Forest Gardening - 2-day Introduction Course

Forest gardening is an increasingly popular approach to growing food sustainably and efficiently through making use of the vertical dimension of the garden. Designed as a diverse and robust ecosystem made up of species which are useful to us and which support one another in a web of beneficial relationships, a forest garden allows us to increase the range of perennial food plants to fill all available ecological niches, and boost yields while reducing work inputs. The approach can be used on a variety of scales, from container-gardening to farm-scale.
This 2-day course will introduce you to the forest gardening approach and its many benefits, as well as a wide range of trees, shrubs and perennial vegetables that can be grown for food, fibre, dyes, fuel, timber, and medicines, and their needs and requirements. The course will teach you the basics of designing a forest garden, including factors which may affect the design, such as available maintenance time, size and proximity to home, or a commercial element. We’ll look at methods of establishing a forest garden, whatever your starting point - a field, suburban garden, or woodland; and also cover maintenance with a view to increasing fertility and abundance over time.
The course will have a practical design element to offer you some experience in observation, mapping, and designing a forest garden. We’ll look at example designs and go on a visit to Nenya’s 10-year old forest garden (within walking distance of the venue). If you have an ongoing or planned project which involves creating a forest garden, the course will offer some opportunity for discussion, so do bring along your ideas, maps and plans.
Sadly as the venue is only accessible by stairs, we cannot accommodate wheelchair users on this course.
Booking is via our website, nonstuff.co.uk