthetic yield, flowers for pollinators
4. Apply self regulation, use perennial plants
5. Use and value renewable resources, create your own natural fertilizer, pest control
6. Produce no waste, make everything in the garden have multiple uses
7. Design from pattern to detail, the flow of work down to the placement of individual plants
8. Integrate rather than segregate, space saving, flowers in with veggies
9. Use small and slow solutions, start slowly with low impact
10. Use and value diversity, use different plants and different methods. Be innovative and overlapping.
11. Use edges and value the margins, have vertical forms
12. Creatively use and respond to change. Is it dry? Respond with drip irrigation.



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