CREATING A FOREST GARDEN: Working with nature to grow edible garden crops
by Martin Crawford
“Martin is a true pioneer and his work deserves respect and celebration.” Permaculture magazine
Here is a clip from Martin’s DVD ‘A Forest Garden Year‘:
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 low-maintenance but also has great environmental benefits. A forest garden is a managed ecosystem modelled on the structure of young natural woodland, 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, 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 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.
The Author: Martin Crawford has spent over 20 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.
ISBN 978 1 900322 62 1
281mm x 224mm
408pp in full colour
£30.00 hb
PUBLISHED IN MAY 2010