Food Forest #2 – Pembrokeshire

What’s a Food Forest?

A food forest, also called a forest garden, is a diverse planting of edible plants that attempts to mimic the ecosystems and patterns found in nature. Food forests are designed to be thought of in 3 or 4 dimensions, and very efficient at producing food and habitat.

What trees/plants are growing in this food forest?

• Apples
• Pears
• Cherries (including Romanian sour cherries – Thank you to the Florisca’s)
• Quince
• Medlar
• Black Walnut
• Walnut (though it’s struggling with the climate)
• Chestnut
• Date plum
• Plum
• Gage
• Oak
• Alder
• Sea Buckthorn
• Monkey Puzzle
• Autumn Olive
• Rowan
• Willow
• Berberis
• Rosa Rugosa
• Yew
• Lemon (Polytunnel)
• Peach (Polytunnel)
• Fig (Polytunnel)
• Grapes (Polytunnel)
• Service Berry
• Siberian Pea tree
• Blackcurrents
• Red currents
• Gooseberries
• Blackberries
• Strawberries
• Asparagus (Polytunnel)
• Babington’s Leak
• Leaks and other garden veg

Progress so far

As of writing this we’re now 4 or so years into establishing this food forest. From initial design to where we are today has been a long, but quite nourishing journey.

• ~100 trees well established, but slow growing due to winds
• 3 layers of wind defence planted (natives, leylandii (temporary), Eleagnus Umbelleta)
• Beginnings of willow for firewood coppice
• Established Polytunnel with beds (Geothermals laid, yet to be hooked up)
• 5m x 5m pond established with 20+ plant varieties (and newts!)

Looking ahead

It’s become clear, as the years have passed the trees, that this spot is far from ideal for growing fruit and nut trees. The aspect is a high exposed hilltop; the soil is rather acidic, the winds are treacherous. The trees are surviving, but few are prospering as much as the 2 apple trees planted in good shelter near the house.

In time I am confident the hedges planted will come up and provide the necessary shelter for the rest of the food forest to prosper and the canopy to begin to establish. Having now done this 3 times, I can say that this climate change age, with it’s extremes, really can make a dramatic growth speed difference in trees. I’m hopeful that the preparations made against these weather changes will keep this diverse group of plants and trees growing.

Interestingly some trees that shouldn’t grow here, (such as Date Plum), are doing surprisingly well… but then with climate change, perhaps these oddities will become the norm.

… here’s an incredibly boring time lapse of the initial tree hole digging and landscaping.