3.5°C by 2050

• BBC Nature crisis: Humans 'threaten 1m species with extinction' 6 May 2019
• 15% species under threat of extinction in UK

• Forest Garden Spreadsheet bit.ly/forest-garden-spreadsheet

• Most people have yards, not acres

Work with nature to grow edible crops, emulate woodland edge using perennial & ground cover plants

Key points

• Work with nature: sustainable garden, grow natives, create wildlife habitat
• Edible crops: productive
• Woodland edge: easier to maintain natural balance
• Perennial plants: better for wildlife, less work
• Ground cover plants: permanent living ground cover

• Forest Garden Spreadsheet bit.ly/forest-garden-spreadsheet

1. Sustainable
   • Mineral accumulators & nitrogen fixers
   • Wildlife predators for pests
   • Permanent “living mulch” ground cover
   • Trees, perennials & soil biota sequester carbon.
   • Biodiversity encouraged
   • Native plants where possible
   • Low maintenance!
2. Productive
   • Fruit, nuts, leaves, shoots, roots…
   • Herbs, wood, canes, dyes etc
   • Multi-layered, using all available space efficiently
3. Wildlife friendly
   • Native plants, as co-evolved
   • Create ecosystem: grow insects, grow pest control, grow nutrients
4. Layers
   1. Canopy
   2. Small trees
   3. Shrubs
   4. Herbaceous perennials
   5. Ground cover
   6. Climbers
   7. Rhizosphere
5. Perennial
   • Lower maintenance
   • Less soil disturbance
   • More efficient
   • More nutritious

Illustration used with permission from Martin Crawford’s Creating a Forest Garden

1. Protect
   • Wind
     • Windbreak hedge
     • Nurse tree
     • Dead hedge
   • Wind & cold
     • Greenhouse
     • Polytunnel
     • Cold frames
     • Potting shed
     • Heated propagation bed
2. Spacing
   • Formula: ¼ to ½ average canopy diameters
   • Enough light gets to understorey
   • Plant for final size!
   • Check PFAF & RHS for sizes
   • Choose right natureworks.org.uk/rootstock
3. Ground cover
   • Always keep the ground covered
   • Annuals, use a mulch. Forest garden, use ground cover plants
   • When establishing, use bark or wood chip, plus temporary ground cover
   • Wood chip mulch does not rob nitrogen (PDF)!
   • Best temporary ground cover in West Wales, White Mustard—buy bulk
4. Nutrients
   • Calculate nutrient budget, Creating a Forest Garden Ch.6
   • Have soil test for nutrients & pH, local farmers co-op
   • “System plants” providing nutrients
   • Nitrogen: alder, pea family, Sea Buckthorn, Autumn Olive
   • Potassium: natureworks.org.uk/comfrey

• 5mm squared A3 paper

1. Position: the aspect, the orientation, elevation, slope
2. Elements: water, wind, sun, earth
3. Features: existing habitat, utilities, structures, access
4. Situation: neighbours, privacy, noise, smell

Mark observations on plan.

• Sun Surveyor app
• Soil test - pH, nutrients, soil jar test

• Orientation, standard compass on iPhone
• Elevation, GPS coordinates website map, screenshot
• Ordnance survey map gives you an idea of contour lines, try Bing.com/maps
• Slope important for creating swales, which are more important for dry areas
• You can survey more accurate contour lines using a bunyip & 2 people

• Water - running water, springs, surface water, drainage.
• Water - watch what happens when it rains
• Geology - local farmers, archeology. And, dig!
• Soil type: clay, sand, loam
• Soil pH test. ph 7 is neutral, lower is more acid
• Soil nutrients: ask local farmers co-op for nutrients NPK test
• Wind map from Meteoblue
• Met Office Weather Observations
• Sun Surveyor app

• Electricity
• Telephone lines
• Drains
• Water - old photo of drains being dug in forest garden
• Gas pipes

Situation in the landscape

• Pollution
  • Air pollution from traffic
  • Run-off from road (water & salt)
  • Run-off from fields (slurry)
  • Rubbish from public footpath

• “Coffee & cocktails” — where to drink them, morning & evening