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How To Make A
Forest Garden

Patrick Whitefield

Permanent Publications
Published by:
Permanent Publications
Hyden House Limited
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First published 1996

2nd edition 1998, 3rd edition 2000, revised 2002, reprinted 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013
© 2002 Patrick Whitefield, ebook edition 2014

The right of Patrick Whitefield to be identified as author f this work has been asserted by him in accordance with
the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Edited by
Madeleine Harland

Designed and typeset by

Tim Harland

Line drawings by
Tricia Cassel-Gerard

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 CONTENTS

FOREWORD xi
by Robert A. de J. Hart.

INTRODUCTION xv
What is a Forest Garden?

CHAPTER 1 1 CHAPTER 6 71
Why Grow a Forest Garden? Choosing Plants.
Introducing the main themes of forest gardening. How to select plants and varieties to suit you and
A natural way of gardening. Yield of food. your garden.
How a forest garden works. What kind of food? Climate, microclimate and soil. Choosing vegetables.
The easy life. Other benefits. Home garden or Choosing fruit varieties.
market garden?
CHAPTER 7 84
CHAPTER 2 13 The Trees.
The Forest Garden Community. The obvious ones. The less obvious ones.
The main components of a forest garden – trees, shrubs The doubtful ones.
and vegetables – their size, shape and structure.
The layers. The tree layer. The shrub layer. CHAPTER 8 99
The vegetable layer. The Shrubs.
The obvious ones. The less obvious ones.
Growing a native shrubbery.
CHAPTER 3 25
Putting Things Together.
CHAPTER 9 115
The principles of forest garden design – putting the
The Vegetables.
components together so they work harmoniously in
Greens. Salads. Others.
relation to each other and their environment.
The land and the people. Light and shade.
Access. Co-operation and competition. Succession. CHAPTER 10 135
Microclimate. Soil. Models. Designing a Forest Garden.
The practical process – a step-by-step guide, and an
actual example.
CHAPTER 4 45 Collecting information. Recording. Evaluation.
Home-Grown Resources. Design. A sample design: Tricia’s garden.
Some extra components to consider at the design stage.
Plant nutrients. Mulch material. Water. Weights and Measures 149
Pest and weed control.
Further Reading 151
List of Suppliers 155
CHAPTER 5 55
Preparation, Planting and Maintenance. Plant Index 163
Mulching. Preparation. Planting. Maintenance. Subject Index 166
 This book is dedicated to

Chris Hoppe
1966 - 1996

Permaculture designer and teacher,

mover, waker and shaker,
tree planter,
friend.
 THE AUTHOR

Patrick Whitefield, NDA, is a permaculture designer and teach-

er, writer and consulting editor for Permaculture Magazine. He
is also author of the mini classic, Permaculture in a Nutshell
which sells worldwide in the English language and has also
been translated into German, Danish and Russian.
He grew up on a smallholding in rural Somerset and quali-
fied in agriculture at Shuttleworth College, Bedfordshire. He
then acquired farming experience in Britain, the Middle
East and Africa.
He has expertise in many diverse areas. These include or-
ganic gardening, practical nature conservation and country
crafts such as thatching and tipi making. Patrick has found that
his mixed experiences have led him to the logical conclusion
of permaculture and are directly relevant to his present work.
He inspires respect, affection and a good measure of action
wherever he imparts his considerable knowledge.
Photo by Ian Cherry
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I owe a great debt of gratitude to Robert Hart, the pioneer of forest gardening
in temperate climates. Without his work this book would not have been
conceived. Indeed there would be no forest gardens at all. I am also grateful
to other forest gardeners who have shown me their gardens, shared their
experiences, and provided photographs for the book.
I would also like to thank Andy Daw, whose help and support throughout
this project has been considerable, and Phil Corbett, who read the manuscript
from a technical point of view and made some useful suggestions. However
I take full responsibility for the contents.
Thanks too to Tricia Cassel-Gerard, who illustrated the book, and whose
garden features in the second part of Chapter 10.
My special thanks go to my publishers, Maddy and Tim Harland and
Glen Finn. Working with them is a truly co-operative venture, full of
mutual support and genuine friendship. I hope and trust that the quality of
our relationship is reflected in the all-round quality of this book. PW
 FOREWORD

by Robert A. de J. Hart

We all have the forest in our blood. Deep down in the could be used to cure their ills. They then learned to
subconscious of each one of us are dim race memories promote the growth of these valued plants by freeing
of a time when our ancestors were dependent on the them from encroaching ‘weeds’, by opening up the
wildwood and its inhabitants for the essentials of life – forest canopy to enable more of the Sun’s rays to
food, shelter, clothing and the soul-food of beauty. penetrate them, and possibly by diverting the streams
Millions of people, when they can, seek solace in to water them. Later they learned the mysteries of
woodland areas from the discords, artificiality, pollution reproduction by seed and vegetative propagation.
and sheer ugliness of the urban environment. But, The next step was to make clearings in the forest by
tragically, the number of such areas is declining the use of fire and stone tools, to prepare the land,
throughout the world as civilisation, in its destructive to sow seeds and plant cuttings. These were the first
march, fells more and more trees for motorways, forest gardens. In the remotest parts of Africa, Asia,
airfields, housing and industrial estates, cornfields and Latin America and the Pacific Islands, the indigenous
cattle pastures, while exploiting the trees for timber inhabitants are still making similar gardens.
and pulp. Such devastation, promoting the greenhouse Ever-increasing concern is being expressed about
effect and other severe environmental problems, the wholesale extermination of tropical rainforests
threatens the very survival of humanity. with all their myriad inhabitants: strange and beautiful
Is there anything that we, the ordinary people, plants, insects, birds, animals – and human beings. It is
can do to reverse this suicidal trend? Obviously, few of a vast man-made disaster that affects us all, though
us are in a position to restore the forests, and protests we may not be immediately aware of it. In the first
and demonstrations seldom have much effect in place, plant-life absorbs carbon dioxide which is
influencing the powers that be. But tens of millions of responsible for the greenhouse effect, the creeping
us have gardens, or access to open space such as environmental malady that could, in time, so alter
industrial wastelands, where trees can be planted. the climate in every part of the world that many
And if full advantage can be taken of the potentialities forms of life would no longer be sustainable. Secondly,
that are available, even in some heavily built-up areas, plant-life exhales oxygen, that basic necessity of life.
new ‘city forests’ can arise that would compensate for Thirdly, the destruction of so much beauty, such a
the destruction of the countryside. Patrick Whitefield’s diversity of complex life-forms, must inevitably have a
excellent book gives numerous practical details of the deleterious influence on the collective unconsciousness
steps that many of us can take to realise this alluring of all humanity.
vision. I know Patrick as a dedicated and enthusiastic Most conservationists are making devoted efforts
permaculture lecturer, who writes with authority to preserve the Earth’s remaining forest cover. But
based on intensive study and experience. mere preservation is not enough. The forest is a vast
Permaculture is a modern adaptation of a system of and infinitely varied resource that should be developed
land-working and a way of life that has existed since for the sake of humanity, not in an exploitative but
time immemorial. The first horticultural activities of our in a sustainable way. And here we have much to learn
earliest ancestors consisted in learning to manage the from the forest’s indigenous inhabitants, because, for
constituents of their forest home. By carefully observing thousands of years, they have been doing just that.
the habits of their animal neighbours, they learned to Many of them have acquired an encyclopaedic
recognise which plants were good to eat and which knowledge of the qualities and uses of forest plants.
xii HOW TO MAKE A FOREST GARDEN

In fact, a new science of ethnobotany has been evolved activity has a meaning, an aesthetic-technical significance,
to tap this knowledge. While doing everything possible that transcends mere enjoyment and utility. This is
to preserve and promote the growth of the most valued because it is part of a new way of life that must be
trees and other wild plants, many forest-dwellers have developed, if people are to achieve root-solutions to the
planted, under their protective shade, useful economic colossal problems of the present era. It helps one to gain
plants such as bananas and coffee bushes, pineapples the realisation that all life is one. One becomes a
and peppers. These they have used, not only to enrich participant in the innumerable interactions that
their own diets but also to sell for cash, so that they can constitute the harmony of a diversified ecosystem.
acquire some of the genuine boons of civilisation, such In my own garden, a majestic edible rowan seems
as small machines and radio sets. to exhale a beneficent influence over human beings and
The fact that I quote the example of ‘primitive’ other plants alike. In the summer and autumn of 1994
tribal people does not mean that I advocate that we a nasturtium and a runner bean that I had sown at its
should all return to primitive lifestyles. Obviously it foot entwined it in what seemed like affectionate
would not be right to jettison the genuine technical embraces that spiralled almost to its summit.
advances of material progress, which the present The study of plant interrelationships is a science
century has produced in such bewildering abundance. that is still in its infancy. Intensive research has been
Computers and television networks, jet-planes and undertaken into the nitrogen-fixing capacities of members
genetic research, as well as many other devices and of the pea family, which benefit not only the plants
disciplines, have legitimate roles to play in a wisely themselves but also their neighbours and successors,
regulated post-industrial order. At this most crucial pe- and also into the mycorrhizal associations between
riod in the history of the world, when the future of all certain fungi and plant roots. But there is a vast lore
life is at stake, it is our most urgent task to work out of traditional biochemical reactions that awaits confir-
a new way forward, integrating the best of the old and mation or rebuttal in the laboratory. One thing is certain:
geared to the total well-being of living organisms rather the mutual aid that Kropotkin postulated as the prime
than dead systems. motivating power in evolution is a far more potent
And in this greatest of creative enterprises the force than antagonism in the multi-species plantation
new-old sciences of permaculture and agroforestry that is a forest garden.
have fundamentally important roles to play. Their most Hence its profound symbolical significance for the
significant feature is that they combine conservation of modern world.
the environment with methods to produce most of the Many visitors comment on the peaceful atmosphere
basic necessities of life. By means of constantly evolving of my forest garden. I am inclined to attribute this to the
new techniques, they make it possible to grow not fact that it is believed to be the site of a Celtic Christian
only an abundance of nourishing foods and beverages, mixed monastery, an outpost in the primeval forest that
but also medicines, fuels, fibres, timbers, oils, resins – once clothed the Welsh Borderland. Such an atmosphere,
most of the things that are needed to maintain a as I know from experience, can often be detected in
reasonable standard of living for all. potent places, such as stone circles or Iron Age hill-forts,
The creation of a permaculture plot on any scale, where powerful emotions have been felt in the distant
from a town patio to a large rural area, is a fascinating past, and I feel a warm sense of kinship with those
and satisfying task. It is a way of restoring the intimate early pioneers. But I hope and trust that my garden’s
relationship with nature, with Mother Earth, with peaceful atmosphere owes something to the present as
Gaia, for which every human psyche is programmed. well as to the past: to the numerous beneficial relation-
Just as much as any plant, the human being is intended ships between different plants, which – dare I say it? –
to have roots in the natural environment, if she or he love each other.
is to achieve spiritual security and all-round self- Especially prominent in the traditional lore of
fulfilment. After a few years of relative self-sufficiency companion growing are more aromatic plants, not
in food-plants and possibly medicinal herbs, one comes to only trees such as the balsam poplar, the delicious
realise that the products of one’s own soil have a quality scent of whose young leaves can be wafted over
that attunes them uniquely to one’s own metabolism. distances exceeding half a mile in early spring, but
One then experiences a process that goes beyond also bushes such as the blackcurrant, which is believed
satisfying the appetite and healing minor ills to the to have a special affinity for plum trees. Herbs,
enfoldment of positive health. A new vitality, a new however, such as the many species of mint, each of
life-force enters one’s being. which has the characteristic odour are the principal
The process of creating a permaculture garden is plants credited with the ability to ward off pests and
not like making an ordinary garden, because one’s every diseases from their neighbours and stimulate their
 FOREWORD xiii

growth. Herbs are one of the constituents of the

ground-storey of a forest garden, and they contribute
to a physical, as well as a spiritual atmosphere.
This is just one facet of the comprehensive answer
which permaculture puts forward to the problems of
industrial blight. Faced with the challenge of the vast
toll of environmental degradation which industrialism
has inflicted on the countryside, thousands of ordinary
people in many countries are creating new landscapes,
more beautiful and more diverse than the old, that
are also capable of supplying a multitude of useful
products. And many of the landscapes will doubtless
incorporate forest gardens. I am very grateful that
Patrick Whitefield has become such an eloquent advo-
cate of the forest garden.

Right: Robert Hart, pioneer of the temperate forest

garden, with all the tools he needs to maintain his
famous garden in his wheelbarrow. (Fransje de Waard)
 INTRODUCTION

What is a Forest Garden?

tinguishes a forest garden is that all are grown together on

FOREST GARDEN the same piece of ground, one above the other.
OR WOODLAND GARDEN? Gardens like this have long been cultivated in many
tropical countries, and still are in places as far apart
Robert Hart coined the term ‘forest garden’ as Central America, Tanzania and the Indian state of
when he invented this new way of gardening. Kerala, to name but three. But in Britain they are a new
Personally I prefer to call it a ‘woodland garden’. thing, at least in the full three-layer form. Two-layer
To me, and many British people, the word combinations, such as fruit trees with soft fruit, and hazel
forest suggests either the king’s hunting preserve nuts with vegetables, have been grown in the past. But
or a huge plantation, dark and monocultural. the modern trend to monoculture has seen the end of
A woodland is something more diverse, more them. (It was largely the introduction of poisonous sprays
natural and usually on a smaller scale. I can that put paid to them, as the spraying regime for one
more easily imagine having a bit of woodland in crop would be incompatible with the other.) If there
my back garden than a patch of forest. have been complete three-layer forest gardens in this
But ‘forest garden’ has gained wide currency, country in the past, history is silent about them.
both here and overseas, and is perhaps more The pioneer of forest gardening in Britain is
understandable in international English. So to Robert Hart. He has spent much of his life as a farm-
avoid confusion I have used the accepted term. er and gardener, searching for a way of growing food
But, dear reader, forgive me if I occasionally which is harmonious with the Earth, healthful for people,
lapse into my own vernacular and call it a and compassionate to all living things. The forest
woodland garden. The two terms mean exactly garden he has planted at his home on Wenlock Edge in
the same thing. Shropshire is the result of this search. It provides him
with a high proportion of his food with a minimum of
external inputs, including no animal manures. Many
people have been inspired by his garden to plant
forest gardens of their own. But it takes time for a
A forest garden is a garden modelled on a natural garden containing trees to mature, and as far as I
woodland. Like a natural woodland it has three layers know his is the only fully-grown example of a complete
of vegetation: trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. In an forest garden in Britain.
edible forest garden the tree layer contains fruit and nut There are no hard and fast rules about what a forest
trees, the shrub layer soft fruit and nut bushes, and the garden should be. In fact every one should be different,
ground layer perennial vegetables and herbs. The soil tailored to the needs of the individual gardeners and their
is not dug, and annual vegetables are not normally family, and to the unique environment of each garden.
included unless they can reproduce by self-seeding. It is Some may consist of only two layers rather than all
usually a very diverse garden, containing a wide variety three. Others may include annual vegetables, especially
of edible plants. in the early years, before the tree roots have grown to
Many gardens contain the same things as a forest occupy all the soil. But they all share one thing in
garden, but usually each is grown separately, as orchard, common: they are modelled on the natural climax
soft fruit area, vegetable patch, and herb bed. What dis- vegetation of Britain, which is woodland.
xvi HOW TO MAKE A FOREST GARDEN

Forest Gardening and Permaculture Although forest gardening and permaculture are
not the same thing, there is much that they have in
Permaculture is an approach to food growing – and many common. Both are about putting components together
other aspects of life – which takes natural ecosystems as in a harmonious whole, so both have a strong element
its model. People sometimes assume that permaculture of design, and both are firmly rooted in a sense of ecology.
and forest gardening are one and the same thing, but But permaculture covers a much wider field than
this is not so. gardening, including farming, forestry, town planning,
Although both learn from natural ecosystems, financial and social structures and much more. A forest
the learning is much more of a direct copy in the case of garden may be a component in a permaculture design,
forest gardening: a forest garden looks like a woodland, but it is most unlikely to be the whole thing.
but a permaculture system may not look like a natural Forest gardening is also much more than just a part
ecosystem. Permaculture is not modelled on the outward of permaculture. It is a way of gardening, indeed the basis
forms of ecosystems, but on the underlying principle for a way of living, which arose quite independently:
which makes them work. What makes them work is a it can be practised by anyone who has access to a little
web of beneficial relationships between the different land, and the desire to try something that is quite new
plants and animals, and between them and the rock, – and yet as old as life itself.
soil, water and climate of their habitat.
For example, different plants specialise in extracting
different minerals from the soil, and when their leaves
fall or the whole plant dies these minerals become
available to neighbouring plants. This does not happen
directly, but through the work of fungi and bacteria
which convert the minerals in dead organic material
into a form which can be absorbed by roots. Meanwhile
the green plants provide the fungi and bacteria with
their energy needs. Insects feed off flowers, and in return
pollinate the flowering plants. In desert ecosystems
every plant and animal is adapted to minimise the use
of water, while in very wet ones plants are adapted to
cope with waterlogging, and so on.
Natural ecosystems can be very productive, and they
don’t need all the inputs of fossil fuels and other
materials that are needed to support our present-day
agriculture, industry and infrastructure, nor do they
emit any pollution. Permaculture seeks to create systems
which have all the desirable characteristics of natural
ecosystems but which provide for human needs. The
key to achieving this is to set up a network of beneficial
relationships between the different elements we need in
a garden, on a farm or in a whole community.
So the things you find in a permaculture garden
may not be radically different from those in any other
garden, but they will be placed so as to create as many
beneficial relationships between them as possible. For
example, there may be a greenhouse, but it is unlikely
to be a free-standing greenhouse. It is much more likely
to be a conservatory placed along the south side of the
house. The waste heat from the house keeps it warm
in winter and spring, while it in turn contributes to
warming the house. Young seedlings grown in the cons-
er-vatory get maximum care and attention from the
gardener without the need to even step outdoors.
Here is a simple web of beneficial relationships involving
house, glasshouse, plants and people.
 Chapter 1

WHY GROW
A FOREST GARDEN?
Introducing the main themes of forest gardening

There are many good reasons for growing a forest is a movement afoot there to develop ‘domestic prairies’,
garden, and no two people who are attracted to it have mixtures of these plants which yield human food. This
exactly the same set of reasons. But the main one for would not only save the enormous amounts of energy
most forest gardeners is that it is the most natural way involved in growing annual cereals, but would be a cure
to garden. for the terrible levels of soil erosion which are still
common in North America.
It may be that domestic prairies have a place in
Britain, and forest gardens on the Great Plains – if only
A NATURAL WAY OF GARDENING so that people living in both places can have a more
complete diet from local sources. But each will always
Wherever you are on Earth the most sustainable and be most harmonious when grown in its own home. It is
Earth-friendly way to grow food is the way which is interesting to note that both systems have two important
most like the natural vegetation of that area. In each things in common. The first is that they are composed
part of the world a different natural vegetation has of perennial plants and the soil is rarely, if ever,
evolved over the ages to fit perfectly with the climate ploughed or dug. The second is that they are composed
and other local conditions. In Britain it is woodland. of intimate mixtures of plants growing together, not
Fields of crops and grass can be made to work here, segregated blocks of different crops, as in a conventional
but the land is forever trying to get back to woodland. garden or farm.
If a field is abandoned it is soon colonised by brambles,
blackthorn, gorse or other shrubby plants. Little trees
grow up through this protective layer, and if they are
left long enough they grow into the tall canopy of a
new woodland. It takes a constant input of energy from
humans or from our grazing animals to stop this natural
process of succession from happening.
By planting a forest garden we are working with the
natural inclination of the land rather than struggling
against it. This saves us a great deal of energy. But more
than that, it takes us closer to the kind of vegetation
which the process of evolution has found to be best
suited to the conditions here. There is no doubt that this
kind of vegetation will be the most healthy for humans,
plants, animals and the whole Earth organism, and the
easiest to sustain over long periods of time. Plate 1.1 An example of natural succession, as woodland
In other parts of the world, where the natural re-establishes itself on an abandoned pasture in Devon.
vegetation is different, the model for the most natural Bracken and bramble grow up through the grass, while
way to grow food is different. For example, on the gorse, blackthorn and willow spread out from the
Great Plains of North America the natural vegetation is hedgerow. In the background stands an oak, seed parent
prairie, a mixture of perennial grasses and herbs. There of the trees that will succeed these pioneers. (PW)
Global Benefits They form part of the habitat of wild plants and
animals. In their falling leaves they recycle soil nutrients
As well as being suited to its locality, a forest garden
and provide soil organic matter. They prevent excessive
has beneficial effects that are global in scale. Possibly
build-up of salts in the topsoil of irrigated land. The list
the greatest single ecological problem we face is climate
goes on.
change caused by the greenhouse effect. This is no
Not all of these benefits will apply in every urban,
longer a threat but a reality; it has already started to
suburban or rural back garden where we may think of
disrupt world weather patterns. As it intensifies, not
growing a forest garden. But some of them will apply
only will many species become extinct, but much of the
in every case. As a rule of thumb, if we have a choice
world’s food-producing capacity will be lost, as many
between feeding ourselves by growing trees or by
present agricultural areas become semi-desert. Moving
another means, it is likely that we will do more good to
production to new areas cannot be done overnight.
the Earth by choosing the trees.
The increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
To put it another way, growing a forest garden is a
is the biggest single cause of the greenhouse effect,
way of preserving the health of the planet and getting
and much of the carbon dioxide comes from the
food and other benefits for ourselves into the bargain.
destruction and burning of forests around the world,
But how much food can we expect to get from a forest
including tropical rain forests. Growing new trees is
garden, and what kind of food? Is it a worthwhile use of
one way to take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere,
land from a purely productive point of view?
by turning it back into living wood. Indeed Robert
Hart’s pioneering work was to a great extent inspired
by the desire to do something to compensate for global
deforestation.
On the first page of his book Forest Gardening
he records how the idea of the forest garden first came
to him:

Those who are concerned with the full implications

of the ecological crisis which we now face
generally agree that urgent steps should be taken
to plant many millions of trees... It occurred to
me that there was no reason why many of the
desperately needed new trees should not be
fruit-trees planted by the owners of town and
suburban gardens, who would gain the bonus of
growing nourishing fruit. If one could persuade
100,000 Londoners to plant just ten fruit-trees
each, that would be a million trees – quite a forest!
And if tree-planting programmes were pursued in
urban areas around the world, a new worldwide
City Forest would arise which would go some
way towards compensating for the devastation of
the tropical Rainforest.
I had a vision of mini-forests in millions of
back-gardens.

His forest garden was started as a demonstration of what

could be done in these millions of back-gardens.
The ecological benefits of trees do not stop at being
a sink for unwanted greenhouse gasses. They also enable Plate 1.2 Michael and Julia Guerra’s multi-storey
the soil to store more water and then to release it slow- food garden, Welham Green, Hertfordshire. Although
ly, preventing both flood and drought. They protect soil only 10m by 4m, this tiny back garden produces a
from wind and water erosion. They give shelter from significant proportion of their food – the annual equivalent
wind and Sun to us, our buildings and domestic of 15 tonnes per acre with only 4 hours work a week.
animals, and help to moderate excessive heat and cold. (Michael Guerra)
 YIELD OF FOOD ... And a Solution

To answer this question we first need to look at where our All of these costs can be avoided by growing food in
food comes from now. Simply, it comes out of an oil well. our own back gardens. We don’t need to aim for total
self-sufficiency, but every bit we grow means that much
less passing through the destructive process of industri-
A Problem ... alised food production.
Our food production system has become so dependent But how can gardening seriously hope to replace
on oil that, by the time the food arrives on our plates, farming as a major food source for urban people? An
for every calorie of energy in that food, approximately answer to this is suggested in an interesting report
ten calories of fossil fuel energy have been expended to called The Garden Controversy, published in 1956.2
produce it. This includes the energy used to run the The authors found that the production of food from an
tractors, to manufacture them and all the other machinery, average acre of suburban London was worth the same
and to make the fertilisers and other chemicals. It also as that from an acre of above-average farmland. This
includes transporting the food, processing it, wholesal- was a comparison of cash values; the weight of food
ing, retailing, driving to the supermarket and back, from the suburban land was half that from the farmland,
and cooking it.1 but it was valued at retail prices, whereas the farm
This ratio of ten to one is an average. It has been produce was valued at farm gate prices.
calculated that the energy cost of a Kenyan mango, eaten Nevertheless this was a remarkable finding, especially
in London, is 600 times the amount of energy contained as only 14% of the housing area was used for growing
in the fruit. fruit and vegetables, the rest being taken up by houses,
This is not just a prodigious waste of a finite resource, lawns, flowers, paths and drives. This means that the
it is a major cause of global warming. Every bit of fossil gardens were out-producing the farms by three times,
fuel we burn means more carbon dioxide in the atmos- in terms of weight of food per area of land actually
phere. In addition, each stage of the food production used for food production. If a larger proportion of
process also has its own pollution cost, from the nitrates the area had been used for food the suburbs could
that get into the groundwater in intensive farming areas easily have out-yielded the farms overall. Gardening is
to the excessive packaging in supermarkets. inherently more productive than farming because of
As well as the energy and pollution costs of our the greater amount of attention that can be given to
food, there are other ecological and human costs which smaller areas.
are often not considered. Some of our food comes from These days, in recently built suburbs, the situation
the tropics. As well as exotic fruits, much of this consists would be quite different because houses are now built
of soya beans and other protein foods which we feed to at much higher densities and the modern garden is a
farm animals to provide ourselves with meat, eggs and miserable scrap of land compared to the generous tenth
milk. Often this food is grown on land which could be of an acre that was typical in the heyday of suburbia, the
providing food for the local people. They are then forced 1920’s and 30’s. There is still plenty of scope for growing
to migrate to urban shanty towns, or to start cultivating food in smaller gardens, but obviously a higher proportion
steep marginal land which suffers severe soil erosion of the garden must be devoted to it in order to grow a
as soon as the tree cover is removed, leaving both land reasonable proportion of the family’s food.
and people destitute. Much of the soya crop is grown Modern British agriculture is often described as being
in South America on land that has just been cleared efficient. But this is only true when you measure
from forest. efficiency in one very specific way, by output per worker
This is not to say that the food business is more employed on the farm. If you include all the workers
ecologically destructive than any other. But food is one involved in producing the machinery and chemicals and
thing that we cannot do without, and one which many in processing and distributing the food, it begins to look
of us have some opportunity to produce for ourselves. a lot less efficient per worker. As we have just seen, if
efficiency is measured in terms of output per area of
1
land cultivated it’s actually less efficient than back gardens.
See Meeting the Expectations of the Land, eds Wes Jackson, Wendell
In terms of output per unit of energy employed it is so
Berry & Bruce Coleman, North Point Press, San Francisco, 1983.
2
inefficient that it actually uses up ten times as much as
Best, Robin H, & Ward, JT, The Garden Controversy, a Critical
it produces. Even from a money point of view it cannot
Analysis of the Evidence and Arguments Relating to the Production
of Food from Gardens and Farmland,Dept. of Agricultural Economics, be very efficient, as British Agriculture is subsidised to
Wye College, Kent, 1956. the tune of £10 billion each year.3
3
See Our Food,Our Land, Richard Body, Rider, 1991. Gardening begins to look like a much more efficient
way of producing food when you look at it from more
than one limited viewpoint.
All this says a great deal for gardening in general,
but what about forest gardening in particular? How
does its productivity compare with that of other kinds
of gardening?
As yet we don’t know for sure. Any useful compari-
son would have to be based on looking at the yield of a
number of gardens over a number of years. Woodland
gardening is so new to Britain that such a comparison
will have to wait till the gardens which are being
planted now become mature. But a look at how forest
gardens work can give us a good idea of what to expect.

Plate 1.3 A semi-natural wood in May, with the shrub

layer in full leaf and the canopy just starting to leaf. (PW)
HOW A FOREST GARDEN WORKS
Other woodland herbs continue to grow at a low
A Natural Woodland... rate throughout the summer. Some of these are geneti-
A forest garden works the same way as a natural woodland cally adapted to cope with low levels of light, or able
does in our climate. to adjust themselves to it. Others tend to grow where
Although there are no wholly natural woods left in some extra light is let into the wood, such as where a
Britain, there are still some semi-natural woods, where tree has fallen or on the woodland edge. Primroses
human activity has been confined to taking a regular can use both of these means. They prefer to grow on a
harvest of timber and other produce, but where we have woodland margin, where some light can come in from
never grubbed out the existing trees and replaced them the side, but if they are in a shady place the leaves
with species of our own choice. These woods usually expand to something like twice their normal size to
have a structure consisting of three layers: the canopy catch as much light as possible.
of tall trees, a lower layer of shrubs and coppiced trees, By its multi-layer structure, a woodland makes use
and a layer of mainly herbaceous plants at ground level. of the three dimensions of space in order to fit a large
If you visit such a wood in early spring, say the first number and diversity of plants onto a single piece of
week in April,4 you will see that all the growth is taking land. The tendency of each of these layers to come into
place at ground level. There may be a green carpet of leaf in sequence makes use of the fourth dimension,
wild garlic, bluebells or dog’s mercury, making the most time, to ensure that they all get their share of the Sun’s
of the spring sunshine to manufacture food in their leaves. nourishing energy. It also means that the fullest use is
The mercury, along with celandines, wood anemones made of the sunshine, from early spring to late autumn.
and violets, will also be taking advantage of the bare It almost seems as though each layer is being charitable
branches above them to flower and set seed. to the one below. Surely it would profit the trees to
If you come back towards the end of April you will come into leaf as early as possible and get all the sunlight?
see more green in the shrub layer, as the hazel, hawthorn, The reason they don’t is because their leaves are not
guelder rose and other shrubs take their turn at the frost hardy. Any protective mechanism which gives a
sunlight before the canopy leafs up. plant resistance to an adverse influence, like disease or
This happens some time in May in most woods, freezing temperatures, takes energy. If the plant can do
depending on the kinds of trees present in the canopy. without that mechanism it means that much more energy
For example lime usually comes into leaf in late April, is available for growth. Thus the trees have sacrificed a
while the last few ash trees are still bare as May turns few weeks sunshine in return for freedom from the
into June. As the shade deepens some of the herb layer need to protect themselves from late frosts.
plants, like wild garlic and bluebells, give up trying to The herbs don’t have that option. They must come into
catch any sunlight at all. They leave flowering to the last leaf early in order to get their share of the sunlight before
minute, just as the tree leaves are expanding to close off the shrubs and trees begin to shade them, and that
the last gaps. Then their leaves disintegrate, the food means being in leaf when there is still a high probability
they have manufactured during the spring is passed to
the underground bulbs and to the seed, and the plants 4
The dates given here are for southern England. They will be a little
wait for next spring to start growing again. later further north.
of frosts. They must invest part of their hard-won As above ground, so below: the wide variety of
energy in frost-resistance. plants in a forest garden gives a wide variety of root
The herbs are occupying a different niche from the systems, each of a different size and shape. This means
trees. An ecological niche is the role a plant or animal that the whole volume of the soil can be used without
has in an ecosystem and the way in which it makes its the plants competing unduly with one another for water
living there. For a plant this includes how it gets enough and nutrients. The taller plants can also reduce the water
sunlight, water and mineral nutrients, what conditions requirement of the shorter ones by creating a more
it needs to reproduce, which parasites and herbivores humid microclimate beneath their branches. Competition
feed on it, what climate it needs, how it competes or for water is also lessened by the fact that plants do not
co-operates with neighbouring plants and so on. consume water when they are not in leaf, so the succession
One aspect of the niche of the trees in a wood is of leafing times has its part to play here as well.
being tall, frost tender and relatively late-leafing. This In short, a forest garden can make much better use
combination enables them to get enough sunlight and of the available resources, both above and below ground,
to avoid frost. The corresponding aspect of the herb’s than can a single-layer garden because more niches are
niche is to be short, frost-hardy and early leafing. The filled. So the potential yield is clearly much greater.
shrubs fall somewhere between the two extremes. Although we can’t yet put a figure on this, there are
some interesting indications from the world of agrofor-
...And a Forest Garden estry, the practice of growing trees and farm crops on
the same land. For example, ash trees can be grown for
A forest garden works in the same way. First the vegetable
timber over a pasture, making a double-layer system not
layer comes into leaf, then the soft fruit, and finally the
unlike a traditional orchard. It has been calculated that
top fruit. Some extra light coming in from the side is
the grasses do 60% of their year’s photosynthesis – that
usually needed too, but having at least one of the layers
is the production of food, for which they need sunlight
in full leaf throughout the growing season means that
– before the ash trees come into leaf. As pasture grasses
the garden can make maximum use of the available sun-
are not woodland plants this figure is very encouraging.
light in a way that a conventional vegetable garden or
We can expect that the vegetables and shrubs of a forest
single-storey orchard cannot. The growing season starts
garden, whose wild ancestors came from the herb and
much earlier in the spring, as the perennial vegetables,
shrub layers of wild woods, will do at least as much of
which have overwintered as mature plants or rootstocks
their photosynthesis before the canopy closes.
are able to put on rapid growth early in the spring when
The important point about all mixed plantings is
annual vegetables are still seeds in the packet, or at best
that we are not looking for maximum yield of a single
seedlings in the seed tray.
crop; we are looking at the combined output. Although
the yield of grass in a pasture with ash trees may be
slightly less than the yield of grass in a pasture without
trees, the total output – grass plus timber – will be
greater.
The same is true of a forest garden. It will almost
certainly yield less top fruit than a simple orchard, less
berries than a pure stand of soft fruit bushes, and less
vegetables than a simple vegetable garden. But it will
produce more in total than any of the single layer
plantings.

WHAT KIND OF FOOD?

A Varied Diet
There are three main products from a forest garden:
fruit, nuts, and leafy vegetables. This may not sound like
a complete diet, but then we do not usually expect our
Plate 1.4 A two-layer planting of fruit in May, with home gardens to produce everything we eat. If we are going
blackcurrants in full leaf and apples in blossom but only to grow a proportion of our food at home there are some
just leafing. Carol Jacobs’ garden, Wiltshire. (PW) very good reasons for choosing just these products.
 Agriculture is a very recent invention on the included in their ‘sallets’.” He notes that John Evelyn,
timescale of evolution. People have only been eating writing in 1699, listed 73 plants that were commonly
an agricultural diet, based on grains, for some two or eaten raw in his day and added that many more could
three hundred generations, and perhaps half that time have been included.
here in the northern part of Europe. This is a short time This level of diversity sounds remarkable. But both
in evolutionary terms, a tiny fraction of the time that archaeology and studies of modern-day hunter/gatherer
we and our hominoid ancestors have been on Earth, peoples suggest that it is what we have been used to
almost certainly too short a time for our bodies to have throughout our evolutionary history. It is our simplified
evolved to suit the new diet. It is most likely that we twentieth-century diet which is unusual.
would be healthier if we ate more of the foods which We may not manage to grow over seventy different
our bodies have been ‘designed’ by evolution to live on. food plants in our forest gardens, but certainly we can
Fruit, nuts and leaves, supplemented by some animal grow many that are not found in a conventional vegetable
protein, is probably very much the diet of our stone-age garden, and any increase in the variety of our diet must
ancestors. Hazel nuts were certainly a staple during the be good for health.
middle stone age in Britain, judging by the large Many of the plants which are suitable for a forest
numbers of hazel shells found around habitation sites garden are either taken straight from the wild or
of that date by archaeologists. have only been slightly modified by plant breeding.
Certainly it would be good for us to eat more fruit Wild plants are on average much higher in protein, vita-
than most of us do now, especially raw fruit straight mins and minerals than conventional vegetables. They
from our gardens. may also contain a variety of organic substances which
Shop-bought fruit may look brilliant, but that are good for our health in ways which present-day nu-
visual perfection is a sure sign that it has been sprayed tritional science is not aware of.
over and over again to prevent the slightest blemish. Annual garden vegetables, on the other hand, have
A typical commercial orchard may have been sprayed been intensively bred over many generations for high
15 times or more during the growing season, including yield and other commercial qualities. Nutritional value
herbicides, insecticides and fungicides, and the fruit it- has not been selected for, and has withered away by
self sprayed again in storage. Much of this spraying is default. Perennial vegetables have not on the whole
purely cosmetic and has nothing to do with increasing been as intensively bred as annuals, and they retain
yield. Organic fruit is hard to find in the shops, and much of the nutritional value of wild plants.
expensive. Most of the produce of a forest garden, whether
The fruit we buy in shops is almost all imported. fruits, nuts or salads, can be eaten raw. Most of us
Even the apples and pears that used to be grown in would probably benefit from having a higher proportion
Britain are now mostly from overseas. By the time the of raw food in our diets. What’s more, eating it raw
fruit gets to us what vitality it ever had in its chemical- saves us both the trouble and the energy cost of cooking
ly-cultured orchard is very largely gone. What is more, it. A quarter of the ten calories of energy expended in
only a very few varieties are commonly available in putting a calorie of food on our plates is spent in the
the shops. These are not the ones with the best taste or home, and this is mainly in cooking. The more raw food
nutritional value, but the ones that best catch the eye we eat, the less energy we use, the less global warming
on a supermarket shelf, or the thick-skinned ones that and acid rain we cause. The beneficial effects of our
travel best. forest gardens spread out over the Earth like ripples
Such fruit bear no comparison to juicy gooseberries from a stone dropped in a pond.
eaten fresh off the bush, or the perfect plum, picked
at the peak of its ripeness and popped straight in your
mouth. A Varied Garden
Robert Hart is a great believer in the health-giving Although there are many good reasons for eating
properties of fresh green leaves. “My whole life has more of the foods that grow in a forest garden, this
been a struggle against ill-health in my family and does not necessarily mean we should do away with our
myself, and for me the forest garden has been part conventional vegetable gardens. Most of the plants grown
of the culmination of that struggle,” he writes in in a conventional vegetable garden are Sun-loving
Forest Gardening. He has revived the old word ‘sallet’ annuals, and would not fit into a woodland situation.
to describe the kind of salads that were eaten in days A kitchen garden which is partly woodland and partly
gone by. “Our forefathers made no distinction between conventional will give more variety than either alone.
vegetables and herbs,” he says. “Anything that was The two parts of the garden complement each other
edible and green, cultivated or wild, was liable to be in three important ways:
• Firstly they enable us to keep growing food throughout A No-Dig Garden
the year. The vegetable yield from a forest garden
The first of these is that there is usually no digging
is seasonal. It is at its peak in spring, and begins to
involved. There is not much scope for digging in a
decrease just as the annual vegetables are beginning
garden full of trees, shrubs and perennial vegetables.
to come ready in the summer. In the autumn many
But even where it is possible, there are some very good
of the perennial greens in the forest garden retreat
reasons for not disturbing the soil.
below ground to spend the winter as rootstocks.
Bare soil is rare in nature; there is almost always a
Then the hardy members of the cabbage family –
cover of living or dead plant material on the surface.
like sprouts, kale and savoys – come into their own,
Disturbed soil is also rare. Barring ice ages and earth-
providing greens through the dark days of winter.
quakes it is mainly caused by the action of animals,
On the other hand, some of the salad plants in the
either burrowers like moles and rabbits, or rooters like
forest garden stay green through the winter, when
badgers and wild pigs. Although these animals may
conventional salads are hard to find.
be common in some ecosystems, the soil disturbance
• Secondly, there are some things which are hard to get they cause rarely affects more than a small percentage
from perennials in our climate. Bulk carbohydrate is of the area at any one time. We are so used to the idea of
the most obvious one. There is no real alternative to ploughing or digging every piece of land on which we
the potato at present (though there are one or two hope to grow some food that we think of it as the norm
herbaceous perennials which could rival it if they for productive land. But it never was the norm till we
received attention from plant breeders). humans invented agriculture, and that, on the timescale
• Thirdly, and not least, we like to eat what we know well. of evolution, was an instant ago.
Although I personally take great pleasure in exploring Soil is not an inert mineral substance. It is an intricate
the new tastes of unusual vegetables and making blend of mineral, air, water, organic matter and living
exotic salads from unexpected plants, I would be organisms. The relationships between these components
loathe to give up the pure joy of the year’s first picking are so complex, and so hidden from our view, that we
of broad beans, lightly boiled and served with a really know very little about how the whole intricate
knob of butter! system works. What we do know clearly shows that
there are some quite specific ways in which digging or
However, most of us are not trying to grow all our ploughing the soil disrupts its natural fertility.
own food. Most gardeners grow what they enjoy
growing, or find easiest to grow, and enjoy eating, and • Crumb structure is one important element in fertility.
buy the rest from the shops. In that case there is no In an undisturbed soil it can be quite complex, and
reason why the whole area should not be put down to it provides the essential crevices through which air,
forest garden, plus some lawn and ornamentals. In any water and plant roots can penetrate the soil. It is
case, the yield of food is only one reason for growing a severely disrupted when we dig or plough, and it is
forest garden. destroyed in a frequently cultivated soil unless steps
are taken to restore it. On a farm scale it can be
restored by alternating arable crops with temporary
grassland which remains undisturbed for a few years
THE EASY LIFE to allow the structure to recover. On a garden scale
it can be maintained by incorporating a lot of
Another reason for forest gardening is that it does
organic matter into the soil. But in a forest garden
not take much work. To some extent the amount of
it is not disrupted in the first place.
work depends on the inclination of the individual
gardener. You can go for an intensive approach, with • The micro-organisms in the soil are the powerhouse of
intensively pruned trees, masses of mulch and careful soil fertility. A myriad of essential chemical process-
nurturing of individual plants, or a more extensive one, es are going on all the time down there, including
with minimal pruning and mulching, and a sink-or- the cycling of plant nutrients and the conversion of
swim attitude to plants. The extra work should yield raw organic matter to humus. These processes are
extra produce, but you can choose your style according carried out by bacteria, fungi, algae and other micro-or-
to your priorities. ganisms. They are so numerous that in a salt-spoon
Nevertheless, there are some basic characteristics of full of healthy soil there are more living beings than
a forest garden which make it less laborious than an there are humans on Earth.
annual vegetable garden, however intensively you Digging destroys many of them. 80% of these
choose to cultivate it. organisms live in the top 5cm of soil, and they die if
 they are buried deeper. Others are killed by exposure Perennial Plants
to sunlight, and many which are not killed are
Any gardener who has grown both annual vegetables
unable to continue with their natural cycles because
and fruit will know which takes the most work! It may
the soil is suddenly swamped with an unnaturally
take more work to get the fruit established, but once
high level of oxygen. This excess of oxygen can lead
that is done the biggest job left is harvesting the
to a rapid loss of organic matter and plant nutrients
produce. In a forest garden this applies to the vege-
from the soil.
tables too, because they are perennial also. There are
• A bare soil is exposed to erosion. In this country erosion some maintenance tasks to be done, but they are pretty
is rarely catastrophic, but it is often insidious, light compared to the sowing, planting, thinning and
carrying off a small fraction of the soil each year. so on that are a never-ending round in a conventional
It is always the most fertile fraction, the organic vegetable garden.
matter and clay particles, which goes first. We then Annual plants are much less common than peren-
have to replace this lost fertility. Water erosion, nials in nature, as they usually need a patch of bare soil
caused by rain hitting bare soil, is much worse on in which to germinate and establish themselves. Most
sloping land than on the flat. So growing a forest are pioneers, able to establish themselves quickly on a
garden can be a good option for steep land, which newly available piece of ground, but unable to maintain
would need to be terraced if annual crops were to themselves once the perennials get established. A
be grown there without causing erosion. community of perennials is more stable than one of
annuals. It can keep going much more easily without
To dig or to plough is to forgo the natural gifts of our help.
the soil, and to commit ourselves to providing them As far as the vegetable layer of the garden is concerned,
ourselves. We may feel we can do this better than perennialism has another advantage which saves the
Nature can, by mechanically aerating the soil and gardener a great deal of bother. It avoids much of
providing nutrients with manures or chemicals, but it the problem with slugs. Slugs are undoubtedly the most
will certainly involve us in a lot more work. destructive garden pests in Britain, especially in the
Of course there are some good reasons for digging, wetter west of the country. Plants are most vulnerable
otherwise people wouldn’t do it. to slugs when they are young. Once they get past the
small and tender stage they can usually outgrow a slug
• One is to control weeds. In a forest garden mulch attack, and perennial vegetables only go through that
plays an important part in weed control. But there stage once every five years or so, not every year. In fact
are not so many weeds in this kind of garden many perennials can be propagated by vegetative
anyway, firstly because digging is the main thing means – detaching part of the parent plant which will
which encourages weed seeds to germinate in the grow into a new one – rather than by seed. These
first place, and secondly because any plant which young plants are bigger than seedlings and can usually
is useful in one way or another is welcome in a grow away from slug attack more easily.
polyculture. Many wild plants are edible, and deep
rooted ones work at bringing mineral nutrients Diversity
up from the subsoil. The diversity of a forest garden helps to keep it free
from serious levels of pest infestation. This is not just a
• Incorporating manure and compost is another
matter of having three layers instead of one, but also of
reason to dig. But in a forest garden the material
having a rich mixture of species and varieties within
is just placed on the surface as a mulch and taken
each of the layers.
down into the soil by the earthworms. (This also
Where many plants of the same kind are growing
saves the work involved with composting, as organic
together, pests and disease organisms are surrounded
matter which is applied on the soil surface does not
on all sides by more of their host plants, so they find it
usually need to be composted, as it does when it is
easy to reproduce rapidly to epidemic proportions.
dug in.)
Where each kind of plant is mixed in among many
• Another reason for digging is to prepare the soil for other kinds it is much more difficult for pests and
sowing seeds. This is not strictly necessary, as there diseases to build up, and they usually stay at a level that
are many successful annual vegetable gardens which does little harm.
are run on a no-dig system. But in a forest garden, In addition to the benefits of general diversity, there
where the plants are perennials, there is no need to may also be specific interactions going on. For example
prepare a seedbed each spring. some plants provide food for insects which are predators
on plant pests. But it is not always necessary to know Wildlife Gardening
precisely what the relationships are between plant and
Looked at like this, forest gardening can seem very close
plant in order to benefit from the principle of health
to wildlife gardening. In fact there are many similarities
through diversity. We can be pretty sure that the
between the two approaches.
greater the diversity of plants and the more they are
Wildlife gardeners may start out with the main aim
intermingled the healthier the garden.
of providing a haven for wild plants and animals, and
forest gardeners with the aim of producing food in an
Earth-friendly way. But the solutions they come up with
OTHER BENEFITS are often very similar. Some of the plants are the same,
as many native plants are edible, but the two kinds of
Beauty garden are also alike in structure and in technique.
Chris Baines, in his excellent book How to Make
A forest garden does not have to be totally dedicated
a Wildlife Garden,5 suggests that the ideal shape for a
to food production. For many people the beauty of
wildlife garden is one modelled on a woodland glade,
the garden is just as important as its yield of food. Fruit
with trees and shrubs round the outside in a crescent or
trees make a magnificent display with their blossom in
horseshoe and lower vegetation in the middle. This is
the spring, and there is no reason why some trees,
also one of the best configurations for a forest garden,
shrubs and herbs should not be chosen more for their
as we shall see.
appearance than their edible produce. Some purely
In the same book he made the classic statement:
ornamental plants can be included too. The balance of
“In a good, healthy bit of garden wildlife habitat there
priority between food and beauty can be struck just
will be hardly a leaf that has not had a bite taken out of
where the individual gardener wants it to be.
it.” Exactly the same goes for a healthy forest garden, or
The rigid separation between the edible and
any garden grown along permaculture or organic lines
ornamental parts of a garden which we think of as
come to that. All these approaches lead to the same end.
normal is really only a convention. It is quite a recent one
The differences are only ones of emphasis, and an
too, dating back to about the middle of the last century.
interest in wildlife can be as good a reason for growing
When we free ourselves from it, whole new vistas of
a woodland garden as any.
garden design possibilities can open up before us.
Personally I would go further than that and say that
we have no right ever to design a garden without mak-
A Backyard Ecosystem ing provision for wild plants and animals. We humans
As well as the purely visual beauty of the garden, there are only one species on the Earth, and all the others
is a fascination in being a witness and participant in have as much right to thrive and prosper as we do.
the growth and development of an ecosystem. Strictly This does not just mean setting aside a little area
speaking any garden is an ecosystem, and there is for wildlife in the garden. It means working with our
interest and pleasure in watching its development. But gardens – and farms, woodlands, townscapes and so on
a forest garden is so much closer to a natural ecosystem – so that wildlife can thrive in the main productive areas,
than serried ranks of Brussels sprouts – more complex not only in a bit labelled Nature Reserve. It also means
and less predictable. choosing a low-impact lifestyle overall. Our patterns of
This is partly due to the timescales involved. As well consumption, transport, and waste disposal all have
as the annual cycle that every garden has, a forest direct and indirect impacts on wild plants and animals.
garden has the much longer cycle set by the lifespan of In fact the need to create nature reserves is an admission
the trees. In fact it is more complex than that because that we have failed to keep the rest of the land in a
different trees and shrubs grow at different rates and healthy condition, or our own appetites for material
have different lifespans. Perennial vegetables also have goods at a reasonable level.
their lifecycles, spreading and shrinking in response to
age, competition from neighbours, different seasons, Playspace
increasing or decreasing shade from trees and shrubs,
The main use of many back gardens is as play space
and interventions from the gardener. Add to this the wild
for children. Parents often say that they need to keep a
plants and animals that move into or out of the garden
large area of lawn because the children play on it. But
as conditions change, and you have a kaleidoscope of
the average lawn is too small to make a really usable
changes unfolding as each year unfolds.
open space, one big enough to ride your bike or play
football. Cutting it down to half its size may make
5
Published by Elm Tree Books, 1985. no significant difference to its value as a play space.
The other half can be planted up to something much to be able to pick large quantities of produce in a
more attractive to most children – a shrubbery. reasonably short time. Profit margins on organic
There is so much more you can do in the three-di- market gardening are very low, and a large part of the
mensional space created by shrubs and trees. You can cost is work time, whether that of paid helpers or the
climb the trees, make dens and tunnels, imagine gardeners themselves, and the biggest job is picking and
yourself to be thousands of miles away in the jungle, packing the produce.
or create a whole secret world, one that is not visible If you have orders for a dozen boxes of this and five
from adult eyes at the kitchen window! nets of that you need to be able to get your head down
Using a forest garden as a play space will greatly and pick a large quantity of each crop at a time, not to
reduce its potential for food production. The soil will have to look here and there amongst trees and bushes
get compacted, the herb layer trampled, and it is not for plants which are scattered around amongst other
conducive to maximum fruit yield to have children kinds which you have no orders for that day. The
climbing all over fruit trees. But within these limitations amount of diversity that is possible on a market garden
there is no reason why at least some food cannot be is limited by this need for efficient harvesting.
grown in a shrubbery where children play. Nevertheless, it may be possible to incorporate some
The balance between food and play can be struck of the principles of forest gardening into a market gar-
wherever it suits the individual family. It could mean a den, albeit in a modified way.
play-shrubbery that contains just a few fruiting trees No-dig gardening is sometimes practised on a
and shrubs. Any food harvested would most likely go commercial scale, usually on the raised bed method.
straight into the mouths of the children. Why not? It’s Long no-dig beds are alternated with narrow paths,
an excellent way for them to experience at first hand the with the beds sufficiently narrow that all work can be
relationship between plants and people, something that done when standing on the paths. This means that it is
many children today never experience at all. never necessary to tread on the beds, so the soil does not
At the other end of the spectrum, perhaps with older get compacted, thus removing one of the main reasons
children or ones who want to take an active part in for digging or ploughing. It is hard to mechanise
growing food themselves, there could be areas which a garden laid out like this, so all planting, weeding and
they agree not to trample, where a vegetable layer so on is usually done by hand. A no-dig market garden
could grow and soft fruit bushes could live in uncom- is hard work, but feasible.
pacted soil. A certain degree of diversity is possible on a
Whatever kind of shrubbery, from pure play space commercial scale, though much less than in a home
to forest garden, one thing can be reasonably sure – garden. It may be necessary to grow each crop by itself
maintaining the shrubbery will be a lot less work than for ease of harvesting and other operations such as
constantly mowing the lawn throughout the summer. sowing or planting out, but the area of each mono-
culture can be restricted. For example, on a raised bed

HOME GARDEN OR
MARKET GARDEN?
There is an assumption in all the above that a forest
garden is a domestic garden, not a commercial one.
In fact there does not have to be to be a hard and fast
distinction between the two. Many a home gardener
sells a bit of surplus on a roadside honesty stall or the
local WI market, and often this amounts to a significant
supplement to their income. This can apply to a forest
gardener as much as any other. But is there a potential
for using the principles of the forest garden to produce
food as a principal source of income?
The main problem is one of harvesting. The home
gardener may be quite happy to spend five or ten Plate 1.5 A raised bed in an organic market garden,
minutes wandering through the forest garden, picking showing long narrow beds alternating with paths.
a leaf here and bunch of berries there, to come up with Montague Organic Garden, Shepton Montague, Somerset.
enough food for a meal. But commercial growers need (PW)
system each bed may contain only one kind of plant, but may cost say 50p, and contain a mixture of whatever
no two adjacent beds contain the same. A compromise, is in season. Growing the plants in a mixture could
but certainly an improvement on the wide expanses of actually make it easier to fill the bags than having each
a single crop sometimes seen on chemically-grown one growing in a separate block. The fact that all the
market gardens. vegetables are perennials or self-seeders would mean
In fact simple mixtures can work commercially. Two that the work of sowing and planting out is largely
crops may be interplanted on the same bed, if they eliminated. For salad bags, forest garden-style growing
complement each other rather than compete. Leeks might work out cheaper all round.
and celeriac is one combination that works, the tall thin Of course salad bags only make use of one layer of
plant and the short bushy one using different parts of a forest garden. The commercial salad bag producer
the three-dimensional space available. Cabbages can be may find it more convenient to grow the tree and shrub
interplanted with lettuces, the quick-growing lettuces layers elsewhere, if at all, and simply grow a bed of
being harvested before the cabbages expand to their full mixed, mulched perennial vegetables for the bags.
size. Both of these combinations will give a higher yield Strictly speaking this is not a forest garden, but it’s
per square metre than one of these crops on its own. getting closer to it.
No-dig, diversity and intercropping are ideas used A veggie-box scheme is one of the kinds of marketing
by many gardeners, and are no way unique to forest setup which comes under the general heading of
gardening, though they are very much part of it. If there community farming. It is a way of making a direct
is one distinguishing mark of a forest garden it is the connection between growers and consumers, avoiding
combination of tree fruit, bush fruit and vegetables on the cost, waste and excess packaging and transport
the same piece of land, and this is perhaps getting a bit involved in selling through the supermarkets.
too complex for commercial growers. Each customer agrees to buy a box of produce once
Two-layer systems can be successful. In the nineteenth a week at a standard price. They form themselves into
century rows of soft fruit were often planted between delivery groups of about ten, the growers deliver all
the rows of trees in commercial orchards, and vegetables the boxes to one member of each group, and the others
were grown in commercial hazel plantations. These collect from that person.
kinds of combination are rare now, but I have seen a The growers have an assured outlet, at something
combination of tree fruit and annual vegetables in an over the wholesale price, while the consumers have a
organic, no-dig market garden. supply of food they can trust at about the same price
One part of the garden has young standard apple they would pay for non-organic in the shops. Transport
trees planted out in it at orchard spacing. I asked the is kept to a minimum and all packaging can be returned.
gardener why he had planted them there and he said, The consumers are usually encouraged to visit the
“I don’t think I’ll want to go on doing this for the rest garden or farm to see what is going on there and
of my life. By the time I’m ready to retire these trees sometimes social events are organised.
will have grown up and I’ll have an orchard instead of a The essence of a box scheme is that the consumers
garden.” As yet the trees have virtually no effect on the commit themselves to accept a mixture of what is in
yield of vegetables. season, and this can include fruit as well as vegetables.
Overall it seems that while there is some scope for So the mixed nature of a forest garden could be an
market gardeners to move in the direction of forest advantage rather than a disadvantage in filling the boxes.
gardening, this is severely limited by the low prices paid Neither salad bags nor boxes are usually the only
for produce, even when organically grown. To a great output of a market garden. Nor will either of them be
extent prices are set by the growers who can produce at filled entirely with produce from a forest garden,
the lowest cost. Any growers who adopt methods that especially the box, as the consumers are likely to want
increase their labour requirement must pay for it out of a range of conventional annual vegetables. So it is
profits which are already slim. unlikely that a forest garden would be more than a part
of a commercial market garden.
Marketing Diversity
Nevertheless, there are two specific markets which Closing the Circle
could well make use of the vegetable layer of a forest Although there may be ways of using the forest garden
garden without much increasing the cost of harvesting: idea in a commercial setting, doing so will always be
salad bags, and veggie-box schemes. something of a compromise. A forest garden is first and
A salad bag is a mixture of salad vegetables and foremost a home garden. This is not just because it’s
herbs of a set value but variable contents. A typical bag difficult to make use of it on a commercial scale; it is
also because the fact that the garden is right outside
your back door is, ecologically, as important as the style
of growing.
All of nature is based on cycles, circular flows of
materials through rocks, soil, water, air and living
things, driven by the power of the Sun. Only by
constantly cycling the elements needed for plant and
animal growth can life be sustained indefinitely.
By contrast, our present agriculture is based on
linear flows. Plant nutrients, for example, follow a
well-defined path from source to sink: they are mined
from limited mineral reserves or extracted from the air
by processes using a great deal of fossil fuel, transported
to farms as chemical fertilisers, transported to us in the
food, flushed down the sewers and dumped in the sea, Plate 1.6 The forest garden at the Sutton Ecology Centre
where they become pollutants. in Surrey is looked after by the staff of the centre. It is an
Organic growing replaces much of this linear flow educational asset, as well as a productive garden.
with cycles, but some linear flows remain: fertility may (Martin Evans)
be bought in the form of manure from neighbouring
farms; the food is usually consumed far from the place look at planting one on an allotment, or in a public
where it is grown; and the sewage still ends up in the place such as school grounds or an unused piece of
sea. Home gardening eliminates all transport, and municipal land. A forest garden can succeed in these
allows for the return of all the nutrients in the food, by situations, but only if there is someone, or a number of
means of composting, directly to the soil that grew that people, interested in spending regular time there.
food. It is indefinitely sustainable. This can happen without effort if the garden is at the
In fact it is an axiom of permaculture, or any truly gardener’s workplace, or somewhere along the way to
ecological way of living, that where we do things is at work. Unemployed or retired people may have the time
least as important as how we do them. for frequent visits to a forest garden on an allotment
or public site. But where attention can most easily be
given in large but infrequent instalments, such as on
The Kitchen Window
weekends, it may be better to think of another use for
This applies to the flow of human energy just as much the piece of ground in question.
as it does to flows of fossil fuels and plant nutrients. Main crops of potatoes, beans and so on are ideal
The biggest single factor in the success or failure of any for allotments which get infrequent visits from their
garden is usually the amount of attention it receives. otherwise busy tenants. For public land a traditional
There is an old Chinese proverb which says ‘the best orchard is an option worth considering. There are a
manure is the gardener’s shadow’. A more recent number of successful community orchards around the
version of the same idea is the Kitchen Window country, both old ones reprieved from destruction by
Principle, which says that the most fertile soil in any local enthusiasm, and newly planted ones.6 All the work
garden is that which can be seen from the kitchen in an orchard can be done in short bursts. Pruning days
window. Nothing makes a garden grow better than and picking days can be organised, and many hands
giving it the attention it needs when it needs it. make light work.
A forest garden does not need a lot of work, but it However if a successful forest garden can be grown
does need attention. Though it can stand the odd spell in a public place it becomes a demonstration of what
of neglect, if it only gets attended to in occasional bursts can be done. Even a garden grown in a private back
of energy a few vigorous plants will take over the lower yard can be made open to interested visitors. This is
layers and much of the food will go unharvested. It what Robert Hart has done, and many people who have
needs someone to wander through it regularly to see visited his garden have been inspired to go home and
how it is getting on, to cut back a rampant plant here, start planting their own – the first steps towards the
add a little mulch there, pick those tender little leaves fulfilment of Robert’s dream of ‘mini-forests in millions
or juicy berries before they go past their best. In short it of back gardens’.
needs someone to inhabit it.
Many of us have not got the space for a forest 6
There is currently a grant from the Countryside Commission for
garden outside our own kitchen windows, and have to restoring old orchards.
 Chapter 2

THE FOREST GARDEN

COMMUNITY
The main components of a forest garden:
trees, shrubs and vegetables – their size, shape and structure

THE LAYERS There is in fact a fourth layer, the vertical one. This
consists of plants which occupy all three horizontal
Although we think of a forest garden as having three layers, including climbers, cane fruit such as raspberries,
layers – trees, shrubs and vegetables – in practice the and trees and shrubs which are trained up walls and
distinction may not be as clear as that. There are small fences. Climbers, including grapes, kiwi fruit and roses,
trees and large shrubs which are much of a muchness, are included with the shrubs in this book, except for
and it may not be possible to say whether an individual nasturtiums, which are included with the vegetables.
plant is a tall member of the shrub layer or a short tree.
Sometimes the difference between a tree and a shrub A Two-Layer Garden
may be more a matter of how well the plant tolerates
shade than of its potential size when mature. For example, A forest garden without trees sounds like a contradiction
it may be more worthwhile to prune a hazel or an elder in terms. But many people are not able to plant trees
into a low shape underneath a taller fruit tree than to on the ground they have available, or do not want to.
let them grow up to their full height. Both hazels and Some allotment sites, for example, do not allow
elders can grow to the size of a standard apple tree, but trees but do allow fruit bushes. In some urban gardens
they are equally happy as a low spreading bush, and it may not be possible to plant trees without shading
they are also fairly tolerant of shade. If the aim of forest the house, or the neighbour’s house or garden. Also,
gardening is to grow many layers of food plants on one many of us these days move house frequently, and may
spot, shade-tolerance is an important quality, not to be not feel like leaving a legacy of expensive and carefully
wasted on a canopy tree. tended fruit trees, just about to start bearing, to the
The difference between the shrub and vegetable layers doubtful ministrations of the new occupants.
is more clear-cut than that between trees and shrubs: There is no reason why people in these situations
shrubs and trees have woody parts, while vegetables should completely deny themselves the joys of forest
and herbs do not. The perennial parts of the vegetables gardening. Most of the ideas in this book can be put
and herbs are their roots. The top growth usually dies into action quite well in a garden of fruiting shrubs and
down each winter and is renewed each spring, though perennial vegetables. It is not that difficult to take a
there are some which remain green all year. (There are two-layer garden with you when you move, either.
a few plants which we think of as herbs which have Most perennial vegetables will move quite well, especially
perennial woody stems, such as rosemary, but strictly if they are dug up when they are not growing actively –
speaking these are small shrubs.) autumn and winter for most kinds – and many fruiting
On the whole the herbs are smaller than the shrubs, shrubs can be propagated from cuttings.
but there are exceptions to this too. Lovage, for example,
can grow more than two metres tall, and in summertime
it out-tops most shrubs, and even some of the trees if THE TREE LAYER
they are on dwarfing rootstocks.
Our attempts to split the natural world up into neat One of the most important requirements of a tree in a
categories are inevitably a bit artificial. In practice all forest garden is that it should not cast too much shade.
three layers of a forest garden merge into one another, Very heavy shading trees are not suitable, even if they
just as they do in a natural wood. do produce a useful yield of food. But much can be
Plate 2.1 Plate 2.2
The effects of heavy- and light-shading trees, as seen in a semi-natural woodland. These pictures were taken from the
same spot, facing in different directions. Notice the almost bare ground beneath the sycamores (Plate 2.1) compared to
the abundant growth of hazel, bracken and other herb-layer plants under the oaks (Plate 2.2). (PW)

done to let light into the lower layers by the overall The two fuse together to make a tree which has the
design of the garden and by adjusting the size and shape fruiting characteristics of the scion and an overall size
of the individual trees. characteristic of the rootstock (see Figure 2.1).
The size and shape of fruit trees vary enormously: The primary reason for doing this is that most tree
from the standard pear or cherry that is taller than a fruits do not breed true. If you sowed a seed from a
house, to the little apple on a very dwarfing rootstock; Worcester pearmain apple the resulting tree would not
from the spreading, unpruned cider apple tree, to the be a Worcester pearmain. It would be a new variety,
tightly disciplined cordon tree – a single upright spike with some of the characteristics of a Worcester, and
with no side branches. some completely different characteristics which might
The trees are very much the framework of a forest not be at all what you want. This is because the Worcester
garden. All the other plants are fitted into this frame- cannot pollinate itself and has to be pollinated by
work, which dominates them and is a major influence pollen from a tree of another variety – not just another
on the conditions in which they grow. individual of the same variety.
There are a number of factors which affect the size So the seeds are always a cross-bred, a mixture of the
and shape of fruit trees. The most important ones are: mother tree and the tree which the pollen came from,
which must be genetically different from the mother.
• the rootstock which it is grafted onto; The only way to ensure that the daughter trees are
• the soil it grows in; the same as the mother is by
vegetative reproduction, taking Figure 2.1
• the variety; a part of the mother plant A graft
• how it is pruned. other than a seed and inducing
this to grow. As fruit trees do
Not all of these factors affect every kind of tree, for ex- not take easily from cuttings,
ample some trees are grown on their own roots instead the preferred way of doing
of being grafted, and others are often grown unpruned. this is to graft a piece
But all trees are affected by one or more, and most of the of the required variety
fruit trees commonly grown in our climate – apples, pears, onto a specially grown
plums and cherries – are usually affected by all four. rootstock. There are
exceptions to this.
Some varieties can
Rootstocks pollinate themselves,
Most fruit trees are propagated by grafting a living many plums for
piece of the desired fruiting variety (the scion) onto the ex-ample. But most
roots and lower stem of another type (the rootstock). kinds of tree fruit
cannot, and this means that at least two varieties of is a limiting factor, or on south-facing edges far enough
each fruit must be grown together to ensure pollina- away from other trees to benefit from their shelter,
tion. (Pollination is dealt with in detail in Chapter 6, rather than suffer from their competition. But they will
Choosing Plants.) always need more care and maintenance than larger
The second reason for grafting, and the one which trees.
directly concerns us here, is that the rootstock has a Moderately dwarfing trees, classed as ‘dwarfing’,
major influence on the size of the tree. A variety grown ‘semi-dwarfing’, ‘semi-vigorous’ and so on are probably
on a vigorous rootstock will grow into a bigger tree the best for most forest gardens, combining some of the
than the same variety on a dwarfing rootstock. Trees advantages of both vigorous and dwarfing trees.
on dwarfing rootstocks also come into fruit sooner in
their life than those on vigorous ones, and have a Soil
shorter life expectancy.
The less fertile the soil, the smaller the tree will be.
So the choice of rootstock must always be balanced
Dwarf Trees
with the soil fertility. If you are planting fruit trees on
The advantages of dwarf trees are that: an infertile soil you will need to use more vigorous
rootstocks to get the required size of tree than you
• you can fit more of them in a given space and thus would on a fertile soil. Indeed the more dwarfing ones
grow more varieties; will only do well on good soils, and should not be used
• they produce less fruit per tree, avoiding overpro- on infertile ones.
duction of non-keeping kinds of fruit; The ideal soil for most kinds of fruit is a deep,
well-drained loam, slightly acid at about pH6.5-6.7.
• they come into bearing much earlier than more
But fruit can be grown on a wide range of soils, and to
vigorous trees: two or three years for dwarf apples,
the degree that the soil differs from the ideal the trees
compared to the five to ten of vigorous trees;
will be less vigorous. For example an apple tree will
• they are easy to reach for harvesting, pruning etc. grow less vigorously in either a heavy clay or a light
sand than in a medium loam.
On the other hand, they are delicate things and need Climate also has an effect. Cool or wet conditions
a lot of looking after. This particularly applies to reduce the vigour of a tree, and a more vigorous root-
apples on the ‘very dwarfing’ or ‘extremely dwarfing’ stock is needed to compensate.
rootstocks, M9 and M27, and to some extent to plums
on Pixy. (There are no really dwarfing stocks for other Variety
fruits at present.) These little trees:
The vigour of the scion has an effect on the size of the
• need staking all their lives because their roots are tree. In most cases the effect is small. Most varieties
brittle; grown side by side on the same rootstock in the same
soil will turn out much the same size, but at the
• are normally grown in a circle of bare soil throughout extremes a very vigorous variety could be twice the size
their lives because they cannot stand competition; of a very weak one.
• are short-lived, with a productive life of around 35 The choice of variety can also affect the shape of the
years. tree. Pears and plums can vary greatly in shape from one
variety to another, some being tall and upright, others
If one of the aims of forest gardening is a low-maintenance low and spreading. Apples generally show less variation
system where plants largely look after themselves, it is in shape.
hard to see a place in it for really dwarf trees. It has
been suggested that they could form an intermediate Pruning
layer beneath standard trees and above the shrubs. This
is not a very practical idea. For one thing they are not While the combination of rootstock, soil, variety and
much bigger than many fruiting shrubs; for another general growing conditions together determine the
they could not survive for long, let alone produce fruit, potential size of the tree, its actual size and shape is
beneath standard trees. The root competition from modified by the kind of pruning regime adopted.
bigger trees and the shading would both be too much The conventional reasons for pruning are:
for them.
However, the advantages of these trees should not • to influence the shape and size of the tree;
be ignored. They have a place in gardens where space • to form a strong framework of main branches;
• to remove overcrowded, diseased, broken or dead spur-bearers does not get the light it needs to ripen
branches; properly. This means the evenness of colouration is
• to stimulate the formation of new flower buds or impaired, and this too reduces saleability.
shoots; Most apple and pear varieties are spur-bearing, but
some are tip-bearing. All plums are tip-bearing, and they
• to increase fruit size and saleability. normally get little pruning once the shape of the tree
has been formed during the first three years of growth.
From a forest gardening perspective we could add: To sum up, if you don’t mind having more but
smaller fruit, and are not too concerned about colour,
• to decrease shading of the lower layers. spur-bearing varieties can be left unpruned as well as
tip-bearing ones. But there are other disadvantages.
There are three main approaches to pruning:
Tree Structure
1. No pruning at all. Some of these arise because all the fruit on an unpruned
2. Open-grown forms. tree is borne near the ends of the branches. As the tree
3. Restricted forms. gets older the fruit is borne further from the trunk and
from thick branches which will take the weight of a
ladder, and so it becomes increasingly difficult to pick
1. No Pruning it. The tree will probably grow taller than it would do
Yield if pruned, requiring a longer ladder, and there will be a
The no-pruning option is usually ignored by fruit thicker mass of twigs and foliage to contend with.
experts, though often practised by default in people’s The distance of the fruit from the trunk also means
back gardens! But it has its advantages. Obviously it that its weight puts the branches under greater strain.
reduces work, but more surprisingly it can lead to Branches can sag right down to the ground, and even
higher overall yields. A study of bramley apples in the break off. A sagging branch can be propped up with a
early part of this century found that unpruned trees crutch made from a forked stick or a couple of fencing
yielded more than hard-pruned ones: three times as stakes tied together in an X. After many decades the
much in the first five years of production, and twice whole tree may become recumbent, with branches run-
as much in the second five years. Yields of moderately ning along the ground for a space before they lift their
pruned trees fell between the two. fruit-filled heads in the air. There are often such trees in
old, untended cider orchards. They make wonderful
Fruit Quality seats and climbing trees for children, and may still yield
So why do commercial growers bother with pruning if reasonably well. But they are out of place in a produc-
they could get higher yields without? Mainly because tive woodland garden which has limited space.
pruning increases the size of the fruit, by reducing their
number. There is a limited market for small-sized fruit, Biennial Bearing
so the yield of saleable fruit from a pruned tree is usually Another disadvantage of not pruning is that some trees
greater than that from an unpruned one. tend to become biennial, bearing a heavy crop every
However there are some fruit trees which do not other year and very little in the intervening ones. Apples
produce larger numbers of smaller fruit when are particularly prone to this, though some varieties are
unpruned, and these are the tip-bearing kinds. Fruit more so than others. It comes about because the
trees can be either spur-bearing or tip-bearing (or a hormones produced by the fruit have an inhibiting effect
mixture of the two). Spur-bearing trees are those on the formation of the fruit buds which will bear the
which produce fruit on little shoots which grow out following year’s crop, so a really heavy crop in one year
of branches two years old or older. Tip-bearing trees can lead to a really light one, or none at all, in the next.
produce fruit on the tips of one-year-old branches. Biennial bearing is the trees’ own way of preventing
An unpruned spur-bearing tree has virtually no limit themselves from producing a bumper crop year after
on the number of fruiting spurs it can produce, whereas year, which would lead to utter exhaustion and early
a tip-bearer is restricted to last year’s new shoots. So an death. By regular pruning we can encourage trees to
unpruned spur-bearer will produce masses of fruit, produce a moderately heavy crop every year, which
while a tip-bearer will produce fewer, larger fruit. avoids the need for the tree to rest, and provides us with
Spur-bearers produce fruit behind the canopy of a yield which is more regular, and probably greater in
leaves rather than out in the sunshine as the tip-bearer total. It is much easier to prevent biennial bearing by
does. If this outer canopy is not pruned the fruit of regular pruning than to cure it once it has set in.
Shading • The half standard is the same shape as the standard,
In our climate light is the main limitation on multi-layer but the stem is shorter, around 1.2m tall, and the
growing, and more light can be let into the shrub and whole tree is smaller in proportion. It has the same
vegetable layers by judicious pruning. If you want to get characteristics as the standard, somewhat scaled
the maximum yield of food from your forest garden down. Perhaps it was originally designed for an
pruning is probably necessary. It may reduce the yield of orchard to be grazed only by sheep.
the canopy layer, but it may enable you to increase the Being closer to the ground they are somewhat
total yield from the garden. On the other hand, if the low- easier to work with than standards, yet there is still
maintenance aspect is more important to you than yield, enough space beneath them for all but the tallest
the no-pruning option is one to be seriously considered. shrubs. But it is still a largish tree for most back
gardens, and choosing this form may restrict
2. Open-Grown Forms the number of trees, and thus varieties, which can
Otherwise known as unrestricted forms, these are the be grown.
forms used for free-standing trees. They are normally • The bush tree has only 60 to 90cm of clear stem
pruned in winter. They include: below the branches, which leaves less space for
underplanting. But the branches go up at an angle
• standard; of something like 30 to 45 degrees, so there is space
• half standard; for an understorey of shrubs near the edge of the
tree’s canopy, with low-growing vegetables nearer
• bush;
the trunk.
• dwarf bush;
• spindlebush. Figure 2.3
Bush tree and
shrubs
Figure 2.2

standard half standard bush A bush tree is really just a standard with a short
stem. It is the form most often recommended for
planting in large gardens, because it is easier to get at
• The standard has a clean stem up to 2m tall and a
for pruning, picking and so on than the standard and
crown of branches pruned with an open centre, or
half standard. It may start bearing at five to eight years.
unpruned. It is the traditional orchard tree, originally
designed to allow cattle to graze beneath the trees • A dwarf bush is a bush grown on a dwarfing rootstock.
without damaging them. A vigorous rootstock is It is the form normally recommended for small gardens.
used, and standard trees are too large for all but the
biggest gardens. But where there is room for them The spindlebush is a conical shaped tree, quite the wrong
they leave plenty of space for large shrubs, such as shape for underplanting, so it need not concern us here.
hazels, beneath them.
The yield per tree is very high, but the total yield 3. Restricted Forms
of fruit per square metre may be less than a larger These are mostly forms which are grown against a wall
number of smaller trees. They take longer before or along a specially constructed fence of posts and wires.
they start producing fruit than smaller forms, eight They are pruned in summer. They include:
to ten years for a standard apple. But the tree is much
longer lived – a standard apple can produce fruit for • cordon;
well over a century. Pruning and picking can only • fan;
be done from a ladder, or with very long-handled
equipment. Spraying, which is sometimes done even • espalier;
in organic fruit growing, is very difficult. • dwarf pyramid.
 cordon espalier fan
Figure 2.4

The two-dimensional forms have their advantages and the number of fruit set by reducing the inhibiting
their drawbacks. On the one hand they: effect of the terminal bud.
This effect, known as apical dominance, is
• allow tender trees to be grown in the favourable caused by hormones which are passed down the
microclimate of a sunny wall; plant by gravity from the terminal bud. The hormones
• make excellent use of space in a small garden, generally reduce the activity of buds lower down the stem.
giving a greater yield per square metre than open- (Under natural conditions this helps to keep the
grown trees; number of fruit down to a level which the plant has
the resources to nourish. But under garden conditions
• cast less shade than open-grown trees; we provide extra nutrients, so the plant can success-
• restrict the size of the tree; this allows trees for which fully nourish a larger number of fruit.) Reducing the
there is no really dwarfing rootstock, e.g. sweet cherries, angle of the stem reduces the flow of hormones and
to be grown in small or medium gardens; thus allows more fruit to be set.
• can look attractive. Although cordons can be grown to a great height
up the walls of houses, this is difficult, and rarely
On the other hand they: done. They are usually small plants on moderately
dwarfing rootstocks grown in small gardens where
• yield less per tree, which means more trees must be space is at a premium. The advantage of cordons is
bought to get the same output; that a greater number of varieties can be grown than
with larger forms, and yield per square metre can be
• need a framework of wires to be trained to, whether
very high. The disadvantage is that you need to buy
they are grown in the open or along a wall;
more plants in order to get that yield, so the initial
• need more intensive pruning, and suffer more than cost is more.
unrestricted forms if this is neglected. For example, a dwarf bush apple may be 2.5m
wide and yield 20-25kg of fruit, while cordons may
Tip bearing varieties are less suitable for restricted be planted 75cm apart in a row and yield only 2-3 kg
forms, and cannot be grown at all as cordons. each.
Multi-stemmed
• The cordon is a single straight stem with fruiting cordons are of course
spurs growing directly from it. Sometimes more larger, and so they
than one stem is grown, using a more vigorous reduce the cost per
rootstock, in which case they are grown parallel area covered.
to each other. Apples and pears are the fruits most Not to be confused
commonly grown as cordons. with the cordon is
Cordons are often grown at an angle of 45 the ballerina. Whilst
degrees. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, cordons get their shape
a taller stem can be grown up a wall or fence of a
given height when grown at an angle than if it
was grown vertically. This means that a smaller Plate 2.3 A young cordon
number of larger plants can cover the same area apple tree in blossom.
at the optimum density. Secondly, it increases (Andrew Daw)
 and size from pruning and rootstock selection, To some extent this can be countered by choosing
ballerinas are fruiting varieties which are like that varieties with a similar level of vigour. Many off-the-peg
genetically. In other words they have been bred to family apple trees include a bramley, a very vigorous
have no side branches other than fruiting spurs and variety which can eventually crowd out the others
a restricted height. Having said that, some ballerina altogether, even with careful pruning. This kind of
varieties have turned out to grow on up and up – tree should be avoided.
apparently quite unaware that they are genetically Nurseries which supply family trees will usually
programmed to stop at two or three metres! make them up with the customer’s own choice of
We also hear that the fruit doesn’t taste that varieties, but of course this will involve a wait of a
good. There may be some future in this kind of tree, year or two, and is more expensive. Even a family tree
but at present they seem to have more value as a from stock may cost twice as much as a similar single-
novelty than anything else. variety tree.
The minaret, which at the time of writing is being If the varieties are carefully balanced, and the tree is
marketed as something new, is little more than a carefully pruned over its first few years, a family tree
vertical cordon. can survive with less attention once it is mature. The
• The fan is grown up a wall or fence with its branches fewer varieties on the tree the more true this is.
radiating out like the ribs of a fan. This is the Two-variety trees can sometimes be seen growing
restricted form usually used for plums, cherries, happily in orchards which have not been touched for
peaches, apricots and figs. Apples and pears are years. With three or more varieties the tree is more likely
rarely grown in a fan. The fan makes a tall tree, so it to need continuing attention in its later years. But
is better suited to growing up a house wall than a part of the pleasure of growing a family tree can be
garden fence, unless you can increase the height of the satisfaction of successfully growing something
the fence with extra trellising. which is both unusual and slightly difficult.
The rootstock and scion do not need to be the same
• The espalier has a central stem with pairs of horizontal species in order to graft together successfully, though
branches coming out from it at right angles. It is they do need to be closely related. So it is possible to
usually used for apples and pears. Espaliers can be have family trees with more than one species on them.
grown short or tall to fit the vertical space available, Thus we have such oddities as the Fruit and Nut tree,
with more tiers of branches on the taller ones than composed of two plums and an almond.1
the shorter.
• The dwarf pyramid is the only free-standing restricted
form. It is too short and the wrong shape to allow THE SHRUB LAYER
a shrub layer to be planted underneath it. Although
there may be a chance of fitting the odd one or two The most commonly grown shrub fruits are known
somewhere in a forest garden, it is not really a form as soft fruit. They are divided into bush fruits, including
for a multi-layer system. currants and gooseberries; and cane fruits, including
raspberries, blackberries and hybrid berries. The bush
Family Trees fruits are the right shape to fit under the tree layer,
It is possible to graft more than one scion onto a single while the cane fruits are taller and more vertical in habit
rootstock. This gives a tree which bears fruit of two or and are more suitable for growing alongside the trees.
more varieties, known as a family tree. They are an
alternative to cordons for small gardens where space Figure 2.5
is limited. One tree can provide a succession of fruit
and ensure good pollination.
Although they can be grown in unrestricted forms,
they are not a low-maintenance alternative to cordons.
A family tree has to be pruned as faithfully and skilfully
as a restricted form tree. Some varieties are more
vigorous than others, and careful pruning every year is
necessary to prevent the more vigorous crowding out
and killing the less vigorous.

1
Supplied by Deacon’s Nursery. See List of Suppliers. gooseberry raspberry
 Soft fruit are both shorter lived and quicker to gooseberries, do have a short length of single stem at
start bearing than top fruit. Cane fruits start to bear the base, and so can be trained as a fan, or even a
in the second summer after planting, bush fruits standard. But they much prefer to remain as bushes,
usually in the third year. Most kinds have a productive which is their natural shape. Hazels also have a single
life of 10-12 years, but gooseberries can go on for 25 main stem at ground level, though it branches out
years or more. very low down and the trees sucker freely from the
All soft fruits normally receive regular pruning, for roots. Fan-trained hazels are possible, though rare, and
much the same reasons as tree fruits. But if low standards are not normally grown.
maintenance is more of a priority than high production
it is possible to get away without pruning bush fruits
and many hybrid berries. Raspberries and blackberries Light and Shade
really do need pruning, though. The best way to get an understanding of the light
There is not the same scope for manipulating the requirements of the shrubs is to look at their natural
size and shape of the shrubs as there is of the trees. history.
Shrubs are very rarely grafted, so rootstocks do not
come into the picture, while the scope for variations Edges
in pruning is limited by the growth habit of the shrubs. Most of the shrubs we can grow in a forest garden are
Getting a range of sizes and shapes in the shrub layer cultivated varieties of plants which grow in the shrub
is mostly a matter of choosing a range of different layer of natural woodland. Woodland is their ancestral
shrub fruits. home, so they have evolved to cope with a certain level
Some shrubs, including blackcurrants and rasp- of shade. Most of them can survive in quite deep shade
berries, are multi-stemmed from ground level, and but need more light for flowering and fruiting.
so cannot be trained into a standard, cordon or fan Producing flowers and fruit takes energy, much
shape. A few, including red and white currants and more energy than producing leaves and stems, and

COPPICING

If you cut down a broadleaf tree it does not die standard trees over coppice with a herb layer
but regrows from the stump in a multiple stemmed beneath (see Figure 2.6). Often the coppice layer would
form. It can be cut again after a few years to yield consist of trees which would grow to the same
a crop of poles, and this cutting can be repeated at height as the standards if not coppiced regularly.
regular intervals of years. The roots continue to At first sight coppicing might seem like a good
grow, but the top growth is kept small by the way to get large trees to fit into the shrub layer
repeated cutting. This way of working with trees is of a forest garden. Sweet chestnut, for example,
called coppicing. A woodland treated like this is is a useful nut-producing tree which is much too
known as a coppice, and an individual tree as a big for all but the biggest gardens when grown as
coppice stool. a standard, and one which is often coppiced for
Most traditional woods in lowland Britain poles. Hazel is another nut-producer which is
had a three layer structure consisting of scattered often coppiced, and is too big for small gardens.
Unfortunately nuts are not produced for a
Figure 2.6 number of years after cutting. In order to keep
Traditional coppice- a chestnut small enough to fit into even a large
with-standards garden it would be necessary to cut it again
woodland before it had started bearing. The same would be
true of a hazel in a small or medium sized garden.
Thus there would be no nut output from coppiced
trees in a woodland garden. There would be a
yield of sticks, but this is a low-value product,
needing very little care and attention. It is certainly
not the kind of thing to grow in an intensive forest
garden.
plants can only get energy from sunlight. Insect polli- before the trees come into leaf, to stay alive and well.
nated shrubs also need a fairly sunny environment at But they do not do much in the way of flowering
flowering time to encourage the insects, and later in and fruiting, nor do they grow very fast. On the edge
the year at least some direct sunshine is needed to ripen of the wood, however, they grow strongly and flower
the fruit. profusely every spring, producing a rich harvest in
In the wildwood which covered Britain before our autumn for all the creatures, including humans, who
ancestors started farming, the shrubs probably spent care to partake.
most of their lives in a vegetative state, growing
slowly, not flowering or fruiting, waiting for a gap in Succession
the canopy to appear. This would have occurred when If a piece of grassland is left to its own devices and
an old tree died and thus stopped casting shade, or neither grazed nor mown it will regenerate to
when one was blown down by the wind. Then the woodland. Before the trees become dominant it
shrubs would have their chance to flower, set seed passes through a scrub stage in which all kinds of
and reproduce. shrubs can grow and reproduce. Many of the shrubs
An exceptional storm, like the one that struck which are found in scrub, such as gorse and broom, are
south-east England in 1987, would have been a boom specialists at colonising open ground, and eventually
time for the shrubs. They would have blossomed and die out once woodland has re-established. Others,
set fruit all over the areas where the trees were laid such as brambles and hazel, live in woodland as well
flat by the wind, until the new generation of trees as scrub and can live on to become the shrub layer of
grew up through them and gradually shaded them mature woodland.
back into a vegetative state, to wait for their next Another place we can observe regeneration of
opportunity. woodland is in a coppice wood after cutting. In the
In the modern landscape woods are little islands first couple of years the woodland wildflowers –
in a sea of open country, so a relatively large propor- the equivalent of the vegetable layer in a forest garden
tion of each wood is composed of the woodland edge, – grow vigorously and flower profusely. Then brambles
where sunlight can penetrate from the side as well as may take over, and for a few years there can be a
from above. Indeed woodland shrubs are often referred heavy blackberry crop. Hazel and other coppiced
to as woodland edge species. This does not mean that trees and shrubs grow up through the brambles, and
they only grow at the edge. They can be found inside towards the end of the cycle, when it is almost time
the wood, where they make use of the spring sunshine, to cut them again, they will produce a crop of nuts
and berries. As each stage in the succession grows it
shades the previous one back into a semi-dormant,
largely vegetative state.

Forest Gardens
As in natural or semi-natural woods, so in a forest
garden, shrubs fruit best either on an edge or in
the early years of the garden before the trees
grow big. If the garden is to go on producing
soft fruit once it is mature it must be
designed with plenty of edge to let in light.

Figure 2.7 The woodland edge

Climbers Self-Seeders
These are plants which can reproduce themselves by
The idea that food-producing climbers can be trained
seed. All the gardener needs to do is to allow a few
up food-producing trees is an attractive one. It would
plants to go to seed and to see that there is a suitable soil
mean that we could increase food production on the
surface nearby for the seeds to germinate in.
patch of ground occupied by the tree, and save
Annual and biennial plants – i.e. those which complete
ourselves the trouble of constructing a trellis for the
their life-cycles in one or two years respectively –
climber.
can only reproduce by seed. Those which are able to
In the tropics this arrangement is common and
self-seed, such as bittercress and chard, are suitable for
successful, because light intensity is so great that
a thorough-going forest garden where no digging, hand-
climbers can do well in the shade of a tree, indeed some
sowing or planting out is done on a regular basis. Some
actually need that shade. But whether the same can be
perennials self-seed, for example sorrel and Good King
true here is open to question.
Henry, and a few of the self-sown plants can be allowed
If a grape vine is trained up a standard apple tree the
to grow on to replace their parents as necessary. (Other
two plants compete for the limited light which is
perennials normally reproduce by vegetative means, in
available in our climate. One of the two outgrows the
which some part of the parent plant like a bulb or a root
other, and although the weaker partner may survive
runner becomes detached and forms a new plant.)
quite happily, it will not fruit well, if at all.
Garden plants vary greatly in their ability to self-seed.
It should be possible by careful and skilled pruning
There are those which never do it, and those which
to keep the two in balance so that they both produce a
‘once you’ve got them, you’ve got them for life’, with
moderate yield. But would the total yield be more than
every shade of difference in between. Most wild food
if they were grown separately? And would it be worth
plants are strong self-seeders. But some of the most
the extra trouble? Pruning a grape which is growing
prolific ones are conventional, if unusual, vegetables,
through the crown of an apple tree cannot be very easy.
like lamb’s lettuce and winter purslane.
Some climbers can be grown successfully up
Gardening with both self-seeders and perennials is
standard apple trees, but only as long as the apple is
not quite as straightforward as growing only perennials.
already well grown when the climber is planted. This
Some soil needs to be left bare or only lightly mulched
will mean a wait of at least ten years in most cases.
for the seeds to germinate in, and where self-seeders can
Roses and hops have both been grown like this. Both
germinate so can unwanted plants. So some weeding is
can stand some shade – which grapes certainly cannot
necessary, and also some thinning. If only perennials are
– and both need to be kept to the lower branches of the
grown the whole garden can be kept tightly mulched
tree by regular pruning. Once they get up into the
and life is much simpler. A tightly-mulched perennials-only
crown they will start to rob the tree of light.
garden may involve as much work as one containing
It is not the easiest thing in the world to make this
self-seeders as well, because it probably needs more
relationship work, and the best place for climbers in a
mulch and that mulch has to be grown or collected from
forest garden is probably on walls and fences.
somewhere. But it does not require so much attention.
Self-seeding is also more difficult to maintain over a
number of years. It is easy to get a good self-sown stand
THE VEGETABLE LAYER in the first year after hand-sowing or planting out, but
less easy as the years go by. Self-seeding is more a technique
for the early years of the garden than for the mature
Perennials garden with a thick stand of perennial vegetables.
How strictly a forest garden is kept to perennials only
is up to the individual gardener. There is really no Root Crops
reason why annual vegetables and flowers should not Amongst the range of perennial vegetables which can be
be grown between the developing trees and shrubs, grown are a number of roots. But if the forest garden
though once the trees are mature there would be is strictly no-dig surely there is no place for root crops,
neither the root space nor the light for them. which by their very nature can only be harvested by
The two things that distinguish perennials from digging? The answer really depends on how purist you
annuals in the garden are: that the soil is not disturbed want to be.
each year to grow them, and that they propagate Most roots can be lifted simply by loosening the soil
themselves from year to year with little help from us. a little with a fork and gently pulling on the stalk or the
There is another group of plants which share both of top of the root. If a bit more disruption than this is
these characteristics – the self-seeders. caused it is not very different from the kind of digging
that goes on in nature, like the little pits a badger digs The greater the variety the better the taste.
when foraging for edible roots or making a toilet hole. The majority of so-called herbs are perennials while
The natural processes of the soil can live with this the majority of so-called vegetables are annuals, so it is
amount of disturbance. If the micro-organisms which not surprising that there are more herbs in leaf in the
inhabit that little patch of soil do not survive the spring, before the annuals have had a chance to grow to
disruption, they will soon be replaced by neighbours pickable size. As perennials they are of course ideal for
from the surrounding undisturbed soil. Growing the a forest garden, and many can stand some shade.
occasional roots here and there in a no-dig garden is by In fact it has almost become a convention to call a
no means the same thing as digging the whole area each plant a herb simply because it is perennial. Good King
year and laying it bare to Sun, wind and rain. Henry and Welsh onion are often found in seed
All this applies to true root crops, that is plants with catalogues under Herbs, while spinach and spring
edible roots which are approximately conical. Plants of onions are listed under Vegetables. But the main
which we eat the tubers, like Jerusalem artichokes, difference between these vegetables is that two are
cannot be harvested without more general disturbance perennials and two are annuals.
to the soil, so perhaps there is more of a question mark The boundary between flowers and vegetables is
over these crops in a forest garden. pretty arbitrary, too. Nasturtiums are perhaps the most
obvious of the edible plants which are normally
Herbs, Vegetables, Flowers and Weeds confined to the flower bed, though every part of the
plant is edible; but there are many others.3 Some of the
We do love to categorise things. In our desire to put
plants which are grown primarily for food will produce
everything neatly in its pigeon-hole we have made
attractive flowers if left in the ground to maturity, and
rather rigid distinctions between herbs and vegetables,
the effect can be as pretty as many a flower border. This
and between crop plants and weeds. Although catego-
is of course necessary if the plants are going to self-seed.
ries like this have their uses, accepting them too rigidly
In a forest garden the distinction between weeds and
can be limiting. We get a fixed idea of what a particular
crop plants is another one which is relative rather than
plant is good for – or not good for – and that’s that.
absolute.
We miss many opportunities that way.
Fat hen, bittercress, and dandelion are normally
The difference between herbs and vegetables is
thought of as weeds, while mint, lamb’s lettuce and
really one of quantity. We think of a herb as a plant used
winter purslane are normally thought of as edible garden
in small amounts either as a medicine or for flavouring
plants. Yet all of them are edible, and all of them can get
food, and a vegetable as something we eat as food itself.
out of hand and become invasive. The truth is they are
But all plants we eat affect our health in one way or
all useful plants when they are present in the quantity
another, even if not dramatically; they all have their
we can use, and weeds when they exceed that quantity
own taste, too, whether it is mild or strong; and they all
and start competing with neighbouring plants.
help to sustain us. It is a difference of degree, not an
Of course there are some plants for which we have
absolute distinction.
no use at all, such as couch grass, and these are always
There are a few plants which have a particularly
weeds. They may have their uses. Couch, for example
strong medicinal principle and should only be taken in
has certain medicinal properties, but the quantities we
prescribed doses for a specific purpose.2 But there is no
could use are minuscule compared to the enormous
reason why the majority of the plants we commonly call
quantities of it which will grow if we let it.
herbs cannot be eaten in belly-filling quantities.
A plant becomes a weed when it outgrows its
Sometimes in the spring, when there was nothing
usefulness to us. (What we mean by useful is up to us.
else fresh to eat in the garden, I have eaten salads
It can include ornamental or wildlife value just as much
composed entirely of balm, mints, sweet cicely, fennel
as food value.) Harvesting becomes weeding when a
and a few wild leaves such as white and red dead-nettle.
plant grows faster than we can eat it, and becomes
They were very good salads too – to my taste more
harvesting again when our appetite catches up with the
pleasant than the rather blander concoctions we were
plant’s growth.
brought up on. This mixture is just an example, and there
are many other herbs which are equally good in a salad.
The trick is not to put too much of any one kind in. Light and Shade
Like the shrubs, most woodland herbs can happily
2
To the best of my knowledge, none of these is included in this book. produce leaves year after year under a closed canopy,
3
For a wide variety of flowers which can be eaten in salads see The but need more sunlight in order to flower. In the
Salad Garden, under Further Reading. prehistoric wildwood we can assume that they waited
patiently with the shrubs for a gap to appear in the When planting a forest garden it is possible to make
canopy. When a gap occurred there would be a year the most of the changing light conditions and maintain
or two when the shrubs were still thin and drawn up a high diversity of plants throughout the succession.
from their long spell in the twilight. Then the herbs had When the trees are still small and cast little shade a
their chance to flower and set seed, before the shrubs mixture of light-demanding and shade tolerant vege-
and young trees thickened up and took away the light. tables can be planted. Not many of the shade tolerant
In general the vegetables in a forest garden do ones actually need shade in order to grow well, and
not need to flower and set seed. We eat their leaves, or most can be planted in full Sun, as long as they are kept
occasionally their stems and roots, not their fruit. As long reasonably moist. But as the level of shade increases
as they get enough light to grow healthily most plants they will tend to do better than the light-demanders,
respond to shade by increasing the size of their leaves. and the latter can be progressively weeded out as they
More light is needed for self-seeding. For the weaken.
perennials this is relatively unimportant. They do not
need to reproduce very often, and many reproduce Edge
vegetatively anyway. The annual and biennial vegetables This need not be the end of light-demanding herbs
need to self-seed each year, but only a few plants need and vegetables in the woodland garden, as they will do
do so in order to provide enough plants for next very well on the edges. In fact the edge areas, where
year’s generation. They may need to be given a less herbaceous vegetation merges through shrubs into
shady spot than the perennials. But some of them, pink trees, are the most diverse and the most productive of
purslane for example, will happily self-seed in a wood food in both natural woods and forest gardens.
with a closed canopy. This productivity is in part due to the favourable
Mushrooms can be grown in the very darkest parts microclimates created by the diversity of structure.
of a forest garden, because they do not manufacture The nearby trees and shrubs can make a sun trap for
their own food by means of the Sun’s energy, as green the herbs in the unshaded areas, buffer them against
plants do; they consume organic matter which has extremes of temperature, regulate the humidity and
been manufactured by plants. The ones we can grow protect them from wind. Also, the leaf fall from the
to eat in a forest garden consume dead plant material. woody plants contributes to the soil fertility of the
The mushroom itself is only the fruiting body of the nearby open ground. From an ecological point of view
fungus, the fungal equivalent of a flowering shoot. the herbaceous edge is as much a part of the wood as a
The vegetative body is a mass of threads, hidden inside part of the open country.
its growing medium, which may be dead wood or the So we may think of a forest garden not only as
soil. In the soil they seek out the organic matter and that part of the garden where all three layers grow one
play an important part in its decay. above the other, but also as including some edge areas
At the other end of the spectrum there are some and glades where the Sun reaches right down to the
useful perennial vegetables and herbs which do not herb layer.
tolerate much shade but which we may want to grow
in the forest garden. The perennial onions and the
aromatic herbs such as thyme and sage are examples.
These light-demanding plants will grow best in the
same situations as the shrubs: on edges, and in the early
stages of the succession.

Succession
When a grassland regenerates to woodland, the
coming of shrubs and trees is accompanied by changes
at ground level. Most of the grassland plants, including
the grasses themselves, are relatively intolerant of
shade and soon die out once the shrubs and trees
start to form a closed canopy. A few grassland herbs,
such as sorrel, can stand shade and may survive into
the woodland stage. Some shade-tolerant herbs will
colonise the new woodland fairly quickly, but most take
a very long time and a new wood usually has a low di-
versity of herbaceous plants.
 Chapter 3

PUTTING THINGS TOGETHER

The principles of forest garden design –
putting the components together so they work harmoniously
in relation to each other and their environment

THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE act as host while the young trees grow to maturity.
Poorly drained soil is one thing that fruit trees and
The aim of good landscape design is to meet the needs shrubs cannot stand. If you only have one possible site for
of both the land and the people. Meeting the needs of your forest garden and it is poorly drained, it may well
the land is not a familiar concept in our culture. We are be worth installing land drains. But if the site is really
more familiar with the idea of using the land to meet boggy it may be better to work with that characteristic
the needs of the people, rather than considering both rather than against it, and create a water garden rather
as equal partners in a joint venture. But that kind of than a forest one. Another factor to seriously consider
thinking has led us to the ecological crisis we now face. before growing a forest garden is if there have been fruit
Where better to start changing our attitude to the land trees growing there before (see Replant Disease, page 26).
than in our own back gardens? Most other kinds of adverse conditions, such as poor
climate or exposure to salty coastal winds, can be coun-
tered by careful choice of plants and good design.
The Needs of the Land
Having decided that a forest garden is right for the
In most situations planting a forest garden is a benefit to place, there are often choices to be made about the
the local ecology: it is much closer to the natural vegetation design of the garden which can affect the well-being of
of this country than most other forms of land use, and the land. It may be possible, for example, to plant the
fruit trees and perennial vegetables both make good habitat forest garden in such a way as to make it a wildlife
for wildlife. But occasionally the existing vegetation corridor between woods, shrubberies or thick hedges
may have even greater value to wild plants and animals. on adjacent pieces of land.
For example, in rural areas there are still a few Soil erosion is the ultimate degradation of the land,
remaining herb-rich meadows – semi-natural ecosystems and the design of a garden can do much to keep it to a
of inestimable value, and quite irreplaceable. Land like minimum. Steep slopes should always be covered in robust
this is certainly not a suitable site for any major changes perennial vegetation to protect the soil from water erosion,
in vegetation, even a forest garden. and a forest garden is ideal. If annuals are to be grown
Many ordinary gardens have features which are worth on a steep slope the ground must be terraced first to
preserving. Old trees, for example, are particularly prevent soil erosion. If the whole garden is steep a possible
valuable to many kinds of wildlife, especially if they are solution is to terrace the whole area and grow strips of
native species. Hole-nesting birds find old knot-holes and forest garden along the risers, with annuals on the steps.
dead branches useful places to excavate a nest; many Paths which go across the slope rather than up and
insects only start to colonise trees when they are old and down it help to reduce soil erosion. Where access is
have a bit of decay about them; and, in areas of low air needed up and down steep slopes, steps cause less
pollution, there may be lichens, some of which are erosion than a steep path.
becoming increasingly rare, which only live on old wood. It is all a matter of working with the land, of
It takes many years for a young tree to mature into co-operating with it rather than imposing ourselves on
this ecological richness. Replacing a single old tree with it. Every situation is unique, and no hard-and-fast rules
several young ones will usually mean reducing the wild- can be made. But as a general principle the question
life value of the garden for decades to come. It may do to ask is “What is this land offering me?” rather than
so permanently if there is no other old tree nearby to “What can I do with this land?”
 The Needs of the People
As we have seen, there are many different reasons for
growing a forest garden, and it is important to be clear
right from the start what things you and your family
want from it, and what priority you place on each of
these. This will have a big effect on the choice of plants
and layout.
It is also important to be clear about how much time,
energy and money you want to put into the garden.
Although it takes little effort to maintain a forest
garden, it does take a considerable effort, and some
expense, to get one established.
It is easy to get carried away with enthusiasm and
design a garden which will yield far more produce than
the family can use; or one which contains exotic trees
which may produce delicious fruit, but which need
a great deal of care and attention if they are to yield
reliably.
The best recipe for success is usually to start small,
and with plants which are easy to grow. Success breeds
success, and it is always possible to expand from a
modest start in later years. Starting small also allows

Plate 3.1 Steps give access to the steep south-facing

slope of the Naturewise forest garden. (Naturewise)

REPLANT DISEASE

If a young fruit tree is planted where an old tree of Vigorous rootstocks are no less susceptible,
the same kind recently grew it very rarely thrives. It although there is one apple rootstock which is said
may exist in a chronically sick state, making little or to be somewhat resistant. This is EMLA71, which is
no growth year after year, or be given the coup de moderately dwarfing, somewhere between M26 and
grâce by a relatively mild disorder. This condition is MM106 in size (see page 85).
known as replant disease. It is partly due to the In a traditional orchard, on very wide spacings,
buildup of disease organisms in the soil during the it can be alright to plant between the previous or
life of the old tree: a mature root system can handle existing positions, but not with trees on normal
a level of pathogens which a young one cannot. It is garden spacings.
also caused by chemicals released by the roots of the The last resorts are to grow trees in tubs or to
old tree which inhibit the growth of its own kind swop the soil with an unaffected area. This should
(an allelopathic effect – see pages 34-35). be done to two spits depth over the entire planting
Avoiding replant disease is basically a matter of area! Commercial growers sterilise the soil with
following good crop rotation. Replanting like with like methyl bromide when replanting an orchard on the
is not recommended for at least 15 years, so if you have same site.
moved recently it is worthwhile to check the history Young trees affected by replant disease usually do
of your garden. Replanting with trees from a different well if transplanted to a clean site.
group is acceptable, and the relevant groups are:
• Pome fruits, including: apples, pears, medlars.
• Stone fruits, including: plums, cherries, peaches, 1
Not to be confused with M7 or EMLA7A.
apricots. It is not widely available.
you to use your early experience to make your later blackthorn spreading out from the edge of a nearby
plantings even more successful. Although much can be wood, “Look at the production going on over there!”
learnt from books they are no substitute for actually She was right, of course. Light is the major limiting
doing it. factor to forest gardening in our climate, and the more
If you do decide to start small, the initial design must edge we can work into our designs the more productive
allow for future expansion. It is necessary to have at our gardens are likely to be.
least some idea of where the rest of the forest garden This does not mean that a forest garden must be
will go if you decide to expand it later, and to be sure composed entirely of edge, without any area of contin-
that the new will not interfere with the old, by taking uous canopy. But where there is a continuous canopy
its light for example. it must be composed of trees which cast only a light
shade, and have some gaps between the crowns of the
Whole Garden Design trees. The kind of fruit trees that are suitable for a for-
est garden do not cast as much shade as the willows
A forest garden cannot be designed in isolation from the
my friend planted under. As for the gaps in the canopy,
rest of the garden. Some people may decide to put all
these will decrease as the trees approach maturity,
the space available down to forest garden, but most will
but they can be maintained by pruning, at least with
also want to include other elements, such as a lawn,
spur-bearing fruit trees.
flowerbeds, annual vegetables and so on. In deciding
Nevertheless, the edges are the most favoured
how much of the garden will be forest, and which part
growing position for shrubs, Sun-loving vegetables and
of it, a number of things need to be considered.
tender trees. The direction the edge faces has an effect.
One is what you want from the garden. The main
Due south obviously gets a lot of light, but a south-
produce from a forest garden is fruit and perennial herbs
westerly aspect gets almost as much, and also tends to
and vegetables. There is obviously no point in growing
be relatively hot as the Sun is warmer in the afternoon
more of these things than you can use. The amount of
than in the morning. A south-easterly aspect should be
work you want to do is another. Once established, a for-
avoided if there is any danger of frost damage, because a
est garden needs less work than either a lawn or annual
quick thaw in the morning is more damaging to frosted
vegetables. (The average lawn in this country is mown
blossom than a slower thaw through the day. A north-
some thirty times each year.) Aesthetics and space to
facing edge can receive some direct sunlight morning
play and relax are other considerations.
and evening during spring and summer2, as the Sun
Aesthetics also plays a part in deciding where to put
rises and sets to the north of the due east-west line
a forest garden. Light and shade is another factor: a
during this period. It can also receive indirect light
forest garden can either cast shade on a lawn, an an-
at any time, and is much lighter than places inside the
nual vegetable patch or the house; or it can cradle them
forest garden unless it is overshadowed by other trees
in a suntrap. It is also handy to have the forest garden
or buildings.
near the kitchen door, so you can easily nip out and pick
a few leaves for a lunchtime salad. Other elements in
the garden, such as the annual vegetables or ornamen- Patterns
tals, may compete for this prime position, but a forest
There are a number of basic patterns for forest gardens
garden should never be tucked far away in an inaccessi-
which give plenty of edge. These are broad concepts,
ble corner. It does need attention.
and they must be adapted to suit the unique conditions
of individual sites. On some sites a hybrid of two or
more patterns may be the best design. Note: the illustrations
LIGHT AND SHADE which follow represent design concepts. They are not
accurate plans of actual gardens.
A friend of mine showed me a gooseberry and a currant
bush which she had planted under the almost closed A. In this pattern areas of almost closed canopy alternate
canopy of some willow trees, by way of an experiment. with areas with a very open canopy (see Figure 3.1
They each had a miserable little crop of fruit on them. Pattern A plan & elevation).
“Really we should be talking about ‘woodland edge This is very much the pattern of Robert Hart’s
gardens’ rather than woodland gardens or forest forest garden. In the closed canopy areas the shrubs,
gardens,” she said, pointing to a thicket of wild mainly currants and gooseberries, tend to grow up
tall and thin as they try to get to the light. Their yield
2
From the spring equinox till the autumn equinox, 21st March to is moderate. In the more open areas the shrubs tend
21st September. to grow outwards and use up the available space more
 thoroughly. Here they yield more heavily. In both North
areas there are vegetables and herbs, some of which
grow up to a comparable height to the bush fruit.
One advantage of this pattern is that it is possible
to concentrate much of the soft fruit in certain parts Path
of the garden, and where the bushes are grouped
Lawn Pond Annuals
together netting them in summer is more of a practical
proposition than where they are spread out one by
South
one among the trees.
Figure 3.3 Pattern C plan

This pattern allows maximum light to penetrate

to all parts of the forest garden, without any shading
of the other elements of the garden. It also allows
very good access to both the forest garden and
vegetable beds, but it does make the lawn a rather
impractical shape. When the trees are mature, they
will cast some shade on the neighbouring garden to
the north, so consultation with the neighbours may
S
be called for before deciding on this kind of design.
N
See elevation 1:
Figure 3.1 Pattern A plan & elevation

B. Robert Hart’s garden is comparatively large, at 25m

x 11m. Another option for forest gardens of this size
or larger is to spread out the trees more evenly over
the whole area to give a generally broken canopy.
S N

Figure 3.4 Pattern C elevation 1

It can also be used in gardens which are not

long and narrow. Obviously this will mean a
smaller forest garden, as it will still be thin, but
not so long. It may be specially useful if there
is a tall, south-facing wall which can be used for
growing tender fruits in a fan or espalier form.
See elevation 2:

Figure 3.2 Pattern B plan & elevation

Fan or espalier trained tree

C. Many home gardens are long and thin. If the long axis
runs approximately east-west the best option may be
to plant the forest garden in a strip along the south-
facing wall or fence, i.e. the north side of the garden. S N
This leaves a narrow strip to the south for other
elements, such as lawn and vegetable or flower beds. Figure 3.5 Pattern C elevation 2
D. Another option for a narrow garden is to plant a spine F. Where space is limited a forest garden can be created
down the centre of the garden, with a path on either around a single tree.
side and vertical plants by the fences, thus:

B B

A
A

Espaliers Cane Fruit

Cane Fruit Cordons
Fans

Path Path
A B

Figure 3.6 Pattern D plan & elevation

This can be used in a garden with any orientation, A B

though if the long axis runs north-south both edges
of the garden will benefit from direct sunlight for Figure 3.8 Pattern F plan & elevation
part of the day. It avoids the problem of shading the
neighbours. The illustration shows a large tree with a dwarf
planted beside it, but in very small spaces there may
only be space for a single dwarf tree and a couple of
E. The woodland glade pattern is an option for gardens shrubs. It is even possible to grow a mini forest garden
which are not so narrow. The tallest trees are planted in a wooden tub, with a single tree, a single shrub and
round the outside of the garden, with the vegetation a few herbs. (Very dwarfing rootstocks are not suitable
becoming progressively shorter towards the middle. for this. The tub itself causes dwarfing, and a more
The forest garden thus forms a suntrap, and the centre vigorous stock is more tolerant of the water shortage
of the glade can be used for Sun-loving perennials, experienced in a tub. MM106 is suitable for apples.)
annuals, a lawn or even a pond and water garden.
This is another pattern which may shade neighbours’
gardens when the trees are mature. G. The best solution for very small spaces is probably to
make maximum use of the vertical dimension with
North
cordons, espaliers and fans, leaving the centre open
for shrubs and vegetables.
Restricted form trees are sensitive to competition,
especially when young, and especially cordons.
Vigorous shrubs and vegetables can be too competitive
for them, both by root competition and by shading
their lower parts. So with this pattern it may be a
good idea to leave out the shrubs and any vigorous
vegetables for a few years till the trees are well
Cane Fruit established, and in any case to avoid planting them
Figure 3.7 too close to cordons.
Espalier
Pattern E Vertical space is a great asset wherever horizontal
plan space is limited. Wherever you feel crowded by
 Whichever general pattern is chosen, it needs to be
tailored to the conditions of the individual site. The
Espaliers thing most likely to modify the pattern is shade cast
Fans onto it by nearby buildings and trees. If possible a sunny
site should be chosen for a forest garden. If there is no
really sunny area available it may be necessary to cut
Shrubs the garden down from three layers to two, or at least to
design a very open structure with plenty of edge, and
P choose shade-tolerant plants.
a As well as shade from outside the garden, plants get
A B
t
h
shaded by their neighbours. This is pretty obvious with
regard to the shrub and vegetable layers, but it also applies
to the trees. A light-demanding tree will do better to the
south of a big, vigorous neighbour than it will to the north.

Cordons

ACCESS
Paths
Making use of existing paths saves a great deal of work:
both in making new paths and in removing the old ones
and rehabilitating the compacted soil under them.

Path
A B

Figure 3.9 Pattern G plan & elevation

buildings, cast your eyes up and see how much wall

space there is available for fruit growing. Even
north-facing walls can grow fruit if the right kinds
are selected.
In the above examples, restricted tree forms –
cordons, fans and espaliers – are only shown in positions
against walls or fences. But it is also possible to grow
them in the open along specially constructed frame-
works of vertical posts and horizontal wires. This can
be worthwhile where space is limited, as more fruit
can be grown on a smaller area. If the ‘fences’ of
trees are aligned north-south, or nearly so, they cast
much less shade, and successful shrub and vegetables
layers can be grown beneath them.
This gives a very formal garden, far removed from
the natural style we associate with forest gardening.
It also involves a fair bit of construction work before
you start, and more intensive pruning to keep the
trees productive. But this style does have its place,
particularly in urban settings, where space is often
restricted and the formal, geometric appearance
harmonises with the heavily built-up landscape. Plate 3.2 A wide, bricked path gives wheelchair access to
Simon Phelps’ forest garden on his smallholding near Bristol.
❀ ❀ ❀ (Simon Phelps)
 A path between the forest garden and a hedge or Pattern G, the very small garden, can perhaps be
windbreak is a particularly good idea, because hedging served by a single keyhole and a few stepping stones,
plants are more competitive than food plants, and this while F, the single tree, may not need anything more
strip will not be very productive. than the occasional stone. In large forest gardens, such
A principle of no-dig gardening is that you never as patterns A and B, only a small proportion of the area
walk on the soil where plants are growing. Soil can be reached from the edge, and these will need a
compaction is one of the things which makes digging whole network of paths and/or stepping stones.
necessary, and treading can cause soil compaction. A Fertile topsoil is wasted on a path, so it is a good idea
forest garden needs to be designed so that it is accessible to remove it and add it to the adjacent growing area.
without the need to step onto the growing area. This makes sunken paths, and they can fill with water in
Fortunately many of the patterns which let more rainy weather. The design must allow for this water to
sunlight into a garden also give more access to people. drain away somewhere. In fact, on poorly drained soils
Access is really just another kind of edge. this structure can be a useful aid to drainage. On well
Patterns C, D and E consist of fairly narrow belts drained soils there will be less of a problem with paths
of forest garden, much of which can be reached from filling with water.
outside without stepping on the soil of the forest garden Lightly used paths have an extra function on very
itself. In most cases this boundary is a good place to have well drained soils which are prone to drought: the surface
a major path, giving access both to the forest garden on of the path, whether slabs, gravel, woodchips or
one hand and whatever adjoins it on the other. whatever will reduce evaporation from the soil directly
There will still be areas which are out of reach from beneath and thus make more moisture available to the
the main paths, especially in E, the woodland glade trees during dry times.
pattern. These can be brought within reach by keyhole
paths or stepping stones, or a mix of the two. Vertical Access
As well as laying out paths on the ground it is necessary
Standing to give some thought to vertical access. If you are
space planting standard or half standard trees you need to
think about where you will place the ladders for picking
and pruning. Shrubs must be placed so that you can
reach the trees above without damaging the shrubs.
These three-dimensional problems can often be
solved by working with the fourth dimension, time.
The fruit bushes beneath the tree would be most
susceptible to damage when they are in fruit. Since
most soft fruits are earlier than most top fruits it
should be easy to choose bush fruits which will have
finished fruiting before the tree is ready for picking. On
a longer timescale, one of years rather than months,
a tree on a vigorous rootstock may not even start
Figure 3.10 Keyhole paths fruiting till the shrubs are near the end of their
productive life.

A keyhole path is a cul-de-sac, ending in a small,

circular standing place. A short straight one is much
the same shape as the keyhole of a mortice lock. They CO-OPERATION AND COMPETITION
should be placed so that the plants which need the most
frequent attention or harvesting can be reached from The two soft fruit bushes planted by my friend beneath
the path. the willows, as already mentioned, had more to contend
A series of paths which enables you to reach every with than the shade from the trees. They were also
bit of the garden would take up a high proportion of the trying to compete with the roots of one of the most
total area, and paths can be supplemented with stepping competitive of trees, the willow. It was not a good
stones. They take up less space than keyhole paths, but combination of plants.
they are a bit less comfortable to work from. They are There is no hard-and-fast distinction between plant
most useful for giving access to plants which need less combinations which co-operate with each other and
frequent visits. those which compete. There is always some degree of
competition when two or more plants are living In the later chapters on Trees, Shrubs and Vegetables,
close together and making use of the same resources. the normally recommended planting distances for the
There is a continuum all the way from those which various plants, or their expected size when mature,
positively benefit each other, through those which is given. These must be taken as a rough guide only.
co-exist quite happily, to those where one plant takes They are for plants grown in a monoculture, or at the
such a large share of the available resources that it kills very most for a mixture of plants of the same size and
the other. growth habit, such as a mixed orchard. The figures
The aim of forest garden design is to make the must be adapted to suit the very different conditions of
relationships as co-operative as possible, while a forest garden.
acknowledging that very few of the plants will yield It is not possible to be precise about just how much
quite as much as they would if they were living alone. normal planting distances should be modified in a
It is the cumulative yield of all the plants living on the forest garden. There are so many different possible
same piece of land that makes forest gardens productive, permutations and combinations of trees, shrubs and
not the high yield of individuals. vegetables that every forest garden is a one-off. Also
there is not the same accumulated experience of
Neighbouring Trees forest gardens that there is of orchards and annual
vegetables. Maybe in the future, when more forest
Existing trees on the edge of a forest garden will
gardens have grown to maturity, some reliable averages
not only shade it, but the roots will compete for water
will emerge.
and plant nutrients. Most other trees are more vigorous
However it is possible to suggest the main ways in
than fruit trees, and thus likely to out-compete them.
which we should modify the recommended spacings to
The most competitive kinds are leyland cypress,
suit conditions in a forest garden.
willow, poplar, ash, garden privet and eucalyptus,
and these will deplete the yield of a forest garden
Trees and Shrubs
planted near them.
Where there is a continuous canopy of fruit trees
It is often assumed that the roots of a tree reach out
they should be planted rather further apart than
about the same distance as the branches, but in fact
recommended, so as to allow more light to reach the
they usually spread further. In a clay soil they may
lower layers, as in pattern B (see page 28). But note that
spread half as much again as the canopy, and in a loamy
traditional orchards of standard trees were planted at a
or sandy soil as much as three times as far. Established
wide enough spacing that the canopies of adjacent trees
paths and roads may restrict the root area, because
did not meet. This not only allowed plenty of light in
roots will not penetrate compacted soil.
for ripening, but reduced root competition between
A careful assessment must be made of existing trees.
the trees when mature.
In some cases a choice will have to be made between
The shrubs will tend to grow taller and thinner
making the forest garden a little smaller than was first
under a continuous canopy than they would in full
planned, or removing an existing tree or hedge. It is
Sun. If they are planted at the normally recommended
not necessary to have soil totally devoid of other tree
spacing this thinning of the shrub layer should allow
roots in order to plant fruit, but the more of them there
enough light to reach the vegetable layer. Alternatively
are the more fertility they will take from the forest
they could be planted closer than normal if no vegetable
garden. If the adjacent trees are retained the most
layer is required in that part of the garden.
vigorous varieties of fruit trees should be planted
It is doubtful whether shrubs should be planted right
nearest them. Extra manuring and watering is only a
close under the trees, for three reasons. Firstly there
partial solution, as the non-fruit trees will take the lion’s
may not be enough height for them unless the trees are
share of the water and plant nutrients – which is what is
grown in a standard or half standard form. Secondly
meant by saying they are more competitive.
there will be less light there than there will nearer the
edge of the tree. Thirdly there is the question of root
Plant Spacing competition.
The plants within the garden have similar relationships. Mature fruit trees on vigorous rootstocks can stand
Light and shade has already been considered as a topic a good deal of root competition, but not so young trees.
on its own, but it is part of the co-operation/competition It is normally recommended that they should have their
equation. The other factors to consider are space to root area kept totally free of other plants for the first
grow, and the supply of water and nutrients. All these four or five years. Very dwarf trees, cultivated hazels
must be taken into account when deciding how far and soft fruits are normally grown in bare soil
apart to place the various plants. throughout their lives.
 To some extent we can take these recommendations Vegetable Layer
as erring on the side of caution, because they are made The initial spacing of plants in the vegetable layer is not
with a conventional growing system in mind. In an orchard nearly so critical as that of the shrubs and trees because
or soft fruit cage the plants most likely to grow around it is much easier to change it in the light of experience.
the roots of the trees or shrubs are grasses, and grass is When the garden is mature the vegetables may need to
the worst competitor there is for young trees. A ground be on a wider spacing than normal, as many of them
cover of broad-leaved herbs and vegetables is a much respond to decreased light intensity by growing larger
better companion to a young tree. leaves. But in the early years of the garden they can be
Nevertheless the most competitive vegetables should planted at their normal spacings.
be kept away from the immediate root area of young Experience to date with growing polycultures of
trees, those on very dwarfing rootstocks and cordons. vegetables suggests that planting them in drifts is often
Mints are the most competitive of the herbs. They more successful than mixing individual plants of many
are voracious feeders and should be kept well away different kinds. A drift is a small patch of plants,
from any plant which would suffer from excessive anything from half a dozen to a hundred individuals,
competition. Any vegetable which puts on a prestigious depending on the size of the plants.
amount of growth each year, such as lovage should also Many plants grow in clumps of their own kind in
be regarded as a keen competitor. Lovage would not fit the wild, and they tend to grow best that way. Some
under any but the tallest fruit trees anyway. woodland herbs can be seen growing wild in almost
It would certainly be wise to keep soft fruit well pure stands (see Plate 3.4). Bluebells and ramsons are
away from young fruit trees, ideally by a distance equal e x a m p l e s , and where these occur in the same
to the diameter of the mature soft fruit bush (not the wood they often map out the differences in moisture
radius). content in the woodland soil, with bluebells growing
on the drier parts and ramsons on the wetter. Other
herbaceous plants occur in smaller groups, and rela-
tively few are found dotted around singly among
other kinds.
In the garden it is easier to give plants the conditions
they like if you can plant out a number of plants of
the same size and shape together: if one plant needs
60cm of space and its neighbour needs 5cm, how far
apart do you plant them in a mixture? In drifts you
can give more of the plants their ideal spacing and
only make compromises round the edges of each drift.
Planting in drifts also makes it easier to match different
plants with the conditions they like: moisture-loving
ones in wet spots, Sun-lovers in sunny spots and so on.

Plate 3.3 This currant bush has probably been planted Plate 3.4 A pure stand of wood anemones growing in a
too close to the young fruit tree, which is already starting semi-natural wood in Hampshire.
to lean away. (Jane Powell) (Tim Harland)
 On the other hand, there are situations where Strictly speaking allelopathy is the term used to
mixtures are appropriate. Short plants growing describe all biochemical interactions, both beneficial
among tall thin ones and small ones filling in the spaces and detrimental, that occur between different plants.
between larger ones are two ways of making the If a plant produces a chemical that has an effect on
maximum use of space. A mixture of early- and late- another plant, the first plant is called allelopathic, or an
leafing vegetables is a way of making more complete allelopath. But in practice most of the allelopathic
use of time. And if a successful mixture starts to develop interactions which can be easily recognised are detri-
by self-seeding it is something to encourage, whether it mental ones, and the term is commonly used to imply
fits any theory or not. a detrimental effect by the allelopath on its neighbour.
The advantages to a plant of reducing the vigour of
Roots its neighbours, which are potential competitors, is clear.
The plants in a forest garden are fitted together so Some plants produce allelochemicals which inhibit the
that tall, medium and short plants combine to make growth of their own kind. This discourages recolon-isa-
maximum use of the available resources above ground. tion of the same ground by the same species in the short
It would be ideal if we could do the same thing below term, perhaps a natural form of crop rotation. Replant
ground. The roots could share space in the same way disease is an example of this (see page 26).
as the above-ground parts, with deep- medium- and Walnuts, elders and sages are three forest garden
shallow-rooted plants grouped together so they made plants which have negative allelopathic effects on other
use of the full depth of soil rather than all competing in species. The details of these are described under the
the same part. main entry for each plant, but two general points can be
There are two problems with this. Firstly, as roots are made. Firstly, plants vary greatly in their sensitivity to
so much more difficult to study than the above ground allelopathic chemicals, so the negative effects can be
parts of plants, there is not so much information available avoided by choosing suitable neighbours for allelopathic
about them. Secondly, what we do know is that the vast plants. Secondly, negative allelopathy can sometimes be
majority of plant roots are found in the same part of the useful in restricting the spread of an invasive plant.
soil, the topsoil. 85% of tree roots are found in the top Positive allelopathy, one plant producing a chemical
60cm of soil, where most of the soil micro-organisms, which enhances the growth of another, is much less
available nutrients and water are found. common. Some allelochemicals can be positive at low
Many plants do have deep roots, but these tend not concentrations but negative at moderate or high con-
to be so finely divided, so the total mass of roots in the centrations. But completely beneficial allelochemicals
deeper soil is much less. These roots are mainly for are virtually unheard of.
anchorage, though they do contribute to water supply, Many gardeners have an intuitive belief that aromatic
especially in drought conditions, and to the mining of herbs are beneficial to the general health of the garden.
fresh supplies of plant nutrients from the subsoil. The intuitions of experienced gardeners are to be
While all plants make maximum use of the topsoil, respected, but they are hard to corroborate. Gardens,
the shape and depth of their overall root system varies. especially forest gardens, are complex places with many
So we can assume that a mixture of plants will make different interactions going on simultaneously. It is
more thorough use of the soil than a monoculture. impossible to ascribe any effect, such as healthy fruit
What we cannot assume is that the taller a plant is trees, to one specific cause. In theory it should be
above ground the deeper its roots are. Herbaceous possible to grow two forest gardens which are identical
plants can have deeper roots than trees growing beside in all respects except the presence or absence of aromatic
them in the same soil. This is especially true of perenni- herbs, and compare the health of the trees in each.
als, which have had more time to grow deep roots than But in practice it would be very hard to make an exact
annuals. The beet family, many of which are suitable for copy of something so intricate as a forest garden.
forest gardening, often have roots which reach deeper There is no doubt that many commonly grown herbs
than those of neighbouring trees. are allelopathic. Most of them belong to one of three
families: the labiates (including mints, thyme and sage),
the umbellifers (including fennel, angelica and lovage)
Allelopathy and the daisy family (including chamomile and marigolds).
So far we have been looking at interactions between All three families include plants with well known
plants in terms of how they share resources, including negative allelopathic effects, interfering with the
light, water, plant nutrients and physical space. But there germination or growth of other garden plants. It is
is another way in which plants interact, and that is by quite possible that they also have positive allelopathic
producing chemicals which have an effect on other plants. effects, but it is more likely that any positive effect is
indirect rather than strictly allelopathic, i.e. plant to plant. like lettuce. This is good companion planting, and there
For example, the chemicals involved in allelopathy are is nothing mysterious about it. In fact the whole of a
often the same as those which protect the plants from forest garden is companion planted. The shapes, annual
pests and diseases, and they may be able to afford some cycles, and shade tolerance or amount of shade cast by
protection to nearby plants as well as to themselves. the plants are all carefully matched so that the plants
Allelochemicals may be produced in various forms: will co-operate rather than compete.
root secretions, chemicals which are washed from the There is a big gap between companion planting
leaves of plants to the soil, products of decomposition theory and practice. A number of books have been
of the dead plant, and volatile chemicals which are written on companion planting lore, but the combinations
released into the atmosphere. The aromatic herbs they recommend do not work reliably in practice. What
produce volatile chemicals, and this means they can works in one garden, for one gardener, in one season
affect plants, and animals, which are not immediately does not necessarily work in another time and place.
adjacent to them. If their effects include positive ones Robert Kourik has made a study of companion
as well as the more easily observed negative ones then planting which is included in his book, Edible
they could have a significant effect on the health of the Landscape.3 He collected together the results of all
garden as a whole. the trials which had been done on traditional com-
There are two possible drawbacks to this. Firstly, panion planting combinations and looked at the
it may be necessary to plant aromatic herbs in large results. Roughly speaking they were as follows:
quantities in order to achieve a significant effect. This
could mean planting far more of the herbs than you can • Companion planting reduced pests or increased yields:
consume, which is alright if you have more than enough 8 combinations.
space in the vegetable layer, but not if you want to grow
• Companion planting made no difference:
as much edible produce as space allows. Secondly,
12 combinations.
aromatic herbs need plenty of sunshine in order to
produce their volatile oils, and sunny spots are at a • Companion planting increased pests or reduced yields:
premium in a forest garden. The exceptions to this are 20 combinations.
the mints, which are happy in the shade, but these are
really too competitive to grow in a polyculture. In some cases the reduced yield of the main food plant
We are at the very beginning of learning about was due to competition from the companion plant. If all
allelopathic interactions. The amount of time and the plants in the garden are useful this is no loss to the
energy which has been put into studying allelopathy is gardener – the total produce of the garden is what we
minuscule compared to the effort that has gone into less are interested in, not the yield of individual plants.
subtle ways of helping plants to grow, such as poison- But many of the companions in Kourik’s study were
ing weeds and pests. We have much to learn, and there plants which humans can only consume in very small
are no doubt many beneficial interactions which can be quantities, like catnip and tansy, or not at all, like
used on a garden scale which are yet to be discovered. annual rye-grass and Dutch white clover.
Kourik also lists 67 non-traditional combinations
Companion Planting which have been found by experiment to work in
various parts of the world. But he makes the point that
Positive allelopathy is not the same thing as companion “this list is just a steppingstone for trial studies in your
planting. Companion planting is the practice of planting unique microclimate and ecology.” Trials which have
certain combinations of plants together because one or been successful in one climatic area have often shown
more of them do better when they are growing together no beneficial effect when repeated elsewhere.
than when growing alone. Positive allelopathy is one of Even this list should not be accepted uncritically.
the mechanisms by which companion planting may be For example, he includes the carrot-onion combination,
presumed to work, but only one of them. for controlling carrot root fly, which he says has
Another one is by attracting beneficial insects into succeeded in England. Indeed it has, but only when
the garden, and this is dealt with under Pest and Weed you grow four times as many onions as carrots. It is a
Control in the next chapter, Home-Grown Resources. possible combination, but only a useful one if you want
But many good companions fit together simply because onions and carrots in those proportions.
their shapes are complementary, such as when a tall thin Companion planting is certainly a valid idea, but we
plant like garlic is interplanted with a short bushy one have only just started to accumulate a usable store of
knowledge about it. I am sure that to a great extent it
3
See Further Reading. will be recognised as something which each gardener
has to learn in the context of their own unique garden, canopy closes. Standard trees planted far apart will
rather than something which can be prescribed in books take much longer to block out the Sun than dwarf
for whole countries or continents. bushes planted closer together, even though they
grow at the same rate.
2. Planting in stages. Trees first, with shrubs and veg-
etables a few years later; or trees and shrubs first,
SUCCESSION followed by vegetables.This is appropriate if you
want to defer your full-blown forest garden for a
You could get the impression from the patterns on pages number of years.
27-30 that a forest garden is static in time, with all the An example is the market gardener who planted
plants reaching their maximum size at the same time apple trees among his annual vegetables with a view
and staying like that indefinitely. Of course it is not. to having an orchard for his retirement. When it
Plants grow and develop at different rates. Some live comes to it he could equally well make it a forest
for a hundred years, others for five. A forest garden garden, by replacing the annual vegetables with
is not three-dimensional, but four-dimensional, and the shrubs and perennial vegetables rather than grass
fourth dimension is time. and sheep.
For example, a standard apple tree may not start In some cases low maintenance in the early
to bear fruit for ten years after planting, and not reach years may be a priority, for example if you don’t
its full size or yield for many years after that, whereas have much time to spend in it at present but hope
blackcurrants may be getting to the end of their productive to in the future. In that case the space between the
lives after a dozen years. So blackcurrants may be trees can be put down to a perennial green manure
planted close to standard fruit trees even though they crop, which can simply be mown a couple of times
would not get the light they need once the trees are a year and left as a mulch. The other layers can be
mature, because by that time they will be at the end of introduced at any time that suits you.
their productive life anyway.
Most of us will not be planting anything so large and 3. Underplanting existing fruit trees. This will suit a
slow to mature as a standard apple, but in any forest person who wants an instant forest garden and is
garden there will be a variety of quick-and slow-maturing fortunate enough already to have either an orchard
plants with shorter and longer lifespans. This means or one or two fruit trees in the back garden. But it
that the mix of produce from the garden will change would be a mistake to assume that a forest garden
from year to year. It also means that the structure of the established in this way will be static and not change
garden will change, changing the internal microclimate, its structure through time.
and this in turn will have an influence on which plants Old trees may die or lose branches, letting in
can be grown at different times. more light and so giving opportunities for heavier
A succession is a pattern in time, and there are three yields in the lower layers or for growing more light-
main patterns for the development of a forest garden: demanding shrubs and vegetables. Dead trees, or old
ones which no longer yield very much, may take on
1. Planting all the layers at once. This is the closest of a second career as a ready-made trellis for climbers.
the three to a natural succession, in which light- In other parts of the garden the amount of shading
demanding herbs gradually give way to shrubs then may increase as trees continue to grow, or shrubs
to trees and shade-tolerant herbs, as the larger but which were planted more recently grow thicker at
slower-growing plants become dominant.4 the expense of the vegetables beneath them.
In the first year the edible produce is all herba- The disadvantage of developing a forest garden
ceous, mainly from the annual and biennial self- by underplanting existing trees is that you inherit
seeders since many perennial vegetables can only be the existing perennial weeds along with the trees.
picked lightly if at all in their first year. In the second It is impossible to extract weed roots from the inter-
year most perennial vegetables can be picked and stices of living tree roots. Couch grass in particular
some kinds of soft fruit start to bear. As the trees can regenerate from small pieces and in time become
grow bigger and cast more shade the yield of the a real problem. Starting the garden with a clean
lower layers is reduced, and light-demanding sweep of perennial weeds is a great advantage.
vegetables and shrubs may need to be moved out of 4
In semi-natural successions the trees usually appear much later
the heart of the garden onto an edge. How soon the than the shrubs. But this is more often because they have been
trees start to bear fruit depends very much on which concealed by the faster-growing shrubs than because they have
rootstocks have been chosen. So does how soon the seeded themselves later.
 MICROCLIMATE
A microclimate is the climate of a small area. This can mean
the climate of an individual garden as opposed to the
general climate of that region, or it can mean the climate
of a specific part of the garden as opposed to the whole.
The different microclimates within the garden can
be used in two ways. The first is to increase the range of
plants grown. For example, in many gardens it may not
be worthwhile trying to grow a peach in the open, but
against a sheltered south-facing wall it may do quite
well. The second is to increase the overall yield. Hardy Figure 3.12
varieties of apple and plum, for example, will yield almost
as well in a relatively exposed position as in a sheltered,
sunny spot, whereas a more tender pear or gage may
handsomely repay you for giving it the most favoured
place in the garden.
There are various factors which go to make up a
microclimate, and we have already had a detailed look
at one of them, light. This is of such importance to
forest garden design that it warrants a whole section
on its own (see Light and Shade, page 27). The other
micro-climate factors to consider are:

• wind;
• frost; Figure 3.13
• warm south-facing walls;
• water.

Hedge
Wind
Wind protection is important for fruit production,
especially at blossom time. In an exposed site a forest
garden may need an overall windbreak. In built up areas
strong winds can be expected in a passage between two
buildings, and downwind of it. This is because the wind gets Figure 3.14
funnelled into a narrow gap and has to speed up just as a
river does where its bed narrows (see Figure 3.11). A small
windbreak covering a gap like this can be very valuable.

Hedge

Figure 3.11 Figure 3.15

 A windbreak should always allow some of the wind Entrance ways must either have a gate or a baffle
to pass through it. If it does not it causes eddies which (see Figure 3.14). The wind also speeds up round the
can be more destructive than the unchecked wind would end of a windbreak, so it must be longer than the area it
have been in the first place (see Figure 3.12). is protecting, or surround it completely (see Figure 3.15).
The ideal windbreak deflects 60% of the wind The effect of a windbreak steadily decreases as
upwards and allows 40% to pass through (see Figure you go away from it. At a distance of five times the
3.13). If you are planting a living windbreak it is not height of the windbreak it reduces the wind speed by
possible to be this accurate, but the figures give something like half. There is still a worthwhile effect at
something to aim for. Deciduous hedges and trees, open a distance of ten times the height, and a measurable one
paling fences, and wire or plastic meshes make good at twenty times.
windbreaks. Walls, evergreen hedges or tree belts, Windbreaks can have their negative effects too.
and closed paling fences make bad ones. They can shade the garden, and the roots of windbreak
It can be worthwhile to put up a temporary mesh trees can compete with the garden plants. These problems
windbreak while a hedge is growing in its lee. Otherwise can be minimised where there is enough space to set the
you may be faced with the choice between waiting for windbreak back from the forest garden, with perhaps a
the hedge to grow up before planting the rest of the wide path or a strip of grass intervening.
garden or exposing the tender young plants to the wind. Even the windbreak itself takes up space, and in a
No plant which is subjected to stress when young will small garden you may not want to use any space for
ever give its full potential. plants which do not produce food. Here an edible
Any gap in a windbreak will speed up the wind, windbreak can be a good idea, as long as the site is not
just like the gap between two buildings (see Figure 3.11). subject to severe winds. The plants in the windbreak will

PLANTS FOR WINDBREAKS

Native Shrubs and Trees As a hedge or windbreak grows it often gets thin
A thick hedge of mixed native species makes a good and gappy at the base. If this happens the wind will
windbreak for all but the tallest fruit trees. Hawthorn rush through the gaps at the bottom and speed up
in particular makes a good dense hedge when clipped, just as it does when it blows between two buildings.
and leafs early, so it offers more than twigs to the Worcesterberry and ramanas rose are a couple of
wind at blossom time. Young plants of 40-60cm size fruiting shrubs which can be used to thicken up the
take quickly and grow well. They should be planted bottom, and possibly gooseberry where only mod-
in two rows, 60cm apart both between and within the erate winds are expected. They should be planted at
rows with the plants staggered opposite each other. the same time as the taller plants. When used in a
Beech has the advantage of keeping its leaves through windbreak fruiting plants should be planted closer
the winter if the hedge is kept clipped to a height of together than normally, perhaps at half the normal
around 2m or less. For very exposed sites the two spacing. Blackberry is a fruiting shrub which can fill
toughest natives for a windbreak are rowan and birch. out the top as well as the bottom of a windbreak.

Edible Windbreak Plants Coastal Sites

Damson is a good tree to use, tough and twiggy, and These have the special problem of salt-laden winds,
so is crab apple. Elder is also wind-hardy, but it can which make it difficult to grow most kinds of fruit.
take over a hedge if allowed to grow unchecked. But a good windbreak can make a lot of difference,
The Siberian pea shrub is doubtfully edible, but cer- and one combination which can do well in salty
tainly a good windbreak plant, even on very exposed winds is a mixture of elder, hawthorn and ivy. Beach
sites, and much the same could be said of rowan. plum, saltbush, Elaeagnus and Siberian pea are
The various kinds of Elaeagnus are also hardy. some edible plants which may be suitable, and gorse
Wind-pollinated trees and shrubs like mulberry is especially useful on nutrient-poor sandy soils.
and hazel do not need the same protection at flowering Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) is sometimes
time as do most insect-pollinated ones, but they are suggested as an edible windbreak plant for coastal
only marginally more tolerant of wind than insect- sites, but the fruit is only just edible, and the plant is
pollinated kinds. really too invasive to use safely.
yield less than if they were themselves protected from the remarkably constant, covering exactly the same area each
wind. But they will yield something, especially in years time there is a frost which is not cold enough to freeze
when the weather is not too rough, so the total food up the entire landscape. When there is an overall frost
yield of the garden will be greater. On the other hand the it will be even colder in the frost pocket than elsewhere.
plants will almost certainly cost more than ordinary non- Frost pockets can form where the lie of the land
fruiting hedge plants, so a fruiting windbreak is probably leaves no way out for the frost, such as in a natural basin
only worthwhile where space is a limiting factor. or narrow valley, or where some obstruction like a wall
On the majority of sites no overall windbreak is or thick evergreen hedge runs across the slope. Where a
necessary, though the problem of a gap between houses frost pocket is caused by an obstruction across the slope,
is common. If only gentle winds are experienced, the it can often be enough to make a gap in it, or if it is a
forest garden itself may act as a windbreak to other hedge simply to thin out the lower branches, to allow
elements in the garden. This is especially so if the garden the frost to drain away (see below).
is laid out in the woodland glade or horseshoe pattern.
As well as protecting all or part of the garden with a
windbreak, it may be worthwhile to position individual
plants within the garden with an eye to the wind. More
Frost
tender trees like pears and gages can be placed on the lee
side of tougher ones like apples. This must be balanced
with the plants’ needs for sunlight, and the trees which
need most shelter from the wind also need most sunlight.
As the prevailing wind in this country comes from the
south-west, there may be a conflict between the two.
Figure 3.16
Although the south-west wind is the most frequent,
it is relatively warm and not usually the most damaging
to plants. The north-east wind, though less frequent, Alternatively, frost pockets can be prevented by
can be bitterly cold. One day of a cold north-easter can stopping the downward flow of cold air from above.
do more damage to trees and shrubs than a whole year A single hedge or wall across the slope may be enough
of south-westerly winds. Which direction the most to do this if it is tall and impermeable enough (though
damaging wind comes from on any particular site is this is exactly the sort of barrier which is least suitable
very much a matter of the local topography and nearby as a windbreak). A number of cross-slope hedges or other
buildings and trees. barriers is more likely to be effective, but not many of
us have control over that much of the adjacent land.
If neither of these remedies is possible, the frost
Frost problem can be avoided by growing taller trees at the
The damaging frosts are the spring ones. In the depths bottom of the slope, and keeping dwarf trees and shrubs
of winter the plants are well prepared for frost. But in further uphill. But this does rather limit the possibilities
the spring, when there is every reason to believe that the of multi-layer growing.
frosts are over, the trees and shrubs come into blossom. Wall-trained trees can be covered with an insulating
Then even a light frost can be devastating, as most kinds layer of hessian or straw on spring nights when frost
of fruit blossom are killed by it. The tree or shrub rarely is expected. But it is questionable whether this kind of
suffers permanent damage, but the flowers die and so thing is appropriate in a low-maintenance forest
there is no fruit that year. garden. Sometimes the heat lost from a poorly insulated
The frosts of midwinter are often heavy ones, and house is enough to ward off the first autumn frosts and
every part of the landscape gets frozen. But the spring the last ones in the spring. Frost-tender plants like
ones are usually light, and light frosts do not occur nasturtiums and lemon balm growing against a house
uniformly over the landscape. Cold air sinks, so it flows wall often stay green a few weeks longer in autumn
downhill and tends to collect where there is a basin with than their fellows a couple of metres away. It is sometimes
no way out, just as water ponds up behind a dam. Places possible to make use of this effect – but it’s not sufficient
where cold air collects can suffer sharp frosts when reason for keeping a house badly insulated!
nearby land which stands a little higher remains frost- Where all structural means fail, the only option is
free. These places are known as frost pockets. to grow frost-tolerant fruits, or varieties which are
They can be very small scale, often as little as a couple frost-tolerant or late-flowering. In fact this is probably
of metres across and a few centimetres deep, or large a good idea in any garden which is prone to late frosts,
scale, covering whole valleys. They also tend to be even if something can be done to mitigate the problem
by altering the structures. The key to reliable crops and When the Sun is shining the wall warms up the tree
a low maintenance requirement is to match the plants by reflecting light onto it. The wall also stores heat as
to the existing microclimate. it warms up during the day and releases it at night or
On the whole the vegetables are less susceptible to during cool spells, so keeping the tree at a more even
frost damage than the trees and shrubs, as they do not temperature.
need to blossom in order to produce food. But some The reflection of light is greater if the wall is light
tender kinds, such as chard, can be killed by hard frosts, coloured, whereas the storage of heat is more if it is
so they are more likely to survive the winter outside a dark. It can be painted white or black according to
frost pocket than within it. Plants which die down in which characteristic you want to enhance most. Where
the winter at the onset of the first frost, such as mints, late frosts are likely black may be the best bet, especially
will have a shorter season if growing in a frost pocket. if you want to save yourself the trouble of covering the
The structure of the forest garden itself will have some trees on spring nights. In other situations white is
influence on keeping frost off the vegetables. The net- usually most popular.
work of twigs on the trees and shrubs acts somewhat If the wall is on a house there is the added benefit of
like a blanket; so a spot underneath the canopy may the heat loss from inside – if, like most British houses,
remain frost free on a night when a spot just outside it it is poorly insulated. But any wall can store heat by
is frozen. virtue of its mass. Broadly speaking, the greater the
mass of the wall the more heat it can store, but the
Warm Walls longer it will take to heat up. Retaining walls, which
have tons of soil and rock at their backs, come at one
Tender plants need to be protected from wind and frost,
end of the scale and flimsy garden palings at the
and given the sunniest positions in the garden. A position
other. But the paling will reflect light just as well as the
on a south-facing wall will give them the additional
retaining wall, even though its heat storage capacity is
benefits of heat storage and reflection. Tender fruits
negligible.
may be trained up the wall, and Sun-loving aromatic
The soil at the base of a wall is usually drier than in
herbs can be grown at its foot.
other parts of the garden (see Water, next page). This is
The wall need not face due south. Somewhere
beneficial to tender plants in the winter. Many of them
between south-south-east and west-south-west is suitable
cannot stand prolonged wet at the roots, especially if a
for most tender fruits. For the very tenderest plants,
long wet spell follows a hard frost. On the other hand it
such as figs in the south of England or pears in the north
means more work in the summer, as fruiting plants are most
of Scotland, a south-facing corner or niche is an ideal
likely to need watering, in addition to heavy mulching.
place, as the tree gains some benefit from both walls
As well as extra watering, wall-trained trees need
(see below).
more regular and conscientious pruning than free-

TREES AND HOUSE FOUNDATIONS

Some people are concerned that planting trees

near walls may interfere with the foundations of
the building. Fortunately this is not a problem
with any of the fruit trees we may be likely to
plant in a forest garden. Only big, competitive
Figure 3.17 trees can harm buildings, and then only if they
are on a clay soil.
They do the damage by pumping water out of
the subsoil so that the clay shrinks. This leaves the
foundations unsupported, and they can crack. If
an existing tree dies the foundations can be damaged
by the clay swelling up with the unaccustomed
water. Trees which use a lot of water, like willows
and eucalyptus, can be particularly damaging, but
fruit trees should pose no problem.
Figure 3.18
standing ones. If you stop pruning a tree which is High air humidity does have its disadvantages too,
trained in a restricted form its yield falls sharply, much mainly an increased risk of fungus diseases. This can be
more so than with an open-grown tree. A frame- a problem in a forest garden where a combination of a
work of wires must be attached to the wall to train sheltered site and dense planting means there is very
them on, and this will need some regular maintenance. little air circulation. A combination of good layout and
All this extra work must be balanced against the selection of resistant plants and varieties can keep this
advantages of growing trees up walls: higher yields, problem to a minimum.
the chance to grow more tender fruits, and more Variations in the moisture content of the soil from
intensive use of space. one part of the garden to another are something to take
A similar effect to a south-facing wall can be had off account of when choosing the position of a forest
paths, patios and driveways. They too can absorb heat garden or of individual plants. The variations can be
and release it, and reflect light onto trees and shrubs. due to differences in the soil itself or to impeded drainage.
This is especially so if the tree or shrub is to the north But they are also influenced by microclimate factors,
of the paved area, as sunlight will be reflected directly such as the position of buildings and other walls.
onto it. In this situation it may be worthwhile to paint The masonry of a wall acts as a wick, which draws
the tree trunk white to avoid Sun scald. A water based water up from the soil and allows it to evaporate into
paint rather than an oil-based one should be used the air. The presence of a damp course does not seem
(see below): to seriously hinder this process. Even walls which face
south-west, directly into the direction where most
of the rain comes from, tend to have drier soil at their
foot than adjacent open ground. Although they get the
most rain they also get the most Sun, so they lose the
water more quickly than walls facing in other directions.
The soil at the base of north- and east-facing walls
hardly receives any rain at all because it is shielded from
most of the rain by the wall itself, but it doesn’t dry out
so quickly if it is watered.

SOIL
Figure 3.19 Four important characteristics of the soil are:
Water • its water relations;
The microclimate of the garden can affect the moisture
• its structure;
content of both the air and the soil.
Shelter increases air humidity. A sheltered garden is • how rich it is in plant nutrients, and how well it can
likely to be more humid than an exposed one, and hold onto them;
within the garden the forest part is likely to be more • how acid or alkaline it is.
humid than other parts. This is beneficial to most of
the plants which grow there. The woodland herbs have Soil Water
evolved to grow in relatively humid conditions, and A constant supply of water is essential to plant growth,
leafy greens, such as the spinaches, may be less prone but too much means that air is excluded and roots
to running to seed in a humid microclimate. So the suffer from lack of oxygen. As well as being a matter of
woodland structure can reduce the need for watering. climate and microclimate, the water content is very much
Humidity is actually more important than shade to influenced by the nature of the soil itself.
most woodland herbs. They can tolerate shade, and A soil with a high proportion of clay in it holds more
are therefore able to out-compete light-demanding water than one with a high proportion of sand. Broadly
herbs in a wood, but they don’t need it. They do need speaking a clay soil is more prone to poor drainage and
humidity, though. A good example of this is bluebells, a sandy one more prone to drought. Loam soils, which
which can be found growing happily in the open in the have a mixture of clay and sand, are less troubled by
wetter west of Britain, while in the drier east they are either problem, which is why they are ideal for fruit
confined to woods. and other crops.
 Poor drainage can also occur because of some
obstruction to the passage of water through the soil,
such as a layer of impervious clay below a loam. In urban
areas impeded drainage may be due to a former path,
patio or floor, now buried by a depth of soil. This kind
of layer in the soil, or one of compacted clay, is a barrier
to root penetration as well as drainage, and must be
removed or broken up before planting fruit trees.
Fruit trees are particularly sensitive to poor drainage.
There is a small range of fruits which can tolerate less than
perfect drainage, but only a couple which thrive where it Figure 3.20 Swale
is really poor (see list on page 75). On really badly drained
land there are only two options: drain it, or grow something
else. Underground pipe drains are the most effective,
but a network of ditches can do the job. So can a series of
mounds with the fruit growing on them, and the vegetables,
many of which tolerate wet soil, on the low ground between.
Soils which are too dry are usually easier to deal with.
These include light sandy soils and any soil at the base
of a wall. If plenty of organic matter is incorporated
before planting, good thick mulches are regularly used,
and the garden is watered in long dry spells virtually
all fruit can be grown. Only the very dwarfing apple
rootstocks, M9 and smaller, should be avoided. Figure 3.21 Ditch
Often the driest spot in a garden is a hot, south-facing
slope, especially if it is on a freely-draining soil. This
would be an ideal spot for tender fruits like peaches, Structure
figs, apricots and grapes as regards temperature, but too Clay soils need good structure more than sandy ones.
dry – and probably not a good site at all for a forest The clay particles must be aggregated together into
garden composed of less heat-loving plants. But there crumbs, with pore space between, if a clay soil is to stay
is something which can be done in addition to digging sufficiently open to allow the free passage of air, water
in organic matter and using mulch, and that is to install and plant roots. The opposite to this condition is
swales. A swale is a furrow in the ground which does the compaction, where the soil is pressed together in a
opposite to a ditch (see Figure 3.20). A ditch is deep and homogenous mass, and clay soils are much more prone
narrow, with a fall on it, and is designed to take water to this than more sandy ones are. A soil may be generally
away (see Figure 3.21). A swale is broad and shallow, compacted or it may be compacted at a certain depth
running exactly on the contour so that water does not only, for example where the constant use of a plough or
flow in it. It is designed to stop water flowing away and rotovator has smeared the top of the subsoil into what
give it a chance to infiltrate the ground. is called a pan.
A series of swales can be dug across the slope so that The best way to improve and maintain soil structure
whatever rain does fall is absorbed into the soil rather than is to add as much organic matter as possible. Ways of
running off. This also prevents soil erosion. The swales relieving soil compaction are discussed in Chapter 5,
need to be big enough to take the heaviest rain that is Preparation, Planting and Maintenance.
likely to fall on the site without overflowing. If a swale
does overflow, a gully will form at the point of overflow, Plant Nutrients
and this can carry away more soil than would have been Clay soils have more plant nutrients in them than sands,
eroded if the swales had not been dug in the first place. and more capacity to hold on to any plant nutrients which
Once the forest garden is mature the swales can are added in manures. Nutrients can be quickly lost from
be allowed to fill up gently by the natural process of a sandy soil, especially in wet weather, when the water
siltation, because the dense vegetation of the established which flows freely through a sand takes them away.
garden will do the job instead. But they will continue to be But sandy soils can be improved. Organic matter has
the moistest part of the garden for many years to come, at least twice the capacity of clay to hold onto nutrients,
the ideal place to plant things which appreciate extra so adding plenty of it to a sandy soil can make a real
moisture, such as pears, gages and the annual spinaches. difference.
Excess Lime MODELS
Very high alkalinity is a problem for almost all fruits.
It can cause chlorosis, which is a yellowing of the shoot
tips and the space between veins on the leaves, due to Designing a forest garden is not a precise art. One day,
the lockup of iron and manganese by the lime in the no doubt, we will have accumulated enough experience
soil. This is usually only a problem on thin soils over to work out some average recommendations for plant
chalk or limestone. Where there is a good spade’s depth spacing, the amount of shade each plant can cope with
of soil or more, chlorosis is much less likely. and so on. But that day is far off.
Another kind of soil which may be excessively Trying to calculate how to arrange the plants in a
alkaline is one overlying rubble from the demolition of garden on the basis of theoretical knowledge of light
old buildings which were built with lime-wash mortar. levels and requirements is futile. There are too many
Modern builders’ rubble is not highly alkaline because variables, from the vagaries of the weather, to the ever-
modern cement is not soluble once it has set. If in changing shade patterns from year to year as the garden
doubt it is worth getting professional advice before grows and matures.
planting fruit on thin soils over chalk, limestone or What can be helpful is to observe existing plant
demolished buildings. communities, not in order to copy them directly but
Various things can be done to lessen the effect: to get a feel for what will work and what will not. As I
write, there is only one mature forest garden in Britain,
• If there is any choice, choose another soil. Robert Hart’s forest garden in Shropshire. Two-layer
• In mild cases, apply masses of organic matter – especially plantings – trees over soft fruit or vegetables – are a bit
shredded conifers, laurel and rhododendron which more common, but they are still rare, and not quite
are all acid, but any organic matter will help. the same thing as a full forest garden. The closest
model we have in any quantity is probably to be found
• Grow plants which can tolerate high alkalinity
in semi-natural vegetation – woods and hedgerows –
(see page 75).
and there is much we can learn from them.
• Lower the pH by chemical means – flowers of sulphur The woods and hedges that can teach you most
or sequestrene. These will need to be applied regularly are ones in the same area as your forest garden site,
throughout the life of the forest garden. where climatic conditions are similar. They are also
• Consider growing another kind of garden. the old, semi-natural ones rather than more recent
plantations. Distinguishing between the two is not
Soil, Summary difficult. Semi-natural woods and hedges tend to have
As a general rule, the soils to avoid are extreme ones: more variety of different trees, shrubs and herbs. The
loams are better than sands or clays, soils around pH woods usually have trees of all different ages, in contrast
6.5-6.7 are better than those which are more acid or to the uniformity of a plantation, and a more complex
alkaline, and places prone to waterlogging or excessive structure, usually including trees which have been
drying out are best avoided. Much can be done to improve coppiced in the past.
a soil which is less than ideal, and plants can be chosen Old hedges which have not been cut for a number
which tolerate extreme soil conditions. But where there of years are very much like woodland edges. It is
is a choice between two or more soil types it is a good important to note which direction they face, as this
idea to fit the forest garden to the most suitable soil. has a big effect on the vegetation. Comparing different
This is not necessarily the most fertile soil: a high yield hedges and hedgebanks facing different ways can be
of annual vegetables may be more of a priority for you very revealing.
than a high yield from the forest garden. We cannot hope for precise answers from woods
Fortunately, most soils are loams, and unless a drainage and hedges. They are different from a forest garden in
problem is suspected the relative proportions of sand both scale and function, and contain only a few of
and clay in the soil need not be of too much concern to the edible plants we are interested in growing. But
a forest garden designer. A high level of organic matter familiarity with woodland can give us a feel for what
is always beneficial, and it goes a long way towards im- will work and what will not. It is an intuitive process.
proving the weaknesses of both clay and sandy soils. It Getting to know a number of different woods is useful
improves the structure of clays, allowing better pene-tra- for comparing the effect of different kinds of woodland
tion of air and roots and better drainage, while it structure on the growth of the plants, while observing
improves the water and nutrient holding capacity of a single wood through all the seasons, or even better
sands. Excessive alkalinity is rare, and in relatively mild over a number of years, gives a good idea of how
cases organic matter can help to alleviate this problem too. woodland changes through time.
 Observations made in summer, when the leaves on Not all woods change this much through the
the canopy trees are fully expanded, are perhaps the seasons. But becoming familiar with the kind of
most important. In winter or spring it is easy to assume annual dynamics that are possible in woodland veg-
that the sketchy network of twigs overhead will let in etation can help to give a feel of what may go on in a
at least some light during summer. A visit later in the woodland garden.
year can often reveal a surprisingly dense canopy. In order Another thing to bear in mind is that wild plants
to manufacture food, plants need a greater intensity of can vary greatly from one individual to another. I have
light shining on their leaves than we need in order to see picked wild hazels from a hedge which had the same
clearly, so most of us tend to overestimate the amount conditions of light, soil and moisture along its length,
of usable light which penetrates a dappled canopy. It is but ninety-five percent of the nuts came from one
important to bear this in mind when looking at light bush. They also vary greatly from year to year. The
penetration in a wood. previous season I didn’t get a single nut from that
In fact the best way to find out how much light is hedge, and the year before that there was a moderate
penetrating a wood is to see how well the shrubs there crop all along its length.
are actually flowering and fruiting. Compare the blossom Although most of the knowledge we can learn from
or fruit on shrubs of the same kind growing in both observing woods and hedges is intuitive, it is possible
sunny and shady spots. The difference is often much to get some quantifiable information too. My own
greater than the contrast between light and shade that observations have given me some useful pointers to how
we can perceive with our eyes. much direct and indirect light hazels and elders need in
The vegetable, or herb, layer is not so dependent on order to yield well (see pages 99-100 and 106). But these
the intensity of light reaching it as the shrub layer, observations should be used with care. Wild hazels and
because production is not dependent on fruiting. But elders do not necessarily have the same requirements
there can be great contrasts between different times of as the cultivated varieties, and oaks and ashes are
the year. You may visit a wood in winter which appears definitely not the same things as apples and pears.
to have no herb layer but a carpet of golden saxifrage Nevertheless I am sure that people who spend time
hugging the ground. Come back in spring and you may in woods and carefully observe what is around them
find nettles erupting through this carpet. Come back in are likely to develop more flair for designing a forest
midsummer and you may be hard put to see any golden garden than those who do not, whether they learn any
saxifrage beneath a chest-high sea of nettles. specific facts in the woods or not.
 Chapter 4

HOME-GROWN RESOURCES
Some extra components to consider at the design stage

By its very nature a forest garden needs less inputs from Using coir-based compost, produced from coconut trees
outside than most other kinds of garden. which grow on Pacific islands, may be an improvement
Different plants have different nutritional needs, so on destroying peat bogs, but only just.
the diversity of plants in a forest garden makes it less As well as being local, home-grown resources are
likely that any single plant nutrient will be in short usually biological resources. This means we are using
supply. Different plants also specialise in extracting a plant or animal to fulfil a need, in preference to a
different nutrients from the soil, and their neighbours chemical or mechanical resource. Biological resources
can benefit from this when they shed their leaves. Leaf tend to be most efficient if we use a living plant or
fall also helps to supply the soil with the organic matter animal rather than a dead one.
it needs. Water is used more frugally by a wide diversity For example, growing a hedge for a windbreak
of plants than it is by plants which all have a similar rather than erecting a plastic mesh saves the energy
growth habit and annual cycle. The microclimate created and pollution cost of producing the plastic. But the
by the garden reduces evaporation and increases the hedge also has a lower ecological cost than a wooden
efficiency of water use. Many pest and disease problems paling, brought from afar at a high cost in energy and
are reduced or eliminated because of the diversity of treated with chemical preservatives. Living biological
plants. resources, like a hedge, usually replace themselves free
If the low-maintenance aspect of forest gardening is of charge. This makes them cheaper in the long
more important to you than high production, then the run, though they sometimes cost more to set up in the
garden can get by with very little in the way of inputs. first place.
But production is potentially very high, and if this Four kinds of resource needed by a forest garden
potential is to be realised some inputs will be necessary which may be produced at home are:
to balance what is coming out.
One of the principles of forest gardening is to • plant nutrients;
produce as many of the inputs as possible at home. But • organic matter;
this is an ideal, and it is not always possible, or even
desirable, to be totally self-sufficient. In the early stages • water;
of development, it will probably be necessary to bring • means of controlling pests and weeds.
in bulk manures, mulch materials and, of course, plants.
If you want to get a high level of production from a
small garden, it may be necessary to go on importing
some of these things when the garden is mature. PLANT NUTRIENTS
This is not necessarily unsustainable. Throughout
history intensively cultivated areas have usually been Nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium are the three
net importers of fertility from the wider landscape. The mineral nutrients needed in greatest quantity by plants.
point is to use home-grown resources as a first choice, There are another fifteen elements which are needed
local ones second, and things brought from far off in varying quantities, and all are essential for healthy
only as a last resort. This contrasts with most plant growth. They can be brought into the garden in
present day gardening and farming, where materials manures, but they can also be accumulated within the
are brought from the other side of the Earth as routine. garden by growing certain plants.
 Nitrogen is unique in that it is stored in the air, and present in the soil no nitrogen will be fixed as a
needs to be constantly reintroduced to the soil, while result of planting a legume there. If a species of
the others are stored in the soil.1 This means that the legume has not been grown in the garden for a
biological mechanisms for making nitrogen available to number of years its particular strains of bacteria may
plants is different from that for other nutrients. We not be there. Inoculants can be bought for most of the
talk of ‘fixing’ nitrogen and ‘accumulating’ the others. commonly grown legumes, and these can be used to
make sure the right bacteria are in the soil. For native
Nitrogen Fixers plants, a little soil taken from a place where they are
already growing will do as well. Exotic legumes, such
Certain soil-living bacteria have the ability to take as Siberian pea, usually have native counterparts
nitrogen from the air and incorporate it in their which play host to the same strains of bacteria, and
bodies. Some of these bacteria are free-living in the soil from these native plants can be used as an inoculant
soil. Others live in a close relationship with certain (see box on opposite page).
plants, in which the plant provides the bacteria with To test whether a legume is actively fixing nitrogen,
energy and the bacteria supply the plant with nitrogen. a small portion of root can be dug up and examined for
The bacteria live in little nodules on the plant roots. nodules. These are tiny round blobs, not much bigger than
When the bacteria die the nodules become detached a pin head, and if they are there then the bacteria are there.
from the plant and decompose in the soil, right beside The non-leguminous nitrogen-fixers have a different
the roots, which can then absorb the nitrogen. kind of bacteria in their root nodules. These bacteria
Most members of the legume family have this are not so choosy, and each strain will associate with
relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The legumes a much wider range of plants including natives and
include clovers, peas, beans, a number of shrubs and non-natives. Inoculation is not really necessary, but to
many trees – though none of the trees is native to be absolutely sure a little soil from a place where alder
Britain. Very few of the legumes, herbaceous or woody, trees grow should be an adequate inoculant for any
tolerate shade, and they usually die out as succession of these plants.
proceeds. Non-legumes which fix nitrogen include the There are really three options for using nitrogen-fixing
alder tree and Elaeagnus. plants in a forest garden:
Other plants can benefit from the nitrogen fixed by
these plants in two ways: 1. Trees and shrubs growing in the forest garden.
The first option is best for big forest gardens where
• By absorbing the nitrogen directly from the nodules in there is plenty of space, and the fruit trees are main-
the soil. This only happens on a significant scale when ly longer-lived ones on vigorous rootstocks. Nitro-
some of the legume’s roots die, otherwise the legume gen-fixing trees and shrubs can be planted in the
itself gets the lion’s share of the nitrogen. Roots may gaps between the young fruit trees, coppiced for a
die when the plant suffers some trauma, such as defoli- few years, then removed as the fruit trees grow and
ation by a grazing animal or an increase in shading. take up the space available for them.
• By benefiting from the extra nitrogen in the legume’s In the first few years the nitrogen-fixers will
body when it dies or when it sheds its leaves, and contribute nitrogen mainly from leaf fall. As their
these are decomposed in the soil. The neighbouring roots grow and intermingle with those of the edible
plants stand to gain most if the legume is prevented plants there will be some nitrogen supplied directly
from setting seed, because by the end of the growing from the nodules, but this will only become substantial
season 90% of the nitrogen fixed in its root nodules once coppicing starts, perhaps three to five years
ends up in the seed. Only 10% of the total is left in after planting.
either the plant body or the soil. In smaller gardens, with trees on more dwarfing
rootstocks planted closer together, there may not be
Thus a legume which lives out its life without a setback enough space for legume trees between the young
and produces a good crop of seed each year will only fruit trees. The difference between the size of the fruit
provide a little nitrogen for its neighbours. In order to trees at planting and their mature size is less, so the
benefit them significantly its growth must be checked in gaps between them are smaller. In a small garden there
some way. This is what happens when sheep or cattle is also more incentive to make every plant a food
graze a pasture of mixed grass and clover, or when a
gardener digs in a green manure crop. 1
This is true in temperate parts of the world, but in tropical parts
Each kind of legume only plays host to certain most of the nutrients are held in the biomass, the bodies of plants
strains of bacteria, and if none of the right strains are and animals.
 NITROGEN FIXERS FOR FOREST GARDENS

Trees Shrubs
Alder (Alnus glutinosa) is a native, non-leguminous Elaeagnus spp. are a group of non-leguminous
tree. It is hardy in all areas, tolerates a wide range of nitrogen fixing shrubs. They also have edible fruit
soils, grows quickly when young and regrows well and most are shade tolerant (see also page 110).
when coppiced. The leaves are rich in nutrients, Gorse (Ulex europaeus) and broom (Cytisus
though the wood is not very useful, being neither scoparius) are found throughout Britain and much of
durable nor very good firewood. It is a late leafer Europe. Both need well drained soils. Broom is acid-
and does not start to cast shade till the second half loving and will not tolerate a pH over 6.5, but gorse
of May, which is an advantage in a forest garden. is not fussy about pH. Gorse is spiny and extremely
It prefers a moist soil, and in really dry soils the tough. It can be used as a hedging plant in windy
Italian alder (A. cordata) is more suitable. situations, including coastal areas. Broom is not spiny
The amount of space needed for each plant is and can be killed by very extreme frosts, but it regen-
variable, since they can be coppiced more or less erates easily from seed. Neither stands much shade
often to control the size. Coppicing should be done and as the forest garden matures they will naturally
in winter, at an interval of anything from one to five weaken and give place to the growing fruit trees.
years according to the size wanted and the condition They are both very decorative shrubs. There is
of the plant. The stools may need to be grubbed up no month in the year when gorse is not flowering,
when the time comes to remove them, although and there are cultivated varieties of broom with
intensive cutting plus the shade of the surrounding delightful fiery-coloured flowers, as well as the natural
trees may be enough to kill them off. bright yellow. They are good wildlife plants, and like
The black locust or false acacia (Robinia pseu- all legumes they provide fodder for bees. A good
doacacia) is a legume from North America which wine can also be made from the flowers of gorse.
has long been grown here as an ornamental tree. It
grows well on dry sandy soils, and produces durable Herbaceous Legumes
timber and bee forage, but it has the disadvantage of Perennial clovers (Trifolium spp.) can be grown in
producing suckers (see Figure 4.1) This means that if the vegetable layer of a newly established forest
you tried to coppice garden. White clover (T. repens) is a good choice.
it it would throw up It is a short, mat-forming plant, which means it can
a whole lot of new Figure 4.1 suppress emerging weeds without competing too
shoots from the roots. strongly with the established vegetables. Even so it
These could come up will need cutting back occasionally until the light
all over the place and level decreases as the trees and shrubs grow up.
be a real pest in the Alsike (T. hybridum) is an alternative for cold sites
garden. It is host to with wet or acid soils.
the same strains of Lucerne or alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is the most
bacteria as broom, productive of the herbaceous legumes. It is most
and possibly gorse. suitable for growing outside the forest garden in a
The honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) is a fertility patch. It is a vigorous and long-lived perennial,
legume which will grow in Britain, but it is one with extremely deep roots, which make it resistant
which does not fix nitrogen. It deserves mention to drought and enable it to forage for mineral
simply because it has sometimes been planted under nutrients in a great volume of soil. It does not like
the misapprehension that it does. very wet conditions, especially on a heavy soil. It is
The Siberian pea tree (Caragana arborescens) is a usually inoculated when grown in a garden for the
multi-purpose plant: ornamental, edible and hardy first time.
enough to be used in a windbreak. Fixing nitrogen may Clover and lucerne seeds are listed under Green
be seen as a bonus on top of its other outputs. The Manures in garden seed catalogues. They are normally
appropriate inoculant is not available in this country established by sowing direct into the ground, but if
at present, though it is in North America. It is host there is any difficulty with establishment they can be
to the same bacteria as the clovers (see also page 94). raised in pots and planted out.
 plant. It may be more worthwhile to plant short- Some of the best accumulators of phosphorous are
lived food plants in any temporary gaps between the legumes. So a mixed planting of comfrey and a
immature trees than to put nitrogen-fixers there. perennial legume can make the basis of a good nutritious
mulch or compost, containing high levels of the three
2. Herbaceous legumes growing in the forest garden. major nutrients. If the two plants are grown close
Much the same can be done with herbaceous legumes. together and cut regularly the legume can also contribute
They can be planted as part of the initial vegetable towards the comfrey’s high nitrogen requirements.
layer, and allowed to die out as shade levels increase. Legumes, especially lucerne, also accumulate calcium,
The legumes must be regularly cut in the early years, which is important particularly on acid soils.
or they will crowd out the other herbaceous plants. Many other nutrients are needed as well as these
If some legumes survive into the later, shadier years three, and there are plants which specialise in accumu-
they will continue to provide a little nitrogen. They lating them. But it is probably not worth including specific
may not need to be cut in order to release nitrogen: plants in the mix to provide the minor nutrients. As long
the increase in shade as the mature canopy leafs up
each year will cause some dieback in the above-ground
parts of the legumes, and some of the roots will die GROWING A FERTILITY PATCH 2
back to balance the plant.
A fertility patch of comfrey and lucerne can be
Both these options yield more nitrogen in the early laid out in rows, with one row of comfrey to
years than later on. As leafy vegetables need more every three rows of lucerne. 25cm should be left
nitrogen than fruits, this fits well with a succession in between the rows of lucerne and 30cm either side
which the vegetable layer gives way to shrubs and trees of the comfrey, with the comfrey at 45cm apart
as the level of shade increases. Young trees need a good within the row. The lucerne should be sown thinly
supply of nitrogen for growth, but too much can delay at any time after the first of May. It is slow to
cropping. establish, and the comfrey should be planted a little
later to give the lucerne a head start. Grass is the
3. Herbaceous legumes growing nearby in a fertility patch. main competitor, and it must be controlled during
Once a forest garden is mature, the best way to the first year when the plants are getting established;
supply it with home-grown nitrogen is to grow the first cut gives an opportunity to hoe between
herbaceous legumes nearby and cut them for use as the rows, alternatively a mulch can be used.
mulch in the garden. Even in the early stages this is The first cut, in both the first and subsequent
probably the most productive way to grow legumes, years, is best taken when the lucerne is at the
but it is more labour intensive than growing them quarter-flower stage – an obvious scattering of
in situ (see box, this page). blue across the stand – normally in June. Once
the plants are well established, usually from their
second year, they can be cut three times a year, or
Dynamic Accumulators four in a good season in the south of England.
Most soils contain enough plant nutrients, apart from No cuts should be taken in the autumn, so the
nitrogen, to grow heavy crops for thousands of years, plants can build up their roots for the winter.
but the nutrients are held in forms which are relatively The last cut can be in the third week in August in
unavailable to plants. There are some plants which are the south, but earlier further north.
particularly good at extracting nutrients in less available On a light soil it is possible to rotate the fertility
forms from the soil. When they die and decompose patch around the garden, because the comfrey can
the nutrients contained in them become available to be dug out, albeit with great labour. On a heavier
other plants. clay soil this is pretty well impossible, and the
They are known as dynamic accumulators, and lucerne will eventually die out as it is not as long-lived
different ones specialise in different nutrients. as comfrey. It should be replaced with a non-legume,
Comfrey is the foremost of dynamic accumulators. such as chicory or cocksfoot grass for a couple
It has a long tap root which can forage in the subsoil for of years, as legumes do not do well after other
new supplies of its favourite nutrient, potassium, which legumes. Then lucerne can be re-established.
it accumulates in large quantities. It also accumulates
other nutrients and has a very high nitrogen content – 2
This description is based on the work of Nic Pawson of Exmouth,
with a correspondingly high appetite for nitrogen in who has pioneered the technique on his allotment.
the soil (see page 121).
as a wide variety of other plants are included there usually recommended that the compost should not be
should be no deficiency problems. As a general rule wild used on vegetables which are to be eaten raw. This could
plants are better accumulators than cultivated ones, and make it difficult to use it at all in a forest garden with an
deep-rooted plants are often particularly good. Chicory, extensive and diverse vegetable layer. An alternative would
dandelion, nettles and yarrow are useful, but there are be to use it to manure a fertility patch – applied as a
many others. mulch 8cm thick – or on a plot of bulk mulch material,
Comfrey can be grown inside a forest garden in the and thus keep it at one remove from the edible plants.
early stages of succession just as legumes can, and it can A well-designed compost toilet is completely smell-free,
survive a moderate shade, though it prefers full Sun. and the privy can be placed near the house or built onto it.
Another alternative is to grow a fertility patch of comfrey
and legume outside the forest garden, and cut it for
compost or mulch. This may sound a bit laborious,
but regular mulching is a normal part of forest garden MULCH MATERIAL
maintenance and having some of that mulch material
growing nearby will save work, not increase it. Comfrey and lucerne both produce large quantities of
In most gardens the space required for a fertility patch organic matter compared to most other plants, but they
is likely to be more limiting than the labour. On a poor both decompose quite rapidly, especially comfrey. This
sandy soil the comfrey and legume patch will need to be is an advantage for feeding the soil, but not for a mulch
something like one third the area of the forest garden it whose main function is to suppress weeds, reduce evapora-
is manuring, i.e. one square metre of fertility patch to tion and protect the soil: the longer such a mulch lasts
three of forest garden. (If it is used to manure annual the better, so materials which decompose more slowly
vegetables it may need to be half the area of the vegetable are needed.
patch, i.e. one to two.) On a rich clay soil half this area A thick mulch of this kind, covering all the ground
would be more than enough. between the individual plants, may be needed in a
Whether you choose to devote some land to this will garden where there are perennial weeds to be suppressed.
depend on a number of factors, including: This can take a lot of material. If straw is used, as much
as half a tonne a year may have to be bought in to mulch
• how keen you are to get a high yield from the garden; a garden of 10 x 25m.
• whether the soil is inherently high in nutrients or not, This would be an extreme case, but even light mulching
i.e. clay or sand; will require more organic matter than most gardens can
provide. So an area of the garden devoted to the bulk
• how much land you have overall, and what other production of organic matter, regardless of its nutrient
elements you want to fit in; content, is worthwhile if space allows.
• whether you have another source of nutrients nearby; The most productive ecosystems on Earth in terms
• whether you actually mind bringing in nutrients from of organic dry matter produced per square metre are
far away. kelp ‘forests’ in certain shallow seas. Second only to these
are semi-aquatic ecosystems. In tropical climates this
means mangrove swamps; here it means reedbeds.
Compost Toilets Growing a mini-reedbed in your back garden can give
The other main source of plant nutrients available at you a greater supply of mulch material per square metre
home is what we flush down the toilet. This is not just a than any other kind of planting.
terrible waste of resources, it turns those resources into Of course these semi-aquatic plants will only yield to
a pollutant. the full if they get plenty of water. Fortunately we all
Many of us feel a bit uneasy about the idea of using have a supply of suitable water in our houses, one which
human manure on the garden. But a great deal of work has we presently pour down the drain. It’s called grey water,
been done on compost toilets, by the Centre for Alternative and it includes all water which has been used in the house,
Technology among others. Their booklet, Fertile Waste3 other than that which has been used to flush the toilet.
tells you all you need to know about constructing and It can be diverted into a suitably designed reedbed in the
managing a compost toilet. The whole process can be garden, where it will be purified by the bacteria living
perfectly safe if you follow the instructions. on the roots of the reeds, and give you a bigger yield of
The risk of any disease-causing organisms surviving mulch material than you could get by any other means.
the composting process is negligible. Nevertheless it is Various aquatic plants can be used, but the most
productive is probably the common reed (Phragmites
3
See Further Reading. australis or communis). This is like a huge grass, over
2m tall when fully grown, with a large, feather-like by the soil. On sandier soils it can be a much larger
flower at the top. It spreads by underground rhizomes, proportion of the total. On a reedbed it can be used in
so it is a good idea to contain a reedbed within a low any quantity, as reeds can cope with structureless soils.
underground wall. This will also prevent the grey water
from spreading where it may not be wanted. Rain Water
Professional advice should be taken before designing
Rainwater from the roof can also be collected. Indeed
a reedbed, especially where space is restricted. It is
if it is not collected it is another potential asset going
necessary to calculate the likely yield of grey water, the
down the drain, where it becomes a nuisance to be got
space available for the reedbed, the probable yield of
rid of. Some sewage systems get overloaded after heavy
reeds and so on. Soil type, plumbing and other structures
rain, then raw sewage gets put straight into the rivers.
also need to be taken into account. It is by no means a
Thus a potential supply of clean water becomes a cause
forgone conclusion that a reedbed is the best solution
of pollution.
for every site.
At present saving rain water does not save you any
Where plenty of space is available, as in a large rural
money – although it is much better for plants than mains.
garden or smallholding, it may be possible simply to
But it is only a matter of time before water will have to
drain the grey water away to a suitable low-lying area,
be metered. In the meantime hosepipe bans are becoming
plant the reeds, and see what happens. But they should
the norm rather than the exception in some parts of the
not be planted near any existing aquatic or semi-aquatic
vegetation of any value because they may invade it and
take over completely.
Producing mulch from grey water is turning a problem
into a solution. What was a burden on the local sewage
works has been transformed into an abundant supply of
organic material.

WATER
Grey Water
In addition to using it to produce mulch material, grey
water can be used to water the food plants themselves.
It is best not to apply it direct to vegetables, especially
salads, because of the risk of infection – though this risk
is small. It can be applied underground through a series
of perforated pipes, and this is successful in annual
gardens, but in a forest garden the pipes would probably
get clogged in time by the roots of the perennials. It can
be applied to the base of fruit trees and shrubs where
there is no vegetable layer, or at least where there are
no salad vegetables.
Wherever grey water is used, it must not contain
chemicals which could harm the soil life or the plants
themselves. Only natural, biodegradable cleaning and
washing products can be used. Bleach in particular must
be avoided.
Grey water should not be used as the sole water
supply, especially on clay soils, because detergents
contain sodium, which causes clay to deflocculate. This
weakens the structure of the soil, eventually reducing
crumbs and pore space into a homogenous mass like Plate 4.1 Simon Phelps beside his rainwater harvesting
plasticine. It should be used to supplement rainfall and system. Note that the tank is raised off the ground so
other irrigation water. On a heavy clay soil it should that all the water in it can be used by gravity.
be not more than a third of the total water received (Steve Easton)
country. Now is a good time to install a rain harvesting not be effective in a really sluggy garden. I suspect that
system – while second hand tanks are still available at the slug population there is low because a population
bargain prices. It doesn’t matter what the tank was used of beetles and other slug predators has built up over the
for before, as long as you wash it out well. years. They like very similar conditions to slugs, but are
Your house roof will probably collect much more slower to colonise a new habitat. In any succession the
water during the course of a year than the garden will predators are usually the last members of the community
ever need. The limiting factor is storing enough to be to build up their population.
really useful during a long dry spell. Most predictions It is in the early years of a forest garden, before a
for climate change over the next few decades suggest diverse and stable fauna has had time to develop, that
that summers will get drier, so the best rule of thumb slugs and snails are likely to be a really serious problem.
for choosing the size of a rainwater storage tank is to get This is when it is most useful to deliberately introduce
the biggest you have room for and can afford. animals into the garden as predators on slugs.
The best place for it is usually the darkest, dingiest Two candidates for the job are ducks and frogs. The
part of the garden, where you couldn’t grow anything advantages of ducks are that they give you a multiple
if you tried. If possible raise it up off the ground, so you yield – eggs as well as slug control – and can be much
can use the water with a hosepipe rather than having to more effective than frogs. The advantage of frogs is
bucket it. This may require a pretty hefty construction, that they need no looking after once you have got them
because water is heavy, but the investment will save you established. You have to choose one or the other, because
a lifetime of bucketing, and you may be able to use the ducks also eat frogs.
space below for storage.
To fill the tank there are gadgets on the market Ducks
which will divert rainwater from the downpipe into the You should not think of keeping ducks unless you are
tank till it is full, and then send it back to the downpipe. prepared to take on the commitment involved in keeping
They are advertised in gardening magazines. domestic animals. You need to be there every morning
and evening to let them out of their house and shut them
away again, otherwise the fox will have them, whether
PEST AND WEED CONTROL you live in town or country. You also need enough space
to give them a run of their own, with a little pond or
The diversity of a forest garden goes a long way towards bath in it, where they can stay when not on slug patrol.
preventing pests and diseases becoming a problem. But Two or three ducks are quite enough for all but the biggest
there is also a specific design feature which can help to garden. Keeping a single duck on her own is cruel.
protect plants from pests, and that is to introduce pest
predators into the garden. These may be relatively large
animals which we can bring into the garden to eat slugs
and snails; or insects which prey on plant pests, which
we can attract by growing certain plants.

Slug-Eaters and Other Animals

Slugs can be a problem in a forest garden. The moist
environment, dense perennial vegetation and copious
mulch are just the conditions they like. Most of the plants
recommended in this book are to a greater or lesser
extent resistant to slugs, but when they get really
numerous they will eat anything. I have even seen them
climb shrubs and young trees to eat the leaves.
There is some evidence to suggest that slugs and
other pests become less of a problem as a forest garden
matures. Robert Hart is able to grow small patches of
lettuce in the sunnier parts of his garden, though all
around is thick perennial vegetation and deep mulch –
ideal slug habitat. He does use garlic as a slug repellent,
popping a clove into the ground with each lettuce he Plate 4.2 Khaki Campbell ducks on slug patrol in a
plants. But my experience tells me that this would Devon garden. (PW)
 It is important to get ducks of the right breed. Khaki Adult frogs may find your pond and lay in it of their
Campbells and Indian runners are the most carnivorous own accord. But if you want to be sure of getting frogs
breeds. The others actually prefer vegetables to slugs. in the first year it is best to find some spawn and put it
Even so you can’t let them free range over the whole in. Most spawn is laid during March and April, though
garden all the time, because they will eat the vegetables in mild years, and especially in mild areas such as
as soon as they have finished the slugs. The best thing to Cornwall, it may be found as early as February. The best
do is to let them into the garden when you are working source is probably from a friend or neighbour who has
there yourself and can keep an eye on them. When they frogs in their own garden pond, or from the county
finish the slug course and start on your vegetables it’s wildlife trust.
time to put them back in their run. Their favourite Collecting from the wild should be done with
plants, which include strawberries and young cabbages, caution, because frog numbers in the wild have fallen
must be protected with some kind of netting. catastrophically in recent years. Spawn can be taken
from ponds with an obvious excess – so much that the
Frogs little bit needed to stock a garden pond will not make
A healthy frog population in the garden won’t totally a noticeable difference – or from a shallow puddle
get rid of slugs, as no wild predator ever eliminates its which is likely to dry up before the tadpoles mature.
prey. But it can make the difference between hardly A single mass of spawn is the right amount for a pond
being able to grow a thing, and just having to take some of the minimum size.
sensible precautions with the more susceptible plants. The tadpoles become frogs some time during June,
First you need a pond. The adults lay in it and the July or early August. Once they are out of the water
young live in it for the first few months of their lives as they need plenty of dense, shady, low-level vegetation
eggs and tadpoles. The pond should be sited in a sunny to hide them from predators and keep their skin moist.
place, near dense ground vegetation, but if possible away In fact they like just the sort of habitat that slugs do!
from trees, as too many leaves in the water cause problems. The pond can then be allowed to dry out. Many natural
In most gardens a pond liner will be necessary, and ponds are seasonal, so frogs, and other aquatic life, are
flexible ones can be bought quite cheaply from garden adapted to this cycle.
centres. An old sink dug into the ground will do, but a few In the first year of their life they will not grow big
stones will have to be placed near the edge to allow the enough to eat slugs, but since it is the smallest slugs that
frogs to hop out. Frogs like to lay their eggs in shallow do the most damage to plants the frogs should start to
water, so the pond should be around 30 cm deep. It can earn their keep by the end of their second summer.
be as small as 1m x 1.5m if space is short (see Figure Moving adult frogs into a garden in the hope that
4.2). they will stay there and kill the slugs is not a good idea.
The best water for the pond is some from an existing You are unlikely to build up a significant frog population
pond, as this will contain the microscopic spores and this way. It is also cruel because it causes stress – and
eggs of the tadpoles’ food plants and prey. Above all it’s illegal.
make sure the water is not polluted, as frogs are very There are many predators on frogs. Unfortunately
sensitive to pollution. Some water plants should be one of the most effective is the domestic cat. If you keep
added too. These will both feed the animals on which a cat, or if cats frequent your garden, you will have to
the older tadpoles prey, and give cover for the tadpoles accept that they will take some of the frogs. It will
against predators which may want to eat them. still be worthwhile to breed frogs for slug control, but
somewhat less so.
1m
Other Animals
Toads rarely if ever eat slugs. Their favourite food is
beetles, which do eat slugs, so they will tend to increase
30cm
Padding the population of slugs rather than decrease it. They do eat
15cm
Liner
snails, so they are a help where snails rather than slugs
are the main problem, which is often the case in gardens
Subsoil
with a drystone wall or other masonry with crevices in it.
It is very easy to distinguish toad spawn from frog spawn,
as it is laid in long thin strips like strings of beads, rather
than in masses like frogspawn. They like to lay their spawn
Figure 4.2 The right and the wrong in deeper water than frogs, 60cm deep or more. So if you
way of constructing a frog pond want to attract frogs but not toads, keep the pond shallow.
 Hedgehogs also eat slugs and snails, but it does not A pond dug for breeding frogs will soon attract
seem possible to increase hedgehog populations enough other wildlife – some of which will eat the tadpoles,
to make a significant impact on the local slug population. but never mind, there’s enough for all. If you want
Nevertheless, they are part of the wildlife of many dragonflies to breed in the pond you must have at least
gardens, and it is important to encourage all kinds of one tall emergent plant, like a reed or reedmace, for
wildlife – not just because they help us by keeping pests the young to crawl up when they are ready to transform to
in balance and contributing to nutrient cycling, but adults and leave the water for the air. A bed of nettles
because they have as much right to be here as we have. is another good wildlife attractant. Many butterflies
(The best hedgehog attractant is said to be a permanent and other creatures feed on them in the larval stage.
water supply – such as a pond.) Chickens are not a good idea in a forest garden,
A forest garden is always good for wildlife, but there although they can play a part in the initial prepar-
should also be at least a corner which is kept primarily ation of the ground (see page 61). It’s not so much a
for the benefit of wild plants and animals. A pile of rotting matter of what they eat, but of the mess they make of
logs is a good thing to have in a wild corner. In a small plants and mulch as they scratch for insects. Geese have
garden it may be all there is room for, and it will make their place in orchards, keeping the grass down, but
good use of the space. Dead wood supports ten times as young trees must be protected because they can debark
much animal life as live wood. It is a storehouse of food them. Geese are vegetarians and in a forest garden
for decomposer insects and other creepy-crawlies, and they would make short work of the vegetable and
these provide food for birds, small mammals and reptiles. shrub layers.

BEES

Bees have nothing much to do with pest control, the hive, over a porch or even on a high rooftop;
but they are animals which it is well worthwhile and the bees appreciate the warm urban micro-
having in a forest garden. The beauty of bees is that climate. Unlike poultry, they do not make a noise
keeping them is a win-win situation. Usually adding which can lead to disputes with neighbours.
another productive plant to the garden makes use If you don’t want to keep bees but would like
of some resources which were previously unused, to get some of the advantages of pollination from
but also takes some which were previously used by them, there are certain plants which will attract them
other plants – so although the total yield of the into the garden. These include almost anything with
garden goes up, there is a price to pay in reduced a blue flower, such as borage or rosemary. Comfrey
yield of something that was already there. But when can become a buzzing mass of bees when it flowers
you keep bees, not only do they produce honey in June.
entirely from resources that were previously unhar-
vested – the nectar and pollen – they also increase Plate 4.3 Glen Finn tends his bees, in a corner of
production of fruit by improving pollination. Permanent Publications’ forest garden in Hampshire.
Nothing is lost. All is gain. (Tim Harland)
Bees do need regular attention, but it is nothing
like as much as poultry. People very rarely get stung
unless they walk through the bees’ flight path. In a
very large garden this can be avoided by placing the
hive well out of the way. In smaller gardens the hive
should be placed high up, over people’s heads. A flat
roof or the top of a steep bank are good situations, as
long as they are reasonably sheltered. The hive should
be sited in a warm microclimate, but not too warm,
as that could encourage the bees to come out when
the general temperature is still too cold for them.
Bees are ideal animals to keep in towns and
suburbs. There are more flowers there than in the
country; there is usually a safe, sheltered niche for
Pest Predator Plants allowing the nettles to grow, it helps not to tidy them up
too much when they die down in winter.
Two kinds of insects which are particularly worth
Quite a number of edible forest garden plants are also
encouraging into the garden are hoverflies and parasitic
pest predator attractant plants, many of them members
wasps. Hoverflies are those flies which mimic wasps
of the umbellifer and daisy families. Indeed, dandelions,
with a yellow and black colour scheme to frighten off
cow parsley, alexanders, sweet cicely and nettles are
any creature which might want to prey on them. The
all edible. But often designing for pest predators can
wasps are tiny insignificant ones, not the big yellow and
be more a matter of allowing things to continue growing
black bruisers which we all know and see each year in
than of bringing in special plants. Robert Kourik’s list
the season of rotting fruit.
of 67 successful companion planting combinations is
It is the larvae of the hoverflies which eat aphids,
illuminating (see page 35). Most of the companions are
and the eggs of the wasps which parasitise various pests.
for annual crop plants, and so not very relevant to
The adults of these beneficial insects feed on flowers,
forest gardening. But apples and walnuts appear in the
and as they have very short mouth parts they need tiny
list, and in both cases pests have been reduced by having
flowers to feed from. Therefore the plants which they
a ‘weedy ground cover’.
need for their food supply are those with composite
flowers, that is flowers made up of many little florets
instead of one big bloom. Most of these plants belong Weed Control
to one of two families: the umbellifers or cow parsley The kind of ‘weeds’ which were so beneficial to the orchard
family, and the daisy family, which includes many trees were probably much the same plants as the edible
composite flowers such as thistles and dandelions. wild ones which we grow in the vegetable layer of a
In fact cow parsley and dandelions are two plants forest garden. But there are some weeds which are not
which are particularly valuable in attracting insects, welcome at all, especially the creeping perennial ones.
because they flower early. Some pests can build up their If at all possible these weeds should be eradicated
populations quite early in the spring, so it is good to from the garden before planting. But sometimes it is
have a population of predators there as soon as possible not possible to eradicate them from an adjacent piece
to start eating them. Most gardens already have an of ground, and then there is an excellent home-grown
abundant supply of dandelions, and it may be worth- resource which can be used to prevent them from
while allowing some of them to flower in the spring. creeping back in – comfrey.
Cow parsley may need to be introduced, and is best A belt of comfrey plants can act as an effective
planted in a sunny position if you want it to flower early. barrier to creeping weeds. It grows vigorously and
Alexanders and sweet cicely are two more umbellifers casts such a heavy shade that no weeds can establish
which flower early. themselves underneath it, yet it does not spread itself,
Another useful plant which may be allowed to stay either by seed or by root. (This applies to Russian comfrey,
where it already grows is the stinging nettle. Nettles not the common native kind. See page 121.) Plants should
have two functions in pest control. Firstly they play host be spaced 60cm apart each way, and two or three rows
to their own species of aphid in the spring, an aphid may be needed according to the virulence of the weeds.
which does not feed on any other plant. This allows This space, 120 or 180cm wide, must be allowed for in
populations of aphid predators to build up early in the the design of the garden.
year, so by the time other plants are being troubled by It will not be possible to pick very much of this
aphids there will be a good population of predators comfrey. Since it prevents the growth of weeds by
around. Secondly, dry nettle stalks are just the kind shading them out, it becomes less effective as a weed
of thing which ladybirds like to overwinter in, and barrier if its leaves are removed. If comfrey is wanted for
ladybirds are redoubtable killers of aphids. So as well as soil fertility purposes a separate planting must be made.
 Chapter 5

PREPARATION, PLANTING
& MAINTENANCE

MULCHING the plants are actively growing. A mulch from autumn

to spring will kill some plants, but not the strong perennials,
Mulching is such an important technique in forest which have considerable stores of food in them. To kill
gardening that a whole section of this chapter is devot- them you need to mulch from spring to autumn.
ed to it. In the separate sections on Preparation, Plant- A completely light-excluding mulch kept down through
ing and Maintenance, reference is made to the various the whole growing season will eradicate most perennial
kinds of mulch described in this section. weeds. Some of the tougher ones, like couch, will survive
A mulch is any material laid on the surface of the in patches, but you can expect a 90% kill. You may then
soil. The functions of a mulch can include one or more need to do a little digging to finish the job off, but it is
of the following: much easier now all the other plants are gone, and will
only disturb a fraction of the garden’s soil.
• to kill weeds by denying them light; Bindweed is the main exception. It is hardly affected
unless you mulch an enormous area at once, because a
• to conserve water by reducing evaporation from well-established plant can send out roots for several
the soil;
• to protect the soil surface from Sun, wind and rain;
MATERIALS FOR CLEARANCE MULCH
• to add plant nutrients and organic matter to the soil.
Black plastic sheeting is ideal. It is energy intensive
There are three kinds of mulch: to produce and non-biodegradable, so buying it
new is questionable on ecological grounds. But
1. Clearance mulch – used to clear the ground of weeds using it second hand means getting another use
prior to planting. out of something that would otherwise go straight
2. Grow-through mulch – similar to a clearance mulch, to landfill. In country areas it is readily available
but with crop plants growing through holes made in it. from farmers in the form of broken silage bags or
3. Maintenance mulch – used in an already established silage clamp covers. It can be dug in round the
garden. edges and weighted down with a few planks,
bricks etc. across the middle.
Old carpets can usually be found in skips.
They should either be totally artificial fibre, or
Clearance Mulch totally natural (which is rare these days). If they are
This occupies the ground for a period of time before half and half the natural part may rot away leaving
planting, and is removed before planting starts. It is thousands of little tufts of nylon in the soil. They
suitable for ground which has a serious problem with are not suitable for severe infestations of couch,
perennial weeds. which can grow straight through a carpet.
Mulch kills the plants beneath it by denying them light. Large sheets of cardboard can be used, but they
The plants try to grow, but they need sunlight in order need a lot of weighing down and can rot before
to manufacture food, so they use up all their food reserves the weeds do.
and die. This means that mulching is only effective when
metres before they reach light without exhausting Method
its food reserves. At the edge of the mulch they put 1. Plant the trees and shrubs.
out masses of leaves and thrive. When you pull back 2. Cover the ground between with a layer of cardboard,
the mulch at the end of the year the soil surface can newspaper or any other biodegradable sheet material.
look like a plate of spaghetti. At least you can scoop the Use the largest sheets you can get, and wherever two
majority of the roots up, rather than having to dig them sheets meet, overlap them by about 20cm. Newspaper
out, but a few will always remain underground to start should be 15-20 sheets thick.
again next year.
Simply knock down any tall weeds – there’s no need 3. Add a layer of manure, or other material which is
to cut them. Lay the mulch material over the whole area both heavy enough to hold the first layer in place
and weight it down. A layer of manure can be put under and contains plant nutrients.
it. This gives the worms a head start at incorporating 4. Where you want to plant a vegetable, make a hole in the
the manure into the soil, but is not essential to the mulch with a spike, such as an old knife. Scrape the
purpose of the mulch, which is to kill weeds. manure away from the spike, and replace it with a
double handful of topsoil or very well rotted compost.
Grow-Through Mulch Plant the vegetable into this. Don’t try to plant it in
the soil beneath – the roots will find their own way
This is suitable for land with rather less persistent
down through the little hole (see Figure 5.1).
perennial weeds in it, as some weeds can grow up
through the holes left for the crop plants. Its advantage
over a clearance mulch is that you do not have to wait a
whole growing season before starting to plant.
A simple grow-through can be made by using the
same materials as for a clearance mulch and cutting
holes in it for the plants.
The classic grow-through mulch combines the weed
control job with a heavy dressing of manure. It is
Figure 5.1
completely biodegradable, and usually does not last
long enough to completely kill the most persistent
weeds. Long-term weed control depends on the vege- 5. A top layer of loose material is optional. It looks good,
table plants growing strongly and suppressing any weeds and helps prevent the manure from drying out in
which survive. This is the kind of mulch described here. summer. On the other hand, in wet weather it may
harbour slugs and encourage rotting in vegetables
which are not actively growing.

Plate 5.1 Plate 5.2

A grow-through mulch placed around existing trees for the addition of shrubs and vegetables, Michael and Julia Guerra’s
front garden, Welham Green, Hertfordshire. Bottom layer – newspaper; middle layer – well-rotted compost; top layer –
plastic to stop the compost blowing away (Plate 5.1). The same plot planted up (Plate 5.2). (Michael Guerra)
Some of the original vegetation will survive the mulching, If a path is mulched with a loose material, such as
and you can choose which of these volunteer plants to wood chippings, gravel or straw, weeds constantly
leave and which to remove. A proportion of the yarrow sprout up in it and have to be removed. A sheet mulch is
or dandelions which come through, and perhaps the odd needed. Black plastic, cardboard and paper are all a bit
plant of hogweed, may be useful additions to the garden vulnerable to damage from feet. Strips of old carpet are
ecosystem, and can be left to grow. Little bits of couch much the best. It looks quite inoffensive when turned
and creeping buttercup can easily be removed with upside down, and a sprinkling of one of the loose
finger and thumb from the friable, organic topsoil you materials on top helps it to look much more pleasant.
have created. But only a thin layer of loose material should be used,
Paths should be mulched at the same time as the or weeds will start growing in it, especially if it collects
growing area. Grassy paths are a constant source of work; some soil off muddy boots.
the grass and other plants in them are forever creeping
into the growing area, and have to be weeded out.
Maintenance Mulch
Clearance and grow-through mulches are one-off
operations for clearing new ground. But a maintenance
MATERIALS FOR mulch is one which is used regularly as part of the
GROW-THROUGH MULCH gardening round. Its main function is weed control, but
it has many other beneficial effects. On the other hand
The largest sheets of cardboard are the ones it has its disadvantages.
bicycles, fridges and televisions come in. Cardboard
or paper with too much coloured printing on it Advantages
should be avoided. Some coloured inks are made • Controls weeds without the need for digging or
with organic pigments, others, especially reds hoeing.
and yellows, may contain heavy metals which are
poisonous in high concentrations. If your cardboard • Decreases evaporation from the soil, reducing the
and paper come from a variety of sources and need for watering.
don’t have too much coloured ink on them, there • Protects the soil surface from Sun, wind and rain;
should be no problem. Black ink is harmless. prevents capping on soils which are prone to it.
Manure can be used partly rotted, as long as • Keeps the soil warm in winter, and encourages early
the heap has heated up well enough to kill weed growth of perennial vegetables.
seeds. But if it has wood chippings in it it should
be well rotted, which can take a couple of years • Provides habitat for beneficial creatures, such as
as wood is slow to decompose. Most urban areas frogs and beetles.
are ringed by riding stables only too pleased to • Supplies the soil with organic matter and plant nutrients.
get rid of their manure. Manure from intensive • Reduces the need for making compost – material can
animal rearing, especially pigs, should not be used simply be laid on the surface.
because of the residue of copper and other
substances added to the feed as medicines and
growth promoters. Disadvantages
Fresh seaweed is an alternative to manure if • Collecting mulch material can be a lot of work.
you live near the coast, but it needs to have the • Prevents light summer rain penetrating the soil.
salt washed out of it before use. If you cannot get • Can cause rotting of perennial vegetable crowns in
a material which both contains plant nutrients winter, and on stems of trees and shrubs if it is
and is heavy enough to keep the cardboard down, allowed to touch them.
you can apply a layer of concentrated organic
manure, such as blood fish and bone meal, and • Slows the warming up of the soil in spring. Can increase
one of something heavy, like leaf mould or sand. frosts by preventing radiation of heat from the soil.
Avoid anything with too many viable weed seeds • Can harbour slugs, and prevents birds from eating slug
in it, which includes most home-made compost. eggs and overwintering pests in the soil.
For the top layer any of the materials used for
regular maintenance mulching are suitable (see box The advantages of mulch are considerable, and it is
on next page). possible to keep the disadvantages to a minimum by
wise management:
Reducing the quantity needed Perennial ground cover plants, such as Rubus
Three ways to do this are: tricolor and white clover can effectively suppress weeds
1. Use green manures or perennial ground covers as and protect the soil.
an alternative in some parts of the garden. A green 2. Start with a weed-free soil and discourage recolonisation.
manure crop is one which is grown mainly in order If perennial weeds are not eradicated when the garden
to protect the soil, to add organic matter and plant is established, or if they creep back in, it may be
nutrients to the soil, and to hold plant nutrients necessary to cover the entire surface of the soil
which would otherwise be leached away by the rain. between the crop plants with as much as 10-15cm
They are usually short-lived annuals, and are most of compact mulch material. This needs replacing at
important over winter, when the soil is vulnerable least once a year as it rots down (see pages 60-61 for
and there are least crops in the ground. means of removing perennial weeds).
In a forest garden some of the self-seeding winter Many soils contain masses of annual weed seeds
salad plants, such as lamb’s lettuce, winter purslane in a viable but dormant state. They only germi-
and land cress can act as green manures if they seed in nate when they are brought to the surface by
sufficient quantity. In spring, if there are more of them disturbance. Anything which disturbs the surface,
than you can eat, they can be chopped off at ground such as hoeing, should be avoided if at all possible.
level and left to lie on the surface, or gently incorpo- If you are tempted to hoe or dig remember that
rated into the top few centimetres of soil with a hoe. as well as killing the present generation you are
If they are incorporated it is best done before they bringing forth the next one. So the more you use
flower, as they become more fibrous then. In either mulch instead of the hoe, the less weeds you have
case they will decompose rapidly, and other plants to control, and the less mulch you need to use
can be planted or allowed to self-seed in their place. each time.

MATERIALS FOR MAINTENANCE MULCH

Whatever you use, try to be sure it has no weed Reeds etc. These are the home-grown alternatives,
seeds in it, or you could end up causing more weed if you have the space for them (see pages 49-50).
problems than you solve. Commercial mulches, such as composted forestry
Straw is usually free of weed seeds. Some cereal bark tend to be prohibitively expensive.
crops are sprayed with hormones which shorten and Dry leaves tend to blow about and not stay where
stiffen the straw. Straw from these crops should not you want them. If they are wet or slightly decomposed
be used because the chemical can have an adverse they will stay put better. Otherwise they can be mixed
effect on the plants grown in it. It is safe to use after it with something that holds them together, like grass
has been composted for at least a year, but most of its mowings. In urban areas the council may be only
volume will have rotted away by then. Fortunately, too pleased to deliver leaves to you in autumn at
with the introduction of more short-strawed varieties, no charge.
these chemicals are used less often these days. Grass mowings. If used alone in anything more
Beware of hay. It is usually full of grass seed, and than a thin layer they heat up and rot down to a slimy
maybe seed of weeds like docks. Only use it if it has mess which is generally offensive to plants, soil and
rotted enough to kill them, when it is known as ‘spoiled people. But if applied thinly, or mixed with some-
hay’. Riding stables may be only too pleased for you to thing that keeps them open, like dry leaves, they are
take it away, as it will no longer be fit for consumption fine. They are a good source of nitrogen.
by horses. If in doubt, let it rot a bit longer before Wood chippings. Anything containing wood is
use, but then you will lose some of the bulk. probably best avoided, unless very well composted.
Bracken is excellent, slow to rot down and slightly Composting takes much longer with wood chippings
allelopathic – enough to inhibit the germination of than other organic materials. If uncomposted wood
weeds beneath it, but not to harm the strong perennial gets incorporated into the soil it can cause lockup
food plants it surrounds. Do not cut it in July and of nitrogen.
August when it is producing spores, which is what ferns Compost, manure, comfrey etc. These are used
have instead of seeds, because these can be carcinogenic. more for their nutrient content than for covering the
It is perfectly safe at other times of the year. soil surface overall.
3. Slip a layer of newspaper under the mulch. The effective- was one of the observations they made, and there was
ness of any loose mulch material can be greatly little difference in damage between the two methods.
increased by this. You may need as little as a third Sometimes the mulched potatoes had more slug damage,
or a quarter the amount of material to get the same sometimes those that had been dug.
degree of weed control. This is a surprising result, as we always think of slugs as
the inevitable down-side of using mulch. It may be because
Light Rain the mulch provides cover for the larger kinds of beetles
Light summer rain can be absorbed by mulch and which all eat slugs. They also account for a good many
re-evaporated before it reaches the soil. This is only a codlin-moth and apple sawfly larvae, as they drop off the
problem if the mulch is applied to a dry soil. If the soil trees in autumn, heading for their winter home in the soil.
is thoroughly moist beneath the mulch at the start of the Since predators build up their populations more
growing season, the amount of water retained in the soil slowly than pests, problems are likely to decrease as the
due to decreased evaporation is much greater than the garden matures.
amount kept out by the mulch. Heavy winter rain easily If there are problems with pests which overwinter
penetrates mulch, so every forest garden soil should be in the soil, it is always possible to draw back the mulch
thoroughly moist at the beginning of the growing season. for a time during winter or early spring to let the birds
have a go at them. The soil surface could even be lightly
Rotting hoed to expose the pests a bit.
The crowns of overwintering perennial vegetables are
only likely to rot under a layer of mulch in mild, wet
weather. The mulch can be drawn back a little to let
the plants breathe in this kind of weather, but should be PREPARATION
replaced in cold, dry weather if you want the plants to
sprout early for spring. If you don’t want to be bothered To Dig or Not to Dig?
with changing the mulch every time the weather changes That is the big question. A forest garden is essentially
it is probably best to leave it drawn back from plants’ a no-dig garden. Accepting the gifts of a natural,
crowns through the whole winter, at least in the wetter undisturbed soil rather than imposing our will on it
parts of the country. by digging is very much part of the whole forest garden
Whatever kind of mulch is being used, no mulch materials approach. The specific advantages of not digging have
should ever touch the stem of a tree or shrub, as this can already been noted in Chapter 1 (see pages 7-8).
cause rotting. In the case of a grafted tree it can also On the other hand there are a few things which can be
cause the scion to take root if the mulch reaches that high. done by digging which may be worthwhile to do just once
in a forest garden, to get it off to a good start. They are:
Temperature
The overall effect of mulch on the temperature of the • relieving soil compaction;
soil is to even it out over the year. The warmer temperatures • weeding;
over winter are counterbalanced by slower warming
• manuring.
up in the spring. But on the whole plants like stable
conditions, so the evening out of temperature fluctuations Digging is not the only way to do these things, and
is generally beneficial to plant growth. whether we choose to dig or not depends on a number
The possible increase in frosts due to mulch is of factors. The first of them is how long the soil has been
marginal, and should only affect particularly frost- undisturbed up to now. The benefits of an undisturbed
sensitive plants, like peaches. soil develop over time, as a healthy and diverse soil fauna
and flora and the natural structure slowly build up.
Pests If the forest garden site has lain undug or unploughed
It is hard to say whether the net effect of mulch on pest for a number of years it would be a shame to disrupt it
populations is positive or negative. Pests have a hiding and start again without very good reason.
place, but so do predators. The answer is probably that Of course you cannot plant a tree or shrub without
it varies from place to place and from season to season. digging. If the design is for a small number of large trees
The experience of the Henry Doubleday Research and shrubs this will not disturb much of the ground. But
Association is interesting in this respect. Their members if it calls for a larger number of smaller trees and shrubs
have done trials in their own gardens all over Britain it may seem that virtually the whole area will be dug
comparing potatoes grown on the no-dig, mulched by the time they are all in. In fact, even where smaller
system and on the conventional system. Slug damage plants are grown the great majority of the soil remains
 of cracking. Late summer and early autumn are usually
the best time for subsoiling.
Regardless of the condition of the subsoil, it is usually
worth loosening the topsoil before planting, unless the
soil is a very open sandy one. This can be done without
disturbing the surface by using a tarmac fork. This looks
just like a garden fork except that it has a metal handle.
You push it into the ground as deep as it will go and
then lean on the handle to gently open up the soil. This
is why you need the metal handle – a wooden one snaps
Figure 5.2 Standard apple over hazels (left). sooner or later under this treatment. It is not a laborious
Dwarf apples (M26) over currants and gooseberries (right). job, and the fork is a useful tool to have around perma-
nently for no-dig gardening.
undisturbed (see above). The vegetables do not figure in
the calculation, because most of them can be slipped in Weeds
without any real disturbance to the soil. There are weeds and weeds. Some are useful plants,
So let us look at the main reasons for digging, and like mints and dandelions, which become weeds when
what alternatives there are. they outgrow the gardener’s need for them. Here we
are concerned with the ones which are not wanted in
Soil Compaction the garden at all.
A soil which has been much walked upon, driven over, In a garden of perennial plants the most troublesome
used as a dumping ground by builders, or even farmed weeds are perennial ones. In an annual garden you get a
or gardened badly, is likely to be compacted. The only chance to eradicate them at least once a year when the
way to do much about severely compacted soil by hand soil is free of crops. But with perennial crops you do not
is to double-dig the whole area. This is an enormous get that chance: it is impossible to extract all the roots of
amount of work, and will, of course, thoroughly disturb perennial weeds from the roots of a tree or shrub without
the soil. It is not something to be undertaken unless actually digging up the tree or shrub, or using poison.
you are quite sure it is necessary, but nor should it be Couch grass, bindweed, creeping buttercup and ground
avoided where it is necessary. The whole volume of the elder are among the most troublesome perennial weeds.
soil must be well enough structured to allow tree roots They have amazing powers of regeneration – a single
to penetrate, otherwise they may never extend beyond piece of couch rhizome one centimetre long can grow in
their original planting holes and the trees will never thrive. time to infest a whole garden. So it is an extremely good
If you are developing a rural site where it is possible idea to start with as clean a sheet as possible.
to get a tractor into the garden, you can open up the The boundary of the garden is as important as the
subsoil without disturbing the surface by means of an garden itself. If there are invasive weeds growing hap-
implement called a subsoiler (see Figure 5.3). This consists pily in the hedgerow, it will only be a matter of time
of one or more heavy tines which penetrate deep into the before they creep in. If you want to keep the hedgerow
soil. At the base of each tine is a triangular shoe which – and are not prepared to kill the weeds with poisons –
lifts the soil and cracks it, enhancing the natural structure you may just have to accept that your weed-free garden
rather than chopping the soil up or turning it. will not remain weed-free for long. This is not a complete
The job must be done when the soil has the right disaster, as you will give the garden plants a good start,
moisture content. If it is too wet it will smear instead and they should be mature and well-established before
they suffer any competition from invading weeds.
But perennial weeds can be kept out with a barrier
of comfrey, as described on page 54. Comfrey does
not compete well when it is young, so the ground must be
weed-free to start with. Alternatively the comfrey can be
planted through holes in a black plastic sheet without
removing the weeds first (a grow-through mulch). The sheet
should be left down for a couple of years, or however
long it takes for the comfrey to form a complete barrier.
The main ways of getting rid of weeds are:
Figure 5.3 digging; ploughing; rotovating; poisoning; mulching;
A subsoiler biological methods.
Digging. In theory it is possible to dig the soil and T. minuta. But they are annuals which have to be raised
remove every single bit of perennial weed root. In my under cover and planted out at 30cm each way all over
experience, on a loamy soil it takes about ten times as the plot, preferably after you have already dug out all
much work as mulching, and on a clay soil it is more or the roots you can find. So they are very laborious, and
less impossible. more a way of making up for the deficiencies of digging
In fact digging can make the weed problem worse, than a cure on their own.
as new seeds are brought to the surface and dormancy Animals can be more effective. Chickens, kept at a
is broken. high enough density or for a long enough time on a piece
Ploughing. If you are able to get a tractor onto your of ground will remove all herbaceous vegetation. If you
forest garden site and have a friendly farmer neighbour, want to clear enough ground for your forest garden
you may be tempted to have it ploughed. Ploughing does all at once you will need a large number of chickens,
as much harm to the natural life of the soil as digging, and you may not have either the space or the need for
but has very little effect on perennial weeds. The plough so many once the job is done. A temporary flock of
simply buries them, and they shoot straight up again. broilers for sale would fit the situation. If you want to
It can have the same effect on weed seeds as digging. plant up your garden over a number of years, you could
Rotovating. This actually multiplies perennial weeds rotate a small domestic flock of layers around the site.
by cutting their roots and rhizomes into many little Chickens do slightly compact the surface soil, but this
bits, each of which can form a new plant. It can only can easily be loosened before planting with a light
kill them if it is done repeatedly as the successive waves forking, without any need to invert the soil.
of new plants start to grow. It is also a harsh, violent The one weed that chickens least like to eat is
way to treat the soil structure, can cause compaction, bindweed. Pigs love it, but they don’t eat couch, which
and chops up earthworms as readily as weeds. If annual chickens do. If you have access to a pig or two, or would
weeds are the main problem a very shallow rotovating like to fatten a couple of weaners over the summer, you
can kill them without bringing too many new seeds to could alternate them with chickens to cover all the
the surface. weeds. But pigs do spoil the structure of the soil, and
Poisoning. Overall use of poisons as a first resort is churn it about a great deal. They may also damage any
utterly irresponsible and unnecessary. Spot treatment of trees or shrubs you want to leave within their run.
one or two plants which have survived all other attempts In common with chickens they need expensive fencing
to kill them is another matter. Bindweed in particular is – not the same fencing though – and they can be very
hard to eradicate by any other means, and when it gets destructive if they get out.
its long white roots into the crevices of a wall, almost
the only alternative to poisoning it is to demolish the Manuring
wall. Whether you think the pros outweigh the cons is This is your last chance to incorporate organic matter
up to you. into the soil. Once the garden is planted organic matter
There are a few weedkillers which are deadly to weeds, can only be added to the soil surface. In a natural
but soon degrade to harmless substances in the soil. woodland most of the organic matter in the soil comes
They should be painted carefully onto the leaves of from the surface litter, which is taken down into the soil
the weed in question. Lawrence D. Hills used to recom- by earthworms. This means that in a woodland soil most
mend ammonium sulphamate, which degrades to of the organic matter is concentrated near the surface.
ammonium sulphate (an ingredient of fertilisers) in This is not a problem, and woodland plants have
about two months, or three if the soil is dry. Glyphosate evolved to live in this kind of soil. All the same it can be
is a more modern alternative, and more effective against useful to thoroughly mix organic matter throughout
many weeds, including couch. the rooting depth of the soil.
Clearance Mulching. This method takes the least work, Manuring is most worthwhile in extreme soils,
does least damage to a healthy, uncompacted soil, and ones which are very sandy or heavy clay. Well-rotted
is the most effective. The only real disadvantage is the organic matter acts like a sponge in a sandy soil, increasing
time it takes. But it can be very beneficial to spend a year its ability to retain both water and plant nutrients.
getting to know your garden and refining your design, (Though it is debatable whether it is better to dig it in or
rather than rushing into planting trees which will last a simply apply it to the surface. The downward movement
lifetime or more, so the enforced wait may be beneficial of materials, including humus, is so fast in sandy soils
in the long run (see Chapter 10). that it may be better to start off with the organic matter
Biological methods. There are allelopathic plants which above rather than at root level.) Dug into a clay, it will
can kill perennial weeds. The best known are members help to improve the structure, and thus aeration,
of the Tagetes family, especially the Mexican marigold, drainage and root penetration.
 Unrotted organic matter should never be dug into
any soil. The organic matter must be thoroughly mixed
in with the soil, ideally to a depth of 45-60cm. Simply
dumping it in the bottom of the digging trench is a
waste of time.
Where the soil is a well-structured loam, with
moderate proportions of both sand and clay, there is
much less to be gained from incorporating organic matter.
It can all be applied as a surface mulch.

PLANTING
Late autumn is the best time to plant trees and shrubs.
Perennial vegetables can be planted then too, but if they Plate 5.3 Vigorous nasturtiums cover the ground in
are to be planted with a grow-through mulch it is best Paul Benham’s forest garden on his farm near Brecon.
to leave them till the spring. If a grow-through mulch is (Paul Benham)
put down in autumn it will start to rot at a time when
the weeds are dormant, and so it will not be so effective
at killing them. So the planting sequence may often be
determined by how weedy the site is, and thus whether
a clearance or grow-through mulch is used.

Weedy Site Less Weedy Site

Summer Clearance mulch

Autumn Plant all, with Plant trees and

maintenance mulch shrubs, leaving
existing vegetation
between them

Spring Plant vegetables

with grow-through Plate 5.4 The result of an incomplete ground cover:
mulch extra work and masses of mulch are needed to get the
weeds under control. (Paul Benham)
Table 5.1

All the vegetable plants must be ready to go at weeds will rush in to fill the vacuum. It is hard to get
planting time, so they can grow and cover the ground back on top of a situation like this; the forest garden can
quickly. If there are not enough vegetables to cover the become a source of endless work rather than the low-
whole area, extra ground cover plants should be used. maintenance garden it was intended to be (see Plate 5.4).
Trailing nasturtiums are useful, as they can cover a lot This is the commonest problem with new forest gardens,
of ground quickly and are not persistent (see Plate 5.3). and it is hard to over-emphasise the importance of this point.
Clovers can be used where longer-term cover is required, Where a maintenance mulch is applied to the garden
and they will improve the soil. in its first autumn there may be a problem with slugs.
It is essential to make sure there are enough plants If a mild winter follows they may eat those vegetables
to cover the ground completely at the recommended spacing. which stay in leaf over winter; if the spring is wet
The weed-free ground afforded by a clearance or grow- they will catch the others as they come up. It may be
through mulch will only stay weed-free if the vegetable necessary to balance the need to protect the soil over
layer grows quickly to cover all the ground. If there are winter with the need to keep the vegetables alive. This
gaps between widely-spaced vegetable and herb plants, is only a problem with young vegetables, once they are
or areas of the garden without any herbaceous plants, well established they are much less vulnerable to slugs.
Vegetables If you have good, weed-free compost, mix some
into the topsoil. Otherwise give a light dressing of
On the whole it is better to raise the vegetables in a
organic fertiliser.
seedbed and plant them out than to sow seed directly
into the garden. It is much easier to create ideal conditions • Sow thinly in drills about 10cm apart. Thin the seedlings
for them in a nursery bed or cold frame than out in the progressively to about 5cm apart within the rows.
garden itself. Plant out when the seedlings meet within the rows.
Self-seeders benefit from this treatment as much as
perennials. Self-sown seedlings often survive when hand- Planting out:
sown ones of the same kind are demolished by slugs • Half a cupful of seaweed solution in each planting hole
and other pests. The fact that something can survive by will get the plants off to a good start. Plants which
self-seeding does not necessarily mean it can easily be look poorly, either before planting out or after, can
established in the open from seed. be sprayed with seaweed solution as a tonic.
A nursery or cold frame should be sited as close to the • If slugs are a problem, or if there is a spell of cold
back door as possible. The young plants will benefit weather at planting-out time, cover each seedling
greatly from the extra attention they will get there. Choose with a bottle cloche. This is easily made by cutting
a sheltered, sunny microclimate. A cold frame not only the bottom off a clear plastic bottle. It should be
provides extra warmth, it also keeps out most of the slugs, pushed well into the soil around the plant, and left
and you can easily pick off the one or two that get in. there till the plant outgrows it.
Seed should be sown according to the instructions
on the packet. But the following points give a general
Wild Vegetables
guide for the vegetables mentioned in this book:
The way we introduce wild plants into our gardens
Sowing in a cold frame: can have an effect on the local ecology. There are three
• Sow from early April to the middle of May, according main options:
to the local climate. It can be tempting to get the
seeds in as early as possible, but a good start is of 1. Buying commercial seed from a wild plant specialist.
more value than an early one. It is better to wait for 2. Collecting seed from the wild.
some reliably warm weather so that the seeds can get 3. Collecting plants from the wild.
away to a good start without a check.
• Sow in seed trays. They can be filled with home made Most of the wild plants listed in this book are common,
compost if it is free of weed seeds. Otherwise use and it might seem absurd to suggest that by taking them
John Innes No 1. Do not sow too deep; as a rough from the wild we are depleting the natural populations.
guide, cover seeds with soil only as deep as the diameter Well, people used to think that about many wild plants.
of the seeds themselves. Keep moist, but not wet, Cowslips, for example, were once so common that they
and well ventilated. were picked in their thousands to make cowslip wine.
• When the seedlings are big enough to handle – say 2cm Now they are rare, and though most of their decline is
tall – transplant them from the seed tray into small due to changes in farming practice, the extra pressure
pots. If you have compost with weed seeds in it, you of picking has made a difference.
can half-fill the pots with this, and top them off with Although fat hen and chickweed may be able to
weed-free commercial compost. Larger seeds, such survive any assault we can mount on them, you could
as beets, can be sown directly into pots. not say the same of ramsons or golden saxifrage. Unless you
are quite sure that the plant you want is very common
• When they are big enough to plant out, harden them it is best to get the seed from a commercial supplier.
off by placing them outside in the daytime and inside They will have built up their stock from seed carefully
at night for three days. collected from wild populations which can spare it.
On the other hand there is a good reason for using
Sowing in a nursery bed: seed collected locally. It’s not just that the local strain will
• Sow about two weeks later than in a cold frame, be best adapted to the local climate and soils, but also that
but pay more attention to the weather than to the plants grown from seed introduced from another area
calendar date. can often interbreed with the local wild plants and dilute
• The ideal soil is a crumbly, dark, humus-rich loam. the unique genetic character of the local variety. In time
It an be worth bringing soil from another part of this can significantly reduce the total genetic variability of
the garden to make a nursery bed in a favoured spot. the species, and this makes it more vulnerable to extinction.
 This only really applies in the country. In urban each year, can be a little more reluctant to germinate,
areas exotic plants are the norm. In fact many of the and may need to be carefully nurtured in seed trays
native plants growing there are not native varieties, (see box below).
but ones which have been accidentally introduced If you really want to take plants, the proportion
from overseas. Here the odd few ramsons plants from should be nearer one in a thousand. Many perennial
another part of the country are not going to make any plants have parts which can be detached from them
difference – not so if your garden is right beside an which are capable of growing into a whole new plant
ancient woodland in the heart of the country. without damage to the parent plant. In some plants,
If you do decide to collect from the wild, let seed be such as sea beet, these are in the form of offsets,
your first choice. The wild population can spare some little daughter plants which grow round the edge of
seeds much more easily than whole plants. In fact it is the parent.
illegal to dig up any wild plant without the permission
of the landowner.
Always collect seed from areas where the plants are
abundant, allowing for the fact that some plants are
MAINTENANCE
more gregarious than others. Where many plants grow
together conditions for that species are favourable, so Feeding the Soil
the plants should be healthy and so should the seed. Since a forest garden is no-dig, nutrients are always
As a rule of thumb if you take a hundredth of the seed added to it as a surface mulch. The best way to apply
which is there you are not likely to do any harm, and nutrient-rich materials to the soil is to lay them under
that should be plenty for the garden. the maintenance mulch.
Wild annual and biennial plants tend to be easy to The best time for this is in the spring, when the
reproduce by seed. Simply find a stalk with mature or plants are starting to grow and can make immediate use
nearly mature seed on it, break it off and leave it lying of the nutrients. If they are put on in autumn much
on a patch of bare or lightly mulched soil. You will of the nutrient content can be leached away by the rain
soon have lots of little plants springing up. Perennials, during winter, when there are few actively growing
which do not have to rely on reproducing by seed roots to take it up.

GROWING WILD PLANTS FROM SEED 1

Not every plant has the same needs for germination, • Fill a seed tray with John Innes No 1 potting
but the following method is worth trying on most compost. Make sure it is thoroughly moist but
kinds of wild perennials which are reluctant to not wet. This can be done by standing the tray in
germinate: water for a few minutes and then allowing it to
drain for an hour.
• Collect the seed when
• Scatter the seed thinly on the surface. Scatter sharp
it is nearing maturity, Figure 5.4 sand over it until it is barely covered. As a rule of
but before it starts to be
thumb the sand layer should be the same thickness
shed. Pick entire seed-
as the diameter of the seeds.
ing heads, and hang
them up in a cool, • Cover the tray with a sheet of newspaper and a pane
dry, well-ventilated of glass. Put it in a sheltered outside spot or an
place, with a paper bag unheated shed. Some kinds, such as ramsons, need
around them to catch to go through the cold of a winter before they
any seeds which fall will germinate.
(see Figure 5.4). • Have a look every week or so through the winter.
• The seed is ready to sow when it is completely When the seedlings emerge move the tray into
dry. Some plants will indicate this by shedding the light (if necessary) and remove the newspaper.
their seed, others will hang on to it even though
it is mature. This will be in late summer or autumn 1
A leaflet giving detailed instructions for sowing seed of wild
with most plants. plants and herbs is supplied by Suffolk Herbs with their seeds.
Composting rapid, sappy growth, which leaves plants weak and
The question arises whether nutrient-rich materials prone to disease. They must be composted, at least
should be composted before putting them on the soil partly, before being used, whether on the surface or
surface or not. When we make compost all we are doing dug in. The same applies to human urine, which is
is decomposing organic material in a heap or bin best used as a compost heap activator, though limited
rather than on the soil surface, which is the natural amounts may be used as a liquid manure.
place for decomposition to happen. In theory the If a large amount of material becomes available at
composting process is quicker than natural decomposition, a time when you do not want to lay mulch – perhaps
and generates heat. But in practice most compost heaps when there are many young plants which are vulnerable
are cold and slow. The main reasons for making compost to slugs – you will need somewhere to put it for a while.
rather than putting the materials straight on the soil Similarly, if you are weeding in wet weather there is no
surface, are: point in leaving the weeds to lie on the surface, because
they will re-root themselves immediately.
• so it can be dug into the soil; Where there is a serious slug problem it may not
be possible to mulch with anything other than
• to kill weeds seeds etc.;
compost for fear of harbouring slugs. But remember
• to make potting compost; the Henry Doubleday Research Association and their
• to mellow concentrated manures; experience with mulched potatoes (see page 59). And
as Bill Mollison, one of the founders of permaculture,
• for lack of space to put bulky organic materials; once said, “You haven’t got an excess of slugs. You’ve
• for fear of slugs. got a deficiency of ducks.”

If undecomposed organic matter is dug into the soil How relevant are these reasons for composting in the
the soil bacteria immediately start breaking it down, specific conditions of a forest garden?
and in order to do this they need nitrogen. A young, Since no digging goes on in a forest garden, the first
sappy green manure crop has enough nitrogen in it, but reason for making compost does not apply. The second
for most organic matter the bacteria must draw on the reason, killing weed seeds and disease organisms, is
soil’s supply of that nutrient. They are more efficient at easier said than done. On the other hand, there is no
extracting nitrogen from the soil than plants are, so doubt that even partial composting is good for general
the plants suffer a temporary deficiency of nitrogen. garden hygiene.
Eventually, when the decomposition is complete and If you keep poultry or buy in unrotted manure you
the bacteria die back to their previous population, the will need to do some composting. There is one plant,
nitrogen becomes available to plants. But for a season however, which can take fresh manure, even chicken
you get stunted little plants with yellow leaves. manure, and thrive on it, and that is comfrey.
If the organic matter is simply placed on the Urine is a valuable concentrated manure. It is best
surface of the soil, it is taken down bit by bit by kept out of the compost toilet, but can be collected
earthworms. There is never so much organic matter separately for use in the garden. Only small quantities
actually in the soil at one time that the nitrogen gets can be used directly as a liquid manure (see page 66),
seriously depleted. but it can be combined with something which is dry
The heat generated by the composting process can and has a high carbon content. This will soak it up
be enough to kill weed seeds, and disease organisms. and the carbon will combine with the nitrogen in the
In practice very few compost heaps reach the required urine which would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere.
temperature to kill seeds. Composting is an art, and A bale of straw, a heap of sawdust, or a pile of autumn
even the most experienced composters have their leaves kept together in a ring of chicken wire are all
failures. suitable. They should be covered to keep the rain off,
Animal manures, on the other hand, heat up very and have urine poured into them whenever they look
readily, especially if they are mixed with straw or like drying out. Eventually they will rot to a rich,
wood shavings rather than composted neat. Bought-in mellow manure.
manure may have all sorts of weed seeds in it, and it is Kitchen scraps and lawn mowings are both wet
a good idea to compost it. and quite high in nitrogen, and are not suitable for
Home-made compost can be used for potting, as long absorbing urine. The best thing to do with kitchen
as it is free of viable weed seeds. scraps is to slip them under a bit of more aesthetically
Animal manures, especially poultry manure, contain appealing mulch, such as straw or bracken. If they are
soluble nutrients which can burn plant roots and cause spread thinly they will not stink.
 Finally, if you accumulate a lot of organic material a thriving soil life fed by plenty of organic matter, and a
when there is no suitable place for fresh mulch on the healthy level of nutrients. Careful planting is especially
garden, what you need is a temporary dump heap, not important for trees and shrubs, and so is careful pruning.
a compost heap. The material will rot down a bit while Planting at the appropriate spacing, and thinning out
it is waiting, but you do not need to compost it. herbaceous plants before they get too crowded are
important too. Crowded plants compete and weaken
Liquid Manures each other. Good air circulation helps prevent fungus
The basis of organic plant nutrition is to feed the soil, diseases, which are always a possibility in the sheltered
not the plants. A healthy soil will support healthy plants, environment of a forest garden. The appropriate micro-
whereas plants which are fed directly with highly climate for the plant, with a minimum of sudden changes,
soluble nutrients are sappy and vulnerable. What is especially of temperature, helps to ensure steady growth
more, a high level of soluble nutrients in the soil is without checks.
actually harmful to the soil microbes which are the power- Spraying plants with seaweed solution helps them to
house of natural fertility. Liquid manures contain highly develop the strength to shrug off pests and diseases.
soluble nutrients, so their place in forest gardening is Seaweed is definitely not a home-grown resource. Indeed
rather limited. in some areas it is a resource that is being exploited
The plus side of being highly soluble is that they are faster than it can replace itself, in order to supply the
quick-acting, so they can be useful as a tonic for sickly seaweed fertiliser industry. But only tiny amounts are
plants. If the weather is very wet, vegetables can get needed for spraying compared to what is used for
seriously short of nitrogen and other soluble nutrients, solid fertilisers, and if every gardener on this island
especially if they are growing on a sandy soil. Urine, used seaweed spray it could probably be done on a
diluted two to one, can bring back their colour and sustainable yield.
vigour and get them growing again. If used when the Seaweed contains all the nutrients plants need, including
soil is dry it should be diluted more, down to ten to one those which are only needed in minute quantities but
in soil so dry that the plants need watering anyway. can sometimes be deficient, plus vitamins and other
It should be used sparingly on clay soils, as its salt growth substances. The solution can be absorbed directly
content can harm the soil structure. through the leaves, which means much smaller quantities
Comfrey leaves or nettles both make useful liquid can be used than if it were watered onto the ground and
manures if soaked in water for a couple of weeks, as can absorbed through the roots.
weeds which are too seedy to be used as mulch. Their The best results are had from spraying everything
main use is to feed plants grown in containers, which once a month from March to September. Spraying just
only have a small volume of soil to forage in. once a year is less effective but worthwhile. It is best done
in May, when everything is growing fast. Prevention is
Pests and Diseases better than cure, but if you want to limit your use of
seaweed solution as much as possible you can keep it in
These are really not much of a problem in a forest
reserve and just use it on plants which already have a
garden. The general level of diversity, the specific design
problem. This can be surprisingly effective.
features discussed in the last chapter, and choosing
resistant plants and varieties are usually enough to make
Healthy Pests
any further measures unnecessary.
It can come as a surprise to hear that a healthy garden
These are some of the strands in an approach to plant
needs a population of pests, but it’s true. If there are
health sometimes known as integrated pest management.
no pests in the garden there will be no pest predators
It is based on two fundamental principles:
either. When the pests reappear, as they surely will,
the natural controls will not be there, and the pests will
• growing healthy plants which have good natural
multiply rapidly to a level where they can do real damage.
resistance to pests and diseases;
A low level of pests does not do significant damage,
• maintaining a low but stable population of pests. but it does support a steady population of predators,
and that helps to ensure that the pest population never
Healthy Plants gets out of control.
A plant which has had a check to its growth during its Spraying with poisons at the first sign of pests is not a
early life is unlikely to be healthy in later life. So it is good idea. As well as killing pests, most poisons kill the
important to give plants the conditions they need for predators too. By and large the predators take longer to
steady growth throughout their lives. build up their numbers again than the pests do, so spraying
It starts with the soil: good drainage, enough water, often makes the problem worse. Spraying once makes it
more likely that you will have to spray again, and again, there, but that each one has a competitive edge over any
and again. It can be a vicious spiral. other plant which could otherwise occupy its ecological
This applies to organically approved pesticides as much niche. Sometimes this edge is very slight, but given
as to chemical ones. The main difference between the enough time a plant which is only marginally better
two is that the organic pesticides are made from plant suited to its niche than its neighbour will survive and
extracts, whereas the chemicals are designed by humans the other will die out.
and made from petroleum. The former are biodegradable, The plants in a forest garden have been chosen to
because the decomposing organisms have evolved with fit their niches as perfectly as possible, with the added
the plants that they come from. The latter are often proviso that they are edible or otherwise useful to humans.
very persistent, because they are substances which the There will almost always be other plants which are more
decomposers have not evolved to deal with. Organic perfectly suited to the niches, and given time these will
pesticides are usually less persistent than chemical ones, find their way in and take over, even if the difference in
but they are not necessarily more specific. suitability is tiny.
It is particularly difficult to use poisons in a forest The aim of the forest gardener is to make up for that
garden simply because of its diversity: you may want to difference just sufficiently to encourage the desired plants
spray the top fruit when you are harvesting the vegetables and discourage the unwanted ones so that the garden
and soft fruit, which would be contaminated by the poison. remains productive from a human point of view.
When it comes down to it, a poison is a poison.2 In the tree and shrub layers any invasion by unwanted
They should not be necessary at all in a forest garden. plants would be a very long-term affair, but in the
If they are it is only as a last resort. vegetable layer it happens year by year and month by
The first resort should always be a biological one, month. If the gardener did nothing it would only be a
and if the garden has been well designed the biological matter of time before the vegetable layer lost most of
checks and balances should prevent any problem be- its edible plants and became populated by a community
coming serious. If they do not, a physical intervention, of wild plants which are just that bit better suited to the
such as picking off caterpillars, is always better than a conditions there.
chemical one, such as spraying them. Keeping the garden going in the desired direction
Getting to know the life-cycles of pests and their does not take a great deal of work, but it does take
predators often reveals ways of controlling pests with a attention. It’s more like steering a boat than rowing one.
minimum of effort. Raspberry cane midge, for example,
is one of those pests which overwinters in the soil. Self-Seeders
If you rake back the mulch around the canes during Three things are needed for successful self-seeding to
winter and lightly hoe the soil, the birds should get happen:
them for you. Ladybirds, those formidable killers of
aphids, like to overwinter in the dried-out stalks of 1. A supply of viable seed. The best way to get good,
plants like nettles. So resisting the urge to tidy up in healthy seed is to keep one or more plants apart as
autumn may mean there is a resident population of seed parents. They should not be picked for food, but
ladybirds the following spring, ready to breed and allowed to put all their strength into seed production.
build up their numbers along with their prey. Leaves are the food factories of plants, and a plant
which tries to produce seed with only a few leaves
The Vegetable Layer will most likely produce weak seed.
The seed parents should be strong, healthy
Ecologically, a forest garden falls somewhere between
specimens. If possible they should be growing in a
an annual vegetable garden and a wild plant community.
relatively sunny position to help the ripening of
In an annual garden a number of highly-bred vege-
seed. How many plants to leave depends on how
tables are planted and all other plants rigorously excluded.
prolific a self-seeder the plant in question is, and
The aim – if not always the result – is total control by
how much of it you want in the garden. Experience
the gardener.
will tell how well a particular plant self-seeds in your
The plants which grow in a wild community are
garden, and results will be variable from year to year
ones which have succeeded over time in out-competing
according to the weather.
other plants which have tried to grow there. This does
Self-seeders can be moved from one part of
not mean that they are the only plants which can grow
the garden to another by uprooting the seed parents
once they have had time to mature the seed, and
2
For a clear-headed discussion of pests and pesticides, see Robert Kourik’s laying them on the ground in the area where they
Edible Landscape, pp 19-21. are wanted.
2. An area of suitable soil surface. A suitable soil surface plants get established, but self-seeding should not
is one that is not too heavily mulched. On the whole be tried in a really weedy garden. The biggest
self-seeders do not need totally bare ground in order potential source of new weeds is the store of dormant
to get established. Most can germinate through a seeds from previous years which is stored in the soil.
light mulch, but clearly a mulch designed to suppress The total number of seeds can be enormous. The old
all annual weeds will suppress self-seeders as well. saying “one year’s weeds, seven years’ seeds” is an
Totally bare soil should be avoided as it may lose understatement if anything. Land which has
its crumb structure and present an inhospitable, previously been a garden is more likely to have a
compacted surface to the seeds. big store of garden weed seeds than land which
3. Not too much competition from other germinating was, say, lawn or pasture. But the only way to find
seeds or established plants. Competition can come out is to start gardening. Most of the seeds will
from other self-seeders, perennial vegetables and remain dormant if the soil is not dug, but those
weeds. which do germinate may be enough to cause trouble.
Some thinning is usually necessary, though it is To prevent the build-up of unwanted seeds in the
not always possible to thin self-seeders to the soil, flowering plants which can self-seed should be
regular spacings of hand-sown plants. But the dead-headed before the seed matures, i.e. the dead
overall plant density is much more important flowers should be removed from the plant. The flowers
than regularity. If self-seeders come up thickly an most likely to self-seed are wild ones. These unfortu-
alternative way to harvest them is as a seedling nately tend to have many small blooms, compared to
crop, or cut-and-come-again. the few large ones of cultivated flowers, which makes
Neighbouring perennials can quickly crowd out dead-heading rather impractical. It may be necessary
self-seeders as they expand to their full summer size. to choose between growing self-seeding vegetables
What looked like a large enough space for a drift and allowing the occasional wildflower which
of self-seeders in early spring may rapidly shrink as finds its way into the garden to bloom.
the perennials grow, and it may be necessary to prune Wind-blown weed seeds are less of a problem,
them back if the self-seeders are to survive. but worth keeping out if you want to grow self-seeders.
Some weeding is usually necessary as the young There will be less wind-blown weed seeds near the
middle of a garden surrounded by trees and shrubs
on all sides (see Figure 5.5). The wind will be partly
deflected over the garden and partly slowed down
CUT-AND-COME AGAIN by the trees and shrubs near the edge, dropping its
load of weed seeds before it gets to the centre. While
This is like the mustard and cress we used to the trees are still young a non-living windbreak can
grow in the airing cupboard as children. The be used to filter out the weed seeds.
seedlings are not thinned, but cut overall with
scissors when they reach about 3 to 7cm high.
This can be repeated anything from two to five
times, depending on the kind of plants, time of Wind
year and weather conditions. It is generally
more successful in spring and autumn than in
high summer, when the weather is drier and the
plants tend to go to seed. A patch first cut in the
autumn can sometimes overwinter and be cut
again in spring. Self-seeders: Thin mulch Perennials: Thick mulch
Most of the self-seeding plants described in Figure 5.5
this book are suitable for cut-and-come-again
if they seed themselves thickly enough. It is one
of the most productive ways to grow leafy If the level of weeds in the garden, both annual
vegetables, as they cover the ground completely and perennial, builds up as time goes by it may be
almost from the start and grow fast. The nutri- best to stop growing self-seeders and move towards
tional value of the seedlings is also higher than perennials only, with an overall mulch.
that of older plants – they can have twice the This does not mean an end to self seeding
vitamin content. altogether. Many perennial vegetables reproduce
themselves by self-seeding, and most have a
 productive life of only a few years. So we can let
them self-seed in order to keep the garden well
stocked with healthy and productive young plants.
But the number of new plants needed each year
is very small compared with annual and biennial
self-seeders. It should be easy to get enough, even
in a fairly heavily mulched garden.

Perennials
Most perennial vegetables need to be picked very
lightly if at all in the first year of their lives. A plant
which is picked too soon or too heavily is not likely to
grow up strong and healthy, able to give good yields
throughout its life. It is tempting to start picking as
soon as possible, but the biggest total yield over the
plant’s lifetime will be had from holding back at first.
In extreme cases, severely overpicked plants can die in Plate 5.5 Working in the Naturewise forest garden,
their first winter. North London. (Naturewise)
Some kinds need to be left longer than others. For
example seakale (Crambe maritima) grown from seed
should be left for two years before forcing and picking,
while perennial kale (Brassica oleracea) can be picked The Yearly Round
within months of planting strong cuttings. Details are Once a forest garden is established there is little work
given in Chapter 9 for each plant. Conditions vary from to do, and the seasons gently succeed one another with
year to year and from place to place, and strong, few major landmarks.
well-grown plants may be able to stand picking when In a garden with a heavy burden of perennial weeds
weaker ones of the same kind could not. it may be necessary to mulch heavily in spring as soon
While leaves produce energy for the plant, flowers as the perennial vegetables show their heads above the
take energy from it to make seed and thus new plants. surface. On the other hand if there is a serious slug
Flower buds should be removed from perennial vege- problem mulch may be withheld in spring until the
tables during their first year so that all their energy can plants have grown past the tender, vulnerable stage. But
go towards building up their own strength. The flower well-established perennial plants should be able to grow
buds themselves are often edible. away from all but the worst of slug attacks.
Once the plants are well established, regular picking Young plants which are particular favourites with
of the leaves encourages more growth, and there is no the slugs, like lovage and skirret, may be eaten faster
benefit in leaving the plant unpicked. Regular picking than they can grow. They can be protected with a
will also help to keep the leaves young and tender, as mini-cloche for each plant made from a clear plastic
the plants may not bother to produce any new ones if bottle with the top and bottom cut off. This should
you do not remove the old. But this does depend to keep off enough of the slugs to let the plants grow away
some extent on the time of year. Most plants produce from them.
new leaves early in the growing season and shift their Spring is the time to apply mulches containing plant
energies into flowering as the season wears on. nutrients, and to divide perennial vegetables, such as
Flower buds should be removed from established Welsh onions and comfrey, in order to increase their
plants if you want to get maximum leaf yield, or to number. The main harvest of perennial vegetables is
prevent too much self-seeding. But few perennials self- also in spring, and it can be hard to keep up with them
seed prolifically enough to cause a problem, and many if many things come ready at once.
of them have flowers which are beautiful and attract Mulch can be added during the summer as it is
beneficial insects. needed. As self-seeders grow and are thinned it can be
It is a good idea not to pick too heavily in the laid between them.
autumn, so as to allow the plants to build up strength The fruit season starts with the first gooseberry
for the winter. Once again this depends on the kind of thinnings at the end of May, and there should be
vegetable, the condition of the plants, the local climate something to pick from then right through to the major
and so on. A combination of experience and a feel for apple harvest in autumn, some of which can be stored
plants is the best guide. through to the next spring. Most of the earlier fruit is
soft fruit, and if the structure of the garden allows, it is The Daily Round
probably worth netting it against birds. Some summer
pruning may be necessary, including stone fruit, restricted Robert Hart has a gardening kit composed of a bag of
forms of apples and pears, and some soft fruit. mulch material, a sickle, a pair of shears, a little bucket
Late summer is a fairly lean time as far as the vegetable to pick produce into, and a wheelbarrow to carry the
layer is concerned. Some perennials are past their other things in. That is all he needs in his forest garden.
best now as the larger, tender leaves have given way to His weeding is mainly a matter of cutting back any
smaller, tougher ones and more energy goes into plants which are crowding out their more desirable
producing seed. Many self-seeding annuals also react neighbours. Hence the sickle and shears. Whether the
to hot weather by going to seed, though they do last weed is an edible plant like a mint or something inedible
longer in the cooler conditions of a forest garden than like couch makes little difference: if a plant is growing
in the open. in a larger quantity than it is wanted it is cut back; if it
After the autumn harvests are gathered in it is time is growing in just the right quantity it is harvested; and
to put the garden to bed. Mulch applied now will if there is not enough of it it is encouraged to grow by
protect the soil from the impact of heavy winter cutting back its neighbours.
raindrops, and keep some of summer’s warmth in it. It is not necessary to remove all perennial weeds.
Any plants which are to be forced or blanched for the Deep rooted ones can bring up nutrients from the
spring, such as seakale, rhubarb and Good King Henry, subsoil. Cutting them at ground level rather than pulling
can have extra mulch heaped on them now or later in them up is a way of harvesting this fertility for the
the winter. topsoil, while leaving the root in place as a permanent
Some of the self-seeding salad plants come into pump. Creeping weeds are less useful and more invasive.
their own in winter. Things like winter purslane, lamb’s They can be pulled out by the roots when the soil is soft
lettuce and land cress shun the high temperatures of after rain. Little bits of root may be left in the soil and
summer, but they germinate and grow happily in will regenerate to a new plant, but the crop plants will
autumn, and provide fresh salad greens through the have had a chance to grow big and strong by then, and will
winter and into spring till the hand-sown annuals like be in a position to compete successfully with the weeds.
lettuces and radishes are ready. Some perennials, like Where self-seeders are crowded some thinning may
salad burnet, welsh onion and sorrel, will stay green for be needed. This is not the same as cutting things back, as
all or most of the winter in milder areas. Winter salad whole plants are removed. It is best done progressively,
plants can also be protected and encouraged to start in two or three stages. Since thinnings are edible it can
growing early in spring with cloches. be tempting to wait until you actually need to eat them
Late autumn and winter is also the main time for before thinning. This can be done up to a point, but if it
pruning apples, pears and most kinds of soft fruit. means that the plants start to suffer from overcrowding
Pruning can be a pleasant, meditative job for the quiet it is a false economy. If the plants feel the stress of
time of year. On the whole it is best to decide on a level crowding they will most likely go to seed prematurely.
of pruning, whether intensive, minimal or somewhere It is always a good idea to be on the lookout for new
between the two, and stick to it. This is better for the plants which have come up. These may be self-sown
trees than alternating regimes of hard and light pruning. plants from outside the garden, or offspring of existing
At the very least any branches which are diseased, garden plants, either self-sown or rooted from runners.
damaged or crossing over each other should be They may even be a resurgence of something you
removed. When it comes down to deciding whether thought was dead a season ago. These plants can be
to cut out a particular twig or not, the golden rule of either encouraged or discouraged as you see fit.
pruning is ‘when in doubt, don’t’. Apart from that, all is harvesting!
 Chapter 6

CHOOSING PLANTS
How to select plants and varieties to suit you and your garden

As many species [and varieties] as possible should If you are planting standard fruit trees, which may
be planted. Such an approach will provide more take ten years to come into bearing and have a produc-
information on suitability than all the published tive life of well over a century, there is little room for
information on the subject. From this experimen- experiment. You can’t plant a dozen different varieties
tation, certain species and varieties will be found and choose which ones do best overall, because you
to be of great value, while some will fail completely. won’t live that long. But you can afford to make
The planning of more extensive permaculture in later mistakes with perennial vegetables which complete
years will then involve closer selection, based on their life cycles in five or six years, and which only
first-hand information. occupy a small area of ground.
Bill Mollison & David Holmgren, Permaculture One The size of the garden must also have a bearing on
the approach to selecting plants. If you have enough space
There is a lot of sense in this statement. Although the for 20 trees you may feel like taking a gamble on the
authors were thinking more in terms of a garden which odd peach or apricot. But if you only have space for
is a forerunner of a larger planted area, the approach four you probably will not.
they recommend could equally be applied to a forest A third factor to consider is just how experimental
garden. you want your garden to be. Is food production your
Plants are very variable things, much influenced first priority, or do you place a higher value on having
both by local conditions and by the person who is fun and gaining knowledge about this new way of
growing them. Any statement made about a plant in growing a garden?
a book is something of a generalisation, influenced by Even if experiment is your priority, it may be wise to
the writer’s personal experience. Such information is choose plants which are tried and tested. The multilayer
best seen as a jumping-off point from which you can food garden is a new idea in this part of the world,
go ahead and find out what works for you in your own still at the experimental stage. If both the structure and
unique situation. the plants are experimental, and the garden is less than
Growing a wide range of plants to see how well a complete success, it may be very hard to decide
they do could be called the experimental approach to whether it was the structure or the choice of plants
plant selection. At the other end of the spectrum is the which was responsible.
not-reinventing-the-wheel approach: taking whatever
knowledge is available and using it to make the selection
of plants which is most likely to succeed. There is a lot CLIMATE, MICROCLIMATE AND SOIL
of sense in this approach too. Despite its imperfections,
the store of knowledge in books and in the memories of
experienced local gardeners is a valuable resource, one The Maritime Climate
that can save us from heartbreaking disappointments The range of plants which will grow successfully in a
if we use it wisely. cool temperate climate like ours is always less than
In practice most people’s approach falls somewhere the range that can be grown in the tropics. This is true
between the two. In a forest garden it is a good idea to whether we are growing a forest garden, a conventional
take different approaches to selecting the longer-lived garden of annual vegetables, or farm-scale crops.
plants and the shorter-lived. The fact that a tree can survive here is not enough
to warrant its inclusion in an edible garden. It must colder winter can overwinter as plants here, which
grow sufficiently well to produce fruit or nuts and ripen means we can eat their leaves through the winter and
them. It must be able to do so consistently, not just in in the early spring.
an exceptional year. Any plant which is actively growing during the
We are surrounded by sea, and since water heats winter can make use of plant nutrients in the soil
up and cools down more slowly than land this means which would otherwise be leached out by winter rains,
we get mild winters and cool summers. The prevailing thus conserving the fertility of the garden.
wind off the Atlantic gives us moist, cloudy skies, even
in summer. In these conditions there are many exotic
trees and shrubs which can easily survive, but rarely Regional Climates
produce fruit. The moderating effect of the sea on winter temperatures
This not only applies to trees from much warmer parts is much greater in the west of the country than the east.
of the Earth, but also to those from more continental The further you go from the ocean and the nearer to the
climates. There the average temperature may be the same great continent of Eurasia, the colder the winters get.
as here, but with colder winters and hotter, sunnier There are more frosts on the plain of East Anglia than
summers. For example, some of the North American there are on the Isle of Lewis – which has similar winter
nut trees, such as the pecan, can survive much colder temperatures to the Isle of Wight. In the summer the
winters than anything they will encounter in Britain, picture is different. Broadly speaking, summer temper-
but will not produce a crop in a British summer. In fact atures get cooler the further north you go, and the
some species actually need the chilling of a really cold growing season gets shorter.
winter in order to fruit the next summer, and we do not Height above sea level can have a dramatic effect on
get that every year. temperature and length of growing season. A hundred
Many of these plants also need a reasonably hot metres (330ft) of altitude makes the same difference to
summer in order to ripen the wood of their new growth. average temperatures as a hundred miles further north
If this does not happen the new twigs can be damaged at sea level. In addition, increasing altitude generally
even by a relatively mild winter. brings higher winds, which intensify the effect of lower
The lack of contrast between the summer and winter temperatures, and damper air, which increases rainfall
temperatures in the maritime climate can cause problems and fungus diseases. In springtime it is possible to travel
at flowering time for some continental species, such as for hours by car and find things just about at the same
grapes and kiwis. Where winters are very cold and summers stage as they were at home, but take a short walk up a
very hot, spring is a time of rapid and constant increase nearby hill and find them weeks behind.
in temperature. But in a British spring an early mild In most of Britain fruit growing starts to get difficult
spell is often followed by a late frost, and plants may be above 120m (400ft). Dessert apples, pears, plums and
induced to flower early, only to have their flowers de- other more tender fruits are less likely to be successful
stroyed. Plants which flower in response to temperature as at higher altitudes. Soft fruit, cooking apples and early
well as to increasing day length, such as walnuts, are dessert apples are a more reliable choice. Above 180m
particularly vulnerable. (600ft) you need a favourable microclimate to grow any
This is not to say that our traditional apples and pears fruit at all.
never have trouble with late frosts. It’s all a matter of The likely date of the last spring frost is greatly
degree – how much of a risk do you want to take? modified by microclimate, so too much reliance should
Our mild winters do have their advantages, though. not be placed on regional averages for this important
Some perennial vegetables which would not survive factor. There is no substitute for local knowledge,
a winter in, say, Germany can do so here, and others gained over a number of years. But the next best thing
which would die down in the cold season stay green for is to examine the local landform closely and try to
all or most of the winter. This not only lengthens the predict where the frost pockets will be.
picking season, but enables them to make better use of Rainfall also has an effect on what can be grown.
early spring sunshine when the leaves are off the trees In general, the climate gets wetter as you go west in
and shrubs, as their own leaves will be bigger at that Britain, though topography plays a part too. High hills
time if they have not had to grow from scratch. and mountains have a higher rainfall, whereas western
Biennial self-seeders also benefit. They do not produce areas which are in the lee of higher ground, such as
seed till their second year, so they must survive their the plains of Cheshire and Somerset, have a relatively
first winter as plants. Tender ones, such as chard, low rainfall.
cannot survive a really hard frost. Some annual self- High rainfall increases the likelihood of diseases
seeders which would have to overwinter as seed in a such as canker and scab on apples and pears. Susceptible
varieties, like Cox’s Orange Pippin and Conference pear
should not be grown in wet areas. On the other hand PLANTS FOR COASTAL SITES
some of the spinaches are particularly liable to bolt in
dry conditions, and mildew on apples and gooseberries Trees and Shrubs Vegetables
is worse on a dry soil.
A good nursery should be able to advise you on what Fig Sea kale
is suitable for your area, especially if it is a local one, or Elders Sea beet
at least situated in the same region. Salt bush Chard
Beach plum Alexanders
Cities Ramanas rose Perennial kale
One thing which can modify a regional climate to a Elaeagnus Lovage
great extent is the presence of a city or large town. Hawthorns Fennel
The most noticeable effect is on temperature. The average Whitebeam Buck’s horn plantain
temperature in the centre of a large town can be 0.5- Wild service
1.5ºC greater than in the nearby countryside, and the
growing season may be two to three weeks longer.
City centres are usually warmer on four nights out
of five, which means fewer frosts and less severe ones This list is not exhaustive, and experiment will show
when they do happen. that many other plants can be grown in coastal forest
The heart of London gets an average of ten more gardens, especially those with favoured microclimates.
frost-free weeks in the year than the nearest rural areas. Establishing a good windbreak before planting the
Unfortunately for urban fruit growers most of this productive trees and shrubs can make a big difference.
extra frost-free time is in the autumn, rather than in
the spring when it would be more useful. But the extra Microclimate
heat is enough to allow the most northerly olive tree The three microclimate factors most likely to affect
(Olea europea) in the world to thrive in the Chelsea Physic the choice of plants and their positioning within the
Garden. Not only is it over 120 years old and 10m high, garden are:
but it even occasionally ripens a few fruit!
Of course London is the largest conurbation in 1. Light and Shade
Britain, and the heat island effect may be expected to Where a forest garden is shaded from outside by
be greatest there. But there is a significant effect in trees or buildings, shade tolerance is needed in
any large or medium sized urban area, and it is the trees as well as the shrubs and vegetables. Most
good to know that not all the advantages lie with fruits prefer full Sun, but some need it more than
rural gardeners.1 others. On the whole soft fruit need less Sun than
top fruit, so in a very shaded garden, or part of a
Coasts garden, it is worth considering a garden of two
Gardening very near the coast has its advantages and layers only, shrubs and vegetables. This will give
disadvantages. an opportunity to grow some of the taller shrubs,
On the plus side the winters are milder than they which may not fit under the trees in a three-
are inland. Figs need a frost-free winter, and the old layer garden.
adage is that you should only grow them within sight
of the sea. Trees
On the minus side the summers are cooler, it is • Tender exotics, including peaches, apricots, figs and
usually windy, and the wind is laden with salt. Most almonds really need full Sun.
plants are very sensitive to salty winds, but those listed • Pears and mulberries also need as much Sun as they
in the box are all to some degree tolerant. Figs are not can get, but are not quite so demanding.
tolerant of wind, but they deserve to have the most
sheltered microclimate in a coastal garden in exchange • Dessert fruits need more Sun than cookers. Cooking
for their delicious fruit. apples and cooking plums can be grown in positions
where they receive direct Sun for less than half the
day during the growing season, though they must
1
This information on urban temperatures is taken from The Ecology have good indirect light in that case.
of Urban Habitats, O.L.Gilbert, Chapman & Hall, 1989, pp 25-30.
A brilliant book, highly recommended to anyone with an interest • Sour cherries, medlars, elders and hazels are the most
in ecology. shade-tolerant of the tree fruits. They can produce a
 crop with only indirect light. (Note: Elders and ha- 2. Walls
zels are normally grown in a shrub form.) • South, south-east and south-west walls are suitable for
all fruit, but they are best reserved for the kinds that
Shrubs really need the heat and light: figs, apricots, peaches,
• Autumn fruiting raspberries need full Sun. dessert pears, dessert plums, gages, grapes and
New Zealand kiwis. Mulberries and quinces also
• Most soft fruit needs direct Sun for at least half the day.
like this kind of microclimate, but they are lower
• Other cane fruit, gooseberries, and red and white value fruits. These walls are ideal sites for aromatic
currants can do with less than half a day’s full Sun. herbs, especially those of Mediterranean origin
which like a hot, dry summer.
• Loganberries and elders can give a crop with only
indirect light. • West walls are the next warmest, as the afternoon Sun
is warmer than the morning. They are suitable for all
Vegetables the above, plus: cooking pears and plums, all apples,
• The most shade tolerant of the forest garden vegeta- sweet and sour cherries and soft fruit.
bles are: Jerusalem artichokes, ramsons, mints, • An east wall is cooler, especially if it is exposed to
pink purslane, golden saxifrage, stinging nettles easterly winds. It can grow early and mid-season pears,
and ground elder (not recommended). apples, plums, sweet and sour cherries and soft fruit.
• The least shade tolerant are: Nine Star broccoli, • North-east and north-west walls are suitable for cooking
sea kale, rock samphire, red valerian, nasturtium apples and early season cooking plums. Moisture-
and those listed under the ‘Sun-loving’ sections of loving vegetables and herbs should not be planted by a
Herbs, Onions and Roots in Chapter 9. wall with a more southerly aspect than this. (If possible
• Perennials which leaf early or remain green through they should not be grown near a wall at all.)
the winter tolerate shade cast by deciduous trees and • North walls, and very shady walls of other aspects,
shrubs better than ones which leaf later, when the can grow: sour cherries, early season cooking apples,
trees and shrubs are leafing. red and white currants, gooseberries, summer-fruiting
• The same goes for annuals which grow during autumn, raspberries, blackberries, Japanese wineberries, some
winter and spring rather than summer. hybrid berries, including loganberries, and the pear
variety, Williams Bon Chretien.
• Plants with broad leaves are usually more shade tolerant
than those with narrow leaves.
Of course the aspect of the wall is not the whole story,
• There are exceptions to these general principles. and other microclimate factors must be taken into
account, including shading and shelter. Remember that
A note of its shade-bearing qualities is included under all plants grown on or by a wall will need extra watering
the main entry for each plant. These are based on my and mulching.
own observations and those of other gardeners, plus
whatever published information is available. This is 3. Frost
sometimes contradictory, one and the same plant The least favourable microclimate for a forest garden
being described as ‘tolerates partial shade’ and ‘needs is one which is prone to late frosts. If the only land
full sun’ in different books or seed catalogues. As available is in a frost pocket, and nothing can be done to
multi-layer planting has been greatly neglected in our make it less of one by altering structures, hedges and so
culture, not much is known about the shade tolerance on, the only option is to choose fruits which are tolerant
of vegetables. It is a prime subject for experiment in our of late frosts.
own gardens. These either flower late or have flowers which are
Any forest garden can be a source of information resistant to frost. The plants listed here are not all equally
about shade tolerance, whether precise experiments tolerant of frost. Some flower later than others, and
are carried out in it or not. If all three layers are some can stand harder frosts than others. Reference
planted simultaneously the shade level will gradually should be made to the descriptions of the plants in the
increase as the years go by. If a mixture of vegetables is relevant chapters.
planted to start with, the more shade tolerant ones There is also a variation in frost tolerance between
will reveal themselves by succeeding at the expense of different varieties of the same fruit. Apples in particular
the more light-demanding ones as the level of shade have a wide range of blossoming times, and late ones
increases. can be chosen for sites where frost may be a problem.
 FROST TOLERANT FRUITS AND NUTS PLANTS FOR POORLY DRAINED SOILS

Cherry plum Hawthorn Blueberries Fruit Vegetables

Asian pear Elder Manchurian kiwi Quince Ramsons
Mulberry Blackberry Oregon grape Guelder rose Watercress
Quince Hybrid berries Chinese dogwood Cooking apples Land cress
Medlar Roses Siberian pea Crab apples Golden saxifrage
Hazel Thimbleberry Blackcurrants Pink purslane
Blackberries Hairy bittercress
Note: Mulberries are susceptible to early autumn
Elder Nettles
frost.
Hawthorn Mints, especially water mint
Rowan
There are also varieties of most of the commonly
grown fruits with blossom which can stand light frosts.
Other fruits, including pears, plums, damsons and
most soft fruit, will tolerate some impeded drainage in
Soil the subsoil, below 45cm deep, but not above that.
Most forest garden plants will grow well in a wide range Raspberries, sweet cherries and peaches will not
of soils. The only kinds of soil which seriously limit the tolerate any imperfections in drainage.
range of plants that can be grown are very alkaline ones
(see page 43) and poorly drained ones.
Few of the forest garden vegetables are troubled by
high alkalinity, but most fruits are. The most susceptible CHOOSING VEGETABLES
of all are raspberries and blueberries, and they should
certainly be avoided on thin soils over chalk, limestone For ‘as many species as possible’ in the quotation at the
or old demolished buildings. The kinds most likely to head of this chapter, perhaps we should substitute ‘as many
succeed are listed in the box below: as practicable’. This is after all a kitchen garden, not a
research establishment, and most of us want enough of
each plant to make a decent meal. Anyway it would not
be possible to base a useful assessment on one or two
FRUIT FOR THIN CHALKY SOILS plants, and some kinds could die out by chance accident
rather than because they were unsuitable.
Apricot Blackberry There is also a limit to the amount of time and effort
Elders Fig each of us wants to put into observing and recording
Hawthorns Hazels plants. If it is done in too impressionistic and vague a
Walnuts Whitebeam way it becomes pretty pointless. It is probably more use
Rowan Siberian pea to get to know a moderate number of plants well than
to have a nodding acquaintance with many.
Nevertheless, the vegetable layer is the ideal part of
Some varieties of apple are less susceptible to high the garden to experiment with, not just because the
alkalinity than others.2 plants have a shorter life-span than the trees and shrubs,
On the whole vegetables are less sensitive to poor but also because less is known about them. Perennial
drainage than fruits, and a wide range of cresses and vegetables are a neglected group of plants, an area of
spinaches may do well on soil which would be too wet deep mystery compared to fruit-growing. This goes to
for fruit growing. The vegetables listed here are very make the vegetable layer the most interesting part of a
tolerant of poor drainage. Of the fruits, only quinces, forest garden to my mind.
guelder rose and possibly blackcurrant are tolerant of a
really wet soil. The others may grow adequately with Shade Tolerance
imperfect drainage, but would prefer it to be better.
There are two kinds of shade: the permanent shade cast
by buildings and evergreens, and the seasonal shade cast
2
They are listed in the Directory of Apple Cultivars. by deciduous trees and shrubs. In the descriptions of
See Further Reading. plants in Chapter 9, ‘shade-tolerance’ means the plant’s
tolerance for seasonal shade. Plants which can grow equivalents. Fat hen and chickweed, for example, have
well under a closed canopy of deciduous trees will not a better taste than spinach and lettuce respectively.
necessarily do well in positions which get no winter Sun. Most people don’t know this simply because they
The shade-tolerance of many perennial vegetables is haven’t tried them.
indirectly affected by the winter microclimate. Where it Those wild plants which do have a strong or unfamiliar
is mild they are able to start growth early, and complete taste are usually most pleasant to eat in springtime,
much of their annual growing cycle before the trees and when the plants are young and tender. This is also the
shrubs leaf up. As well as extending the picking season time when green food from a forest garden is most in
for these vegetables, this means they can be grown demand, the hungry gap in the annual vegetable garden.
under a more complete cover of trees and shrubs than
would be possible in areas with a cooler winter. Invasiveness
Sea beet, for example, can be found growing well
Most of the plants which are suitable for the vegetable
under a closed canopy of deciduous shrubs within a
layer of a forest garden, whether wild or cultivated, are
stone’s throw of the sea in south west England. But it
often described as invasive. What this means is that
would not do well under the same cover in an inland
they are tough, self-reliant plants which can maintain
situation or on more easterly coasts.
themselves and reproduce without much help from us.
In the conditions of a forest garden they can hold their
Wild Food Plants own, but when they are presented with a garden of
annual plants, with lots of bare soil between the plants,
Many of the vegetables we can grow in a forest garden
there is nothing much to stop them and they rapidly
are wild ones. Since they grow in this country without
expand to fill the space.
any help from us they are likely to do well with a mini-
Even so, some plants are more invasive than others.
mum of care and attention.
Some perennials which spread vegetatively, such as the
They have a greater natural resistance to diseases
mints, can expand at the expense of others in a forest
and pests, including slugs and snails, than cultivated kinds.
garden and will eventually take over if allowed to. The most
They may not be immune, but they can usually live with
prolific self-seeders, like fat hen and shepherd’s purse
the level of pests and diseases they are likely to find in
can be invasive while there is bare soil about, but as the
a polyculture. They are also more likely to be able to
garden matures the perennials take over and the self-
propagate themselves year after year in the garden,
seeders die out unless they are deliberately cultivated.
more so than cultivated perennials and self-seeders.
The main problem with invasive self-seeders comes if
Wild vegetables are almost always more nutritious
they spread into an adjacent garden of annuals.
than cultivated ones. They tend to be higher in protein,
So any description of a plant as invasive must be taken
vitamins and minerals. As every other desirable charac-
in context. If it is in a conventional gardening book it
teristic has been bred for in cultivated varieties over
probably means the plant is suitable for forest gardening.
the centuries, this one has gone by default. Until very
If it is in Chapter 9 of this book it means the plant is
recently it was not possible to measure nutritional
more than usually invasive. But much also depends on
content, so it could not be bred for, and there is no
environment. A plant which is very competitive in one
commercial advantage in breeding for it today.
garden may be unable to maintain itself without help
One drawback of wild food is that the edible parts,
in another.
whether these are leaves, roots, seeds or whatever, tend
to be smaller than those of cultivated plants. This means
that they take longer to pick than conventional vegeta-
bles, which have been bred over the generations to have CHOOSING FRUIT VARIETIES
large edible parts. But there is very little work involved
in growing them other than the picking, so the total Summer apples are crisp and juicy, with plenty
amount of time spent in getting them to the table is less. of refreshing acidity and are best eaten straight
However the time it does take is concentrated at picking from the tree. Typical varieties are Beauty of Bath
time, and this may be inconvenient. and the tiny Jenetting that since the sixteenth
Another possible drawback is the taste of wild food, century has opened the apple season. More complex
which some people find less attractive than the food they flavours generally appear later, beginning to
are used to. Whether this is simply a matter of familiarity show in mid-season varieties that, once picked,
or because cultivated plants really do taste better is hard will keep for weeks rather than days. September
to say. No doubt it is a bit of both. But there are some wild brings the scarlet Worcester Pearmain with the
plants which actually taste better than their cultivated densely sweet flavour of strawberries that it has
 passed on to its commercially popular modern the quality of the plants should be of a high standard
seedling Discovery. Then comes the rich and – something which cannot be said about every garden
almost pear-like taste of the russetted and centre. Also they are usually happy to advise you on
golden St. Edmund’s Pippin, the aniseed flavoured your selection over the phone. It is in their interests to see
Ellison’s Orange, the savoury, juicy James Grieve that you get plants that fit your requirements perfectly.
and the Egremont Russet, the russet of the high
street which has a curious, addictive flavour that Locality
Morton Shand described as ‘a slight suggestion of
Until recent times you could tell which county you were
the scent of crushed fern’ ...
in by the shape of the farm waggons, by the breed of sheep
Joan Morgan, in Orchards3
in the fields, or by the varieties of fruit growing in the
orchards. Today all the farm machinery is mass produced
... and so the list goes on, through the autumn, winter
in centralised factories, and if there are any orchards left
and into spring, through the counties and regions of the
they will contain a few market-leading varieties which
land, through a wide range of subtle flavours.
are as mass-produced and as centralised as the tractors.
Although the apple takes pride of place for the
These orchards are dependent on the chemical
rich diversity and sheer number of its varieties, there
industry to keep them going just as much as the tractors
are enough varieties of all the commonly grown fruits
depend on oil. The old local varieties were adapted to
to make the process of selecting them seem at first like
local conditions of climate, soil and so on, and were much
a perplexing maze of choices. The best way to make
better able to look after themselves. Choosing local
sense of it is to look at varieties from six points of view:

• locality;
CATALOGUE CHECK LIST
• ease of growing;
• season of ripening; The ideal catalogue would give you the following
• pollinators; information about each variety on offer:
• size of tree;
• taste. • season of ripening;
• use and qualities of the fruit, i.e. flavour, cooking
It still may not be a simple process. Perish the thought qualities etc.;
that it should be! The diversity of fruit varieties is a • appearance of the fruit;
pleasure to be savoured, even luxuriated in. But this • pollination group, or other pollination
scheme can help to guide you through the maze to a information as appropriate (see pages 81-82);
selection which will work in your garden.
The first step is to send off for a number of nursery • whether tip-bearing – for apples and pears;
catalogues, the more the better up to a point. Nurseries • relative size of tree;
tend to specialise, one in top fruit, another in soft fruit, • rootstocks on which it is available;
another in nuts. A nursery with the widest selection of, • growth habit – e.g. upright, spreading
say, apples may only offer a handful of blackcurrant – if different from the norm;
varieties, and these not necessarily the best ones. Even
• whether heavy or light cropper;
an apple specialist will not offer every lesser-known
apple variety; each of the major specialists will offer • disease susceptibility or resistance
something that no-one else does. – if different from the norm;
Some catalogues are a mine of information about • general ease of growing;
varieties. Occasionally they disagree with each other, • parts of the country it does well in
which is another good reason for getting a number of – for the hardiest and most tender varieties.
different ones. Books on fruit growing also give useful
information on varieties, though it is often restricted to No catalogue gives every bit of this information,
the more popular ones due to lack of space. though some give much more than others. But for
It is certainly worthwhile buying fruit trees and apples, pears and plums the Directories published by
shrubs from specialist mail order nurseries rather than the Agroforestry Research Trust give comprehensive
a garden centre. They offer a much wider range, and information on every known variety.3
See List of Suppliers.
3
See Further Reading.
varieties not only helps to preserve and enhance the resistance to disease. Disease resistance is a double
distinctiveness of local culture, it is also a way of getting blessing. It saves work and worry, and also means that we
trees with the degree of self-reliance that we look for in can grow fruit successfully with a minimum use of poisons.
forest garden plants. Scab is the main disease which resistance is commonly
Thousands of old fruit varieties are preserved at the bred for in apples and pears. This disease is doubly
National Fruit Collection at Brogdale in Kent,4 and a important since around half of all canker infections
number of suppliers still stock the old varieties alongside enter via scab wounds. Varieties which are resistant or
the newer more popular ones. Thornhayes Nursery immune are noted in good nursery catalogues. Other
(see List of Suppliers) give the original locality and varieties show a general resistance to disease, and these
date of introduction of all the hundred plus varieties are probably the ones to go for, as long as they have the
of apples in their catalogue. Common Ground, in their other qualities you are looking for as well.
delightful little book Orchards, a Guide to Local Virus diseases can seriously affect soft fruit. There is
Conservation, give a list of apple, plum and cherry a government certification scheme for virus-free
varieties which are associated with particular counties, planting material which covers all the most popular
but the most comprehensive information on the varieties of soft fruits. This includes many varieties of
origin of apple varieties is to be found in Joan Morgan blackcurrants, raspberries and strawberries, but only a
and Alison Richards’ Book of Apples.5 If you have an few of red currants, gooseberries and hybrid berries.
unidentified tree and would like to know whether it is It is certainly worth buying certified stock if the varieties
an old local variety, the Royal Horticultural Society6 you want are available in it, or even choosing a variety
provide a fruit identification service. partly because it is included in the scheme. The plants
Locally adapted varieties are not always old ones. are not immune, but are guaranteed free of virus
New ones have been bred for specific regions. They will diseases when you buy them. Since these diseases are
more likely be bred for a specific feature which is slow to infect established plants, certified stock will stay
prevalent over a large area rather than evolved to virus-free for virtually all its productive life.
suit the all-round characteristics of a small locality. Gooseberries can get mildew, especially in the
An example is the apple Sunset, which is similar to sheltered conditions of a forest garden, and there are
Cox’s Orange Pippin but will succeed in wetter western resistant varieties to this.
areas where Cox would succumb to disease. Another is On the whole, cooking varieties are easier to grow
Winston, a Cox substitute for areas where late frosts than eaters. The main distinction between the two is how
may be a problem. sharp they taste, and there are some borderline varieties,
An old variety which comes from a different area with like the redoubtable Newton Wonder apple, which are
similar conditions may also be a good bet. For example the dual purpose. But this is very much a matter of personal
old Cornish Aromatic, which is said to be particularly taste, and many, perhaps most people find them too sharp
tolerant of high rainfall, may well be successful all up to eat raw. These dual purpose apples tend to become
the west coast. more acceptable as eaters towards the end of their
The microclimate of the garden can be as important storage period. Damsons are hardier than normal
as the general climate, extending or restricting the domestic plums, and on the whole much easier to grow.
possible choices quite as much as locality. There may
also be differences in microclimate within the garden
itself, so it may be possible to grow tender varieties, but DISEASE RESISTANT FRUITS AND NUTS
only a few of them.
Soil type is another local factor which can change Crab apple Hazels Worcesterberry
completely over short distances, even from one end of Mulberry Black walnut Blueberries
a garden to the other. And as a general rule, the less Elders Chestnut Guelder rose
suitable the soil the more robust the variety, as well as Fig Rowan Beach plum
the rootstock, must be. Kiwis Hawthorns Wild strawberry
Medlar Elaeagnus Juneberries
Ease of Growing Quince Ramanas rose Oregon grape

To a great extent this point is covered by the previous

one. A variety bred for local conditions will certainly be
easier to grow than one chosen at random. Nevertheless 4
See List of Suppliers.
there are some varieties which are generally easier to 5
See Further Reading.
grow than others, and this is usually a matter of their 6
RHS Gardens, Wisley, Surrey GU23 6QB. (01483) 224234.
 An alternative to choosing disease-resistant varieties small number of trees, three, or even two, well-chosen
is to choose kinds of fruit and nuts which are not much varieties could be enough to keep you in apples from
troubled by disease at all. Of course this restricts what picking time till spring. If there is only room for a
you can get out of the garden, but is an option to consid- single fruit tree in the garden, and you do not fancy
er if low maintenance is a priority. a family tree, a keeping dessert apple is the obvious
choice – as long as there is an apple in the neigh-
Pruning bourhood to pollinate it (see page 81). It will keep
Ease of pruning is another point to be considered. you in fresh fruit for longer than any other kind of
For example, varieties of top fruit which are particularly tree, and at a time when apples are more expensive in
prone to biennialism are going to need more careful the shops.
pruning, whereas tip-bearers can get by with little or The keepers are obviously the apples which are
none. A good catalogue will note which varieties have worth growing in greater quantities, and if any large
these characteristics. apple trees are planned for the forest garden they
should be keeping varieties.
Cooking apples also come in both early and late
Season of Ripening varieties, though this is not so critical as it is with eaters
Different varieties ripen at different times, and some because they can be bottled for storage with no loss
varieties ripen over a longer period than others. The picking of quality.
season for most fruits can be lengthened both by planting
a succession of varieties, and by choosing varieties with Others
a long picking season. The season for desert pears runs from late July through
Apples have the longest eating season of any temper- to January. Unlike dessert apples, they are also suitable
ate fruit, followed by pears. The others all have a much for cooking. The only pear varieties which are single-
shorter season, which can only be extended by bottling, purpose cookers are very late varieties which keep into
making jam or some other kind of preserving. the spring, longer than any dessert variety will keep.
This means that any surplus eating pears can be
Apples bottled, so it is not so critical to avoid over-production
The earliest dessert apple varieties are ready to pick in of them as it is with early apples. The later varieties
August and the first part of September. Perhaps the earliest keep for longer than the earlier, though the difference
of all is George Cave, which is sometimes ripe before in keeping time between early and late ones is less than
the end of July. None of these varieties keep for more it is for apples.
than a week or ten days. The early autumn dessert Plums do not keep, so a succession of three or four
apples, which ripen through September, only keep for varieties would be needed to supply eating plums over
a little longer, around two or three weeks. the whole season, from July to October. But there may
Because these early apples do not keep there is no not be space for this in many gardens, even if small
point in growing too many of them in a home garden. trees are grown. As they are tip-bearing they cannot be
A row of cordons is a good way of growing a succession grown as cordons. Most plums are dual purpose to
of early ripening apples, as these are the most compact some extent, though some are more recommended for
trees with the smallest yield per tree. Unfortunately cooking and others more for eating, so any temporary
tip bearing varieties cannot be successfully grown as glut can be bottled. Many varieties can be dried.
cordons, and this excludes one of the best tasting of The sweet cherry season is between mid to late June
the early autumn varieties, Worcester Pearmain. A family and early August, with most varieties ripening in late
tree is another possibility for varieties which are July. If you have room for more than one you can plant
wanted in small quantities. for a succession, but as there is no really dwarfing
The rest of the apple crop is picked in October, rootstock for cherries this may not be possible.
and different varieties keep for different lengths of Of course the opposite is true of soft fruit. As they
time. The late autumn varieties are ripe when picked, or are such small plants it is easy to plant a succession of
shortly after, and may keep till November or December. varieties, even in a small garden. The only danger of
The later varieties are unripe when picked and ripen in going for too many different varieties is that you may
succession in store. Some will be ready in November, not have enough fruit ripe at one time to make a meal
others will keep till March, or even later if storage for the whole family.
conditions are ideal. On the whole there are fewer varieties of the less
All these varieties have a much longer season commonly grown fruits, and there is less scope for
than the early ones. If you only have space for a extending the picking season by choice of varieties.
 FRESH FRUIT THROUGH THE YEAR

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

➤
Rhubarb ➤
(forced)
➤
Elaeagnus ➤

➤
Gooseberries ➤

➤
Wild & Alpine Strawberries ➤

➤
Sweet Cherries ➤
➤
R & W Currants ➤
➤
Raspberries ➤

➤ Hybrid Berries ➤

➤
Blueberries ➤

➤
Worcesterb’y ➤
➤
Peaches ➤

Blk’currants➤
➤

➤
Plums ➤

Pears ➤
➤
Pears
➤
Blackberries ➤

Apples ➤
➤
Apples
➤
Autumn Raspberries ➤

➤
Wineb’y➤
➤
Sour Cherries ➤

➤
Figs ➤

➤
Ramanas Rose Hips ➤

➤
Mulberries ➤

➤
Siberian Kiwis ➤
➤
Damsons ➤

NZ Kiwis
➤
➤

➤
Grapes ➤
(outdoor)
Pollinators
SELF-FERTILE FRUITS
Most commonly grown fruits need pollen from a tree
of another variety to pollinate them. It is not possible to Plums many varieties
grow a single variety of these fruits on its own. Damsons most
Every individual fruit or nut starts out as a flower. Cherry plums
More strictly speaking, it starts out as the female parts Sweet cherries few
of the flower. This develops into a fruit only when it is Sour cherries most
fertilised by pollen from the male part of a flower of the Peaches
same species. Mulberries
Some plant species have separate male and female Quinces
flowers on different individual plants, for example most Medlars
varieties of kiwi fruits. These will only produce fruit if Grapes
both male and female plants are grown together. All the All soft fruit except blueberries
other plants which concern us here have both sexes on Native elder
the same plant, whether in separate male and female
flowers or in hermaphrodite flowers.
Some plants are wind-pollinated, for example hazels, SELF-INFERTILE FRUITS
which have separate male and female flowers. The male
flowers are the catkins, and the female flowers are tiny Apples almost all varieties
little red tufts which you may not have noticed unless Pears almost all✝
you knew they were there. Pollen is blown from the Plums many
male flowers to the female ones, which then start to Sweet cherries most
develop into clusters of nuts. Hazel in effect
Most fruits are insect-pollinated, and these usually Blueberries partially
have hermaphrodite flowers with petals. The insects American elder
are attracted by the sight and smell of the flower and Chestnuts
rewarded with food in the form of nectar and pollen. In Walnuts
their passage from flower to flower they transfer some
of the pollen from the male parts of one flower to the ✝
A notable exception is the popular variety
female parts of another. But having both sexes on the Conference, which is self-fertile.
same plant does not necessarily mean that a plant
can pollinate itself. Some can, but others can only be
fertilised by pollen from another plant of the same
species but a different variety. of the same kind are to be planted than where a large
Those which can fertilise themselves are called number of trees of different varieties are grown together.
self-fertile or self-compatible and those which cannot It is also less crucial where there are other trees in the
are called self-infertile or self-incompatible. Self-fertility neighbourhood which can act as pollinators – though
varies from variety to variety, but some fruits are predom- you can never be sure your neighbours will not decide
inantly self-fertile while others are self-infertile (see box to grub out their fruit trees at some point in the future.
on the right). The further away the pollinators are the less effective
In fact it is not quite as cut and dried as the lists they will be, though it is hard to be precise about
would suggest. Many self-infertile plants will produce a distance. Something like 100m is probably a good rule
small crop with their own pollen, but usually not enough of thumb with apples. But pears and plums flower
to make the plant worth growing. Most self-fertile earlier, and they should really be as close as possible to
plants will produce a good crop on their own, but an their pollinators as there are fewer insects on the wing
even better one if they have a pollinator nearby. earlier in the year.
Since the pollen to fertilise a self-infertile plant
must come not just from another plant but from one Pollination Groups
of another variety, at least two varieties must be To make the process of selecting pollinators easy, varieties
planted together. Different varieties flower at different are divided into pollination groups. Apples are normally
times, so varieties must be chosen which flower at the divided into seven groups, Pollination Group 1 being
same time. the earliest flowering, and 7 the latest. Two varieties in
This is more crucial where only two or three trees the same group will pollinate each other, and they will
also pollinate members of adjacent groups, so a variety prone to biennialism, as they cannot be relied on to
in Group 3 will pollinate varieties in Groups 2, 3 and 4. pollinate every year.
Some catalogues ignore this system and use one of Many cross-incompatible, triploid and other awkward
their own, based on a smaller number of groups, often varieties are well worth growing for their other
three. This is probably accurate enough to get an qualities. It can be worth taking the trouble to find
adequate crop in most years. them pollinators, as long as the pollinators are also
Since pears blossom over a shorter period there are varieties which are worth growing for their own sake.
only four pollination groups for them. There are five
for sweet cherries, and five for the plum family – plums Nuts
gages and damsons, which are all one species and The hazel family, cobs and filberts, are strictly speaking
hence pollinate each other. self-fertile, as a tree can pollinate its female flowers
Self-fertile varieties will act as pollinators to other with its own pollen. But male and female flowers are
varieties in the same pollination group. Crab apples are not always active at the same time, so pollination can
particularly useful, as they are self-fertile and some be poor in some years. Pollination can be improved by
varieties have such a long flowering season that they shaking the branches at flowering time, in February, and
can pollinate most domestic apple varieties. this can be done at no extra effort by choosing this time
The time of flowering is not strongly correlated with for pruning. Nevertheless planting of two or more
the time of ripening. Thus an apple in Pollination varieties is recommended.
Group 1 is not necessarily an earlier fruiting apple than As there are so few varieties available there are no
one in Group 6. So it is possible to select a number of pollination groups for the hazels, but some varieties are
trees which will give a succession of fruit throughout particularly compatible with certain others.7 If space is
the season, but all flower at the same time. limited it is possible to grow a family hazel in order to
get more than one variety for pollination. Although
Incompatibility Groups they are two different species, cobs and filberts can
Some varieties will not pollinate each other even fertilise each other. Some commercial growers simply
though they flower at the same time. They are called rely on the wild hazels in the hedgerows to make up for
cross-incompatible, and are divided into incompatibility incomplete self-pollination.
groups. They can only be pollinated by a variety which Much the same is true of walnuts. They are self-fertile,
is not in the same incompatibility group, but which is in each tree bearing both male and female flowers. But in
the same or an adjacent pollination group. most varieties the male and female flowers mature at
different times, in some varieties the male flowers first,
• There are no incompatibility groups of apples (though in others the female. There are some varieties which
the ever-popular Cox is cross-incompatible with two can pollinate themselves, but even these do better with
varieties, Kidd’s Orange Red and Holstein). a companion.
Young walnut trees tend to produce only female
• There are two incompatibility groups of pears and flowers for the first few years, so planting near an
three of the plum family. existing older tree can help to ensure earlier fruiting.
• There is so much cross-incompatibility among sweet As they are wind pollinated, the young trees should be
cherries that it is easier to list the varieties that do downwind of the old, and preferably within 80m,
go together rather than the ones that do not, and though a more distant tree will have some effect.
this is what it usually done in catalogues. Fortunately
there are self-fertile cherries, such as the popular Size
variety, Stella.
Although the rootstock is the biggest influence on the
size of the tree, the variety has some effect too.
Some varieties of apples and pears need two pollinators.
Different varieties grown on the same stock will grow
These are the triploids, which have one and a half
to different sizes, and a good nursery catalogue will
times the normal number of chromosomes. They are
give an indication of the relative size of different
often very vigorous varieties, Bramley being an example.
varieties. If there is a variety which suits you in every
If one of these varieties is grown, two others in the
respect except its size you can choose to grow it on a
same pollination group must be grown along with it to
different rootstock, but there are some varieties which
pollinate the triploid and each other.
are so vigorous that they cannot be really dwarfed,
Some varieties of pears are generally unreliable
pollinators, and should be treated as triploids. The same
goes for varieties of any fruit which are particularly 7
See The Fruit Garden Displayed, in Further Reading.
for example Bramleys, and others so weak of growth describe what each one is like, but flavour is not
that they never make more than a small tree. something which is easily put into words. Even tasting
Some varieties have a distinctive shape, or growth the fruit cannot be relied upon, because so much depends
habit, and a good catalogue will give indications of this on whether it was picked at the right time and how well
with remarks like ‘upright’ or ‘spreading’. it has been handled and stored. The taste of fruit you
buy in the shops is often nothing like the true potential
of the variety. Shops are also unlikely to offer more than
Taste a very small number of the varieties we might like to
All the above considerations need to be balanced with choose from. But a few shops are beginning to specialise
those of taste. There is no point in creating an eco- in the niche market of old fashioned varieties. Often
logically harmonious and productive forest garden these are farm shops attached to orchards where the old
if the children then turn round and say “Eurr! That’s trees are growing, so a good deal of travelling may be
horrible. We want our Golden Delicious.” If one aim involved. Perhaps a few visits to Brogdale or some other
of growing a forest garden is to interest the next fruit collection during the picking season is the answer,
gener-ation in more Earth-friendly ways of producing but several visits would be needed to catch all the fruits
food, it may be best to play safe on taste. and varieties.
Most fruit tastes pretty good anyway, but some of Aesthetic appeal is also a matter of taste, and may
the older varieties of apples have a taste or texture which influence your choice if the ornamental aspect of the
is quite unlike that of the half-dozen mass-produced garden is important to you. Varieties vary in their
varieties available in the shops. It can be great fun to blossom colour and scent, and apples in particular have
extend the boundaries of our taste, but it is better to do a wide range of fruit colours, from greens through rus-
so by choice than to accidentally buy a tree with fruit sets to striking reds and stripey ones. Some varieties of
which we only get to like after years of religiously pears are noted for the autumn colours of their leaves,
munching through tree-loads of it because we hate to while some hazels have specially beautiful catkins.
throw it away. There is a purple-leaved filbert which has red catkins –
Actually finding out what different varieties of fruit though it is not a good yielder – and also a couple of
taste like can be difficult. Nurseries do their best to varieties of purple-leaved cherry plums.
 Chapter 7

THE TREES

THE OBVIOUS ONES The huge number of apple varieties which used to
exist up and down the country is witness to the success
of this one fruit in fulfilling a wide range of human
These are the fruit trees most often grown in this coun-
needs in a wide range of environments. Some 2,000
try, often referred to as top fruit. They are the ones to
varieties are preserved at Brogdale, and there may be
consider first for a tree layer of reliable, tasty and easily
yet more which survive in other collections or unrecorded
grown fruits. A wide range of varieties is available for
most of them, and information on how to grow them is
widely and easily available.
HOME-PRESSED APPLE JUICE
Apples (Malus domestica) Fruit for juicing does not need to be in quite such
The apple is our national fruit. It has been around for good condition as desert fruit, especially desert fruit
so long that we tend to think of it as a native, but its which is to be stored, so juicing can be a good
ancestors are probably various species of Malus from the way of using up the imperfect apples at harvest
mountains of central Asia, though there may be a dash time. It is a good stand-by for a garden where low
of the native crab apple in some strains. There is hardly maintenance is a priority, or for years when for
a spot on this island where the climate is too tough for some reason it is not possible to pick the crop at
at least some varieties of apples to thrive, and in good the ideal time.
fruit areas they are one of the easiest fruits to grow. Bramleys are one of the hardiest and best juic-
At the same time they are a gourmet fruit. Victorian ing varieties, but the flavour is better if one or
aristocrats and bon viveurs would wax as lyrical about two other varieties are added to the mix.
the subtleties of different apple varieties and years as In addition, there are many old apple trees
they would about wine. The apple store was often as which survive in ones or twos in back gardens in
prestigious a part of a great country house as the wine both town and country. Nine times out of ten this
cellar. The apple’s decorative qualities were appreciated fruit is regarded as nothing but a nuisance by the
too. They were often planted with an eye to the effect owners. I’m sure many of them would be only too
of their blossom, sometimes interplanted with pears pleased to have someone in to clear it away and
for contrast, or roses to give a longer season of colour. make good use of it. Hopefully this will help more
A few fruit were sometimes left on the tree for their people see the value of the old fruit trees in their
decorative effect, and those which were brought into gardens, and start using them themselves. In the
the house were valued as much for their visual beauty meantime it could make a nice little seasonal earner
as for their subtle and rich flavours. for an enterprising individual, or a charitable
Apples also keep for much longer than any other group looking to raise some funds.
temperate fruit. Before the days of chemically-controlled Juicing machines are available from home-made
storage and imports from all over the world, they were wine-making suppliers, and you can hire them
the one fruit which could be eaten fresh for nine or even by the day or by the week. The juice must be
ten months of the year. Other fruits tend to be a juicy preserved by freezing or pasturising or it will
treat for a few weeks and a bottled preserve or jam for quickly ferment and become cider.
the rest of the year.
 Rootstock Habit Size* First Fruit✝ Main Uses Notes
in metres

MM111 Vigorous 6-8 7-8 years Standard, Large on good soil,

M2 (standard 8-10) half standard, medium on poor
M25 espalier

MM106 Semi-dwarfing 4-6 3-4 Bush, cordon, Bush needs staking

espalier, fan for first 4-5 years

M26 Dwarfing 2.5-4 3-4 Bush, cordon Bush needs staking

for first 4-5 years.
Good on average soil

M9 Very dwarfing 2-3 2-3 Dwarf bush, Needs good soil, and
dwarf pyramid, staking throughout
cordon its life

M27 Extremely 1.2-1.8 2-3 For very vigorous Needs good soil, and
dwarfing varieties, or very staking throughout
small gardens its life.

in old orchards and back gardens. The number of apple Table 7.1 Rootstocks for Apples
varieties available to the home gardener from nurseries
is nothing like this, but they outnumber all other avail- * Height and spread when grown as bush tree. Will be modified by soil
and fruiting variety.
able fruit varieties put together. ✝
Years from planting when grown as bush.
Forest gardeners who want a reliable, trouble-free
supply of fresh fruit over the longest possible time other fruits flower earlier, and it is not normally
will probably choose apples as the mainstay of their worthwhile to plant apples in the most favoured
tree layer. microclimates unless none of the more tender fruits
Desert apples, cooking apples and cider are the three are being grown. In a garden which is prone to late
traditional uses of apples, with the damaged ones going frosts the best defence is late-flowering or frost-tolerant
for chicken or pig food. Another use which the forest varieties.
gardener might like to consider is making apple juice. Shelter is needed, especially at blossom time, as
Most of us drink a fair amount of fruit juice, and why apples are self-infertile and the pollinating insects do
shouldn’t we make use of our native fruit before going not like strong winds. On an exposed site a windbreak
to the shops to buy imported citrus? is necessary. Apples will tolerate some shade, but need
Apples blossom during the first half of May, to be in full Sun for at least half the day. Sunshine gives
when there is still some chance of frost. But most apples their full flavour and colour, so it is more
important for desert varieties than cookers.

Figure 7.1

2m 2m

MM111 MM106 M26 M9 M27

Vigorous semi-dwarfing dwarfing Very Extremely
dwarfing dwarfing
 The ideal soil is the same for most kinds of tree fruit: Pears (Pyrus communis)
at least 60cm depth of well-drained, fertile, friable loam. Cultivated pears come from the Mediterranean, though
But apples are not as fussy as most other fruit, and a the wild form does exist as an extremely rare native in
more vigorous rootstock can be chosen if conditions are Britain. They are more delicate than apples, so their
less than ideal. Poor drainage can be a major problem, geographical range is more restricted, and where both
leading to general unthriftiness and an increased are grown together the pears should be given the more
incidence of canker disease. Cookers are more tolerant favourable sites in the garden.
of poor drainage than dessert varieties. The rootstock They flower about a fortnight earlier than apples,
M25 does better than others on a damp soil. starting in late April, and there are no late flowering
There are more different rootstocks for apples than varieties. This means they cannot be grown where late
for any other top fruit, but only a few are in common frosts are common, and if one part of the garden is
use (see Table 7.1 and Figure 7.1). M26 is a popular less prone to frost than another pears should have
medium-vigour stock for garden trees, and may be it in preference to apples. They also need more
the most suitable for the tree layer in medium sized warmth and sunshine than apples, and shelter is even
forest gardens. more important, partly to make things as easy as
Cordons should be spaced 75cm apart on good soil possible for the limited number of pollinating insects
and 90cm on poor. If there is more than one row of which are active earlier in the spring, and also because
cordons they should be 1.8m apart. the young leaves and soft-skinned fruit are suscep-
The sort of yield to be expected from an apple tible to wind damage. The microclimate offered by a
tree depends on a combination of factors: rootstock, south-facing wall often fulfils these conditions, so pears
variety, pruning form, soil, situation and the amount are sometimes grown as cordons or espaliers up the
of care and attention it receives. The following figures south side of a building.
give some idea of what to expect per year from a In a wet climate they are more prone to scab, which
mature tree of various forms. Note that the smaller is the disease most likely to trouble them.
forms will reach their maximum yield much sooner than However, there is a considerable range of pear
the larger ones: varieties, some hardier than others. If you live in the
north or west or have a sunless garden it is not so much
Tree kg lb a matter of not being able to grow pears as being re-
stricted to the most hardy varieties.
Standard 45-180 100-400
They favour a slightly heavier range of soils than
Bush on M2 90 200
apples: they are more tolerant of clay or imperfect
Bush on M26 27-55 60-120
drainage, but less able to cope with sandy, drought-
Dwarf bush on M9 18-27 40-60
prone, shallow or limey soils. If pears are grown against
Dwarf bush on M27 4-7 10-15
a wall special care must be taken to see the soil does
Dwarf pyramid 4-7 10-15
Cordon 1-4 3-8
Table 7.2 Rootstocks for Pears
depending on rootstock.
* Height and spread of bush tree. This is very variable, as some pear
Espalier, 2 tiers half the yield of a bush on the varieties have a vigorous upright habit of growth, while others are
same rootstock. weak and spreading.

Rootstock Habit Size* First Fruit Forms Notes

in metres

Pear Very vigorous 20 10-20 years Standard The only one for
(other forms on poor soils
poor soil)

Quince A Medium 3-7 4-8 years Bush, cordon, If in doubt, use it.
vigour from planting dwarf pyramid, Needs good soil
espalier

Quince C Moderately 2.5-6 Slightly earlier Bush, cordon, Only on the best soil
vigorous dwarf pyramid,
espalier
not dry out. Generous mulching is called for, and possibly Plums (Prunus domestica)
watering, especially in the tree’s early years. Gages are included with plums, because they are the same
Bullfinches can be a major pest, eating the fruit species. They are particularly sweet and delicious plums,
buds off pear trees – and to a lesser extent plums – in the with a green or yellow coloured.
winter. Ash keys are their favourite winter food, but ash The plum probably originated as a hybrid between
trees fruit biennially. In years when few ashes are fruiting the blackthorn or sloe (Prunus spinosa) which is native
bullfinches can completely strip the fruit buds of pear to Britain, and either the cherry plum (P. cerasifera) or
trees, causing a total crop loss in that year. Bullfinches its close relation P. divaricata, both of which come from
do not like to venture far from cover, so pears are only the Caucasus. Their ideal climate is one of cold winters
vulnerable if they are right beside a woodland, or in a and hot, dry summers, so they do better in eastern areas
suburban area with dense tree cover. In these situations of Britain. But there are many varieties which thrive in
it may be wise to consider leaving pears out of the the west. All plums blossom early, so they should not be
planting plan. planted where there is a chance of late frosts.
Uses of pears are very similar to those of apples, but Gages are among the least hardy of plums. They are
they don’t keep as long. especially sensitive to rain when ripening, as it can cause
Pear rootstocks are all vigorous, and produce the fruit to split and rot. They are most successful in the
magnificent trees. Shaped like a hand pointing to the southern half of Britain, unless a specially favourable
sky, they can grow taller than a house. In the spring, microclimate can be found or created. As they tend to
when they are covered in shining white blossom, they be small trees they are particularly suited to wall growing.
are one of the most remarkable and beautiful features They breed fairly true from seed and can crop better on
of the traditional landscape. (see Figure 7.2) These trees their own roots than when grafted.
are far too big for most gardens, and Wall-grown plums are grown as a fan, never as an
take a decade or two before coming espalier. Since plums are tip-bearers, when grown in
into fruit. Hence the old saying unrestricted forms they need very little pruning once a
that you plant pears for good strong shape has been established. This is usual-
your grandchildren. ly done by about the third year after planting. But the
Pear rootstocks are branches may need supporting as the weight of fruit is
used for trees in orchards borne ever further from the trunk as the tree grows.
on poor soil, or to give The preferred soil is a fairly heavy clay loam, as they
full sized trees for do not like to dry out at the roots, especially the gages.
ornamental purposes. Lighter soils need plenty of organic matter added to
But pears can be grafted improve moisture retention. A slightly more acid soil is
onto quince rootstocks, and acceptable to plums than to most other top fruit, with
these are used for garden trees. a pH of 6.0 to 6.5 being ideal.
Yields of pears are slightly Plums do not keep, though they are excellent for
lower than those of apples, and bottling and jam. It is also possible to dry, or half-dry them.
rather more variable from season This increases their sweetness and flavour, and they will
to season. Where a well grown bush Figure 7.2
apple on a less vigorous rootstock Table 7.3 Rootstocks for Plums
may be expected to yield 25-55kg of fruit a year, ✝
The rootstock Mussel is sometimes used by nurseries, but should be
a pear of similar size and state of health would be avoided because it suckers freely.
more likely to yield in the range of 15-45kg. * Height and spread of bush tree.

Rootstock✝ Habit Size* First Fruit Forms Notes

in metres

Brompton, Vigorous 5.5-6.5 Standard, Too big for most

Myrobalan B half standard gardens

St. Julien A Semi-vigorous 3.5-4.5 3-6 years Half standard, The usual choice for
bush, fan gardens

Pixy Dwarfing 2.5-3 3-6 years Bush, Needs good soil and
dwarf pyramid heavy feeding
keep till Christmas. The earliest varieties start ripening Most varieties of damson are self-fertile, and come
in July and the latest may still have fruit in October. fairly true when grown from seed. Yields vary greatly
Fortunately there are many self-fertile varieties, so it is from year to year, mainly in response to the weather at
possible to grow a single tree if that is all there is room for. blossom time. Harvest is in September or October.
Yields are variable – they vary from year to year
because of frost damage, and between varieties – so any Cherry Plums or myrobalans (Prunus cerasifera)
figures given can only be a rough guide. A mature cherry plum makes a magnificent spreading
tree. They are sometimes found as hedgerow trees,
Tree kg lb especially in Somerset, where they make a distinctive
and beautiful contribution to the landscape.
Bush on St. Julien A:
The blossom comes out as early as March, and has
first 10 yrs of fruiting 15-25 40-50
a degree of frost tolerance. They are more often grown
full bearing 40-50 100-120
as ornamental or hedging plants than for their fruit.
Fan on St. Julien A 7-14 15-30
There are red-leaved varieties which are particularly
decorative, and cherry plums have occasionally been
Two-thirds of these yields can be expected from trees planted as a street tree. In a good year they produce a
on Pixy, and from less prolific varieties, including most heavy yield of fruit which is small, good for cooking,
gages, on St. Julien A. and quite pleasant to eat raw, though not quite as tasty
as a domestic plum.
Damsons (Prunus domestica sub-species insitita) The varieties of cherry plum sold for fruit production
The damson is a somewhat wilder version of the are self-fertile, and breed true from seed. Cuttings also
plum, less intensively bred. The trees are smaller, take well. They make a tree some 6 metres high and
tougher and more able to look after themselves. They wide. The fruit is ripe in late July or August, and yields
also lack some of the advantages of more highly are very variable, often tending to be biennial. Separate
domesticated strains, having smaller fruit, which is ornamental and hedging varieties are available, but these
less sweet, and they lack early varieties to extend the also produce edible fruit.
picking season. Since it needs very little attention, and is not a reliable
The bullace is an even wilder version of the same cropper, perhaps the best place for the cherry plum is
sub-species, tougher, with smaller, less edible fruit. It is in the hedgerows rather than an intensive forest garden.
only a step away from the blackthorn.
Damsons certainly have their uses. They produce Sweet Cherries (Prunus avium)
good yields of fruit for cooking and preserving, which The sweet cherry is a direct descendant of the wild
is edible raw if you are not fussy, and they are one fruit cherry, which is native to much of Europe and West
tree which also doubles up as a windbreak tree. They Asia. This includes all of Britain, though wild cherries
give effective shelter in both summer and winter, as become rarer the further north you go. It is not
the growth of twigs is dense enough to slow down the common anywhere, and tends to pick out the best
wind when the leaves are off the trees, and can still yield soils and microclimates. The beauty of the wild trees,
reasonably well themselves in an exposed position. The with masses of snowy blossom in spring, exquisite
Farleigh damson is a variety particularly recommended for leaves in autumn and beautiful bark in winter, has not
windbreaks. Damsons should be mixed with other trees been bred out of the cultivated varieties. They are worth
and shrubs in a windbreak, as a monoculture is asking planting in a forest garden for their beauty alone.
for trouble from pests and disease, even with a tough They are not always small trees in the wild. They
plant like this. can grow as tall as oaks and ashes and take their place
Apart from use in windbreaks, they are the plums with them in the high woodland canopy. Although the
for the wetter and cooler areas of the country, though cultivated forms are much smaller than this, their
well worth growing in any area. They are definitely a large size can be a problem. There is not as yet a really
first choice for a forest garden where low maintenance dwarfing rootstock generally available for cherries,
is a priority. But, like all plums, they flower early and so sweet cherries are often too big for a garden.1
can be caught by a late frost. Growing them against a wall is one way of restricting
On their own roots they make a tree of 3-6 metres their vigour enough to fit them in, and you need a fairly
height and spread, and are inclined to sucker. Trees bought
from nurseries are usually on one of the normal plum 1
Two dwarfing stocks from Belgium, Damil and Inmil (or GM9),
rootstocks. They make smaller trees than a domestic are currently under trial in Britain. Most reputable nurseries will
plum on the equivalent stock. not stock them till trials are completed.
 Rootstock Habit Forms Spread Height* Notes
in metres in metres

Malling F12/1 Vigorous Standard, 10-12 For specimen trees

half standard or commercial
orchards
Bush 8-11

Fan 5.5-8 3

Colt Semi-vigorous Standard, 6-8

half standard, The stock for
bush gardens

Pyramid 4-5

Fan 4.5-5.5 2.5

Table 7.4 Rootstocks for Sweet Cherries

* Minimum height of wall needed.

tall wall even then. The fan form is always used fruit trees, ideally between pH6.7 and 7.5, and
rather than the espalier or cordon. somewhat deeper, with at least 75 cm of fertile, friable
Some sweet cherry varieties are self-fertile, which loam. But cherries are fairly tolerant and will do well on
is fortunate as only large gardens really have space a variety of soils, as long as they are well drained. They
for more than one tree. On the other hand, two root very close to the surface and have been known to
different varieties will extend the picking season if break up paths and patios.
they are well chosen. Yields can vary enormously according to the size,
Although a bunch of juicy, fragrant cherries straight age and form of the tree and the climate:
from the tree is a rare treat, too many sweet cherries
coming ripe at one time is not a good idea, because they Tree kg lb
must be eaten fresh. They do keep for a short while, Standard or bush 15-55 30-100
but they soon lose their quality. Even a fairly small tree Fan 5-15 12-30
may produce more than many families can get through
in a couple of weeks. They freeze well, but are not Duke cherries are intermediate between sweet and
suitable for bottling. acid cherries, and probably originated as a cross between
Birds are particularly partial to cherries. Netting is the two.
fairly straightforward with wall-trained trees, but diffi-
cult with free-standing ones as they are so big. Growing Sour Cherries (Prunus cerasus)
unnetted cherries is probably not worthwhile. In most One great advantage of sour cherries over sweet
areas the birds get 90% of them in a good year and all cherries is that they are smaller trees, and so fit better
of them in a bad one. into a garden. They are primarily cooking fruit and
Sweet cherries do best in a climate with warm, dry make good jam, though people with a strong palate
summers, which is why Kent is the home of most may like to eat them straight off the tree. By far the
commercial cherry orchards. They blossom early, and commonest type is the morello, with fruit such a dark
so are vulnerable to frost. Wall-trained trees can be pro- red that it is almost black. The amarelle, or Kentish red,
tected from frost with netting or hessian just as they has red fruits.
can be from birds. Another advantage is that they are tolerant of shade.
Size, birds and frost are three good reasons for Growing a morello cherry up a north-facing wall has
growing a fan-trained tree rather than a free-standing almost become a cliché of permaculture design. But
one. clichés only become clichés because they are true, and
A well drained soil is essential. By preference it this really is one kind of tree that can fruit quite happily
should be slightly more alkaline than for most other without any direct sunlight. They do of course need
some light, so when grown on a north wall they must mental. Golden fruits are ready for picking in late
not be crowded out by other plants or structures that September, and will store until the New Year if
will rob them of indirect light. required. They have the shape of an apple, the
They have the same vulnerability to late frosts and birds flesh of a pear, but taste like neither; crisp and
as sweet cherries do, but being smaller they are easier to juicy, with an excellent sweet flavour. . . Any two
protect. Birds are more of a problem when the fruit is varieties will ensure good pollination. It is known
truly ripe, and there are usually a few days between the that the pear variety Williams will also pollinate
time they ripen and the time the birds start taking them. all [the varieties offered]. Other varieties of pear
If you are quick on the ball you can get away without will probably pollinate, but as yet have not been
netting, especially if you want them for bottling or preserv- trialled... Asian pears are an ornamental delight.
ing because then they can be picked slightly unripe.
They prefer the same kind of soil as sweet cherries, The fact that the flowers are frost resistant should make
and the same rootstocks are used. On Colt, bush trees them particularly attractive to growers in areas which
and fans have a spread of 3.5-4.5m; a fan needs a wall get late frosts.
at least 2m high, and a bush may grow to 3.5m tall.
Fans on F 12/1 spread to 4.5-5.5m and need a slightly Peaches (Prunus persica)
higher wall. Half-standards and pyramids are also Despite the Latin name, which suggests an origin in
sometimes grown. Persia, peaches come from China. The climate of their
Yields can be heavy for the size of the tree compared homeland gives a clue to the kind of climate they need
to sweet cherries, 5-10kg (12-20lb) from a fan, and to fruit successfully: a warm, sunny spring to ensure
13-18kg (30-40lb) from a bush. They start yielding safe pollination of their early blossom; a hot summer to
well in the fourth year after planting, and crop regularly ripen the fruit; a dry autumn; a short, cold winter;
as long as they are not caught by a late frost. and just enough rain but no more. It doesn’t sound
much like Britain! Nevertheless, peaches can be grown
as free-standing trees in East Anglia and the south-east
of England, and in favoured microclimates further
THE LESS OBVIOUS ONES north and west. Elsewhere they can be grown against
south- or west-facing walls
These are trees which are either less suitable for forest The nectarine is a mutation, or sport, of the peach.
gardening than the commoner top fruits, or simply less well Its fruit is smaller, with a smooth skin and a more delicate
known. None of them is regularly grown in commercial taste. It needs even warmer conditions and has a lower
orchards in Britain, but they are all worth at least a yield, but is otherwise similar to other peaches.
second look. Peaches flower very early in the spring, when hardly
Peaches and figs are really out of their climatic range any insects are on the wing, and to be sure of getting
here, but can yield delicious fruit given a favourable a crop every year you need to pollinate them by hand.
microclimate and some extra care. Other trees in this section This means transferring pollen from one flower to
are natives, which offer the opposite deal: they are very another with a tuft of cotton wool, and it should be
easy to grow, but the fruit is not as appetising as cultivated done daily over the whole flowering period. Frost is
kinds. Others, such as mulberries, quinces and medlars, also likely at this time of the year, and they need to be
are occasionally grown in gardens, but more often covered up on any night when it is likely. If they are not
for their decorative or curiosity value than for their fruit. sprayed, open-grown trees will almost inevitably get
peach leaf curl, and will produce very little. Wall-grown
Asian Pears or Nashi (Pyrus serotina) trees can be protected from the disease with a polythene
These trees make it into the ‘less obvious’ list because cover from December till late May. As the fruit develops
they are a recent introduction into this country, and it is usually hand-thinned on two separate occasions in
there is still a great deal to learn about how to grow order to get good-sized fruits.
them here. They come from Japan. It is possible to grow peaches in this country without
According to Chris Bowers & Sons, one of the all this care and attention, but then you cannot expect
nurseries which sell Asian pears: to get a harvest every year. Just how often you can
depends on your local climate and microclimate and
The varieties we offer are hardy, despite flowering on the run of the seasons. New varieties are constantly
early, and grow on average to about 13 feet [4m] being bred, and no doubt later-flowering and generally
with long, arching sometimes pendulous growth. hardier ones will appear in due course. For the time
The white, frost resistant flowers are very orna- being, if you want a reliable crop without a lot of work,
 Rootstock Habit Forms Spread Height*
in metres in metres

Brompton Vigorous Standard, bush 5.5-7.5

Fan 4.5-6 2

St. Julien A Semi-vigorous Bush 4.5-5.5

Fan 3.5-4.5 2

Table 7.5 Rootstocks for Peaches

* Minimum height of wall, though they can be trained lower with
much tying down and pruning.

it is better to grow another kind of tree. can completely destroy the crop. (They do also produce
Peaches are self-fertile, so a single tree can be grown. fruits which are initiated and ripen in the same year, but
The soil should be deep and well drained, preferably in our climate these never get enough time to mature.)
a medium to heavy loam. Light soils need to have plenty In most areas they really need to be grown in a
of organic matter added, as well as mulching, to improve greenhouse, but they can fruit successfully outside in
moisture retention. A pH of 6.5 to 7 is preferred, but areas which have mild winters. This means the south
peaches are particularly sensitive to lime, so shallow soils and west of the country, especially in gardens which are
over chalk are not suitable. close to the sea. It helps if a fig is fan-trained against a
Peaches and nectarines start to bear fruit two years wall, and some crop regularly in this situation with no
after planting and should be into full production by year further protection. To make 100% sure of a crop the
five or six. Yields are enormously variable, depending whole plant can be covered with an insulating layer of
on environment, care and size of tree. A rough guide is: straw or hessian through the winter.
If the temperature problem can be overcome figs are
Tree form kg lb easy to grow, needing little attention in other respects.
Fan 9-15 20-30 They are very tolerant of poor soil, as long as it is
Bush 15-27 30-60 well drained. Indeed, in all but the poorest soils their
Standard 15-55 30-120 roots must be restricted, or they will put on masses of
vegetative growth and very little fruit. This can be done
Nectarines yield from half to two thirds of this. by growing the tree in a large pot – which also means the
Successful peach trees can be grown from stones, though tree can be taken indoors for the winter. But more often
they will not be identical to the parent. A stone from an it is done by digging a hole where the fig is to be grown,
early-ripening variety will have most chance of success. filling the bottom with rubble, walling the sides with
The tree will not come into fruit till something like the concrete slabs and refilling with soil. They are tolerant
fourth or seventh year after planting, and the size is likely of a high pH, and can be grown on a thin soil over chalk.
to be similar to grafted trees on Brompton stock. It can Figs can grow to quite a large size, but if necessary
be great fun if you enjoy experimenting with plants. they can be kept small by pruning. A wall space of 2m
high by 3m long is suitable.
Figs (Ficus carica)
Figs are natives of the Middle East. With careful siting Crab Apples (Malus sylvestris)
and some protection from winter cold they can produce The crab is native to Britain, widespread as a wild tree south
fruit in southern Britain. You may feel the extra effort of the river Forth, and occasionally found further north.
is worthwhile for the luxury of tasting their delicious, In gardens crabs are most often grown as ornamentals,
sweet fruit straight from the tree rather than dried and but they also have more practical uses in a forest garden.
imported from the south. Firstly, they can be edible. The most edible variety,
They are extremely vulnerable to winter cold, John Downie, can be eaten raw straight off the tree.
because the fruits are initiated in the autumn and grow to It has pretty, red-striped fruit the size of a plum and the
maturity in their second year. This means there are tender shape of a pear. Many a dessert apple has a sharper
little fruits on the tree through winter and any cold weather taste. But most crabs are much too bitter to eat raw.
 Several years ago we imported the original plants
of these mulberries from America and have been
delighted by their performance over here. They are
fast growing and come into bearing at a very early age,
producing excellent quality, usually seedless, fruit.
Clive Simms3

These hybrids are similar in most respects to the black

mulberry, and what follows can be taken to apply to
both black and hybrid kinds.
The fruits are rather like raspberries or loganberries,
sharp-tasting at first, but sweet when fully ripe. They
Figure 7.3 John Downie crab apple ripen over a relatively long period in August and
September, and are best eaten fresh, but can be picked
Their main food use is in making jam. They are slightly unripe for cooking. They can also be dried and
unusually high in pectin, which is one of the substances ground into a sweet-tasting flour. This flour is a minor
needed to make jam or jelly set. Fruits vary greatly in the staple food in some Asian countries, such as Afghanistan.
amount of pectin they contain, so a few crab apples They are also suitable for free range pig and poultry
are often added to jams made from low-pectin fruits, fodder, because they fall off the tree once they are fully
such as strawberries or blackberries. If you intend mak- ripe, which avoids the need for any human handling
ing much in the way of preserves from the produce of of the crop.
your woodland garden, a crab tree is a good asset.
Secondly, some varieties of crab can be used as a
universal pollinator for apples (see page 81-82). The best
known of the universal pollinators is Golden Hornet.
It is named after the masses of little yellow fruits which
it bears in autumn. These stay on the tree well into win-
ter, and the variety is often grown as an ornamental for
the sake of them.
Thirdly crabs can be used as a hedging plant. They
can make a useful contribution to an edible hedge or
windbreak for a forest garden.
Most varieties grow 3-4 metres tall, and have a
bushy habit of growth. But some, including the two
mentioned here, have a slender, upright habit and can
be fitted into a forest garden without taking up much
space. Trees bought from nurseries are usually grafted
onto one of the usual apple rootstocks. Soil, climate and
microclimate requirements are similar to those for Figure 7.4 Mulberry
cooking apples, as are cultivation techniques.
When selecting a crab variety for a forest garden it is One disadvantage of mulberries as fruit trees is the
better to look in a list prepared for fruit growers rather small size of the fruits, which means more time spent
than one prepared for ornamental gardeners.2 picking than is the case with large fruits like apples.
Picking soft fruit at ground level is one thing, but when
Mulberries (Morus spp.) working from a ladder it is nicer to be able to fill your
The black mulberry (M. nigra) is the species commonly basket relatively quickly.
grown for fruit. It comes from western Asia, and is grown Mulberries are a low-maintenance crop, as they
all over Europe. The white mulberry (M. alba) comes have no disease problems, and no pests other than birds
from China, and though the fruit is edible its main claim which take the ripening fruit. Netting is possible with
to fame is as the food plant of the silkworm, which eats the wall-grown trees, but once the tree is yielding well there
leaves. The North American red mulberry (M. rubra)
does not crop well in Britain, but hybrids of the red and 2
Chris Bowers & Sons have a good list of crabs for fruit growers in
white species have been imported into Britain and are their catalogue.
said to be doing well: 3 See List of Suppliers.
will hopefully be enough for both humans and birds. or fence, including a north-facing one. They reach a
They also need no pruning once the shape of the tree height of around 1.8m.
is established. The true quince comes from central and south-west
Two characteristics make them particularly useful Asia. It is at the northern end of its fruiting range here,
for multi-layer growing: they are tolerant of competition and the fruit does not ripen fully. It can be used for
from other plants in their root space, and are late to making preserves and adding flavour to dishes like apple
come into leaf – though they do cast a moderately dense pie and stewed rabbit. They are probably not worth
shade once in leaf. growing purely for their fruit in a small or medium sized
They are attractive trees, with large, heart-shaped garden, where the space could be taken by something
leaves and a bark which becomes gnarled with age. which produces a more popular and versatile fruit.
They have often been planted as ornamentals. Since the They do have curiosity value, though, and are quite
flowers are wind-pollinated, they do not need shelter at decorative. They make small, spreading, crooked-shaped
flowering time to provide a microclimate for insects. trees, with large flowers rather like a dog rose which
This means they can also be used as a windbreak tree, open in May, large grey/green leaves, and fruits shaped
but some reduction in yield must be expected in this like an apple or pear according to variety, which ripen
situation. to an attractive yellow colour in November. As they are
The flowers are frost hardy, so this is one tree that self-fertile a single tree can be grown.
can take the odd late frost without losing a year’s Quinces are not fussy as to soil, but do like to have
production. They need full Sun for good fruiting. plenty of water at the roots. In fact they are unique
In England and Wales they fruit well as free-standing among temperate climate fruits in actually preferring a
trees, but in Scotland they really need the micro- poorly drained soil. They do well beside a pond or
climate of a south- or west-facing wall. As a wall-trained stream, where they can make an attractive part of
tree they are normally espalier trained. Occasionally the waterside scene. In southern areas they can be
the ripening fruit may be caught by a very early frost. grown in the open. Further north they prefer to be
This makes the fruit unfit for human consumption, but fan-trained up a sunny wall. But this favoured microclimate
they can still be eaten by pigs and poultry. could be put to a more productive use.
A mulberry can cause inconvenience by dropping its They need little pruning, and though they are
dark, staining fruits on washing-lines, patios and garden susceptible to many of the same pests as apples and
seats. For these situations there is a white variety which pears, on the whole they do not need a lot of attention.
does not stain. This is not Morus alba, but a white-fruited Flowering in May, they are not often troubled by
variety of M. nigra, known confusingly as ‘Alba’. late frosts.
Mulberries are tolerant of a wide range of soils with They eventually grow to about 4m height and
a wide range of pH, but ideally they like plenty of water spread when unpruned, though they can be half as big
to the roots and good drainage. again on a favourable soil. They come into fruit in the
They are slow-growing, long-lived trees, eventually third or fourth year, and can live for a hundred years.
reaching a height and spread of 6-9m, though smaller in
the north, with an irregular shape, tending to be upright Medlars (Mespilus germanica)
in habit rather than spreading. They are not trees for Like quinces, medlars are curious, somewhat decorative
small gardens. They are always grown on their own trees. They come from south east Europe and Turkey
roots rather than grafted, and it is comparatively easy and are grown all over Europe. In southern England
to grow a new tree from a cutting. they have naturalised, and can occasionally be found
A single tree can be grown, as all mulberries are growing in hedgerows. They are related to the quince
self-fertile. The black mulberry is slow to come into and the hawthorn, and are usually grafted onto a stock
fruit, taking as much as eight to ten years. It may be of either species.
erratic during the next decade, producing mostly male They have a crooked, rather picturesque form of
flowers in some years and mostly female in others. But growth, sometimes weeping, and the bare branches in
we hear the new hybrids avoid these problems. winter can be quite ornamental. They bear flowers
similar to the quince in May or June, pleasant autumn
Quinces (Cydonia oblonga) leaves, and the most curious-shaped fruit of any edible
The true quince is not to be confused with the oriental tree.They occasionally flower a second time, in August
quinces (Chaenomeles spp.), also known as Japonicas. or September. Though the wild trees are thorny, the
These are normally grown as ornamental shrubs, but do cultivated varieties are usually thornless, or nearly so.
have edible fruit which can be made into jelly. They can Medlars are self-fertile, so a single tree may be
be grown in light shade, free-standing or against a wall grown. They are slow-growing, and may grow to 3.5
 Much more worthwhile as a food plant, although it
is normally grown as an ornamental, is C. arnoldiana
from north-eastern North America. It is a small tree,
eventually growing to 6 or 7m tall, with perhaps half
that spread, and a good length of clean stem before the
first branch. The fruit is like a large cherry, 2cm in
diameter, and has been described as having ‘a delicious
flavour, sweet with a soft juicy flesh’. It can be eaten raw
or cooked. It is ripe in August and yields abundantly,
though no figures are available.
Although it can stand a little shade, it fruits best
in full Sun. It tolerates exposure, pollution and a wide
range of soils, from thin chalky to imperfectly drained.
Altogether it sounds a very promising plant for forest
Figure 7.5 Medlar gardening.
C. schraderana is similar, with silvery foliage.4
or 6m according to soil, situation and variety. They are
not fussy about soil, and need little pruning. They do Siberian Pea Tree (Caragana arborescens)
reasonably well in most parts of Britain, and with This is a small tree, often known as the Siberian pea
their late flowering time they are most unlikely to be shrub. It is a member of the legume family, and as well
caught by frost. The first fruit can be expected from two as fixing nitrogen it has a place as a food producer and
to five years after planting, according to the size of the windbreak tree.
young tree when planted out. The trees are usually grown here as ornamentals,
As they can stand some shade they could be used as on account of their graceful foliage and clusters of
an understorey beneath really tall standards, but they bright yellow flowers, but in Siberia they are used to
would eventually grow too tall for the shrub layer of a produce poultry feed. The little pea-like seeds are edible
normal forest garden unless they were pruned to a low for humans too. The young pods can be cooked like
shape. This would be a shame, as their value is perhaps greens, and the dried seeds, which contain 36% protein,
greater as a decorative plant than as a food producer. can be used like lentils. There is no reason why they
The fruit ripens on the tree in warmer climates, and should not become an important source of food.
it can do so here in a very warm summer such as we They can grow to a height of 6m and a spread of 4m,
might expect once in ten years. But usually we need to let but are usually smaller. Dwarf varieties are available,
them ‘blet’. Bletting is a softening process, almost like including one called Nana. No pruning is necessary.
a partial rotting. The end product has a sweet flavour They are among the toughest of all plants, and can
remarkably like baked apples and custard. They should be used as a hedge or windbreak in very exposed positions,
be picked in late October or early November, while still including on coasts, or even grown in a frost pocket.
hard, and stored for the two or three weeks it takes What they do not like is a mild, wet winter, so they are
them to blet. They are ready to eat when the flesh much more likely to succeed in the eastern parts of
softens and turns brown. If allowed to blet on the tree, Britain than in the west. They are not shade tolerant,
they will usually fall off or be eaten by birds. but only cast a light shade themselves, so they are suitable
They can be eaten raw, with a little sugar and cream, for the canopy layer of a forest garden.
baked whole like apples, or made into jelly. They prefer a dry, alkaline soil and can tolerate both
drought and shallow soils over chalk. They are a good
Hawthorns (Crataegus spp.) choice for poor, marginal soils, but should do well in
The common native hawthorn (C. monogyna) is in fact any soil suitable for fruit trees.
edible: the young leaves can be eaten raw, and the haws
can be made into a jelly. But the leaves are so tiny it Other Trees
takes an age to pick a mouthful, and most forest gardens If the purpose of your forest garden is as much to
produce more than enough fruit for making preserves. attract wildlife and please the eye as to produce food,
It is best used as a hedgerow plant. there is no reason why every tree should have an edible
The azerole (C. azarolus) is a hawthorn from the product. There are a number of attractive native trees
Mediterranean which has been grown as a food plant. which can be included. Ideally they should be small trees,
The haws are much plumper, like a tiny red apple, and can
4
be eaten straight off the tree, though they are rather dry. Both are available from Thornhayes Nursery. See List of Suppliers.
ones which cast a light shade and are not too competitive. Making birch sap wine sounds like fun. But it is probably
The two native birches fulfil these requirements. not worth including a birch just for the sake of producing
Usually a small to medium tree of slender habit, they the wine – your forest gardener is not exactly short of
cast a light shade and can be beneficial to neighbouring material for making home-made wine! Although small
plants because they improve the soil with their leaf-fall. when compared to oaks and ashes, a mature birch would
They will grow in almost any soil or climate, with the take up a large proportion of the space available in most
single exception of salty winds. They are beautiful at gardens. But it can be coppiced when it starts to get too
all times of the year, especially the semi-weeping silver big, and if you choose you can single the regrowth to
birch. In winter both kinds give life to an otherwise one stem after a couple of years.
grey-brown landscape with their beautiful bark. Birch Bird cherry is another hardy native, considerably
is also one of the best trees for wildlife, and supports smaller than the birches. It is found in the wild mainly
many kinds of fungi. It also has an edible, or rather in Scotland, Wales and the north of England. The fruit
drinkable, product – birch sap wine. is not edible to humans, though birds like it, but they
are very attractive trees and cast only a light shade.
They produce suckers, but as with all suckering trees,
a real mass of suckers is only likely when apical domi-
MAKING BIRCH SAP WINE nance is interfered with by the tree being cut down,
pruned at the apex or damaged, or by root damage,
For just three to four weeks each and every year which can be caused by too many feet.
in March or April the sap rises up the trunks of The native maple, or field maple, is another small
the trees. Precisely when this happens is clearly tree and it has the advantage to the landscaper of growing
temperature dependent. A warm winter will bring fast to begin with and then slowing down. They can be
forward the flow. Frost will cut it dead. It starts very beautiful in the autumn, their lemon yellow or
as suddenly as it stops and the tree gives no gold leaves providing contrast with the vivid reds of
warning. So it is that the Moniack Castle folk, on cherry leaves. In Britain they only grow wild in the
whose livelihood it all depends, make sure they have lowland areas of England and Wales, and prefer neutral
set up their taps in the surrounding birchwoods to alkaline soils. They cast a moderate shade. Although
during mid-February. To miss the flow would mean it is possible to make maple syrup from the sap, it is so
to miss a year’s production... dilute that the amount of energy needed to drive off the
The taps are hand drilled just into the area water to concentrate the syrup is too great to make this
under the bark about an inch in depth and about worthwhile.
the same width. Tubes in a cork plug the hole A tree which has an edible fruit, Figure 7.6
and down flows the sap into a five gallon drum. but which is probably not worth
When full, it is carted back to the castle, simple growing as a serious food plant,
as that. Occasionally a tree will produce 5 gallons is the wild service or chequer
in 24 hours. A more average figure is 2 gallons (Sorbus torminalis), which is
for the whole flow of one tree. The hole is native to England and Wales,
carefully plugged after use and painted with though rare outside south-east
‘Arborex’. No ill effects have ever been observed England. They are beautiful trees,
from the operation but no single tree is tapped in with white blossom in late May
consecutive years. and June, and unusually-shaped
The precious liquid is fermented in drums at palmate leaves (see Figure 7.6 right)
72 degrees Fahrenheit for four to five weeks without which may turn deep red in the autumn.
the addition of any water. Just yeast and sugar They can reach a height of 15m when mature,
and birch sap. The bottled wine is dry and slightly but are often smaller, and they are slow growing.
woody and most importantly (for some of us) They tolerate shade, but flower and fruit best in a
is said to cure baldness. relatively light position. In the wild they favour clay soils,
but will grow well on most kinds, and they are tolerant
Bernard Planterose, from ‘Fruits of the Highland of coastal conditions.
Forest’ in Reforesting Scotland, No. 9, Autumn The fruits are round or oval, about the size of
1993. small cherries, and appear in September. Like medlars,
they need to be bletted. Richard Mabey 5 says they
then become very sweet. “The taste is unlike anything
5
Food for Free, see Further Reading. else which grows wild in this country, with hints
of damson, prune, apricot, sultana and tamarind.” at the same time as we feed ourselves and the local
He gives a recipe from a Kentish pub which used to wildlife. There are many trees of great beauty in these
serve ‘chequerberry beer’: two groups.
Competitive trees to be avoided include poplars,
Pick off in bunches in October. Hang on a string willows and ash. Ash may at first seem compatible with
like onions (look like a swarm of bees). Hang till smaller trees because it comes into leaf late and then
ripe. Cut off close to berries. Put them in stone or only casts a light shade, but it has a voracious appetite
glass jars. Put sugar on – 1lb to 5lb of berries. for nutrients. Like a cuckoo in the nest, it will take the
Shake up well. Keep airtight until juice comes to bulk of the plant food intended for the fruit trees and
the top. The longer kept the better. Can add brandy. leave them short. Poplars and willows are thirsty, and
Drink. Then eat berries! will out-compete other trees for water, especially in
summer when a good supply of moisture to the roots
Personally I cannot see much reason for including trees is needed for fruit development. If any of these trees
that are neither edible nor native. By planting edibles should self-seed into a forest garden it is a good idea to
and natives we can meet our needs for visual pleasure remove them.

NEIGHBOURING TREES

Oak, beech and lime are three trees which are far worthwhile contribution to a meal. But they can be
too big even to consider planting in a forest garden. pressed to yield an edible oil of very high quality:
But if they are growing nearby we can harvest some
food from them. [The mast] should be gathered as early as
We do not normally think of oak as a food tree, possible, before the squirrels have taken it,
at least not for human food – most people are aware and before it has had a chance to dry out. The
of the ancient practice of feeding pigs on fallen acorns. three-faced nuts should be cleaned of any
The main drawback of acorns is their high tannin remaining husks, dirt or leaves and then
content, which makes them bitter and probably ground, shells and all, in a small oil-mill.
rather bad for the digestion. But the tannin can eas- (For those with patience, a mincing machine
ily be leached out by following this simple method: or a strong blender should work as well.) The
resulting pulp should be put inside a fine
Pick the acorns and dry them. De-husk and muslin bag and then in a press or under a
grind them. (A coffee mill or blender will do.) heavy weight to extract the oil... Every pound
Put the acorn flour in a bag and pour boiling of nuts yields as much as three fluid ozs
water over it. Mix the resultant paste half and (85ml) of oil. The oil itself is rich in fats and
half with wheat flour, and use the mix instead proteins, and provided it is stored in well-
of pure wheat flour in any recipe for bread. sealed containers, will keep fresh considerably
The result is a rich, dark bread with a deli- longer than many other vegetable fats.
cious nutty flavour. Richard Mabey, Food for Free.5

Oaks tend not to produce acorns every year. Some The leaves of beech are also edible when they first
individual trees are more regular producers than others, come out in spring. They have a soft texture and a
but a good acorn year only comes once every two to mild taste and make a good salad vegetable.
four years, or even less often if there is a succession Lime leaves are softer and tastier than beech, and
of poor seasons. The good years are called mast years, stay edible further into the season. Richard Mabey
mast being a general name for the seed of large trees. says they make a good sandwich filling when picked
Beech mast years are even less frequent, occurring in high summer. The flowers, which are out in June
at intervals of anything from four to fifteen years, and July, can be dried for lime flower tea. In terms of
though more regularly in the extreme south, the only sheer bulk, the lime is the foremost bee fodder plant
part of Britain where beech is truly native. The nuts that grows in Britain – though a mixture of fodder
are really too tiny to be worth the labour of shelling. plants is needed to give bees a continuous supply of
It would take hours of work to get enough to make a food throughout the spring and summer.
 THE DOUBTFUL ONES and has long been grown all over Europe for its nuts.
The black walnut (J. nigra) is a North American tree,
Chestnuts and walnuts are valuable food-producing which is hardier, faster growing and bigger, but its
trees, but unfortunately they are too big for most nuts are not so well flavoured. It is rarely grown in
gardens – especially chestnuts. Some of the other trees Britain. Some confusion can arise when reading American
in this section are even more marginal in our climate books, as in America ‘walnut’ can mean J. nigra, while
than figs and peaches, but may be considered in very In Britain it invariably means J. regia, as it does in
favourable situations. At the other extreme, rowan and this book.
whitebeam should only be considered as fruit trees in Common walnuts can reach 10m height and spread
places where most other fruits will not grow. But they at 20 years, and 20-30m height by 12-18m spread
all have their uses, and all deserve a mention, even if eventually. The recommended spacing in orchards is
only to note why they are not more widely applicable 10m x10m, and at least two trees are recommended for
in forest gardening. good pollination.
They are also allelopathic, the black walnut extremely
Chestnuts (Castanea spp.) so and the common only mildly. Apples are particularly
Although the sweet, or Spanish, chestnut (C. sativa) badly affected, pears and plums hardly at all. But apples
grows in the woods of south England and reproduces coexist quite happily with common walnuts in tradi-
freely, it is not a native. Its home is on the shores of tional English orchards. Since the common walnut is
the Mediterranean, and it was first brought here in the best one to grow for nut production, allelopathy
Roman times. The Chinese chestnut (C. mollissima) should not be too much of a problem. Though whether
is cultivated in North America, though not so far one would want to introduce a large allelopath like this,
available over here. However a hybrid of the sweet, however mild, into a diverse polyculture like a forest
Chinese and Japanese chestnuts (C. crenata), bred in garden is doubtful.
North America, is now available in Britain. Ideally they like the same soil as apples, but are not
Sweet chestnuts may reach a height and spread of fussy as long as it is well drained, and they can do well in
10m in twenty years, and eventually grow to 20 or a shallow soil over chalk. Frost is the great enemy. Young
30m. Trees on dwarfing rootstocks may be available in trees can be killed by it, as can the flowers, which come
the near future,6 but even these will presumably be large out in April and May. Full Sun and a warm, sheltered
trees by garden standards. As they are self-infertile microclimate are essential. Given that, common walnuts
more than one tree is needed for pollination, though can produce nuts as far north as South Yorkshire, the
it is possible to buy trees with a pollinating branch black walnut probably further north.
grafted onto a fruiting variety.6 They also cast a very Never buy a tree described simply as ‘common walnut’
heavy shade, and so do not lend themselves to mul- or ‘Juglans regia’ it will be one of the old English trees,
ti-layer planting. which take a decade or more to come into bearing and
They like a light, acid soil, and cannot stand poor then yield very little. The standard modern varieties
drainage. They yield best in south-east England, though are Buccaneer, Broadview and Franquette. They can
not every year, but will bear nuts all over the south and bear as early as two years after planting, if pollen is
Midlands, and less often further north and west. Severe available from an older tree nearby, and typical yields
frosts may damage young trees, but frost at flowering are as follows:
time is not a problem as they flower in July.
Unlike most other nuts, chestnuts are mainly Age of Tree kg lb
composed of carbohydrate. They typically have a 3-5 years 5 10
protein content of around 10%, which is similar to 10-15 50 110
that of grains. There is no good reason why they should 20, full production 75 165
not one day take the place of much of the grain we
presently eat.
Nutwood Nurseries are now offering a range of
Walnuts (Juglans spp.) varieties and seedlings from North America and eastern
The walnut we are familiar with here in Britain is the Europe which have been selected for cooler climates.
common, Persian or English walnut (J. regia). It is native These may well be worth trying.
to China, the Himalayas, Iran and south-east Europe, The flavour of home grown fresh or air-dried nuts is
far superior to imported kiln dried ones. The common
walnut has a protein content of around 18%, and the
6
From Nutwood Nurseries. See List of Suppliers. black walnut around 30%.
Other Nuts in south-east England, but certainly need covering at
Three other members of the walnut family are night during the flowering season. They also like a
available in Britain They are: the heartnut (J. ailantifolia limey soil, with a pH between 6.5 and 8, so they can
cordiformis) from Japan, the butternut or white walnut be grown on the shallow chalky soils found in parts of
(J. cinerea) from North America, and the buartnut, a south England.
hybrid of these two. A fan trained tree on St Julien A may reach a height
These trees are similar in size to the true walnuts, of 2.5m and a spread of 4.5m. A bush – which may be
and said to be hardier than the common walnut, with feasible in very warm areas – has a spread of 4.5 to 6m.
better flavoured nuts. Presumably they have a degree of
allelopathy. Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia)
Almonds are closely related to peaches, and their The rowan is the hardiest of all our native trees. In
requirements and growth are more or less the same. Scotland they grow on mountainsides at over 1,000m,
The two species grown for nuts are the sweet almond which is higher than any other native tree. In south-
(Prunus dulcis) and the bitter almond (P. amygdalus east Britain they are rare as natives, but often planted
amara). There are some almond species grown purely as ornamentals.
for their ornamental value, and many of these have A sharp-tasting jelly can be made from the fruits of
edible nuts. In fact the sweet and bitter almonds wild rowans. But the sub-species S. aucuparia edulis,
themselves are more often grown for their blossom the sweet rowan, is more edible. It makes a sweeter
than for their nuts in this country. They blossom in preserve, but is still too sharp to be eaten raw.
March or even February, and though they seem to have Rowans tolerate all kinds of soil and climatic
some ability to avoid flowering during frosty spells, conditions, but do not tolerate shade. They may be
cropping on unprotected trees is inevitably erratic. worth growing for their fruit in a forest garden in an
Some people suggest that it may be a good idea extremely cold site where little else will do well, but in
to plant a few almonds and other heat-loving trees most areas they are more use as a windbreak tree, for
in anticipation of global warming caused by the their ornamental value, or possibly as a decoy to draw
greenhouse effect. This is not a safe bet. Climate thrushes away from other fruits.
change due to the greenhouse effect is unlikely to be
anything as simple as a general rise in temperatures over Whitebeam (Sorbus aria)
the whole planet. It will certainly destabilise many of Whitebeams are large shrubs or small trees. They are
the systems which we are used to, and the effects of rare natives over most of Britain, found most frequently
this are impossible to predict with any certainty. on limestone or chalk in southern England. They will
One possibility is that the Gulf Stream (or rather its grow on less alkaline soils and in more northerly
offshoot, the North Atlantic Drift) could change locations if planted there. They are light-demanding
course. This ocean current is what keeps our climate so and cast a fairly heavy shade, so they are not really suit-
mild for its latitude. If it no longer washed our shores able for either the shrub layer or the tree layer of a
our climate could become more like that of Norway. forest garden, but they are one of the fruits which can
Not very good for an almond! be grown on a shallow soil over chalk.
The fruit varies from tree to tree. I have eaten quite
Apricots (Prunus armeniaca) pleasant ones straight off the tree in July, although
Apricots, like peaches, come originally from China, received wisdom is that they need to be bletted. They
despite the Latin name suggesting Armenia, and their are often planted as ornamentals. The undersides of the
climate requirements are similar to those of peaches. leaves are covered in white hairs, and when the wind
But they flower even earlier – usually in March or blows the flashing alternation of green above and white
April, and occasionally in February. They will grow below makes the foliage dance.
 Chapter 8

THE SHRUBS

THE OBVIOUS ONES Hazels (Corylus spp.)

The native hazel, C. avellana, is found almost everywhere
These are the hazels and all the commonly grown in Britain, as well as throughout Europe, west Asia and
soft fruit, including bush and cane fruits. parts of north Africa. Its cultivated forms are known as
The temperate world has a great range of shrub cob nuts. The filbert, C. maxima, is not native this far
species with edible fruits, many of which may be just north, but grows here under cultivation as successfully
as useful to us as the few kinds that we commonly grow as the cob. All information given here applies equally
now. But the very fact that these plants are commonly to both kinds.
grown gives them some advantages: The thing that distinguishes the two hazels from
each other is the husk, which in the cob covers part of
the nut and in the filbert covers all of it. The name
• a great deal of knowledge about how to grow them
filbert probably derives from ‘full beard’, after its long
has been accumulated over the years, and is readily
husk. Rather confusingly, one of the most commonly
available;
grown varieties, the Kentish Cob, is in fact a filbert.
• there is a greater choice of varieties, both to fit individual Equally confusing, in North America cobs are known
situations and to give a succession of fruit through as filberts and filberts as giant filberts.
the picking season; Cobs and filberts used to be grown on a fairly large
• well-grown planting material is readily available, scale in Kent, often interplanted with vegetable crops.
whereas some less common kinds are only available But the 3,000ha recorded in 1913 have now dwindled
as seed or as expensive specimen plants; to some 150ha, though the area is steadily increasing
once more. The decline has been due to competition
• also, they are generally smaller than the lesser known from imports, which can be sold at half the price of
kinds and so are easier to fit into a small forest garden home-grown nuts. Much of the imports come from
under moderately dwarf trees. Turkey, and it may be the lower cost of labour for
pruning and picking as much as the difference in climate
Hazels and soft fruit are both much less sensitive to cold which gives the imports their competitive edge.
than the great majority of top fruits. Witness the fact Hazels do well in all parts of Britain, though they do
that they can be found growing wild all over Britain, need a certain amount of shelter in order to yield well.
and the centre of commercial cane fruit growing is in Flowering time for the cultivated varieties is usually in
central Scotland. late January and February. Although the wind-pollinated
A disadvantage of soft fruit is that they are all to flowers are fairly hardy, they are sensitive to very wet
varying degrees popular with birds. When soft fruit is and windy weather and to severe frosts. But any site
grown on a field scale this is not too serious, because the which is good enough for top fruit will be more than
local bird population cannot make much of a dent in good enough for hazels.
such a big concentration of berries. But a small number Hazels can tolerate partial shade. My own observa-
of bushes in a garden is another matter. If they are not tions of wild hazels growing in woods suggest that if
netted there are always heavy losses to birds. What to they get no significant light from the side they need to
do about it in a forest garden is discussed below under be exposed to at least half the day’s direct sunlight in
Red and White Currants. order to yield a moderate crop. If they get good indirect
light from one side they can give the same yield on a
couple of hours’ direct sunlight. This is suggested by
hazels in hedgerows and on woodland edges, which can
yield quite well despite being entirely under the canopy
of a vigorous oak. The nuts do all tend to be on the
lightward side of the bush, but no doubt the shade side
could be induced to contribute by judicious pruning
of both tree and shrub.
The hazels are not fussy about soil, as long as it is
well drained. In fact they do not yield their best on very
rich soils, because too much fertility encourages vegeta- Figure 8.1 Layering
tive growth rather than nuts. The ideal is a light sandy
loam of moderate fertility with a pH between 6.7 and 7.5. They are traditionally pruned to a shape like a
Liming is beneficial on soils more acid than this, and wide, shallow bowl, not unlike the bush form of
they do particularly well on chalk and limestone soils. fruit trees but wider in relation to its height, typically
Cobs and filberts are always grown on their own roots. 4.5m wide by 1.5m high, but sometimes as much as
In fact it is quite easy to propagate them, either by tak- 6m x 2m. 4.5m is the normal spacing in nut orchards,
ing a sucker from an existing tree in autumn or by layer- or plats as they are known. This shape is quite unlike
ing in spring. Layering is pegging a young branch down the natural shape of a woodland hazel, which is much
into the ground, where it takes root. Once established it more upright, and it takes a good deal of pruning to
is cut away from the parent to make a new plant. form it and maintain it. But it has two great advantages:

GREY SQUIRRELS AND HAZELS

The only serious pests of hazels in this country are from woodland may be stripped in some years and
grey squirrels. They impose more of a limit on where untouched in others, whereas hazels 200m from
hazels can be grown than any other factor, such as woodland or other mature trees are safe in any year.
climate or soil. These observations must be taken as indications
Since squirrels only live where there are plenty of only. Things like this vary widely from place to place,
large trees, the amount of squirrel damage is closely and there is no substitute for local knowledge and
related to the local vegetation. Where a garden adjoins experience. Other factors, like the presence of cats
mature woodland with a high population of squirrels and dogs, can affect the distance of open ground
every nut will be stripped from every bush in August, that squirrels feel safe about crossing.
long before they are ripe. In many urban and suburban There is very little that can be done about squirrels.
areas dating from the last century there are now almost It may be possible to fan train hazels against a wall
as many mature trees as there are in a woodland, and and securely net them with galvanised wire, but I
at least as many squirrels. If you regularly see squirrels do not know of anyone doing this successfully. You
in your garden you can expect them to take all of can pick the nuts when they are immature, in early
any hazelnuts which might be grown there. August, and pickle them, but this is a meagre and
Squirrels like to travel around by jumping from unappetising harvest. It would not be worth
tree to tree, and are reluctant to cross open ground. planting bushes for it, though it is a way of getting
So if your hazel bushes are separated from big trees some yield from existing ones. Where grey squirrels
by a stretch of treeless ground the damage is less are abundant there is really no alternative but to
intensive. In some years the squirrels may strip them, give hazels a miss.
but more often they will take a proportion of the All this only applies to grey squirrels. If you are
nuts as they ripen through September and October, fortunate enough to live in one of the remaining
and in some years they will leave them alone. areas where the native red squirrels survive then you
How often they cause serious damage depends on can certainly grow hazels. Grey squirrels are an
a combination of two factors: how much other food introduced species, from North America, and a good
is available that year, and the distance of open ground. example of the havoc which can be wrought by the
My own experience suggest that hazels around 50m careless introduction of exotic plants and animals.
it makes the whole bush easy to get at, and it allows Hazels also contribute great beauty to a garden,
hazels to be fitted under standard trees. especially at the time of year when things are at
It makes a wide plant, though, and if two or their drabbest. A hazel bush in midwinter, delicate, cup
three varieties are grown, as recommended for good shaped and gracefully hung with yellow catkins, is a
pollination, they will need a big garden to fit into and sight of exquisite beauty. I have often been stopped in
the trees above them will need to be full standards. my tracks with wonder when coming upon one unex-
There is one compact variety available, Pearson’s pectedly in the woods. What better sight could there be
Prolific, or the Nottingham Cob. This has a spread of from the kitchen window to cheer us up and to remind
around 3m and could probably be grown under half us that, for one plant at least, spring is already here?
standards. It is a popular variety, and a good pollinator. Some old gardens may have an existing wild hazel
Two other varieties, the White Filbert and Ennis are in them, and this is usually worth keeping if it does
variously described as ‘dwarf ’ and ‘vigorous’, which not take up too much room. The yield of nuts will be
sounds contradictory and does not inspire confidence smaller and less regular than from cultivated varieties,
in their compactness. Where there is only room for one and the nuts themselves will be smaller. But it will also
hazel, a family tree is possible. act as a pollinator to most cultivated varieties, as long
In small gardens hazels could be grown in the as it is within about 45m of the forest garden. In addition
canopy layer, pruned into a more upright shape. But it will throw out the occasional straight sticks, known as
they do cast a rather heavy shade, and although this Sun shoots, which can be used for bean poles, broom
can be lessened by pruning, it would be hard to grow a handles and so on.
shrub layer beneath them. They can be left unpruned,
but the yield will be lower and they will form a dense
bushy mass, filling all three layers and casting a heavy
Bush Fruit (Ribes spp.)
shade. Fan trained hazels are possible, but this is not Gooseberries (Ribes uva-crispa)
commonly done. Gooseberries are native to many of the cooler parts of
Hazels come into leaf later than most shrubs; Europe. Whether Britain is part of their native range is
the leaves are not fully expanded till some time in late hard to say, but they are often found growing wild, and
April or early May. So although they cast a fairly heavy are locally common in hedges in some parts of northern
shade once they are leafed, winter-growing greens England.
such as ramsons and winter purslane can be grown Gooseberries are particularly suitable for a forest
beneath them. garden, because they can stand rather more shade than
The first nuts can be expected in the second year blackcurrants, and are not such favourites with the
after planting, but full yield may not be reached for ten birds as red and white currants. They need at least some
or even fifteen years. Yields are very erratic from year direct Sun each day, or good indirect light for most of
to year, averaging about 5kg (10lb) per full sized bush the day, and they will ripen earlier and develop better
with 10kg (25lb) in a good year. flavoured fruit in a more sunny position. They can be
This may seem like a rather low yield for such a big grown on a north facing wall. A particularly shade
plant. In fact, on a per hectare basis it compares well tolerant variety is Winham’s Industry.
with the dry weight of other high protein crops, such as They are not fussy about the soil, as long as it is
beans. If this level of yield can be achieved where there reasonably well drained and not too limey or too acid,
is also a yield of tree fruit above and vegetables below, a pH of around 6.7 being ideal. They are susceptible
it comes up to the high levels we expect to get from to potash deficiency, and if the soil is known to have
an intensive garden. When comparing the yield of nuts a low potash level it should be corrected before
with that of fruit it must be remembered that most of planting them.
the weight of fruit is water. As a rule of thumb, a pound They are prone to mildew, and especially so in the
of unshelled nuts has at least three times the dry weight very sheltered conditions of a forest garden. But there
of food as a pound of fresh fruit. It is rich food, too, are varieties which are resistant to mildew, and these
high in oils and protein. are best for forest gardening unless there are pressing
Whatever the quantity of food, the taste of fresh- reasons for choosing another. They are more suscep-
cracked home-grown nuts is so much better than the tible to mildew if the soil becomes dry, so mulching is
dry, woody imported ones that you would hardly think especially important for gooseberries.
you were eating the same thing. It is worth growing They blossom early, in late April or early May, but
your own hazels simply to discover what a nut really the flowers are somewhat frost resistant. The amount
tastes like. An added bonus is the leaf litter, which is of shelter they get in a forest garden should be enough
unusually high in plant nutrients. to protect them from frost without the need for any
other protective measures, unless the garden is in a Worcesterberries (Ribes divaricatum)
frost pocket. They are a bit more tolerant of wind than These used to be thought of as a hybrid between
other soft fruits, and can even be used as a hedging gooseberries and blackcurrants, but are now generally
plant, giving a bit of ‘bottom’ to a mixed hedge, but accepted to be a form of the North American species
they cannot be expected to fruit reliably in an exposed R. divaricatum.
situation. Cold winds at flowering time will mean no They can be seen as a low-input/low-output version
crop at all that year, and any fruit from gooseberries in of the gooseberry. Hardy, disease-resistant, more vigor-
a hedge should be considered a bonus rather than being ous and bigger than gooseberry bushes, they produce
relied upon. lower yields of fruit, and that is only good for cooking
They are the earliest ripening of all the commonly and jam. They are an obvious choice where low main-
grown fruits. Towards the end of May the earliest tenance is more of a priority than high yield, or for an
cookers are ready, together with thinnings from the edible hedge.
early eating varieties, which can also be used for
cooking. If a mixture of varieties is planted the season Red and White Currants (Ribes rubrum and R. spicatum)
goes on till August. These are not two separate species, but the white is a
They are usually grown as a bush, though cordons, sport or mutation of the red. They have been bred from
fans and even standards are not unknown. As a bush strains of the two closely related Ribes species, both of
they can make a plant of 1.5m height and spread which grow wild in Britain, though there is some debate
when grown in the open, though they are often smaller about whether either is native. In the wild they mainly
than this. If grown in a shady position they tend to grow grow in woods.
up towards the light, and so adopt a taller, narrower Their soil and microclimate requirements are the
form. Cordons should be spaced 40 cm apart, while a same as those of gooseberries, except that, like most soft
fan may cover a wall space of 2 x 2m. The standard, fruit, they are more sensitive to wind, and should not
which has a clean stem of about 1m, (see Figure 8.2) be planted in exposed positions. They have the same
may be a good form to grow above a flourishing vege- shade tolerance.
table layer. But they are more delicate than bushes, and Unfortunately their fruit is more favoured by birds
may not be vigorous enough to stand the competition than any other commonly grown soft fruit. Netting is
from the vegetables. difficult in a forest garden. Unless the garden resembles
A well-grown bush should yield about 4kg (9lb). pattern A (see pages 27-28), the only way to do it would
Gooseberries are remarkably long lived. They often be to net each bush individually. Though this could be
go on giving good yields for 25 years, and Robert Hart done quite effectively to protect the buds in winter
has one which is still fruiting after more than 30 years and the blossom from frost in spring, it would be difficult
– which is about the lifetime of an apple on a very in summer when there are vegetables and herbs growing
dwarfing rootstock. up all around the bushes.
Robert Hart’s solution is to allow the nettles to grow
up through them. The nettles get to their maximum
height when the fruit is ripening and help to conceal it
from the birds. Just before picking time the nettles can
be cut down with a sickle and added to the compost
heap or used for mulch, leaving the fruit exposed to the
human eye and hand.
The method is not totally effective, and shading by
the nettles can interfere with ripening. But it is a low-input
approach, making use of a resource which is growing
there of its own accord, with no extra effort needed on
the part of the gardener. It is a way of working with
nature, seeing nettles as a helping hand rather than as a
problem, and not demanding that we harvest every single
berry for ourselves.
Red and white currants are normally grown as a
bush, but occasionally as cordons or fans to make use of
a north-facing wall. This versatility of form is possible
because red and white currants, like gooseberries, grow
Figure 8.2 Perennial vegetables under standard gooseberry from a single stem, whereas blackcurrants are always
 they would be most useful for forest gardening. High
yields and many other benefits are also claimed for these
new varieties.1
One thing blackcurrants do tolerate is a soil which
is less than perfectly drained. They prefer a well-
drained soil, but they are the obvious first choice for
a garden where a soil drainage problem restricts what
can be grown. They like a soil which retains moisture
well, and light soils need to have organic matter
Figure 8.3 Red currant and blackcurrant added to improve moisture retention. A pH of around
6.5 is ideal.
grown from a multi-stemmed stool (see Figure 8.3). Like all soft fruit, they are eaten by birds, but not as
Another advantage of the single-stemmed habit is that much as red and white currants, which are often taken
it allows for the bush to be grown on a slightly longer in preference where both are grown together.
‘leg’, to leave more room for a vegetable layer underneath. They are grown as a multi-stemmed bush, because
Size and spacing are similar to gooseberries, that is: they fruit best on young wood, and this form encourages
bushes to 1.5m high and wide, though often smaller, new shoots to be produced each year. They are very
cordons 40cm apart and fans 2m x 2m. Standards are easy to grow from cuttings, which can be taken in the
not grown. first summer after planting. So you can save a good deal
The fruiting season is in July and August. A well- of money by buying fewer plants than you need and
grown bush should yield at least 4kg (9lb) and a cordon bulking them up yourself. Only certified virus-free
1kg (2.5lb). Plants should go on yielding well for at stock should be used for cuttings.
least ten years. Although they are usually used for pies, The bushes can be as much as 1.5-1.8m in height
preserves, juice or wine, the fruit can be eaten raw, and spread, but may be much smaller according to
perhaps with a sprinkling of sugar or honey. variety and situation. They should yield around 4kg (9lb)
each. The season is late July and August, and each vari-
Blackcurrants (Ribes nigrum) ety may be ripe over some three weeks. Blackcurrants
The native range of blackcurrants stretches from central often go on bearing for a dozen years or more.
Europe into Asia, from Scandinavia to the Himalayas.
Although they grow wild in Britain, usually in damp
Cane Fruit (Rubus spp.)
woody places, they are probably not native.
Blackcurrants are usually more popular than red or Raspberries (Rubus idaeus)
white currants because they are that bit sweeter and so Wild raspberries grow all over Britain, including the
that bit better for eating raw. They also contain the Scottish Highlands, often beside running water. The little
highest levels of vitamin C of any commonly grown fruits are quite pleasant to eat raw, unlike the rather
fruit, and an added attraction is the fragrance of their sour offerings of wild currants. They are native from
leaves – which are also said to be edible. But they are Scandinavia to central Asia.
less shade tolerant than the other bush fruits, unable Raspberries are usually grown in a row, supported
to manage without full Sun for more than half the day, by wires, making something like a hedge. They will
and this makes them slightly less suitable for forest often fit neatly into odd strips of land, such as that left
gardening. between a path and the garden fence. When several rows
Traditional varieties of blackcurrants flower as are grown together they are normally spaced as much
early as gooseberries but the flowers are not as hardy, as 1.5m apart to allow space for picking, but a row can
so they are particularly vulnerable to spring frosts. They fit quite well into a strip of soil 60cm wide beside an
should never be planted where late frosts are common existing path. They can grow as tall as 2m, but are often
unless you are prepared to cover them during the night shorter, around 1.5m. They can spread by suckering,
at blossom time. and even become quite invasive.
However, a range of new frost-resistant varieties The root system of raspberries is perennial but the
is now available. Some of these flower later, others canes only live for one or two years. In the summer fruiting
have greater tolerance of cold. Whether the latter are raspberries, the canes live for two years, fruiting in their
also more tolerant of shade is not known, but if so second year and then dying. In the autumn fruiting
varieties the canes fruit in their first and only year.
1
For an enthusiastic description of these varieties see the catalogue The summer fruiting kind are more reliable in cooler
of Chris Bowers & Sons. areas, where autumn fruiting ones may not get time to
ripen fully. But the autumn fruiting kind may do gardens. They are normally grown along a fence, and
better in dry areas where summer droughts are possible, one plant takes up anything from 3 to 4.5m of fence,
and they are not usually eaten by birds. They are also according to variety and pruning style. Pruning cannot
easier to prune: you simply cut the lot down when they be neglected, or the blackberry will take over. If more
have finished fruiting, whereas with summer-fruiting than one row is grown, a spacing of 1.8m between rows
raspberries you need to cut out the two-year-old canes is recommended, but if grown against a boundary fence
and leave the one-year-old ones. they can be restricted to half that width, depending on
As they flower late in the spring, raspberries avoid variety. The compact varieties may take up something
problems with frost. But, like almost all soft fruit, they like two thirds as much space.
do need protection from wind. They need a minimum It might be feasible for blackberries to be grown
of half a day’s full Sun, and it is recommended not to without support under the trees of a forest garden. But
plant them directly under trees because they do not like this would only work in a large-scale garden where
being dripped upon. Autumn fruiting varieties need a there is plenty of space. Regular pruning would be es-
sunnier position than summer fruiting, as they are sential to prevent them taking over altogether, and they
ripening when the sunlight is becoming weaker. need to be carefully placed so as not to make it hard to
They prefer a slightly acid soil, around pH6.6, and get at the trees. No vegetable layer would be possible
are more prone to chlorosis in very limey soils than any directly under them. On the whole they are best suited
other commonly grown fruit. They need both good to boundary fences and the like.
drainage and good moisture retention, so organic Blackberries are only partly deciduous – it varies
matter should be dug in before planting, especially on according to the variety and the severity of the winter.
lighter soils. Heavy mulching is also recommended. But when they are trained to a fence or wall it is quite
Yields are around 2-3kg (4-7lb) per metre of row. possible to grow perennial vegetables around the base
Traditional autumn fruiting varieties yield much less, of them, especially when they border a path.
but the popular variety Autumn Bliss yields about the They yield quite well in half shade. They are tolerant
same. With a mixture of varieties it is possible to have of a wide range of soils, even slightly impeded drainage,
fresh raspberries from June till the first frost of autumn. and are particularly useful on dry soils. They are very
If there is any surplus, it makes good jam, pies and so hardy, and avoid frost by late flowering. If your only
on. Canes start bearing reasonably well in their second possible site for a forest garden is in a frost pocket, then
year, and give a full crop in their third. After 12 years blackberries, together with the hybrid berries, are your
yields start to decline due to virus infections. It is always best choice among the commonly grown fruits.
worthwhile to plant virus free stock as raspberries are A yield of 5-15kg (10-30lb) per plant can be expected,
very susceptible to virus diseases, but it is impossible to depending on variety and the size of the plant. They can
prevent the infection slowly coming in as the years go by. yield heavy crops for 15 to 20 years.

Blackberries or Bramble (Rubus fruticosus agg.) Hybrid Berries (Rubus x)

Undoubtedly native, found all over Britain, the rest of These are similar to blackberries, but more suitable for
Europe and the Mediterranean region, blackberries are medium-sized and smaller gardens.
surely our most popular wild fruit. They are perhaps the Hybrid is rather a loose term in this context. Most
only one whose wild varieties are usually sweeter and of them are indeed hybrids between different Rubus
tastier than the cultivated ones. They are a very variable species, usually blackberries and raspberries, but some
plant, and some 2,000 microspecies have been identified of the plants listed under hybrid berries in nursery
worldwide, of which almost 400 grow in Britain. catalogues are species in their own right. Hybrids are
Wild varieties are not usually recommended for often named after the place where they were first
gardens because they are not reliable yielders. But with bred, or the person responsible. Loganberries have
such wide genetic variation it should be possible to find been with us since they were discovered by Judge James
some wild strains which are more reliable than others. H. Logan of California in 1881, and since then a whole
If you know a particularly delicious and productive array of different crosses have been bred: Veitchberry,
wild bush it is easy to propagate it in your garden from Boysenberry, Kings’ Acre berry, Tayberry and so on.
a stem cutting. But they are big rampant plants and only Each is slightly different in fruit, growth habit,
really suitable for large gardens. hardiness, taste, time of ripening and length of fruiting
Some of the cultivated varieties are thornless and some season. But basically they are all closer to the blackberry
are less vigorous, but on the whole their taste is weak than to any other fruit. On the whole they are smaller,
and insipid, especially the thornless ones. Even these and less rampant. They are also somewhat less robust,
varieties are fairly rampant, and not suited to small less tolerant of shade and unsuitable soil, and not at
all tolerant of poor drainage. But they are nonetheless Each plant needs 2.5m of wall or fence to spread itself
tough, easily grown plants, and like blackberries they along, and produces canes some 2m tall. They prefer a
flower late, so they can be grown where late frost may light shade and can fruit well against a north-facing wall.
be a problem. They also do well in colder, upland areas. They are easy
They are a first-class choice for walls, fences and to propagate from cuttings. The fruit is ripe in August.
odd strips of land. They are much easier to grow than
restricted forms of fruit trees, and come into bearing
sooner – which can be an important factor for people
who do not expect to live in their present home for
THE LESS OBVIOUS ONES
many years.
Loganberries are particularly good for medium sized The plants in this section are either:
woodland gardens. They are among the most shade-tol-
erant of soft fruits, doing well on a north wall as long • suitable for a limited range of microclimates or soils
as they get good indirect light. They are also not much – such as grapes and blueberries;
taken by birds, always an important point with unnet- • easy to grow but produce fruit which is less popular
ted soft fruit. Rather smaller plants than blackberries, than common soft fruits – such as elder;
they need about 2.4m of fence. The fruit is ripe from
• not well known here in Britain, at least as fruiting
mid-July, and slightly on the sharp side, though quite
plants – such as thimbleberries and elaeagnus;
acceptable for eating raw, with a distinctive flavour of
its own. • or rather large for the shrub layer of most forest
Tayberries are a more recently bred equivalent of gardens. In fact most of them are larger than the
loganberries, about the same size, a bit less prickly, common soft fruits.
with sweeter fruit and a longer picking season – early
July to mid-August. They are moderately shade- Many of them fall into more than one of these groups.
tolerant, but less so than loganberries. None of them is likely to be the mainstay of the shrub
Kings Acre berries are smaller, needing only 1.8m layer in a typical forest garden, but each of them may
of fence, so they are a good choice for smaller gardens. be useful where circumstances are unusual in one way
The fruit ripens a bit earlier than loganberries, and is or another. Some of the larger shrubs could hardly be
sweeter and more blackberry-like in flavour. grown under a tree layer unless very strictly pruned.
Yields of hybrid berries vary greatly according to the They may be more suitable for two-layer plantings in
vigour and size of the different hybrids, but are typically places too shady for a full three-layer forest garden.
in the range of 3 to 8kg (7-15lb) per bush.
Elders (Sambucus spp.)
Japanese Wineberries (Rubus phoenicolasius) A greatly undervalued plant, elder is the easiest fruit to
These delicate-looking plants are probably the prettiest grow and has a wide range of products, though the fruit
cane fruit you can grow. Instead of thorns, their stems is not really edible raw.
are covered with a fuzz of red hairs, so in winter the The common elder (S. nigra) is native throughout
whole plant makes a tracery of red against the sombre Britain, except for the highest Scottish mountains. It is
colours of the quiet season. In summer the green a great opportunist, springing up rapidly on bare or
leaves contrast beautifully with the red stems, and the disturbed ground, including piles of rubble and even
fruit ripens from golden yellow to wine red. Although a tumbledown walls. The American or sweet elder
species in their own right, they are usually listed among (S. canadensis), from North America, gives a heavier
the hybrids in nursery catalogues. yield of larger fruits, and improved varieties of it are
The fruit is very sweet, and delicious eaten raw. available, though its tendency to sucker is a disadvantage.
Their easy taste and thornless habit make them ideal It is often grown in preference to the native species.
plants for children to get used to the idea of picking The red-berried elder (S. racemosa), which is sometimes
fruit for themselves, and making the direct connection grown as an ornamental, is not edible.
between growing plants and the pleasure of eating. Elderberry wine and elderflower champagne or
In these days of instant gratification and undemanding, cordial are the products of the elder which may first
super-sweet flavours not many plants can compete with spring to mind. But Richard Mabey2 reckons there are
the sweet-counter. But Japanese wineberries can. probably more uses for elderflowers than for any other
They are moderately vigorous as ‘hybrid’ berries go. kind of blossom: made into a cold summer drink,
“munched straight off the branch on a hot summer’s
2
Food for Free, see Further Reading. day [with a] taste as frothy as a glass of ice-cream soda,”
as a preserve with gooseberries, made into elderflower
fritters, or as an ingredient in skin ointments and eye
lotions. My own favourite use for elderflowers is to dry
them for tea (see box below).
If after all that there are enough flowers left to set
any berries, and you don’t want to make wine with them,
you can add them to jams and pies, or try Richard Mabey’s
recipe for Pontack Sauce, “a relic from those days when
every retired military gentleman carried his patent sauce
as an indispensable part of his luggage”.3
Elders will make small trees, usually to about three
metres tall, exceptionally to ten metres. But they will
grow well as multi-stemmed bushes too. The bush form
is normally used when it is grown for fruit, and this allows
elders to be grown under other fruit trees, thus making
use of their shade tolerance.
They are amongst the most shade-tolerant of shrubs,
and they can produce a worthwhile crop with less sunlight
than hazel can. In semi-natural woodland they can flower Plate 8.1 Elderberries (Tim Harland)
and fruit below a gap in the canopy which reveals about
a quarter of the sky above. In this situation they get They are mildly allelopathic, with the effect coming
sunshine for less than a quarter of a summer day, but it mainly from chemicals released from the leaves as
is the brightest, noonday light. The crop here may be they decompose in the soil. The only plants seriously
something like a third of what it would be if the elder affected are members of the cabbage family. Other
was right out in the open with full Sun all day, and vegetables can be grown beneath elders.
perhaps half what it would be on a woodland edge. Shelter is not needed. Elders can produce good crops
in exposed positions, and can even be used as fruiting
windbreak trees in areas of moderate exposure, including
coastal sites. They are tolerant of a very wide range of
ELDERFLOWER TEA soils, including those two bugbears of most fruit trees
and shrubs, chalky soil and poor drainage. They do like
Pick the flower clusters whole, preferably as soon plenty of nitrogen, though, and the wild elder tends to
as the flowers are open. They can be dried anywhere, seek out high nitrogen soils. But any garden soil is likely
but ideally not in direct sunlight, laid out singly on to be adequate in nitrogen for elder. There are few pests
newspaper. They are dry enough when the flowers or diseases to trouble them, and birds do not take
separate from the stalk on being rubbed gently, elderberries as their first choice.
and resemble a golden powder. They are best stored A mature bush may have a spread of about 3m. It will
in brown jars, as all dried plant products keep fit under a standard tree on a rich soil, and a half
their vital properties for longer in the dark. standard on a poorer soil. If your garden has a rich soil
In the middle of winter, take one teaspoon of and you are not planning to plant standard trees the
the magic powder, place it in a teapot and add best place for elders is probably behind the trees rather
boiling water. Before your eyes the tiny flowers than under them, in a north-facing or overshadowed
unfold to their former shape in the hot water, the situation. Alternatively they can be grown as standards
heady scent of summer fills the room, and you can in the tree layer.
feel yourself once again under a warm sunny sky, Pruning helps to improve the yield, but is not essential
by the elder bushes covered with cascades of frothy once the bush shape is formed. The common elder is
white blossom. It is like a spoonful of distilled self-fertile, but the American elder is not, so at least
summer. two varieties must be grown in order to get a good set
Mixed with equal parts of peppermint and of fruit. The common elder is not a reliable pollinator
yarrow it makes the famous ‘flu tea’ recommended for American elder.
by many herbalists for minor bugs and maladies. They can also be used to make some productive use
An equal part of coltsfoot can be added if the bug of awkward or difficult pieces of land, such as shady
is coldy or chesty.
3
Food for Free, see Further Reading.
areas under existing large trees. As long as there is a many gardens there are sunny situations where they can
little light coming in, either from above or from the side, do well. They are beautiful plants throughout the year,
they will give some yield. Standard elders fit well under with their graceful tendrils and uniquely shaped leaves,
big trees, and do not need pruning at all. Elders can especially those varieties which turn red in autumn. As
easily be propagated from cuttings, and useful plants well as dessert fruit and wine they can provide shade
may be had free simply by sticking twigs from a local and a gentle, relaxed atmosphere in the garden.
elder bush in the soil. At least half of them should take. One of the best uses of a vine is as a pergola over
a patio which is inclined to get uncomfortably hot in
Grapes (Vitis vinifera and hybrids) summer. This can easily happen in a very sheltered,
The origin of the vine lies deep in the history and south-facing spot, especially in an urban area (see Figure
mythology of the Mediterranean peoples. It is probably 8.4). Of course this kind of super-heated situation is
a native of Asia Minor, but grows wild all around the also just what a vine likes for its own growth. They
Mediterranean. The hybrids are recent crosses with give a dappled shade, letting some sunlight filter gently
American species of vine. They tend to be more resistant through, and obligingly drop their leaves to let the full
to disease and heavier yielding, though with perhaps Sun in when the weather turns cooler in autumn.
lower quality fruit for dessert purposes. Wherever they are grown, grapes should be given the
After an absence of many centuries vineyards are now sunniest microclimate in the garden, and a very sheltered
reappearing in Britain, mainly in southern England. one. They can stand cold winters, but not late spring
In Roman and early Medieval times they were far more frosts or cool summers. In the right microclimate they
common than they are now. The great hiatus in grape thrive as far north as central Scotland, though the further
growing between then and now has been largely due to north you go the less you can rely on them to fruit well
climate changes. Before the Norman conquest the every year. A south or south-west facing wall is ideal,
average temperature was slightly higher than it is today, though in the south of England they do well in the
but from the late Middle Ages up to the beginning of open, preferably on a slope of the same aspect. Even in
the last century the so-called Little Ice Age intervened, the south it is not recommended to plant them at more
with colder temperatures than today. than 100m above sea level.
Grape vines are Sun-loving plants, especially here at They are tolerant of a wide range of soils as long as the
the northern edge of their range, so they are hardly the soil is deep, and good drainage is essential. A pH between
ideal plant for the shrub layer of a forest garden. But in 6.5 and 7 is ideal, and too much lime will cause chlorosis.

Figure 8.4 Vines for shade

trained over a pergola
 Along a wall or fence they should be planted 1.2m have been bred, and at least one of each is available in
apart. If more than one row is grown the recommended this country.4 This means a single plant can be grown
spacing between rows is 1.5-2m. They cannot be grown on its own.
without support. All three kinds can stand hard winters, but to varying
They repay the effort of careful pruning. Yields are degrees they are susceptible to spring frosts. The flowers
very variable, and care should be taken to select a variety do not bloom till July, but the young shoots which bear
suited to the situation and to your needs: some are the flowers come out in spring, and if they are frosted
recommended for walls, others for cooler situations; then the plant is severely set back and will not fruit
some are for wine some for dessert fruit, and others are that year. The New Zealand kiwi is the most vulnerable;
dual purpose. the Siberian starts growing a little later in spring, usually
in early May, and so has a better chance of avoiding
Kiwis (Actinidia spp.) frosts, while the Manchurian is the most frost tolerant
There are three species of kiwi which can be grown here. and escapes frosting most years. The Siberian kiwi
The best known is the one we buy in the shops should have no trouble ripening its fruit in our summers,
(A. chinensis or deliciosa), usually imported from New though it cannot tolerate much shade. The Manchurian
Zealand. It was given the name kiwi because this was is more shade tolerant. All three kinds need shelter,
thought to be more marketable than its previous name, but especially the New Zealand kiwi.
Chinese gooseberry, which records its original home. Soil conditions are not critical, and the ideal soil is
South of a line from the Wash to Shrewsbury it can be the same as for apples and other fruit.
grown outside, if it is cared for like a peach, with a cover Because they are cross-pollinated, kiwi plants grown
to keep off spring frosts, hand pollination and so on. from seed are extremely variable (though presumably
The hardy or Siberian kiwi (A. arguta) is native to this does not apply to self-fertile plants grown well
northern China and Japan as well as parts of Siberia. It away from any other kiwi). Plants of named variety
is very vigorous, and in the wild it climbs to the tops of and known qualities should always be bought if at all
the tallest trees. The fruit tastes very similar to that of its possible. Unfortunately the Manchurian kiwi is, at the
more familiar cousin, if anything even sweeter, but it is time of writing, only available as seed,5 except for the
smaller and has a smooth skin. It is very rich in vitamins purely ornamental varieties which are usually only sold
and minerals, especially vitamin C. as male plants. But this is certainly the best one for
The third kind is the Manchurian kiwi (A. kolomikta), a forest garden in our climate, as it is more tolerant of
otherwise known as the Kolomikta vine or kishmish, both shade and spring frosts than either of the others,
which is also from north-east Asia. This is a smaller and less rampant than the Siberian.
plant, and more shade tolerant. The fruit is similar to Plants with desirable qualities can be reproduced
the Siberian kiwi in taste, appearance and nutritional vegetatively by taking cuttings in late summer or by
content. At present it is often grown as an ornamental layering in spring.
in this country, but rarely for its fruit. Pest and disease problems are rare with kiwis, except
All kiwis are rampant if left to themselves and they that they are extremely vulnerable to slugs when young.
definitely need pruning in a forest garden, where they must Another problem is cats. Apparently kiwis contain a
coexist with other fruiting plants. They are compulsive substance which cats find irresistible, and they can rub,
climbers, and if no support is provided they will climb chew and claw a young plant to death if they are not
up the nearest thing available. In a forest garden this is kept off. A sleeve of wire netting around the plant
likely to be one of the fruit trees, which will probably should do the job.
get smothered by its uninvited guest and stop producing The first fruit is borne two to four years after planting.
any fruit. A Siberian vine can produce up to 50kg (110lb) of fruit
They can be espalier trained on fences or walls. The when mature. It ripens over a long period between late
Siberian needs at least 2m height, with as much as 6m August and early October, so the fresh fruit does not all
between plants. The other two kinds need a little less come in a rush, which is good for the home gardener.
height and 3-5m between plants. They could all be trained Any surplus can be made into jam, jelly or even wine.
over a pergola, and the smaller two perhaps over an arch. The New Zealand kiwi has a more moderate yield,
Most varieties of all three species bear male and and ripens over a shorter period. The fruit must be stored
female flowers on different plants, so male plants must for 4-6 weeks before eating to get the full flavour.
be grown for pollination. One male will pollinate about
seven females within a range of about 15m. It is also 4
From Buckingham Nurseries, see List of Suppliers.
possible to graft a male branch onto a female plant. But 5
From Future Foods and the Agroforestry Research Trust,
self-fertile varieties of New Zealand and Siberian kiwis see List of Suppliers.
 They are decorative plants, and until recently the
New Zealand kiwi was grown more for its appearance
than for fruit in this country. It has big, heart-shaped
leaves and creamy flowers. The Manchurian kiwi often
has leaves with pink, white and green variegation,
especially the male plants. But these varieties are
probably less productive.

Roses (Rosa spp.)

The dog rose (R. canina) is common throughout
Britain as far north as Shetland, and is a true climber,
while the more shrubby field rose (R. arvensis) is found
mainly south of the Tees. The sweet briar or eglantine
(R. eglanteria) is similar to the dog rose, but exudes a
delightful scent from its leaves, especially when they Figure 8.5 Dog rose (left) and ramanas rose (right)
are gently rubbed between finger and thumb. It is
naturalised in Britain. bottles of rose hip syrup on the pantry shelf are a good
The ramanas rose is these days more often referred stand-by.
to by its Latin name, Rosa rugosa, which seems a As well as the hips, the petals of both wild and
shame when the common name has such a romantic, ramanas roses can be eaten. They can be added to salads,
far-away ring to it. It is a short, shrubby rose, with many or made into a variety of concoctions, from rose-petal
fine thorns. It originates in north-east Asia, and is wine and jelly to Turkish delight. The petals of ramanas
much used in this country by landscape architects as a roses are taken in China as a medicine to soothe the
tough, low-maintenance, yet attractive hedging and liver, and its young shoots and leaves are said to be
border plant. edible when cooked.
In the Second World War, when supplies of imported Ramanas roses can tolerate almost any weather,
fruit were interrupted, British people went out into including cold winters, strong winds, coastal conditions,
the countryside to scour the waysides and hedgerows and air pollution. As regards soil they can thrive on
for wild rose hips to make rose hip syrup as an emer- anything from lime-rich clays to the poorest sandy and
gency source of vitamin C. In fact rose hips contain stony coastal soils. They can tolerate a little shade, but
some 20 times the amount of vitamin C as oranges, production of hips is soon affected as shade increases.
weight for weight. They were commonly used in pies They are certainly more suited to a hedge or even a
and puddings in the ages before intensive fruit pro- windbreak round a forest garden than to the shady
duction made larger and less fiddly fruit more widely parts under the trees.
available. They can grow to 2m, but normally stay at around
Rose hips are fiddly to use because the pith around 1m, especially if they are getting plenty of light.
the seeds contains sharp hairs, which can cause intense They have large, pinky flowers in summer, and the big
irritation to the digestive system. They have even been orange-coloured hips make a long-lasting display in
extracted from the fruit for use as itching powder! They autumn – though you may prefer to pick them before
must be removed before the fruit can be used for food too long to ensure you get them in good condition.
or drink, either by individually opening the tiny fruit There are double-flowered varieties, but these have
and removing the pith, or by reducing the fruit to a smaller hips, so they should be avoided if fruit produc-
liquid and then straining. tion is a priority. The variety Scabrosa is said to be large
Enter the ramanas rose. This species has such large in all its parts, including the hips.
hips, often a good 3cm across, that it is relatively easy With ramanas roses as a powerhouse of vitamin C
to scoop out the pith. It is even possible to eat them production, there is surely still room in many a forest
straight off the bush if you are careful not to bite into garden for one or two dog roses, or even an eglantine to
the pith (see Figure 8.5). It also has a far higher yield of fill the summer months with its delicate scent. Nothing
hips than any other rose, so it is more worth growing as brightens up the brown twigs of winter more than
a source of stored vitamin C. the little scarlet hips of the dog rose, dotted around like
No-one who grows a forest garden is likely to be tiny Chinese lanterns until eventually a hungry thrush
deficient in this vitamin, but it can also be used in comes and takes them. If they are pruned occasionally
very high doses as a tonic to the immune system, a they can live in the boughs of a fruit tree without
useful adjunct to the healing of almost any ill. A few seriously affecting its yield.
Elaeagnus species Blueberries (Vaccinium spp.)
There are many species and hybrids of Elaeagnus These are the fruit to grow in soils which are too
which can be grown successfully in this country. acid for anything else.
Like the legumes, they have a symbiotic relationship The bilberry or blaeberry (V. myrtillus) is a common
with nitrogen-fixing bacteria (see page 46). Most are native throughout the moorland and mountain parts of
very tough plants, and can stand any extremes of Britain, and right across the north of Europe and Asia.
climate and soil likely to be found in Britain except They grow both in the open and in light woodland.
waterlogging. They are all tolerant of wind, and are The fruits are tiny and it takes ages to pick enough to
excellent windbreak plants, including in coastal make a mouthful, let alone a meal. The species normally
situations. The bulb fields on the Isles of Scilly are cultivated in gardens are the high bush blueberries
protected by tall hedges, often of Elaeagnus. Many of (V. corymbosum and V. australe), from North America.
them bear edible fruits, but they are normally grown These give a higher yield of larger sized fruit. The fruit
as ornamentals. is rather bland when eaten raw, but good when cooked
E. angustifolia, the oleaster or Russian olive is a de- or bottled. They are also attractive plants, especially in
ciduous shrub or tree, growing to 20m tall. Its fruit autumn, when the leaves turn to a medley of reds and
is edible and can be pressed to yield an edible oil. It is golds.
not tolerant of shade. E. commutata, the silverberry, They cannot stand a pH above 5.5. In a garden
is also deciduous and produces edible, if mealy, fruits. with a more alkaline soil they can only be grown by
It is much smaller, growing to 2-3m, more tolerant of strenuous efforts to turn the soil into what it is not.
shade and very decorative, with silver foliage and fruits This is done by removing the soil, either from the
in addition to the fragrant, silver-yellow flowers which planting holes or over the whole blueberry patch,
it bears in May. and replacing it in with a mixture of acid peat and the
The one most suitable for forest gardening is original soil. Chemicals may also be used to reduce the
probably Elaeagnus x ebbingei, an ornamental hybrid pH, and peat must be added regularly over the years.
with no common English name. Although it is evergreen, This kind of gardening is a good example of working
which means that no vegetable layer can be grown against nature. It requires a great deal of work both to
beneath it, it is extremely tolerant of shade and can set up and to maintain, and using peat contributes to
do well beneath trees. It may be suited to a part of the destruction of peat bogs, ecosystems of great
the garden where the trees cast too much shade to diversity which are being rapidly destroyed. On the other
allow both a shrub and a vegetable layer to thrive. hand, where the soil is naturally acid, blueberries are
It grows to a height and spread of about 5m, but can one of the few fruits that can be grown without
be kept as small as 1.5m high and 1m wide by pruning. making great changes to the soil.
It is said to be a good companion plant in orchards, They need a high level of organic matter, as they
increasing yields of fruit trees by 10%, presumably due depend on a symbiotic fungus which needs plenty of
to nitrogen fixation. organic matter to feed on. They also need a moist
One of the great merits of this plant is that its fruit but well-drained soil. Growing them in raised beds is
is ripe in April and May, when there is very little often enough to improve the drainage. They will stand
other fruit about. As it has not been bred specifically slight shade, and should be sheltered from strong
for fruiting, the fruit is variable in size, yield and winds. They are hardy in all parts of the British Isles,
taste, but it usually has a rich flavour when fully ripe. but they do need at least five months without frost.
It is said to produce a fair crop in most years when Ideally they like a warm summer with plenty of rain.
grown in Britain. The variety Limelight is one which They are only partially self-fertile, and set a poor crop
crops particularly well, even on small bushes. if only one variety is grown. Pruning is not really
Like all Elaeagnus it prefers a well-drained soil of necessary. There are no disease or pest problems other
only moderate fertility, and can succeed in very dry and than birds, which take the fruit, and rabbits, which are
poor soils. It can survive very low temperatures, and particularly fond of blueberry bark.
thrives at least as far north as Glasgow, but may become When mature the bushes reach a size of 1.5-2m, and
deciduous in cold winters. Sometimes a whole branch they should be planted this distance apart. They are slow
can die back for no apparent reason. If this occurs the to come into full bearing, giving about 2.5kg (5lb) in the
branch should be removed. fifth year after planting and some 5kg (11lb) when
Since this is a hybrid it will not breed true from mature, but they can go on bearing for up to 50 years.
seed, but it can be propagated from cuttings. Half-ripe
and mature cuttings, taken in summer and autumn 6
For more information on Elaeagnus, especially ebbingei,
respectively, can both be successful, as can layering.6 see Permaculture Magazine, No 9.
 Two other blueberries which may be of use in acid They are slow-growing, multi-stemmed shrubs,
soils are: the thin leaved blueberry (V. membranaceum), growing to a height of about 5m and a spread of 3m,
which is particularly drought-resistant, growing to about though some varieties are smaller. Prince William is a
2m tall; and the box blueberry (V. ovatum), a spreading good fruiting variety of juneberry which is 3m tall and
evergreen shrub, also to 2m, which can be used to make 2m wide. They can spread by suckering and form thickets.
a hedge.7 The flowers come out in April or May, saskatoons
slightly later than juneberries, and they have some degree
Thimbleberries and Salmonberries (Rubus spp.) of frost tolerance. The fruit is ripe, as the name suggests,
The northwest of North America, from Oregon to in June. It is blue-purple in colour, sweet, tasty and rich
British Columbia, is very similar in climate to the north- in vitamin C. It can be eaten fresh, cooked, preserved or
west of Europe, and its natural vegetation is woodland. dried like raisins. It tends to ripen all at once.
It is also the world’s great storehouse of berry-bearing Cultivated varieties of saskatoon come into fruiting
woodland shrub species. within three to four years, and reach full production
Two which are currently available over here8 are the after 8 years. Full production can be around 4kg (10lb)
thimbleberry (R. parviflorus) and the salmonberry per plant in an orchard, where they are planted in
(R. spectabilis). Both are tolerant of part shade, but the rows 4m apart with 1m between plants. In less formal
full flavour of the fruit is not always developed in the plantings a spacing of 3m each way is recommended.
cool summers of Britain. So perhaps these plants are most At least two plants should be planted for good pollination
suited to the sunnier parts of the garden, or the south- – not necessarily two varieties, though this may be a
eastern part of the country, if they are wanted for eating wise insurance. They can be propagated both by seed
raw. The young shoots are also edible, peeled and eaten and by suckers.
raw or cooked, and the flowers can be added to salads. As they stand light shade they deserve consideration
Thimbleberry bushes bear large white, fragrant for the shrub layer of a forest garden. But they are poten-
flowers in June, followed by red berries, and maple- tially very big plants, and will need hard pruning even
shaped leaves which turn yellow in autumn. The fruit is to fit under standards. They are very hardy and not
variously described as ‘luscious’, ‘insipid’ and ‘of good troubled by disease. Although they prefer a moist, fertile
flavour although sometimes a bit seedy’. They are vigorous soil they can tolerate both poor soils and heavy clays.
shrubs, growing to a height of 2.5m and a spread of 2m. They are also relatively tolerant of both wind and
They have a suckering habit of growth and can form drought. The fruit is taken by birds.
dense thickets. With their late flowering date they may
be of most use in gardens subject to late frosts. Chinese Dogwood (Cornus kousa chinensis)
Salmonberries are a bit taller, up to 3m, and flower This shrub comes from China and Japan, and is related
in the early spring. But they make a beautiful display to our native dogwood (which does not bear edible fruit).
when in bloom, and bear fruit rather like raspberries. It is very ornamental, with showy flower clusters in
summer, and red strawberry-like fruits which ripen in
Juneberries (Amelanchier spp.) September. They are juicy, and often have a good flavour,
These are also woodland shrubs from North America, suitable for eating raw or cooked. If left unpruned the
but their home is further inland, so they are used to a shrub grows to 3m or more, and it likes an acid,
more continental climate than ours. Two of the species moisture-retaining soil.
most commonly available in Britain9 are A. canadensis, It is probably a more useful plant than the rather
the true juneberry, and A. alnifolia, the saskatoon. better known cornelian cherry (Cornus mas). This is a
But naming is very confused. In America they are often very big shrub, growing to 8m. It flowers early in spring,
collectively known as chequerberries, and in Britain, which makes it susceptible to frost, and bears a fruit
where they are often grown as ornamentals, as snowy which is usually only good enough for preserves.
mespilus or shadbush.
The saskatoon is the kind most often grown for its Salt Bush (Atriplex halimus)
fruit. Several fruiting cultivars are available in America, Otherwise known as shrubby orache or tree purslane,
where it is cultivated in orchards. The juneberry is more this shrub is in fact a relative of the native vegetable,
often grown as an ornamental, but is similar in most common orache. It comes from southern Europe and
respects, and the two can be considered together. is hardy in the milder parts of Britain. It is particularly
useful in gardens near the sea.
7
Seed available from Future Foods, see List of Suppliers. It is evergreen, growing to 1-1.5m, and is very resistant
8
As seed, from Future Foods and Chiltern Seeds, see List of Suppliers. to salty winds. But it must have a sunny position and a
9
From Future Foods, see List of Suppliers. well-drained soil. It can be used as the shrubby element
in a windbreak, and can be trimmed to form a hedge. followed by blue-black berries from July to September.
The leaves are edible cooked or raw. They have a pleasant, The flowers are edible, and can be made into a sweet
slightly salty taste, and are a welcome addition to drink. The fruit is rather too tart to be eaten raw unless
winter salads. it is very ripe, but it makes good jam and jelly.
They are small shrubs, about 1.5m high by 1m wide,
Beach Plum (Prunus maritima) tolerant of shade and dry soils, and generally tough and
This shrub grows on the sand dunes of the east coast of maintenance-free. They produce suckers, and could
the USA, so it is a good plant for a forest garden very become invasive if left entirely to their own devices, but
near the coast, where many fruiting plants find the there is a non-suckering variety called Apollo. They are
salt-laden winds intolerable. In fact it cannot be recom- probably most worth growing where drought-tolerance
mended for inland areas as the fruit seldom ripens away or low maintenance are high priorities.
from the coast in Britain.
It is a thorny bush, with a height and spread of Edible Honeysuckle (Lonicera caerulea edulis)
about 2m, bearing masses of white flowers in April or When people hear about this plant they often think
May, followed by small juicy fruits in late summer “Aha. An edible climber.”, but in fact it does not climb.
which can be eaten raw or made into preserves and pies. It is a different species to the native honeysuckle, and
It is a useful component of an edible windbreak or hedge. makes a compact bush of 1-1.5m height and spread. It is
It is a disease resistant, low-maintenance plant, late- often grown as an ornamental, for its yellowish-white
flowering and tolerant of both cold and poor sandy soils. flowers in spring and conspicuous dark blue berries. These
are similar to blueberries, and best used in pies or crumbles.
Guelder Rose (Viburnum opulus)
Not a rose despite its name, this is a thornless shrub,
native throughout Britain, though less frequent in GROWING A NATIVE SHRUBBERY
Scotland. It prefers moist, alkaline soils and thrives in
situations too wet for other shrubs, though it tolerates Producing food is not everyone’s main priority in growing
a wide range of soils. It can survive quite well in deep a forest garden. Beauty, wildlife, a play area for children,
shade, but flowers and fruits best on an edge. and the interest of having a living ecosystem in the back
The white flowers come out in June or July, and garden were all mentioned as possible reasons for forest
are bunched together in a compact inflorescence gardening in Chapter 1. Some of these things go better
that gives the shrub its alternative name of snowball together than others – an intensive play area, for example,
bush.10 The bright red berries are ripe in September and is not likely to be a great haven for wildlife – but all of
October, and the maple-like leaves often turn beautiful them can be had from a shrubbery composed of native
shades of red before they fall later in the autumn. The plants just as well as from a full-blown forest garden.
berries are not edible raw, but make a jelly or pie filling On the whole native plants support many more
with a distinctive woodsy taste. The flavour improves kinds of insects and other invertebrates than exotics,
after the berries have been frosted, but if you want to and thus more of the birds and other predators that live
get them before the birds do you can pick them before on them. Natives are usually easier to grow, as they have
the first frost and put them in a freezer overnight. evolved to suit local conditions. Many of them are as
This is the plant for soils which are too poorly beautiful as any exotics, and some have edible or other-
drained for other fruits. It is typically 2m high and 1.5m wise useful parts. They are also worth growing for their
across. It does not need pruning, but can be pruned to own sake: there is something dignified and harmonious
control its size without much loss of yield, because about growing the plants which have co-evolved with this
the berries are borne on new twigs as well as last year’s. land. There is a way in which they are ‘right’ which can
It can start bearing within one or two years of planting, be felt and intuited more easily than it can be explained
and heavily within five to seven years. A typical bush in words.
yields enough berries to make 10 or 12 jars of jelly. It is A shrubbery composed entirely of natives will not
self-fertile. (See colour illustrations.) yield as much food as a forest garden composed of plants
which have been bred over generations for human food.
Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium or repens) But it is not necessary to be purist about it, and a
Another shrub from the west of North America, combination of natives and serious food producers
mahonias are often grown in Britain as ornamentals, can be chosen to suit the needs of the individual family.
and have naturalised in a few places. They are evergreen,
with holly-like leaves, and bear beautifully-scented 10
Not to be confused with snowberry, Symphoricarpus racemosus,
yellow flowers from the New Year till April and May, which bears white berries in the autumn and is not edible.
The design may fall anywhere along a continuum from
pure forest garden to pure native shrubbery.
Alternatively, where there is enough space a food
oriented forest garden can be grown in one part of the
garden and a native shrubbery in another part, perhaps
further from the house. Or the one could merge into
the other.
A native shrubbery can be very flexible in its purpose.
We may plant the shrubs with the intention of picking
the nuts and berries, making preserves and wine, and
weaving baskets. But some years we may not have the
time, or be away from home at the crucial time of year.
All is not lost, though. The nuts and berries will be eaten
by birds and small mammals, and the willow will flower
in the spring to make an early meal of nectar and pollen
for butterflies and bees. Nothing is wasted, all is gained.
The layout of a shrubbery can be very similar to that
of a forest garden proper. The best overall shape will
depend on the main purpose. For children, a dense
planting with plenty of deep places to hide and make
dens may be best, while a shallow crescent or horseshoe
with plenty of edge could be best where enjoying the
beauty of the shrubs is a high priority.
The ground layer can be planted with native edibles,
such as ramsons and wild sorrel, or with woodland
wildflowers. It is also good to have at least one tree.
Apart from the visual effect that the vertical dimension
Plate 8.2 A native hawthorn in full bloom. Is any exotic
gives, some birds prefer to forage up in trees rather
ornamental more beautiful than this? (PW)
than down in the shrubs, and others will only nest
where the male has a high perch to sing from.
On the whole native trees and shrubs are larger than
the more usual forest garden plants. Native trees are
Plants
not grown on dwarfing rootstocks, and most native If the shrubbery is to be native in a real sense the
shrubs are much bigger than currants and gooseberries, plants should be native to the locality, not just to Britain
in fact many reach a similar size to a dwarf apple tree. as a whole. They should also be ones which would
But there are a number of small trees, and most of the naturally occur in the soil and microclimate found in
shrubs can stand hard cutting. A native shrubbery can the garden. This kind of shrubbery will be something
be fitted in to all but the smallest gardens. like a natural community which might have occupied
Occasional maintenance is necessary in large gardens that site – something close to the natural grain of the
as well as small. If the whole shrubbery is left untouched land. The book Planting Native Trees and Shrubs11
for many years, not only will it grow very tall, but gives comprehensive information on which species
eventually the more vigorous shrubs will suppress the occur together naturally, as well as maps showing the
less vigorous, and diversity will be reduced. Also, no light natural distribution of each one in Britain and Ireland.
will get to the ground, and the herb layer will suffer. It is also worthwhile to plant local varieties if at all
Selective coppicing is probably a better way to cut possible. A hawthorn which is native to East Anglia,
things back than pruning. It is easier, and it creates a for example, will have evolved in a very different
diverse structure which is good for woodland flowers ecosystem, and be genetically distinct from one which
and wildlife. The fastest-growing shrubs, such as willows, comes from North Wales. A few nurseries are beginning
may start to crowd out their neighbours only three or to specify the origin of their native trees and shrubs,
four years after planting, and they will need regular but most do not. Indeed many ‘native’ shrubs are in
coppicing from this time. Very slow growing ones, like fact imported from Germany or Poland.
holly, may not need touching for a lifetime. The surest way to get really local plants is to collect
your own seeds or cuttings and grow them on. This is
11
See Further Reading. not only a very satisfying thing to do, but gives you a
couple of years to contemplate your design, and proba- All willows are competitive and only suitable for
bly change it for the better. larger gardens. The large tree willows, including crack
Whatever plants you do buy should come from (S. fragilis) and white (S. alba) willows should be avoided
native plant specialists rather than suppliers of orna- altogether.
mentals. Many native trees and shrubs have been bred Native dogwood is a medium-sized suckering shrub,
as ornamentals, and these are very far removed from which can form a dense thicket. A common wild variety
the original wild stock. has purple-red stems These can be used in basketry to
add another colour to the buffs and browns of willow,
Trees and they give some colour to the garden in winter. The
Crab apple, rowan, birch, field maple, bird cherry, wild white flowers are out in June and July.
service and whitebeam are all described elsewhere in The native honeysuckle is a joy to have in the garden.
this book (see Plant Index). It is very pretty, and you can pick a flower, bite off
the bottom of the trumpet and suck out a little drink
Shrubs of honey-flavoured nectar. It should never be planted
Bilberry, broom, gorse, blackberry, wild roses, hawthorn, near young trees or shrubs as it will seriously constrict
guelder rose, hazel and elder are all described elsewhere. their growth and even kill them. But it can climb
These include all the native shrubs with significant up a mature fruit tree without harm, or cover a wire
edible fruit. fence or trellis.
Hazel can be grown as a coppice plant in large Ivy is a much maligned climber. It often does well
gardens, giving bean poles and pea sticks on a seven on trees which are already sick or dying, and people
year rotation. They should be spaced 2m apart, and think that it is causing the trouble. But it can only do
surrounded by other shrubs or trees to encourage them any harm to trees when they are very young, and it is
to grow upwards and produce good straight sticks. not in any way parasitic. It will grow in places which
Willows are excellent wildlife plants, second only to are too dark for anything else, and has great value
oaks in the number of insect species they support. The for wildlife: it flowers in November, and is the most
spring-flowering or pussy willows are shrubs or small abundant source of food for flower-feeding insects at
trees, and their beautiful catkins not only brighten up that time of year; its berries are available in early
the early spring with their display, but provide the most spring, when there is little for berry-eating birds to eat;
abundant source of food for bees and other insects at and it makes a good dense nesting and roosting site for
that time of year. small birds.
The osier (Salix viminalis) is the traditional basket Spindle is the most exquisitely beautiful of native
willow, growing tall and thin when coppiced regularly, shrubs. It is a slender plant, usually growing to about
almost more like a large reed than a shrub. It can reach 3m tall by 1.5m wide, with a pleasantly textured bark,
over 2m tall and is usually grown in rows 60cm apart green twigs and elegant pointed leaves. The white flowers
with 30cm spacing within the rows. Other spring willows, are small and inconspicuous, but as autumn draws on
of which there are several species, are more shrubby the pink fruits form, then split open to reveal the orange
and not really suitable for basketry. They need a spacing seed inside. The two colours complement each other
of 2-3m each way. All willows can be easily propagated perfectly. The leaves sometimes stay green till falling,
from cuttings. As they are sensitive to weed competition but usually turn to a range of reds, oranges, pinks and
in their first year, a good way to establish them is by purples that defy description. No part of the plant is
sticking cuttings straight through a sheet of black edible or particularly useful in any other way: It is worth
plastic mulch. growing purely for its beauty.
 Chapter 9

THE VEGETABLES

There are over 1,000 herbaceous plants which grow GREENS

wild in Britain, but less than 100 trees and shrubs. In a
semi-natural woodland there is usually a much greater
Spinaches
diversity of plants in the herb layer than in the tree and
shrub layers, and the same is true of a forest garden, at Strictly speaking spinach is a single species, Spinacea
least potentially. There are many, many plants which oleracea, but there are many other plants which can be
could be included in this chapter. To include them all grown and eaten in the same way. Most of them are mem-
would require a book of its own. bers of the goosefoot or beet family (Chenopodiaceae).
Even the number which have been included may Some are self-seeders, and two, Good King Henry and
seem excessive if you are looking for somewhere to sea beet, are perennials.
start. They are all useful plants, though many of them If more than one member of this family are allowed to
fill specialist niches and will not find a home in every self-seed in the same garden, there is a distinct possibility
garden. For a good basic selection I recommend those in of cross-pollination. This means that the new generation
the box below. They are my personal favourites, listed of plants will not necessarily be like their parents. This
in the order in which they appear in the text, not in could be fun, or it could mean you end up with a whole
order of preference. lot of plants which are not nearly as productive as the
ones you started with. If you want to keep them the same
you need to choose which species and variety you want
15 FAVOURITE VEGETABLES to grow and stick to it. Even then there is a possibility
of pollination from wild plants or neighbours’ gardens,
Greens Salads as pollination can take place at a distance of 150-300m.
Good King Henry Chickweed Dandelion Most spinaches, including common-or-garden spinach,
contain a high level of oxalic acid, which is harmful if
Fat hen Lamb’s lettuce Nasturtium eaten in excess because it interferes with the uptake of
Sea beet Salad burnet Lemon balm iron and calcium. Plants with high levels of it should not
Nine Star broccoli Land cress Ramsons really be eaten more than two or three times a week.
Chard (Beta vulgaris) has much lower levels than other
Perennial kale Hairy bittercress Welsh onion
spinaches, so can be eaten more frequently. Presumably
the same goes for sea beet, which is the same species as
Classification chard, but this has not been confirmed.
The vegetables are divided up into Greens, Salads and All spinaches are tolerant of some degree of shade.
Others for convenience, but the distinction is not absolute. They also like to have a constantly moist soil; if it dries
Most of the greens can be eaten raw, many of the salad out too much they tend to go to seed. On both these
plants can be cooked, and many of the plants listed counts they are suited to the kind of microclimates they
under Others can be added to salads in one form or may find in a forest garden.
another. Those included under Herbs are mainly plants
which are used in smaller quantities, but some of them Good King Henry (Chenopodium bonus-henricus)
can be used in salads in the same proportions as the Good King Henry was cultivated all over Europe in
salad vegetables. medieval times and earlier, and has naturalised in many
places, including Britain. Just where it was originally The plants will last for about five years before they
native is obscure. It is now enjoying a modest revival as need replacing, which they are quite capable of doing
a garden vegetable, and seed is available from various themselves by self-seeding. Alternatively, you can detach
suppliers. a piece of lower stem with roots attached and plant it,
The fact that it is perennial gives it that early start or divide the plants in spring.
in the spring before the trees and shrubs come into It is not fussy about the soil. Once established the
leaf. The tiny new leaves, like a bunch of miniature plants need very little attention. They can grow to a
pixie hats, can emerge as early as the end of February. maximum height of about 1m, but are usually kept
So Henry can probably do better in shadier parts of shorter by picking.
the garden than the annual spinaches. Don’t be put
off by the instruction you may see on the seed packet – Fat Hen (Chenopodium album)
depending on where you buy them – saying ‘full Sun’. A close relative of Good King Henry, but annual,
Like most plants it will probably yield better with more fat hen has if anything a longer pedigree as a food
light, but it is actually one of the most shade-tolerant plant. Remains of it have been found in settlements of
of vegetables. the New Stone Age all over Europe. It was important in
The mature leaves have the characteristic leaf shape the Middle Ages but its popularity declined after the
of the goosefoot tribe, like a webbed foot. They are the introduction of common spinach.
same size or slightly smaller than the familiar annual The reason for its decline is probably the rather
spinach. They taste very good, but have a slightly bitter smaller size of its leaves. It can’t be the taste, which is
overtone if cooked alone. When added to stews, somewhat superior to that of common spinach. They
stir-fries and other mixed dishes the sharpness is lost, have a savoury, slightly salty taste, which is partially lost
and they add a rich, savoury flavour to the food. when they are cooked, so the younger leaves are better
It is said that the young stems can be cooked like as- put into a salad than into the cooking pot. The young
paragus if picked in the spring when not more than flowering shoots can be cooked along with the leaves.
20cm high – an alternative name for the plant is Lin- The grain can be harvested and used in a similar way
colnshire asparagus. The unopened flower heads can be to that of Good King Henry. The picking season,
eaten boiled or steamed, and both they and the leaves for leaves, is from the end of May till the beginning of
can also be added to salads if picked young. autumn. It can be harvested young as a cut-and-come-
There is a possibility of harvesting the ripe seeds as a again crop, or progressively thinned to leave a few large
grain crop, though it would need to be grown in a sunny plants at 30cm spacings or thereabouts.
position to ensure ripening. Henry’s relatives, fat hen Although not a woodland plant, fat hen can stand
and quinoa (pronounced keenwa), have both been used some shade. It’s main preference as to soil is for a high
for grain. In fact quinoa, which comes from South level of nitrogen. In fact it is often found on old
America, has recently been introduced into this country compost and manure heaps, and when found growing
as a garden grain crop and is giving reasonable yields. in open ground is taken to be an indicator of a soil with
Mark Burton of Manchester has tried Henry as a a high nitrogen content.
grain crop. He reports that “Unselected plants gave me
a yield of six ounces per square yard from one pick- Orach or Orache (Atriplex spp.)
ing of seed (this extrapolates to 1,815 pounds per acre, In the USA orach is called fat hen and fat hen is
although grown broadscale there would be greater called lamb’s quarters. The confusion is understandable,
losses from birds etc.). More could be collected by because they are very similar plants, and both occur in
picking two or three times... We would not be able to a variety of forms. To a great extent the wild orach can
make bread from it, but it is alright, if a little hard, in be regarded as interchangeable with fat hen, but there
stews, pilaffs and the like. Fat hen flour has been used are also cultivated varieties of orach.
for cakes and porridge.”1 The cultivated oraches are sometimes referred to
As a leaf crop it keeps going for seven or eight as mountain spinach, and are varieties of the species
months of the year. In winter it dies down, and if you A. hortensis. There are both green and red forms, and
cover it with some mulch this will encourage it to they are valued as ornamentals as well as food plants.
sprout earlier the next spring. Mark Burton finds that They can be used as spinach or in salads. The taste is
less than two square metres of Henry is enough for his very mild and a touch sweet, so they are often mixed
family of four. with stronger tasting leaves, such as sorrel.
The plants should be 30cm apart each way. In the Like all spinaches orach tends to run to seed in
first year the leaves should be picked lightly if at all,
but flower heads should be removed as they form. 1
From an article ‘Good King Henry’ in Permaculture Magazine, No. 2.
hot dry weather, though rather less readily than the Sea Beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima)
common spinach. The process can be delayed by picking This plant is a native. It is the same species as beetroot
the flower heads as soon as they form. One or two and chard, but a different subspecies, and is probably
plants should be allowed to flower and self-seed. The the plant from which they were originally bred. Sea beet
cultivated forms can grow up to as much as 2m, but is normally a perennial, though there are annual and
only need to be spaced some 20cm apart. biennial forms as well. It is an extremely coastal species,
not usually found more than a few metres from the
Chard (Beta vulgaris ssp. cicla) high tide mark. It grows all round the coasts of England
Otherwise known as leaf beet, sea kale and a number and Wales, though not in Scotland.
of other names, this widely-cultivated spinach has
several advantages. Firstly, it has lower levels of oxalic
acid than other spinaches, so it may be eaten more of-
ten. Secondly, it yields very well given good condi-
tions. Thirdly, it has great big leaves, with thick fleshy
midribs, which makes picking easy and quick. Fourthly,
it is biennial, so it will not normally go to seed in its first
year of growth.
In fact if the winters are not too cold chard can
provide green leaves to pick for much of the year.
The main crop is in the plant’s first summer, and it
will provide some pickings on into the autumn, even
after the first frosts. It will survive most winters, and
start producing leaves fairly early in the spring. The
leaves decrease in size as its second summer comes on,
a sign that the plant is approaching flowering. When
this happens the flowering shoots can be picked too and
added to the pot, leaving a couple of plants to self-seed.
Just as the supply of leaves begin to run out, the next
generation, the progeny of last year’s self-seeding, is
well into leaf.
This cycle can be broken by an exceptionally hard
frost, which will kill the overwintering plants. Then Figure 9.1 Sea beet in early May (PW)
there will be no early bite of chard the coming spring,
though the following generation will already be The leaves are large towards the beginning of the
seeded. The microclimate of a forest garden will help season, becoming smaller as time goes by, and very thick.
a little, but beware of covering chard with mulch in This means it is relatively quick and easy to pick enough
the winter to protect it from frost. If the weather to make a meal. The flavour is good, similar to cultivated
turns unexpectedly mild the mulch will encourage spinaches. The season is long. On mild western coasts
slugs, which will finish it off as surely as the frost there is not a month in the year when you cannot pick
would have done. a meal’s-worth of sea beet. In the colder east the season
It is a vigorous, if not a prolific, self-seeder. It does runs from April to October. Peak production is in mid-
not cover the ground with a carpet of little seedlings as May. The taste is delicious, very much like chard, and
some self-seeders do, but the plants which do establish presumably the level of oxalic acid is low.
are well capable of looking after themselves. No doubt the moderating effect of the sea on winter
The plants should be about 30cm apart. Vigorous temperatures helps to keep it green through the winter.
specimens can sometimes grow as tall as 2m when in This may be a limitation on taking this plant into culti-
flower, but the rest of the time they are only as tall as vation in inland areas which get severe winter frosts,
their biggest leaf, usually about 30-40cm. They should as it is too slow-growing to be worth cultivating as an
be picked hard, because the more you pick them the annual. But no doubt more winter-hardy varieties could
more they produce. Like all spinaches, they like plenty be bred if this should prove necessary.
of nutrients, especially nitrogen, and plenty of water. It is shade-tolerant. In the wild it grows in a wide
If you are short of manure, mulch material or water, range of situations, from exposed cliff tops to sheltered
chard should get a high priority on what you have. and shady creek-sides. The plants tend to be much
It will repay you well. bigger in the more sheltered situations. It can grow well
under trees and shrubs. In areas where the winters are However, some hardy brassicas can be grown as
mild enough for it to stay green all year round, it can do perennials in shady conditions. Spring cabbage is the
very well with deciduous overhead cover and side light most suitable kind, but it can be done with kale, purple
from the north only. In colder areas, where it can make sprouting broccoli and savoys, and probably various
less use of winter sunshine, it needs a proportionately other brassicas too. All you do is harvest the edible
more open situation. parts and allow the plants to regrow from the stem.
Seed gathered from the wild is often reluctant to If they flower the flowers should be removed before
germinate, but there is no problem with seed from a they open, and can be eaten as broccoli. Spring cabbage
wild flower seed supplier. It will also grow from offsets. can eventually grow into a huge green spider with a
Growth is slow in the first year compared with chard. little cabbage at the end of each ‘leg’. The plants can
Plants grown from seed should not be picked in the be very productive, and the green leaves sit there
first year, and in the second care should be taken not to throughout the year, fresh whenever you want to
overpick. They can eventually reach a size of 1m tall by eat them.
60cm across, but a spacing of 30cm apart is probably Although the plants tend to grow towards the light,
best for plants which are picked regularly. a certain amount of shade seems to be necessary to get
them to go perennial. It should not be assumed that the
Other Spinaches process will be successful in every garden, but it is surely
Perpetual spinach sounds like a perennial, but is in fact a worth a try.2
biennial form of Beta vulgaris, the species which includes A possible problem with perennial brassicas of any
chard and sea beet. It is called perpetual to distinguish kind is the soil-borne disease, clubroot. If brassicas do
it from true spinach, which has a shorter season. Its poorly, have discoloured leaves and wilt easily in hot
alternative name is spinach beet. It is probably the most weather clubroot should be suspected. It can be confirmed
resilient self-seeder among the cultivated spinaches: it is by pulling up the plant and looking at the root, which
often the only cultivated plant to survive a year or two is swollen in infected plants – hence the name. If it is
after a vegetable garden has been abandoned. Chard present no members of the cabbage family can be
which is left to self-seed often reverts to a form very much grown in that soil for at least seven years – some say
like perpetual spinach. twenty.
New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia expansa) is not a The main means of control in annual brassicas is
member of the goosefoot family but it still contains oxalic strict crop rotation, with no members of the cabbage
acid. Its advantage is that it can stand dry conditions family grown on the same ground for two years
and poor soil better than the other spinaches. On the other running. But obviously this is not possible with peren-
hand it is not tolerant of shade nor frost hardy. It often nials. Liming the soil to a pH of about 7 also helps to
self-seeds. control the disease, together with maintaining good
drainage and a high level of organic matter.
It is not necessary to take special precautions
The Cabbage Family (Cruciferae) against clubroot in a garden where the infection does
Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale not exist. But if you are moving into a new garden it is
and kohl rabi are all varieties of the same species, impossible to know whether clubroot is present. If no
Brassica oleracea. The ancestor of them all is still brassicas have been grown there for around seven
occasionally found growing wild beside the coast. It is years clubroot is unlikely to be there, though it can
usually perennial and occasionally biennial, but virtually survive on wild or ornamental members of the same
all of the thousands of cultivated varieties are sold as family. If you have grown brassicas for a number of
annuals or biennials. Two perennial varieties which do years without seeing clubroot you can be fairly sure
exist are Nine Star broccoli, and perennial kale. Sea it is not there.
kale is not a brassica but a closely related perennial The best way to keep the garden free of the disease
which has been taken into cultivation in much the same is never to buy in brassica seedlings or accept them as
form as it grows in the wild. gifts from neighbours, but always raise your own from
Self-seeding of brassicas is not a realistic proposition. seed. If you are not sure that your garden is free of it
They are avid cross-pollinators, so you can never be the best precaution is to lime all perennial brassicas
sure what the progeny will be like. Young brassicas are regularly. When they need renewing they should not be
also very vulnerable plants, which need the protection replanted in the same place. Perennial kale does not
we give them in a nursery bed, and they are not likely
to succeed in the shady, competitive conditions of a 2
I am indebted to Phil Corbett of Nottingham for this information on
forest garden. perennialising brassicas.
need replacing as it can maintain itself indefinitely. Perennial Kale (Brassica oleracea)
If it becomes infected you can take stem cuttings and This is a real low-maintenance perennial vegetable, tough,
plant them in another part of the garden, being careful productive and good to eat. It is a multi-stemmed plant,
not to transfer any root or soil with the cuttings. The with stems that tend to grow horizontally for a while then
old plants should be burnt. curve upwards. Any part of a stem which touches the
ground can put out new roots. The variety most often
‘Nine Star’ Broccoli (Brassica oleracea) found is Dorbenton’s, which grows to a height of 60-75cm.
You can buy Nine Star seed in many garden shops. It is It hardly ever flowers. Some plants never do, others may
the only variety of perennial brassica available do so once in ten years. They do not die after flowering.
commercially, though there is no technical reason
why more should not be bred.3
In its first year it is rather like a cauliflower, producing
a big white curd in the middle, surrounded by a number
of little ones (perhaps they are the nine stars?). In sub-
sequent years the distinction between the one big head
and the little ones becomes less and the plant becomes
much more like a sprouting broccoli. If it is well cared
for it can go on producing useful crops for some five
years, though they get lighter as the years go by.
Like all brassicas, it needs a fertile, moist but well-
drained soil. It much prefers a sunny site, on the edge
of the forest garden rather than within it.
Cultivation is the same as for any broccoli, sown in
a seedbed in April and planted out when the plants are
big enough, usually in June. The curds are ready to pick
over a relatively short time in spring, typically four to six
weeks in April and May, so there is no point in growing
many plants. It is capable of growing to a height and
spread of 1m if well husbanded on a good fertile soil,
and a single plant may be enough for a small family with
plenty of other vegetables in the garden. But it is often
smaller, and quite healthy plants may be half this size. Plate 9.2 Dorbenton’s perennial kale. (PW)
In order to keep it going from year to year it is essential
not to let it flower. All the curds must be picked, even if It is green all through the year, and starts growth
you have a glut of vegetables at that time and don’t need to early in the spring. The leaves are rather small, about the
eat them. Otherwise they will develop into flowers and size of well-grown common spinach, and have a nutty
from them into seed, whereupon the plant will think it taste which is much better than the annual varieties of kale.
has accomplished its life’s task and gracefully die. The It is very easy to grow. Stem cuttings will take any time
leaves should not be picked at all, so as to give the plant from spring to autumn, and should be planted at around
the maximum chance to build up reserves for next year. 60cm apart. In a few years they will have grown to
It can also be killed off by very cold winters, and form a thick clump, and though it will spread it is
can build up pest and disease problems over the years. not invasive. It is susceptible to attack from the common
Some growers say they can never get it to last more than pests of brassicas, including whitefly and cabbage white
three years, and in any case it must be raised again butterflies. Though these can reduce the yield they do not
from bought-in seed when a new generation is needed. normally affect the general health of the plants. If no
It is not a really low-maintenance plant, but certainly a pest control is carried out the plants will simply shrug
rewarding and delicious one to grow. off the pests and carry on growing as before.
It will tolerate a wide range of soils and climates, and
3
There are, however, commercial and political reasons why it is difficult a light seasonal shade, but not heavy shade. No doubt a
for a new variety to come on the market – or for an old one to well-established clump will cope with gradually increasing
stay there – unless the seed can be sold in very high volumes, shade better than young plants will cope with being planted
i.e. to commercial growers. This would be unlikely in the case of a
perennial vegetable. See Saving the Seed, Renée Velvé, Earthscan, out under existing trees or shrubs. So if it is established
1992, for a clear account of the present situation with regard to at the same time as the upper layers, it may do better
plant varieties in Europe. than if it is added when the trees and shrubs are mature.
Sea Kale (Crambe maritima) Most complete their life cycles quicker in conditions of
Not to be confused with chard, which is sometimes good light and soil fertility. Some true perennials may
known by this name, sea kale is a very hardy native become monocarpic in certain conditions, like wild angelica,
perennial. In the wild it grows in sand and shingle which becomes monocarpic in shady conditions.
beaches, sometimes forcing its way up through as much
as a metre depth of pebbles. The grey-green wavy-edged Alexanders (Smyrnium olustratum)
leaves and clusters of white flowers make it attractive, This is a Mediterranean plant, reputedly introduced by
and it is sometimes grown as an ornamental. the Romans. It has naturalised itself, mainly in coastal
The main edible part is not the leaves but the stems. areas, as far north as central Scotland. After centuries of
These are blanched (i.e. deprived of light) as they grow neglect it is now being revived as a pot herb, and seed
in springtime, and are eaten raw. The blanching can can be bought from a number of suppliers.
be done by covering them with a traditional rhubarb The main edible parts are the leaf stalks, especially
forcing pot or a length of pipe with some covering at the thickest ones at the base of the plant, and these can
the top, or by simply heaping soil or mulch up around be blanched by heaping up mulch material around
the stalks. The very young leaves and shoots can be eaten them. The pinkish part should be taken, not the
raw, and the leaf midribs can be cooked. green part, and lightly boiled then served with butter.
It prefers full Sun, but can grow adequately in partial The main stems can also be used, but they need to have
shade. The soil should be deep, sandy, well drained, the fibrous bits peeled off the outside. Like many
fertile and around pH7. It is a good plant for an umbellifers, it has a slight anise taste, and the texture is
excessively dry soil. delicate. All parts of the plant can be used in salads,
It can be raised either from seed or from root cuttings, including the young flower buds, but sparingly because
known as thongs. Raising from seed is difficult. It should the taste is strong. It can also be grown as a cut-and-
be sown 2.5cm deep in spring. Germination is erratic, come-again crop. The dried seeds are said to be a
and can take as long as three years. Plants raised from pepper substitute.
seed are very variable, and only the strongest-looking It is monocarpic, and as it successfully maintains
plants should be selected for planting out. They should itself in the crowded vegetation of hedgebanks it
not be blanched and picked till they are in their third should have no trouble doing the same in a forest
year of growth, but in the long run seed-grown plants garden. It does all its growing between early autumn
are the more vigorous. and about May, when it either flowers and dies or retreats
Thongs are planted 2.5cm below the soil surface in underground – an ideal annual cycle for a forest garden
March. They can be blanched and picked the following plant, growing beneath deciduous trees.
year, but it is better to wait till their second year of growth. Although mainly a hedgerow plant, it can occasionally
Mature plants can be a metre wide and 60 cm high be found in woods beside the sea, even under a closed
in summer. They die back in winter, and blanching, or canopy. The mature plant grows to about 1m in the open
forcing as it is also called, can be started at any time and up to 2m in the shade.
once this has happened.
Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium)
Although usually a grassland plant, hogweed will stand
Umbellifers (Umbelliferae) light shade, and like most natives it is very easy to grow.
This family includes many root vegetables, such as It is monocarpic, and will hold its own in vigorous
carrots and parsnips, and many culinary herbs, such as perennial vegetation. The edible parts are the bases of
angelica and sweet cicely. It also includes many wild the young shoots, which can be boiled, but it is essential
plants, of which cow parsley is the best known. Some of to get them while they are still young.
the wild plants are poisonous, especially the ones that
grow in or near water, but identification of the common Lovage (Levisticum officinale)
edible ones is not difficult. This is best known as a cultivated herb, but there is a
Apart from their value as food, all this family have naturalised form (L. scoticum) which grows on rocky
the added benefit of attracting pest predators into the sea cliffs in parts of Scotland. Lovage dies down in
garden. They are also dynamic accumulators, and with winter but is one of the first garden plants up in the
their deep taproots they are good soil conditioners. spring, and grows to as much as 2.5m. So it does well
Many are monocarpic perennials, plants which, in shady places, but not directly under trees and shrubs.
like annuals and biennials, flower and seed once in their The plants should be spaced about 60cm apart. It does
lives and then die. They may live for anything from two best in a rich, moist soil. It will self-seed, but young
to five years, depending on environmental conditions. plants are vulnerable to slugs.
 It can be regarded as a perennial celery and used in the and shelter; they also yield a green dye, and fibres as
same way. The leaf stalks can be blanched by mulching fine as silk, which can be spun and woven into cloth.
up (the forest garden equivalent of earthing up) and As a food plant, they come into their own in the
boiled as a straight vegetable. It can also be used in spring. Indeed, in a mild year they can start growing in
soups, stews and casseroles and the leaves can be added winter, and be up to harvestable quantities by February.
to salads. The flavour is similar to celery, but with a hint By the beginning of June they are past their best,
of yeast. The seeds can also be eaten, and an oil can be becoming coarse in texture, bitter tasting and somewhat
extracted from the roots. laxative. But if they are cut down early in the year the
regrowth can be picked for eating.
Ground Elder (Aegopodium podagraria) They can be eaten as a straight green vegetable,
On the face of it ground elder sounds like an ideal plant boiled lightly in no more water than sticks to them after
for a forest garden: it produces edible leafy greens, is washing, and mashed to a purée with a little seasoning.
perennial, thrives in shade and is low enough to grow They are inclined to be somewhat bland, though, so they
under a shrub layer. But who in their right mind would are better used as an addition to other dishes. When the
introduce such an invasive plant into their garden? first leaves emerge from the ground in spring they do
Gardeners who have it have to expend constant energy not sting, and can be eaten as a salad vegetable.
keeping it within bounds. It is tempting, but the temp-
tation is probably best resisted. Comfrey (Symphytum uplandicum)
There are several different species of comfrey. Common
Rock Samphire (Crithmum maritimum) comfrey (S. officinale) is a native perennial plant of
Not to be confused with marsh samphire (a completely streamsides and other wet places which has long been
different plant which grows on salt flats and is also used as a medicinal plant. It can be mildly invasive.
edible), rock samphire is a perennial plant native to sea Russian comfrey (S. uplandicum) is a hybrid, made
cliffs in south and west Britain. It deserves mention as famous by the Henry Doubleday Research Association
an edible plant which can grow in walls and other as a dynamic accumulator. It is also perennial, but does
rocky places. If your garden has a wall with enough not spread, either by root or by seed. It contains higher
crevices in it to allow plants to grow, this is an edible levels of potassium and other plant nutrients than
one you could try there. common comfrey, starts growing earlier in the year,
It is best eaten boiled or steamed. The flesh of the yields more heavily and stands cutting better. It is the
leaves and stems can then be sucked away from their best kind of comfrey for the garden.
fibrous centres. Comfrey is the dynamic accumulator par excellence
(see pages 48-49), and can be planted round the edge of
the garden to keep out perennial weeds (see page 54).
Other Greens These are its main uses in a forest garden, but it can
Stinging Nettles (Urtica dioica) also be eaten.
Whether you like it or not, nettles will probably make
an attempt to colonise your forest garden. They do well Plate 9.3 Comfrey in April, showing the remarkable amount
in soils with high levels of nutrients, which is something of growth this plant can make in the spring. (PW)
every garden soil has relative to the world at large, and
as a perennial they will appreciate the conditions in a
garden devoted to perennials. They are also very tolerant
of shade.
Although they will outcompete most other vegetables
in the garden, and therefore give you some weeding
work, nettles do not have to be seen as a problem.
If their many and various uses are appreciated they
can be one of the most useful plants in the garden.
They can help to hide ripe fruit from hungry birds
(see page 102); they are an excellent source of mulch or
compost material; they provide alternative food sources
and overwinter shelter for pest predators; they are an
important wildlife plant, with more than 40 species of
insects, including caterpillars of several butterflies,
either partially or totally dependent on them for food
 It begins to show above the ground in March, or from friends and neighbours who already grow comfrey.
February in very mild areas, and the little leaf spears This can be done at any time of the year except December
can be sliced raw and added to salads. Through the spring, and January, but spring or autumn planting will give the
summer and early autumn the leaves can be lightly boiled best results.
as greens. But the taste is not that special and the texture Before you plant comfrey be quite sure you have it
is slightly furry, so they are better when made into fritters, where you want it and will continue to want it for
dipped in batter and deep fried. Comfrey is probably some time to come, because once established it is a
not worth growing purely as a food plant, but if you are very difficult plant to eradicate. On very light soils it
growing it for other purposes you can eat it if you are can be possible to dig the whole plant up, even after a
short of other vegetables. few years’ growth; but on most soils there will always
It is also useful as a first aid plant for cuts and bruises. be at least a little bit of root left behind, and a whole
To help heal a small cut, cover it with a small piece of new plant can easily grow from that little bit. The only
comfrey leaf, furry side down, held in place with a way to ensure complete eradication is by using a poison.
sticking plaster. Healing is then very quick, but be sure
the cut is clean because any infection will be sealed in. Goosegrass or Cleavers (Galium aparine)
For bruises and strains, use a comfrey poultice or a This is better known as a children’s toy rather than a
dressing containing comfrey oil. food plant. It will stick to any clothing, and there can
It will do quite well in shade, though the yield of hardly be one of us who didn’t throw it and have it
leaves may be greater when it is grown in a sunny thrown at us when we were little.
position. But the limiting factor to its growth is more It is another of those greens you wouldn’t put top
likely to be the supply of nitrogen than the degree of of your list for taste, but it is almost impervious to cold,
sunlight. Comfrey has an almost unlimited appetite for and the main picking season is through the winter. It is
nitrogen, to complement the other minerals it is so good useful to bulk out a pot of mixed greens. It is not worth
at extracting from the soil, and thus fuel the enormous planting goosegrass, but if it grows along the base of a
growth which it is capable of. It can handle nitrogen in hedge it is worth leaving some of it there for winter
a much more raw state than most other plants can – greens rather than tidily weeding it away.
even unrotted chicken manure is grist to its mill. Poultry love it, and it is a good source of calcium for
It can grow to a height and spread of 1m, but if it eggshells. Presumably that is how it got its name.
is constantly cut for use as manure it will not reach
this size, and a spacing of 60cm is about right. It can be The Plantains (Plantago spp.)
established from root cuttings, bought at considerable These are another useful ingredient of mixed greens,
expense from seed suppliers, or from offsets, obtained though rather strong to be eaten on their own. Greater
or rat’s-tail plantain (P. major) is a plant of paths and
odd corners and thrives on being trampled. Although
MIXED GREENS not a woodland plant, it has broader leaves and thus
may be a better bet for shady places than ribwort plan-
There is usually something to eat at any time of tain (P. lanceolata) which has narrower leaves and is a
the year in a forest garden, but it can be a matter common grassland herb. They are also first-aid plants –
of a little bit of this and a little bit of that rather the crushed leaves give some relief from burns, whether
than a whole meal’s worth of one kind of vegetable. from Sun or fire. Both plants are perennial.
These can be cooked together to make a dish Buck’s horn plantain (P. coronopus) is a self-seeding
of mixed greens, just as we put a variety of raw biennial which has been cultivated as a salad plant in the
vegetables together to make a salad. past. Joy Larkcom says “The tough but tasty leaves [are]
In fact there are some kinds of greens which at their best in spring and autumn. Blanch in boiling
are better as an ingredient of mixed greens than water for a few seconds to make them more tender.”4
on their own. These include strong-tasting ones It is not shade tolerant, growing in dry, bare places in
like red valerian, or ones with an undistinguished the wild, often on sandy soils and usually near the coast.
taste like goosegrass. The best flavour, as with a
salad of ‘herbs’, comes from mixing as many Golden Saxifrage (Chrysosplenium oppositifolium)
different kinds together as are available. This little native plant is comparatively rare in the wild,
Liquidising them to make a sauce or soup will though in places where it does occur it can carpet the
do even more to even out strong flavours and ground. These places are invariably both shady and wet,
remove fibrousness.
4
The Salad Garden, see Further Reading.
so it is an ideal plant for a forest garden on a wet soil. it is often found where a cow pat has been: the cowpat
The kind of soil it really thrives on is too wet for the kills the grass under it, which gives a patch of bare soil
majority of fruit trees and shrubs, but there is no reason for the chickweed to colonise, and it supplies plant
why it should not grow well enough in a moderately nutrients as it decomposes. Another place it is often
moist soil. found is under trees or overgrown hedges in pasture
It is very low-growing, its little leaves making an fields, where sheep and cattle seeking shade have bared
interlocking mosaic barely more than a centimetre above the ground with their hooves and fertilised it with their
ground until it flowers, so it can be grown as a ground dung. It grows well in these shady places as long as there
cover crop beneath taller vegetables. Its yield per square is plenty of light from the side.
metre is small, but it is an addition to the yield of the plants In the garden we need to reproduce these conditions
above it, making use of a niche where very little else will for it: bare soil, plenty of nutrients and partial shade or
grow. It is perennial and stays green throughout the winter, full Sun. Although it can become invasive, it is easy to
which presumably explains why it is so successful in shady remove, and makes good compost or mulch material, as
places. It can even out-compete creeping buttercup in long as it is pulled before it sets seed.
shady conditions, and that is saying something. It can be picked in every month of the year – you can
It has a rather strong taste at any time of the year, clear away the snow and find good edible chickweed
and is best added to a pot of mixed greens. It may be underneath – though of course it does not do much
grown as much to protect the soil in winter as for food. growing when the weather is cold. In the summertime
plants grown in light shade tend to make better eating
Red Valerian (Centranthus ruber) and stay green longer than those in full Sun. The whole
The name valerian is often associated with sleeping plant can be eaten, stems and all, as it does not become
draughts, but it is the white or common valerian noticeably fibrous. It can be eaten cooked, in which case
(Valeriana officinalis) which puts you to sleep, not the red. it should be boiled for less than five minutes.
So you can eat as much red valerian as you like without
any danger of nodding off over your plate of greens. Lamb’s Lettuce or Corn Salad (Valerianella locusta)
It deserves mention as an edible wall plant. It is not Lamb’s lettuce is another mild-tasting salad plant. It is
native, but has long been naturalised and grows profusely a low-growing annual, probably native but widely
in walls in south west England, where it makes a vivid cultivated, which self-seeds as prolifically as almost
display through the summer. It has a slightly bitter taste, any food plant.
with a strong overtone of broad beans. The smallest It is very much a plant of the winter and spring.
leaves can be added to salads, to give a sharpness similar The seed is reluctant to germinate in warm soil, and most
to that of chicory, and the larger ones cooked as greens. of it waits till autumn. The plants grow slowly, almost
regardless of temperature, right through the winter.
In late spring they soon go to seed as the temperature
SALADS warms up, though plants which germinate in early spring
can make a worthwhile amount of leaf before they
Many of these plants can also be cooked as greens, but flower. Since they do much of their growing when the
on the whole they are ones which are better eaten raw. leaves are off the trees and shrubs, they can be grown
All of them have some resistance to slugs, but this is in comparatively shady places. But they are not very
very variable and local, so no guarantees can be given. shade-tolerant plants, and do not grow in woods in
the wild.
It is a small plant, rarely growing above 10cm till it
Mild Tasting Leaves flowers, so it can form an understorey below taller
Chickweed (Stellaria media) plants, thus making more complete use of the ground
Many wild plants have a rather strong taste, and while and reducing the need for mulch. When it self-seeds
they may be welcome additions to a salad, they are not profusely, which it often does, it can act as a winter
the sort of thing which can substitute for lettuce as the green manure. It is especially suitable because it does
mild-tasting ingredient which is used in bulk. But chick- not become fibrous, even when it goes to seed, so it
weed is one wild vegetable which can. Before flowering decomposes easily when the time comes.
it has a mild, nutty taste, which is if anything better than Where it comes up thickly it can be treated as a cut-
lettuce. After flowering the taste becomes a little smoky, and-come-again crop, or it can be thinned to about
but it still makes an excellent base for a salad. 10-15cm apart and grown on. Larger plants can be picked
It is an annual which self-seeds readily – too readily whole, or they can be cut, leaving behind one growing
for gardeners who don’t know they can eat it! In fields point which will grow on to form another plant.
 It is worth letting lamb’s lettuce go to flower for It is a pretty plant, with
the beauty as much as for the seed which follows. The its double rows of little
flowers vary from white to an exquisite pale blue. When leaflets topped off with
contrasted with the bright yellow of land cress in bloom delicate russet flowers,
and the lady’s smock-like flowers of radishes, the whole and it is worth growing
effect is as beautiful as any purely ornamental display. purely as an ornamental.
The taste is mild, with a
Winter Purslane or Claytonia hint of cucumber. As
(Claytonia perfoliata / Montia perfoliata) well as being a tasty and
Also known as miner’s lettuce and spring beauty, this plant decorative ingredient in
is not to be confused with others which share the name a green salad, it makes a
purslane. Common or garden purslane (Portulaca oleracea) good garnish for a potato
is a half-hardy summer salad plant which, although it salad, mixed with an equal
sometimes seeds itself, is probably not robust enough part of Welsh onion. The young
for a forest garden. Pink purslane is described below. leaves are best for eating, and
If there is a garden plant which self-seeds more the plant is at its best in mid-spring.
prolifically than lamb’s lettuce it is winter purslane. It is The older leaves can be eaten if they
one of those plants which, as they say, “once you’ve got are dipped in hot water for a few
it, you’ve got it for good”. It prefers rather acid, sandy moments, but it is better to discard Figure 9.1
soils, but will do well anywhere as long as it does not them, which encourages new young Salad burnet
suffer waterlogging. It does well in light shade. leaves to grow.
Although the name suggests it is primarily a winter The mature plant is about 30cm high and wide, but it
vegetable, it can be picked all year round, and indeed does not mind being a bit crowded. Removing the flowers
will be killed by very hard frosts. (The seed in the ground as soon as they form will give a higher yield of leaves,
always survives, though.) In milder winters it can do so and well-established plants can be rigorously cut back in
well that it is possible to get fed up with the sight of the summer to encourage new, tender growth. The young
stuff, pleasant though it is to eat. It can be treated as a plants can be picked soon after they appear, and salad
cut-and-come-again, or thinned to about 12-15cm apart. burnet can be treated as a self-seeder rather than a perennial.
Even mature plants will resprout from the roots several
times. The leaves are an attractive, almost triangular Strong Tasting Leaves
heart shape, and have a fresh, mild flavour with a
Chicory (Cichorium intybus)
slightly fleshy texture.
Wild chicory is a native plant of the dandelion family,
with a beautiful sky-blue flower. It is a good dynamic
Pink Purslane (Montia sibirica)
accumulator. Organic farmers sometimes include it in
You would have thought it was a native wildflower,
seed mixtures for grazing animals because of the minerals
so well has this plant adapted itself to British conditions.
it contains, and it can be used in a garden fertility patch.
In fact it is an introduction from North America. It grows
There is also a wide range of cultivated chicories,
wild in damp, shady places, thriving even under a
bred for a variety of purposes. 5 The wild plant is
closed canopy, and forms dense stands in some secondary
perennial, as are most of the cultivated varieties, though
woods, including ones with poorly drained soils and at
they are usually treated as annuals. They will self-seed
high altitudes. It is common in woods on Dartmoor.
if allowed to, but the resulting plants are very variable,
It is an annual or short-lived perennial. The leaves
especially if more than one type is grown in the garden.
have a pleasant mild flavour throughout the year, though
They are tough plants, rarely troubled by pests and
they occasionally develop a bit of a tang after flowering.
diseases. They are resistant to cold, but do not like wet
They can be used in salads or cooked. The pink flowers
winter weather.
make a bright display in spring and summer.
Some chicories are grown for their roots, which may
be grated into salads or roasted as a coffee substitute.
Salad Burnet (Sanguisorba minor)
Others, the Whitloof or Belgian chicories, are grown
This is a native perennial salad plant which does well in
for ‘chicons’, those large, pale yellow buds which are
partial shade and is pickable all year round. It is very
grown by forcing the plant in the dark. There are also
tough, and will self-seed readily. In the wild it is most
often found on chalky soils, so it has a good degree of
drought resistance and a preference for a high pH. But 5
For a detailed account of chicories see The Salad Garden and
it is not fussy, and will do well on a wide range of soils. The Vegetable Garden Displayed.
many chicories which are grown for their leaves, that reason they should not be
and these are broadly divided into the green-leaved eaten in any quantity. They can
chicories and the red-leaved. Red-leaved chicory, often also be cooked in stir-fries,
known as radicchio, can provide a year-round supply of soups or mixed greens. In mild
attractive, sharp-tasting leaves. winters they can be picked all
The Grumolo type is particularly suitable for gardening, year round, and even in cold
as it does better than most as a perennial. It is a green- ones they are among the last
leaved type from the Piedmont region of Italy. It is very plants to die down and the first
resistant to cold, tolerant of poor soils, and well able to to reappear.
hold its own with other perennial vegetation. They can tolerate a
During the summer it bears upright leaves, but in considerable degree of
autumn and spring it forms a low rosette which persists shade, especially wild
through winter in mild areas and dies down in colder strains of common sorrel,
conditions. The young plants should be thinned to a which can be found growing
spacing of 5-7cm. The summer leaves may be cut when in woods. They are extremely
they reach a height of 5-7cm. easy to grow, being tolerant of a
Like all chicories it has a somewhat bitter taste, wide range of soils, though they produce Figure 9.2
which gets stronger with age. This is one reason why bigger leaves on more fertile soils. Each Sorrel
chicories are usually cultivated as annuals. Regular plant needs about 25cm of space. One plant
selection of young self-seeded plants and removal of should be enough for most families if you are using it as
older ones may help to keep a younger stock. But a minor ingredient in salads and cooked dishes. If you
chicory is supposed to be strong-tasting. It is a plant want to make the occasional sorrel soup you will need
to add bite to blander leaves, not something to be eaten perhaps half a dozen.
in bulk, except by those with a strong palate. The plants may be hermaphrodite or single sex,
Both red-leaved and Grumolo chicories can tolerate but as long as flowers of both sexes are present sorrel
light shade. When they go to seed in their second and will self-seed readily. New plants should be selected to
subsequent summers, they shoot up to 2m tall, with replace old ones every three or four years.
beautiful sky blue flowers, which are also edible.
Jack-by-the-Hedge (Alliaria petiolata)
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Garlic mustard is another name for this plant, and it
From autumn through to spring dandelions have a mild does indeed have a taste of garlic, especially when the
to pleasantly tangy taste, and can be used liberally in leaves are young and tender in spring. As it matures the
salads. In the summer their taste is too strong for most garlic taste is somewhat overlain by other strong flavours
people. If you like a really sharp taste, you can pop a which are more of an acquired taste. It is at its very best
few summer leaves straight in your salad, but you may around Easter time. It can be added to salads or used
prefer to blanch them by putting a plant pot over a in cooking, either in soups, stews and casseroles, or to
dandelion for a few days till the leaves turn pale. The flavour an omelette.
top part of the root can also be used in salads, as can It is a native plant, a biennial which germinates in
the flowers – a colourful and mild-tasting ingredient in spring with sometimes a second generation in the autumn.
any month of the year. In mild areas it is green throughout the year, and in cooler
ones it will peep through as early as February. Its natural
Sorrel (Rumex spp.) habitat, as its name would suggest, is hedgerows and
Common sorrel (R. acetosa) is a native perennial of the woodland edges. But it can also be found well inside
dock family. Sorrels can always be told from docks by secondary woods, and will do equally well in the open.
the arrowhead shape of their leaves, and the fact that It is variable in size, but a well-grown plant can be as
they tend to be smaller. There are various other forms much as 40cm wide by 1m tall. A plant like this can be
of sorrel, including the broad-leaved French sorrel, very attractive, with a succession of white flowers
and the low-growing buckler-leaved sorrel, which can throughout spring and summer, and its bushy, lime-green
be used as a ground cover plant. The common and leaves. A single plant should be enough for most families.
French kinds grow to about 30cm tall, or more if they It self-seeds reliably, and can be harvested as a cut-and-
are allowed to flower, and buckler-leaved to about 20cm. come-again plant. Some individuals have creeping roots
All kinds have a sharp, acid taste, which adds and become perennial but mobile. It is a member of the
piquancy to a salad if used in moderation. This taste is cabbage family, so it could possibly harbour or suffer
caused by a very high oxalic acid content, and for from clubroot.
Turkish Rocket (Bunias orientalis) Land Cress (Barbarea verna / B. praecox)
Although both perennial and large-leaved, Turkish rocket Land Cress is very similar to lamb’s lettuce in its growing
is not particularly tolerant of shade. It is a plant for requirements. It crops from autumn to spring, though
the sunny edge of the forest garden. It is not a perennial it does not grow at quite such low temperatures as
sub-stitute for the common or ‘Mediterranean’ rocket, lamb’s lettuce. It is often possible to go on picking it
as its taste is very different, without the nuttiness of till midsummer, long after the lamb’s lettuce is finished.
that vegetable. The leaves are hot and fresh when young, It is reluctant to germinate in warm soil, and soon goes
but excessively hot and rather unpalatable when they grow to seed in hot weather. When it is in flower the taste
becomes hotter, though still pleasant.
Though mostly biennial, a proportion of plants
usually grow on for another year after flowering. It
self-seeds readily, though not quite as prolifically as lamb’s
lettuce. It not only tolerates shade, but actually prefers
a light shade to full Sun, especially in summer. It is
slightly larger than lamb’s lettuce and should be thinned
to 15cm apart. On the whole the two plants do well
together and complement each other in a salad, as land
cress has a sharper flavour, somewhat like watercress.

Watercress
(Nasturtium officinale / Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum)
It is hard to grow watercress away from running water.
It does not do at all well in still water, and although it is
possible to get it to grow in moist soil it is probably not
worth the trouble. It is susceptible to slugs, and if it is
not doing very well they can eat it faster than it grows.
If your garden has a spring or brook, watercress will
‘grow like a weed’. But in country districts be sure the
water has not flowed through an area where sheep
graze, because it could be infected with the liver fluke
Plate 9.4 Turkish rocket in September. Leaves this big are parasite, which affects both sheep and humans. If in doubt
well past their best for eating, but make good mulch. (PW) always cook it, as 20 minutes at boiling point will kill
the liver fluke. Watercress makes good soup, thickened
with potato.
big. So if it grows faster than you can eat it you need
It is perennial, and the easiest way to establish
to pick and discard the mature leaves to allow younger
it is simply to plant some sprigs of the watercress you
ones to develop. It is up early in the spring, and it can
buy in a food shop. First check that they have little
go on producing into the autumn. It gives heavy yields
roots like fine white hairs sprouting from the leaf
and withstands both cold and drought very well. Plants
nodes. If not, suspend them in a jar of water till the
need at least 50cm spacing and can grow 90cm tall.
roots appear. They should be planted along the edge of
the flowing water about 15cm apart. Watercress prefers
The Cresses dappled shade to full Sun.
These are all members of the cabbage family (Cruciferae).
They fall between the mild and strong tasting leaves and Hairy Bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta)
all have at least a hint of pepper or mustard flavour to Despite its name, this little plant is not noticeably hairy
them, which usually becomes stronger as they mature. and not at all bitter. It is in fact the best tasting of all the
Many members of this family are to some degree edible, cresses, nutty, with just a hint of pepperyness. Its main
but those listed here are probably the most suitable for drawback is that it is very small, a rosette of tiny leaves,
a forest garden.6 usually less than 10cm across. The best way to pick it is
If they are allowed to self-seed on the same piece of to uproot the whole plant and chop off the root and the
ground year after year they can keep a clubroot infec- base of the stems. Even so, it is difficult to get enough to
tion going. But they should not be too much troubled make a bulk contribution to a salad; its contribution is
themselves, because they grow quickly and come to
maturity before the disease can seriously harm them. 6
See Food for Free for some more of the wild ones.
its taste. It is also good as a garnish, or as filling for a It comes from the warmer climes of South America
cheese and cress sandwich. You can help the plants to and cannot stand the slightest frost, so although it is
grow bigger by thinning them to 10cm or more apart, perennial it can only be grown as an annual here. It will
and by growing them in moist, shady places. self-seed, but not very reliably. It may be worth hand
It is an annual and has a great reputation as a garden raising a few plants each year and planting them out
weed. But the places it really likes to grow are damp in the forest garden. It likes a fairly sunny position, but
woods, wherever there is some bare or lightly-covered can cope with light shade, especially once it is growing
soil for it to seed into. It is often found by the sides of vigorously.
paths or streams that go through woods, and in the There are a range of varieties. The most vigorous
summer it grows much bigger under a closed canopy are classed as trailing or climbing, intermediate ones as
than in the open. It does not need shade and wetness in semi-trailing, and the least vigorous as dwarf. A single
order to grow, but it prefers them. It is green throughout plant of a trailing variety can cover as much as 2m
the year, and can be picked in winter in all but the square, as long as they get a good start in the spring. As
coldest areas. they are frost sensitive they are not among the first plants
Despite its great powers of reproduction it is not to get going, but once they do, their exuberant growth
more competitive than lamb’s lettuce, winter purslane, can suppress a lot of annual weeds. The semi-trailing
land cress and so on, and is unlikely to take over in a varieties only spread to about 40cm and the dwarfs to
forest garden. about 25cm. The trailing or climbing varieties can be
grown up a wall or fence.
Shepherd’s Purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) They are tolerant of poor soil and dry conditions,
This is another native cress that deserves mention. It and generally one of the easiest of plants to grow.
has a fine, clean taste and can grow to a big size given
good soil fertility. It too can be invasive, but should not Deadnettles (Lamium spp.)
be any more of a problem in a forest garden than any Although they are probably not worth introducing into
other prolific self-seeder. the garden, these plants are quite likely to appear on
their own and should be harvested rather than weeded.
Other Salad Plants They are members of the same family as the mints. Red
deadnettle (L. purpureum) has a unique aromatic flavour
Mitsuba (Cryptotaenia japonica)
which is rather overpowering if it is eaten on its own,
Otherwise known as honewort or Japanese parsley,
but adds subtlety to a salad. The compact heads of the
this is a perennial woodland plant from the Orient.
plant, containing leaves, flowers and stem, can be used
It is not related to parsley, but its taste has been described
whole, sprinkled over the top of the salad. White deadnettle
as a unique and delicious blend of parsley and celery.
(L. album) is much milder-tasting and can be used in
The leaves and stalks can be used in salads, stir-fries and
larger quantities.
soups. The roots are also edible.
It does well in light shade on a moist soil. It grows to
about 35cm and can be used as a ground cover. A hardy
plant, it stays green all year round, and will self-seed.
OTHERS
Plants should be thinned to about 15cm.7
Herbs
Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus)
The number of useful herbs, including medicinal ones,
Nasturtium leaves fall somewhere between the
dye plants and so on, which could be grown in a forest
mild-tasting and strong-tasting categories. In fact their
garden is enormous. Those listed here are the ones most
rather peppery taste is similar to that of some of the
likely to be of use to the average forest gardener.
cresses, though the plants are in no way related. The
leaves can be used in moderate to large quantities in
Mints (Mentha spp.)
salads according to taste, the flowers and flower buds
The mints are a group of plants which can easily outgrow
make a colourful and tasty addition to a salad, and the
their usefulness and become weeds. They spread rapidly
seed pods can either be eaten raw or pickled in imitation
by means of runners. They love the shady, moist conditions
of capers. All in all it is one of the most versatile and
of a forest garden, and are so vigorous and invasive that
pleasant-tasting of salad vegetables – though it is still
a single little plant can soon multiply into a mass of mint
best known as an ornamental.
far bigger than is needed, and crowd out a lot of other
plants in the process. They also have a big appetite for
7
Available from Suffolk Herbs. plant nutrients, and can rapidly deplete the soil.
 The different species of mints vary in their vigour. In mild areas it can appear as early as the end of
Applemint is the most invasive, and it should not be January, which is much earlier than any mint. In a
planted in a forest garden – unless you either want to sheltered position it can also survive the first light
eat it by the cart-load or spend your life weeding. Next autumn frosts which kill off most mints. It is invasive,
in vigour are the other ones which grow wild in this but not as invasive as the more vigorous kinds of mint,
country, whether as native plants or garden escapes: nor such a heavy feeder. In fact it is a very tolerant
garden mint, spearmint, water mint, peppermint and plant, doing well in a wide variety of soils, moisture
pennyroyal. conditions and degrees of shade. Plants should be
The other kinds of mint, such as pineapple, eau-de- about 60cm apart and they grow to about the same
Cologne and ginger mints are not much of a problem, height.
but then they are not so useful either. They can be
added to salads, contributing a decorative element with Other Shade-Bearing Herbs
their variously coloured leaves, as well as their distinct Most of these plants do better in light shade than in full
flavours; they are also used in pot-pourri. Sun, especially in summer.
The two mints worth growing in more than very small Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is notoriously hard
quantities are probably garden mint and peppermint. to germinate, and actually seems to do better as a
Garden mint is the best one for cooking. Peppermint self-seeder than when sown by human hand. But it is
makes a refreshing hot drink which has mild medicinal biennial and does not always survive the winter, which
properties, especially for minor stomach ailments. makes it a rather unreliable self-seeder. Moist conditions
Both can be added to the salad bowl in liberal are necessary, especially in the plant’s early life. The
quantities. plain, or broad-leaved types are hardier, more vigorous
It is best to plant the more vigorous mints in some and at least as well-flavoured as the prettier curly
shady out-of-the-way corner by themselves than in the types.
forest garden proper. The runners will not cross mown Sweet Cicely (Myrrhis odorata) is a perennial of
grass or a hard path. the umbellifer family. Its main use is to reduce the
Nor, it seems, will they pass a sage plant. I do not acidity of tart fruits, such as rhubarb. A bunch of it
know whether this goes for all species of mint or all included in the cooking pot with the fruit will stop the
kinds of sage, but I have seen the runners of peppermint acid taking the edge off your teeth, without the need to
and pineapple mint stopped in their tracks by a common use any sugar. It can also be used in salads, in large or
sage plant in my garden. The foliage of the peppermint small quantities, and is available early in spring. It has a
would have overwhelmed the sage by now if I did not mild taste with just a hint of anise. The plant is
prune it back fairly regularly, but that is an easy job about 60cm high and wide. It likes moist conditions,
compared to digging up runners. Perhaps mints could and will do well beside a stream or pond, but is also
be confined by rings of sage. drought-tolerant and will stand dry shade.
They like a soil that is both rich and moist, and should Angelica (Angelica archangelica) is another umbellifer,
be initially planted at a spacing of 25cm apart in spring and another one which is up early in spring. Like sweet
or autumn. Small pieces of root are the usual planting cicely it can be used in salads and to neutralise acid
material. All mints die down with the onset of winter fruit, though its more familiar use is in sweet cookery.
frosts and sprout again in the spring. But it is not It is almost as tall as lovage, growing to 2m when
unknown for some plants to survive the winter above mature. It is monocarpic and self-seeds readily, but
ground in a microclimate that is free of hard frosts. because it is hard to germinate from seed packets, it is
A light covering of brushwood or dried herbaceous best to establish it from self-sown plants from another
stems will help to keep them green through winter. garden. It prefers a moist soil.
Chervil (Antriscus cerefolium) is a self-seeding
Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) annual or biennial umbellifer, used mainly in cooking
Balm is Robert Hart’s favourite herb, not just because but also in salads. It has a slight aniseed flavour. It
of its taste but also for its health-giving properties. It is needs moist conditions and plants are some 25cm tall
said to be an all-round tonic, especially good for the and 10cm across. In mild areas it can remain green
brain. It can be included in salads and fruit salads, and over winter.
made into a hot drink. It can be eaten in some quantity Its wild relative, cow parsley (A. sylvestris), is a
without harm. It is also much loved by bees, and will perennial alternative. It should be picked as early as
attract them into a garden where it grows. possible in the season as it turns bitter later, but the
It is a perennial, related to the mints, and like them stems can be dried for later use. Although it will stand
it dies down in autumn and is up early in the spring. light shade, a sunny position will give earlier flowering.
 Bergamot (Mondara didyma) is a perennial of the Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is a very common
mint family which makes an excellent hot drink and grassland plant, present in most lawns. It is a useful
has some medicinal uses. It is also popular with bees plant to have in the garden, being one of the three
and attractive to look at. It likes a moist, rich soil and components of ‘flu tea’, along with peppermint and
is around 60cm high and 45cm across. elderflower. All above-ground parts of the plant can
be dried and used for this. It is rather strong-tasting
Sun-Loving Herbs to put in salads, though quite edible.
What garden could be without borage (Borago officinalis)? Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) is one of the herbs
The cheerful blue-starred flowers spring up here and whose leaves can be eaten in large quantities. It is an
there all over the garden year after year once you have umbellifer and the anise flavour is quite strong, but
sown it. Bees love the flowers, and they are edible, overall it has a very fresh taste and blends well with
adding colour to summer salads. The leaves can also other salad ingredients. The seeds can be collected and
go into salads as long as they are picked young; they get dried for a herb ‘tea’ which is good for minor stomach
prickly as they get older. Both leaves and flowers can upsets – a good substitute for peppermint for people
also be used in cool summer drinks. The plants grow taking homoeopathic medicine. It is perennial, dying
to about 60cm tall and should be thinned to 45cm if down in winter, coming up early in spring and reaching
necessary. a height of up to 1.5m in summer. The plants live longer
Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) is one of the most if the flower heads are removed before they bloom, but
useful medicinal herbs. It is specific for the common it self-seeds readily if they are left. It is slightly allelo-
cold, and can prevent a cold in the head becoming pathic and other plants growing very nearby may be
bronchitis. The flowers emerge from below ground as adversely affected. It is very attractive, and often grown
early as February, like tiny pale dandelions. The leaves as an ornamental.
appear later, and they can be picked and dried at any The cultivated varieties of marjoram, rosemary,
time before the frosts of autumn kill them off. But they sage, winter savoury, tarragon and thyme come from
are best in late spring or early summer, when they still the Mediterranean or other warmer climes – though the
have the potency of youth but are big enough to make wild forms of most of them can be found in favoured
picking easy. Whenever a cold threatens they can be spots in Britain. Although they can survive in light
used to make a tea, which should be taken with honey shade they all benefit from full Sun and the stored heat
three times a day. of walls, paving or any other stones. Apart from
Coltsfoot gets its name from the shape of the benefiting their general health, sunshine concentrates
leaves, like the underside of a horse’s foot. It is a native the aromatic oils which give them their flavour and
perennial, and although normally a plant of open medicinal properties. On the whole they prefer light,
places, it should be able to cope with some summer well-drained soils without too much fertility. Some of
shade. It can be invasive. them can inhibit the germination of seeds, so they
should be kept away from self-seeding areas if possible.
They are all perennials, though marjoram and
rosemary are not very hardy and may not survive well
in colder areas. On the other hand, these two are more
tolerant than the others of partial shade. There is a
Russian form of tarragon which is hardier than the
French one, and may be more suitable for forest
gardening, but it does not taste nearly as good.

Onions
The perennial onions can be divided into those which
give a harvest of leaves and those which give a harvest
of bulbs or cloves, such as shallots or garlic. The latter
group are perennial in as much as the planting material
for next year is a bulb or clove from this year’s plant,
but they are much best grown on rotation with the
annuals. Only the leaf onions are really suitable for
forest gardening.
Figure 9.4 Coltsfoot One advantage all perennial onions have over annual
ones is that once established they are resistant to slugs crop gets used up, and finishes just when the first green
– which can mercilessly destroy newly emerged onion bulbs of this year’s crop are ready.
seedlings. Growing annual onions from sets does not As well as being used in cooking as a direct sub-
solve the slug problem, it simply hands it over to the stitute for bulb garlic, it is excellent in salads, and its
person who grows the sets. Perennial onions are some- mildness allows it to be used in considerable quantities.
times eaten by slugs, but garlic and garlic chives never. It can also be used as a garnish, or as a sandwich filling
The perennial onions are an exception to the rule of along with things like cottage cheese or peanut butter.
thumb that larger leaved plants are more shade tolerant It is obviously a prime candidate for the shadier
than narrow leaved ones. Apart from ramsons, they are parts of a forest garden – always remembering that no
narrow leaved and do best in a light shade. In a sunny food plant will grow in total shade – and it does not do
position they will flower and go to seed, the leaves well in a completely unshaded situation. It likes a moist
becoming dry and fibrous and the bulbs woody. In a soil, preferably with a high lime content, and tolerates
position which is shaded for much of the day and very wet conditions.
receives adequate light from the side they will produce Plants should be spaced about 15cm apart. It can be
succulent green leaves all summer long. invasive, especially in wet, shady conditions where it
has the competitive edge over most other herbaceous
Ramsons (Allium ursinum) plants.
Otherwise known as wild garlic, ramsons is one mem-
ber of the onion family which actually thrives in heavy Welsh Onions (Allium fistulosum)
shade. This is not just because it has a leaf as broad as These do not come from Wales but from Siberia. The
your tongue, but also because of its annual cycle. Old English word ‘welsh’ is used here in it’s original
meaning of ‘foreign’. (The ‘wal’ in walnut has the same
derivation and meaning.) They are also known as ci-
boule. They are a tough, perennial alternative to spring
onions, growing in dense clumps up to 50cm tall. They
stay green for all or most of the winter, though very
severe cold may kill them. The red-bulbed varieties are
hardier, nearer to the wild form and tastier than the
more common white-bulbed ones.
The plants should be renewed every few years to
keep them healthy. They often self-seed, but if they do
not a few plants can be detached from the outside of the
clump and replanted elsewhere. They should be plant-
ed 20cm apart. The leaves regrow vigorously after pick-
ing and can be harvested intensively. The bulbs can be
picked as well, but they regrow much more slowly, and
total production will be more if only leaves are picked.
Plate 9.4 Ramsons in the wild creating an extensive Though their main use is in salads they can be used for
ground cover in the shade of beech trees. cooking if no other onions are available.

A native woodland plant, it sometimes spills out Everlasting Onions (Allium perutile)
from the woods onto adjacent shady banks but is Also known as the ever-ready onion, these are a smaller,
almost never found right out in the open. It spends somewhat milder version of Welsh onions. They only
winter below ground as a bulb, and the leaves emerge reproduce vegetatively, so they can be grown in sun-
as early as February. By early March there are often nier spots without going to seed. They are also more
some leaves big enough to pick. It usually grows as a cold-tolerant and will stay green in areas where Welsh
pure stand, and in May the brilliant white flowers onions may die down over winter.
carpet the woodland floor in a dazzling display. By
mid June, when the trees are in full leaf, the plants have Tree Onions (Allium cepa proliferum)
died down again and nothing remains above ground. Sometimes called Egyptian onions, these are rather
The leaves are the part usually harvested, as production surreal. They look like – in fact they are – normal bulb
of cloves is low. If you grow bulb garlic in your garden onions with a group of little onions growing out of the
ramsons can complement it perfectly. It is often ready tip of the stem. They reproduce by bending over till the
to pick just as the stored bulb garlic from last year’s little bulbs touch ground.
 These bulbils as they are called can be harvested, in either spring or autumn, and will grow 30cm tall if
but yields are low, and peeling such small bulbs is a bit done well. For maximum vigour they should be lifted
tedious. The plants also produce a single main bulb at after three or four years and bunches of three or four
ground level, and leaves like Welsh onions. It is probably plants detached from the outside of the clump and re-
best to harvest the bulbs and leaves and regard the bulbils planted. A little dry mulch placed over the plants in
as a self-seeding mechanism. If a few plants are left winter will encourage early spring growth.
unpicked they will produce bulbils in their first or
second year. Tree onions are extremely hardy, and not Chinese or Garlic Chives (Allium tuberosum)
fussy about soil. They grow to a maximum of 1m, but These are similar to chives with a flavour somewhere
usually less, and should be spaced 20cm apart. between garlic and chives. They need a fairly fertile soil.
They should be spaced 15-20cm apart. In their first year
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) they should only be picked very sparingly and not allowed
Chives make a very pretty plant when the purple flowers to flower. Once established they do not need separating
are in bloom, and can be grown as a decorative edge to and replanting every few years unless new planting mate-
a bed. But for fresh leaf production it’s best to cut the rial is required. They die down for a while in winter.
whole plant to the ground several times through the
season, which prevents flowering. Leaving every other Rocambole (Allium sativum ophioscorodon)
plant to flower is a good compromise. This plant is like a cross between garlic, chives and tree
They die down in autumn and are up again in Febru- onions. It is really a kind of garlic. In autumn and spring it
ary, though they should not be picked until they have produces fine leaves which can be picked like chives, and
put on a fair bit of growth. They need a rich soil or in early summer it produces bulbils like tree onions. It’s
generous feeding to do really well, and prefer moist alternative name is serpent garlic, because the flowering
conditions. They should be planted about 25cm apart, stem makes a snake-like coil just below the bulbils.

Plate 9.5 Welsh onion. (PW) Figure 9.5 Tree onion.

 The bulbs can be harvested, though they don’t keep because they dry out and lose their crispness in the air.
as long as other varieties of garlic. In a forest garden it is You can decrease the knobbliness of your stock by always
best used as a winter replacement for chives, as it is returning the roundest one to the ground when harvesting.
green when they have died down. A combination of They are very tough plants, tolerant of poor soils
chives and rocambole can give a year-round supply of and needing little in the way of cultivation. It would be
tasty fine-leaved onions for adding to salads and many nice to think that they could be used as a bulk starch
cooked dishes. crop, substituting for potatoes. Unfortunately they are
Bulbs can be sown in spring, summer or autumn, too strong tasting to be used as a staple. They are excellent
1cm deep and 5cm apart. Bulbils can also be used but in soups, especially when mixed with other strong tasting
they are less reliable and give rise to slower-growing vegetables like celeriac or parsnip, or raw, grated into
plants. Once established it can reproduce by means of a salad. But you wouldn’t want to eat them every day.
its bulbils and may become mildly invasive.
American Groundnut (Apios americana)
Roots This is a perennial plant that produces tubers which do
taste similar to potatoes. It is a low vine, growing to
The scope for roots in a forest garden is limited. This
about 1m, and being a legume it can fix nitrogen if
is not just because harvesting them involves digging,
the appropriate bacteria are present. As it has not been
but also because there are few root crops which are
intensively bred as a food plant it presumably does not
shade-bearing perennials or self-seeders.
yield anything like as much as potatoes.
It is a new plant to this country,8 and it is not yet
Jerusalem Artichokes (Helianthus tuberosus)
clear how well it will do in our climate, and how much
This is one plant which is indeed edible, very tolerant of
shade it can tolerate. But its natural home is moist
shade, and perennial. Unfortunately the canes grow to
woods and thickets in Pennsylvania, and one account
a height of 2-3m in summer, so they will not fit under
says it prefers dappled shade to full Sun. It is also said to
the trees and shrubs of a forest garden. Also, as they are
tolerate acid soils. The tubers are best harvested in the
tubers rather than true roots harvesting them involves
autumn, when the foliage dies down, and they can be taken
overall digging of the ground rather than loosening the
in the first year, though it takes 2-3 years to accumulate
soil and drawing out a cylindrical root.
a sizeable crop. They contain 17% protein. The seeds
The best place for them is either just to the north of
can also be eaten, cooked like peas and beans.
the forest garden where the ground is shaded by the
trees, or in some place that is shaded by buildings or
Light-Demanding Roots
other tall vegetation. An acquaintance of mine who had
Skirret (Sium sisarum) is a true perennial root vegetable.
an awkward patch in his garden, overshaded by laurel
It produces a cluster of thin, carrot-like roots in the autumn,
bushes, found that Jerusalem artichokes were the only
one of which can be left in the ground as next year’s
food plant he could grow there with any success.
planting material. Unfortunately it is susceptible to slugs.
In summer when the stems and leaves are fully grown
The foliage dies right down in winter, and if the slugs are
they can make a windbreak for tender plants like tomatoes,
really bad in spring they can eat it faster than it can grow.
as long as they are well grown and only subject to mild
But it should be able to grow away from them in most
winds. Unfortunately this is not much use for a forest
gardens in most years, and it is less vulnerable to slugs than
garden, where the main need for a windbreak is in spring
plants which must be grown from seed each year. The
when the top and soft fruit are in blossom.
taste is somewhere between carrot and parsnip with a hint
Once you have planted them it is very difficult to get
of bitterness, and the roots can be eaten cooked or raw.
rid of them, as even the tiniest tuber left in the soil will
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) seeds can actually be
sprout and grow, so it pays to be quite sure that you will
bought from seed suppliers. Presumably they are of a strain
want them in that position well into the future before
which is in some way superior or other to the wild plant.
planting them. They are also invasive, and it is a good
But it does seem strange to buy and deliberately cultivate
precaution to dig some kind of barrier into the soil
something which is available free for no more trouble than
around the patch, like a line of slates. A small clump can
removing it from the ground wherever it chooses to grow
be grown in a bottomless bucket sunk into the ground.
– which is more or less everywhere in my garden! Although
Tubers sold for eating can be used for planting
the roots can be used as a cooked vegetable, they have a very
material. They should be planted 12cm deep and 30cm
strong sour taste and even a tiny bit can dominate a stew or
apart in spring, and the stalks may need earthing up as
soup. Their best use is for dandelion ‘coffee’.
they grow to make them more wind firm. They are ready
in the autumn and winter, and best stored in the ground 8
Available from Future Foods and Plants for a Future.
 times grown on ridges or mounds to help drainage, and
MAKING DANDELION ‘COFFEE’ 9 in spring a thick mulch of manure will help both to keep
it moist and to feed it.
To make dandelion coffee, choose the thickest roots, Picking time is from late spring to early summer, but
and put the others in the compost – they’re more it can be extended back to the end of February by forcing.
trouble than they’re worth. Forcing is done by placing either a purpose-built clay pot
Don’t bother to wash them; just cut off the leafy or a length of drain pipe with a lid on it over the plant in
tops, and peel the roots thinly with a sharp knife winter. This keeps the plant in the dark, which stimulates
– then give them a rinse. growth and produces very tender stalks. Later in the year
Cut into chunks about an inch long, and grind the stalks become more acid, but the season can be
in a metal mincer. extended into the summer by choosing less acid varieties.
Dry roast in a cast iron frying pan on as low
a heat as possible, using a heat dispersing mat, if Wild Strawberries (Fragaria vesca)
you have one. Roast until the minced root is dark The cultivated strawberry is a perennial and can stand
brown, and crumbles between finger and thumb. a certain amount of shade, but it is a demanding plant,
Grind in a mortar or surubachi – a Japanese and probably more suited to a conventional vegetable
pottery mortar with ridges fashioned into it to garden than a forest garden.
make the food grind more easily. They are available The fruits of the wild strawberry are tiny by
from wholefood shops that stock macrobiotic foods. comparison to the cultivated ones, and it takes so long
To make coffee, use a good heaped teaspoon to pick a mouthful that they are fruits to be savoured for
of powder per mug, and bring to the boil. Stand their magical taste rather than eaten for serious suste-
for long enough to let the grounds settle, then nance. Alpine strawberries are a subspecies of the wild
drink, adding milk or whatever. strawberry (F. vesca alpina). They have bigger fruit, but it
is still small compared to the usual cultivated strawberries.
9
By Cathy Ashley in ‘Solutions!’, Permaculture Magazine,
Both wild and alpine strawberries can tolerate light
No. 9. shade, and both can survive quite happily without much
attention. The disadvantage of the alpine kind is that
they can get virus diseases – in which case they should
be taken up and new plants established in another part
Fruits of the garden. The alpines also lack runners, which
Rhubarb (Rheum x cultorum) means they cannot colonise new ground vegetatively as
Although it grows well in partial shade, it is doubtful other wild strawberries can, though they can spread by
whether rhubarb should be grown directly under fruit seed, and often come up in cracks in masonry and paths.
trees as it is a very deep-rooted and exhaustive plant and Both kinds are pretty plants, with bright little flowers
may compete excessively with the trees. It is probably in spring and summer, followed by equally bright and
better suited, like Jerusalem artichokes, to a shady spot cheerful fruit in summer and autumn. Even if the yield
away from the trees, perhaps to the north of a wall or of fruit is low, they are a joy to have in the garden.
building. If there is no such spot looking for a shade-tol-
erant plant to fill it, rhubarb will do just as well in the Rubus tricolor
open. This is a plant for the very darkest part of the garden.
It is usually established by planting sets, which are It is said to be able to survive even under the shade of
had by dividing up an older plant. As rhubarb is prone beech trees. In more moderate shade, such as can be
to virus diseases it is important to get sets from a found in a forest garden, it can flower and fruit, though
healthy plant. A two or three year old plant is likely not every year. Although the yield may be low and
to be healthier than an older one, and if the only plant unreliable, it can be regarded as a bonus, something
available is an older one the buds from the outside edges produced in a situation where not much else will grow.
of the rootstock are likely to be the healthiest. It can also be used to cover the ground if not all the area
It will thrive on any kind of soil, as long as it is well of the forest garden is needed for vegetables. It does
supplied with nutrients, especially nitrogen, and well well on a variety of soils.
drained. 75-90cm is enough space for one plant in a It is a low ground cover plant which does not grow
sunny position, but if it is planted in the shade the leaves above 30cm in height. The plants should be spaced 1m
will expand to cover a wider area than this. The secret apart. They can soon cover a wide area and are not
of growing good rhubarb is said to be to keep it dry in suitable for smaller gardens. Even in larger gardens they
winter and moist in summer. On heavy soils it is some- may need to be cut back regularly.
Mushrooms Shii-take, or Japanese forest mushrooms (Lentinus
edodes) are a popular kind of wood-living mushrooms.
Fungi, unlike green plants, do not manufacture their They are high in protein, and B vitamins, including B12,
own food, but get their energy by decomposing existing which is often deficient in vegetarian or vegan diets.
organic matter. This means they do not need sunlight They also help to boost the immune system by encouraging
in order to grow, and are thus ideal for the darker parts the production of interferon. They will grow on many
of a forest garden. They are tasty and nutritious food, hardwoods, but prefer oak.
mostly higher in protein than vegetables, with especially The oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.) are attractive
high levels of vitamin D. fungi with a pleasant flavour. The pine oyster mushroom
There are an enormous number of edible mushrooms (P. colombinus) is particularly useful in areas where logs
which can be grown in gardens. Full details are to be from broadleaved trees are hard to come by, as it will
found in Mushrooms in the Garden, by Hellmut Steineck.10 grow on conifers.
The following are a few basic kinds which should do well Both shii-take and oyster mushrooms can be dried
without too much trouble, and are available as spawn in for out-of-season use. They are tougher than the common
this country.11 mushroom and need fairly intensive cooking to get the
best out of them.
Wood-Living Mushrooms
These can be grown either on logs or in sawdust. Ground-Living Mushrooms
Each kind has a preference for certain kinds of wood, Many of these mushrooms play an important part in
but most will grow on more than one kind. The kind of reducing leaf litter and herbaceous material down to
wood has an influence on the life-cycle of the mushrooms. humus. This is a vital part in the soil fertility cycle,
When they are grown on poplar or birch logs they come and ground-living fungi are always present in the soil.
into full yield most quickly, but may only last three If some of these are kinds which produce edible
years. Oak-grown ones last the longest, but there is little mushrooms, so much the better for us. The edible kinds
yield in the first year. Beech or cherry are intermediate will live on compost heaps and strawy manure heaps,
at about five years. Most kinds will not grow on conifers, but only once they have cooled down.
and sycamore is unsuitable because it is often infected Wood blewits (Lepista nuda) will grow happily in
with other kinds of fungi already. Almost any other kind the mulch of a forest garden. They often appear of their
of broad-leaved wood will do. own accord, but if not the mulch can be inoculated with
Freshly-felled wood, or sawdust from freshly-felled the spawn. The picking season is from September to
wood must be used. It should be cut in winter for December. They taste good, but should not be eaten
inoculating in spring, or in mild areas in autumn for raw, as they can be indigestible.
inoculating in winter, ideally from 30 to 60 days after Shaggy ink caps (Coprinus comatus) are less of a
felling. If older wood is used there is more likelihood of woodland species. They are often found on lawns,
other fungi having taken up residence. especially newly made ones, and are sometimes taken
Logs 10-25cm thick are ideal, as they have a higher as an indicator of disturbed ground. They should be
proportion of sapwood to heartwood than thicker logs, picked as soon as they appear, and cooked immediately,
and the mushrooms grow best in the sapwood. They otherwise they can dissolve into a black, inky liquid.
can be any convenient length, say around 50cm. Before Some people discard the stem before cooking, but
inoculation the logs should be kept off the ground in a personally I cannot see why. They are delicious, if rather
moist, shady place – the interior of a forest garden is mild-tasting.
ideal. Sawdust can be kept in plastic bags, both before
and after inoculation.
30gm of moist spawn is enough to inoculate one log
10cm thick and 50cm long. Five of these should be
enough to supply the average family with mushrooms in
season. Inoculation should be done with care, following
the instructions that come with the spawn. After
inoculation the logs do not need to be kept off the ground.
They should be kept reasonably moist throughout the
life of the fungi, which should be easy in the shadier
parts of the garden. In very dry weather they may need
watering. The first mushrooms may come in the autumn 10
See Further Reading.
or spring following inoculation. 11
Available from Future Foods. Instructions for growing are included.
 Chapter 10

DESIGNING A FOREST GARDEN

The practical process: a step-by-step guide and an actual example

I get a lot of pleasure from designing a garden. The Land

It’s more fun than playing chess.
Bill Mollison Things to note about your forest garden site are:

• its ecological value;

A good initial design is more important for a forest
garden than it is for many other kinds of garden, • its form, i.e. slopes etc.;
because it is composed of perennial plants, some of • the local climate;
which will live for a very long time. If, a year after
planting, you discover that you’ve made a major • microclimate:
mistake, it is possible to dig the whole lot up and light and shade,
replant it. But most of us haven’t got that much energy. wind,
We are more likely to find plenty of good reasons to go frost,
on for the rest of our lives living with something which warm walls;
does not work as well as it might. In fact a design fault • water sources;
may not show up for several years, by which time the
• soil;
trees will be too big to move anyway.
Designing can be divided up into a number of • existing vegetation.
stages:
Ecological Value
• Collecting information;
If you feel unable to decide whether there is anything
• Recording; of great ecological value in your garden, the local
• Evaluation; County or Urban Wildlife Trust will probably be only
too pleased to give you free advice.
• Design
including:
costing, Landform
implementation. This is usually a matter of choosing the steeper slopes,
if any, for perennial vegetation, such as a forest garden,
to protect them from soil erosion. The landform also
affects frost pockets, which are dealt with below.
COLLECTING INFORMATION
Climate
This part of the process is more important than most
The regional climate, as opposed to the microclimate,
of us would give credit to. Good initial observation
will mainly affect the choice of plants and varieties.
and listening is the foundation of good design.
Observing the site through each of the seasons is
particularly valuable. Time spent observing can also be Microclimate
used to mull over ideas and search out new information. This affects the choice of plants too, but it also affects
It is time well spent. the layout of the garden.
Light and shade Frost
It is a complex matter to predict where the shade from To find out whether there are any frost pockets in your
buildings and existing trees will fall at different times garden, and if so where they are, can mean getting up
of the year and different times of day, and the best way early in the morning a few times when a light frost is
to find out is to observe it through the year. forecast.
The angle of the Sun is at its highest on the summer The places which are frosty first thing are the frost
solstice, 21 June, lowest on the winter solstice, 21 December pockets. Those which are still frosty after an hour or
and exactly halfway on the spring and autumn equinoxes two of sunshine may not be. They are the places where
21 March and September, when day and night are the frost lingers, because the Sun either reaches them latest
same length: or strikes them at a more oblique angle. If the frost was
light they may also be in frost pockets, but after an
&
overall frost they are just as likely not. In fact places
rch er which thaw slowly after an overall frost can be good
e Ma mb
Jun
21 epte spots to plant frost-tender tress, as a slow thaw is less
21

S er
mb
D ece harmful to plant tissues than a rapid one.
21
Another method is to place frost-tender plants at
intervals down the slope, say sprouting potatoes in
spring or French beans in pots in autumn. The ones in
the frost pocket will die.
A single year’s observation may not reveal all,
Figure 10.1 especially if it is a mild year without much in the way
of frost. If you want to go ahead with planting you can
try to predict where the frost pockets will be from the
The second half of the year is a mirror image of the general principles given in Chapter 3, or rely on mem-
first half, so if you know where the shade falls at various ories – your own or other people’s. The problem with
times during the first six months you can work it out for memories is that we often do not notice things accurate-
the second six months. The day which falls, say, 50 days ly if we are not specifically looking out for them.
after the summer solstice is just the same length, and
experiences just the same angle of Sun, as the day which Warm walls
falls 50 days before it. Most walls have shade cast on them for at least part of
Midwinter is not very important, as nothing much is each day, and this must be noted along with which
happening in the garden then, but notes of where the shade direction they face.
falls from February to Midsummer, perhaps at monthly
or two-monthly intervals, will reveal where the sunny and Water
shady spots are. Since the angle and direction of the Sun Water Supply
change through the day, observations should be made In most gardens the principal source of water for sum-
three times a day, mid-morning, noon and mid-afternoon. mer watering apart from the mains is the roof of the
The best way to record the observations is to sketch house and any other buildings. As well as any outdoor
them on a series of maps of the garden. To get an overall taps, the position of the downpipes should be noted,
idea of the sunniest and shadiest parts of the garden along with potential sites for a water storage tank.
you can make a composite map, with a different kind of Grey water is the other on-site source of water,
cross-hatching for each observation, so that the shadier and the position and height of outlets should be noted.
places get progressively darker as the different layers of
hatching build up. Nine layers of shading are about as Drainage
much as the map will take, so it is best to choose three Patches of poorly drained soil often only reveal
representative days, perhaps one each in early spring, themselves after a period of heavy rain. It is sometimes
mid-spring and midsummer. possible to identify potentially wet soil during dry
weather by noting which plants choose to grow there of
Wind their own accord – in other words the weeds. But this
It is never safe to assume that the local wind pattern is approach must be used with caution. The wetness of the
the same as the national or regional one. The local land- soil is only one of the influences on those plants, and it
form can have a big effect. In a narrow valley or street may not be the dominant one.
the wind will almost always blow either up it or down In most gardens the main selection pressure on the
it, regardless of what it may be doing in the sky above. weeds is their ability to resist the attempts of gardeners
to get rid of them. So creeping buttercups may indicate
poor drainage, or they may indicate a level of weeding A SIMPLE SOIL TEXTURE TEST
that has put paid to less persistent plants but not to these.
The same plants in a pasture field may be a much more • Take about a teaspoonful of soil in your hand
reliable indicator of a wet patch, but even here it is wise and moisten it gradually while you knead it
not to jump to conclusions. Indicator plants are clues to till it reaches the moisture content at which it
soil conditions, not conclusive proof. holds together most strongly.
Possible reasons for a wet soil are:
• Try to mould it into a ball.
• a leaking water pipe;
A sandy soil:
• an obstruction in the subsoil such as the floor of a will not form a ball, or forms one which breaks
demolished building; up very easily; feels predominantly gritty.
• compaction, which can be relieved by cultivation; A clay soil:
• the soil is a poorly-drained clay which needs land forms a strong ball that is hard to deform;
drains under it before you can grow fruit there. has a sticky feel when wet.
A loamy soil:
The best way to find out which is responsible is to dig falls between these two extremes;
one or more inspection pits. may feel both gritty and sticky when kneaded.

Soil This is a simplified soil texture test. It leaves out

It is always worthwhile to get to know your soil well. the finer distinctions, but it gives you the general
The better you know the soil the better you can work picture. It tells you whether to expect excessive
with it, and if it varies from one part of the garden to drainage or insufficient drainage to be a problem,
another it should be an influence on your planting plan. whether a deficiency of soil nutrients is likely, or
The first thing to do is to find out if it is predomi- if soil compaction may be present.
nantly sand or clay (see box on this page).
The second thing to do is to dig a few inspection
holes. You should go down at least 45cm, if you can It is well worth checking that there are no specific
get that far. Look out for signs of chalk, old builders’ soil problems, such as drainage or excess lime. But
rubble and compacted soil. If you suspect there may be most soils will grow a reasonable forest garden, and if
a drainage problem, look out for orange flecks in the the garden already grows good crops of vegetables and
subsoil, which are a sign of bad drainage, or blue clay, flowers, that is a good indication that it will be all right.
which is a sign of worse drainage. If you find either it
probably means that you will have to install land drains Existing Plants
before you can grow fruit. It is worthwhile getting These may be important in one of three ways:
professional advice.
pH and the plant nutrient status of the soil can be • they may be valued garden plants which you want
checked with one of the soil test kits available from garden to keep;
centres. Or you can get it tested professionally for a few
• some or all of the garden may have a special weed
pounds by your local branch of ADAS, the government
problem;
agricultural advisory service, or for a slightly higher fee by
Elm Farm Research Centre, the organic research people.1 • nearby trees, in the garden or over the fence, may
The organic matter level of the soil is reflected in its influence the garden.
colour. A dark colour indicates high organic matter,
because humus – organic matter which has decayed to a The People
stable state in the soil – is dark brown to black. But beware.
Many gardens in both town and country have had coal There are two questions to be answered by the members
ash dumped on them over decades or even centuries, and of the household:
may be dark for that reason. On the other hand gardens
like this are usually high in organic matter as well. • what do you want from the garden?
i.e. the outputs;
1
Elm Farm Research Centre, Hampstead Marshall, Nr. Newbury, • what do you want to put into it?
Berkshire RG15 0HR. (01488) 658298. i.e. the inputs.
Outputs with a long cord knotted at half-metre intervals. Choos-
It is a good idea to get each member of the family to ing a simple scale to work to makes the job much easier.
draw up a list of what they want from the garden, 1 centimetre to 1 metre, or 1cm to 2m are much easier
both general and specific, and put some priorities on it. to work with than, say, 1cm to 1.25m.
Quantities are also important for those things which The sample base map on page 143 gives an idea of
can be quantified. For example, if you want space to sit the kind of things to include. How simple or complex
out in the garden, just how much space do you want? you make it is up to you. Putting symbols on the map
How many people will be sitting there at any one time? which refer to a key is a way of getting more infor-
You may need less space than you think. mation on there without cluttering it.
The most quantifiable thing is the output of food. Making a map is one of the best ways of getting to
As well as deciding which kinds of food you want to know a piece of ground intimately. We often think we
grow in the new garden, it is important to make an know a garden much better than we really do until we
estimate of how much of each you are likely to need. come to draw it to scale. One thing in particular that
You can get some idea of how much by the amount you most people get wrong is the spread of the crown of
currently eat. The forest garden may well change the trees. It is usually much wider than we assume at first
family’s eating habits to some extent. But it is important glance, and it is really important to measure where the
not to overestimate this and end up with a big surplus crown comes to, not to estimate it.
– unless you have a good idea of how you can make use
of it. A family which eats 5lb of fruit a week at present Other Records
may increase that to 7 or 10lb, but it is unlikely to start
Keeping a garden diary can be a valuable thing to do –
eating 20 or 30lb.
both before designing a forest garden and once it is in
place and growing. Like making a map, it is a way of
Inputs
getting to know a garden really well. A diary is a good
The design must reflect the amount of maintenance you
place to record the information on microclimates
and your family will realistically want to undertake
mentioned above under Collecting Information.
once the garden is established. There is more about this
Photographs are useful too. Deep in the winter it is
under Evaluation, below.
often hard to remember what the garden feels like in
summer, and vice versa. A couple of pictures can bring
it all back in a moment.
RECORDING
Apart from making notes of what you observe and keeping
the lists of what the people want, the most important EVALUATION
record of what is already there is the base map.
Two broad categories of things need to be assessed:
The Base Map
It may seem a bit excessive to start making a map of • existing vegetation and structures:
your garden when all you want to do is place a few what to keep and what to remove?
trees and shrubs. But it really is worthwhile. The kind • the family’s wants:
of relationships between plant and plant and between do they fit in the available space, and the amount
plants and environment that make a forest garden work of time you want to give the garden?
can only be set up if plants and other features are put in
the right places relative to each other. By far the easiest Some specific points to check are:
way to do this is with the aid of a map.
The map needs to be to scale, though not incredibly • Maintenance requirement. Plants which require
accurate. As well as being a record of what is already more attention should be avoided if low maintenance
there it will act as a template for the new design, and it is a priority. These include: tender fruits such as
will only be any use as a template if it is to scale: if you peaches, fruit trees trained in restricted forms
want to know how many fruit trees of a known diameter (cordons, fans and espaliers), and self-seeding
will fit into a given space you need to know how big the vegetables as opposed to perennials.
space is – at least to the nearest half metre or so. Planting cooking varieties, or any perishable
To save the expense of buying a long tape measure fruits in quantities greater than the family can eat
you can make a reasonably accurate measuring device fresh, means committing yourself to a certain amount
 of work in preparing or preserving it. It is not a done on a scale map, perhaps a simplified copy of the
huge job, and can be fun, but preserving perishable base map.
fruit must be done when the fruit is ready, not How much detail you go into on this sketch depends
necessarily when you feel like it. You need to be largely on the size of the garden. If it is small you may
fairly sure you want to do it before you commit draw in individual trees but put in shrubs and vegetables
yourself to it by planting the trees and shrubs. as blocks. With larger gardens you may sketch everything
• Food requirement. This must be matched to the keeping in as blocks, ‘forest garden’, ‘reedbed’, ‘fertility patch’
time of the fruit, as well as the size of the trees. and so on.
Suppose you eat 5lb of apples in a week and want To some extent this broad-brush designing will be
to plant a variety which keeps for only six weeks. altered by things which emerge from the more detailed
You will only be able to use some 30lb of that variety, work later on. But it is important to start with an overall
so there is no point in planting it on an M26 rootstock, concept, or you can get bogged down in detail and find
which may yield over 100lb of fruit when it comes you have omitted to leave space for a large component
into full bearing. you definitely want.
• Availability of plants. Some of the less common ones Trees
may only be available as seed. This should not be a It is best to start with the trees, and then design in the
problem for vegetables and herbs, but for trees and shrubs and vegetables round them. You can always go
shrubs it may mean that you will have to wait a back and change the trees if you find they are not quite
couple of years or more before you have something right for the shrubs and vegetables.
which you can plant out in the garden. The first thing to do is to make a list of the sizes
of the trees you are interested in. A very common fault
in forest garden design is to place the trees too close
DESIGN together. I have seen two chestnut trees planted within
3 metres of each other! The minimum distance apart
is the diameter of the mature trees. You may choose to
By now a general idea of what the forest garden will plant them further apart to allow more light into the
be like should have emerged, including answers to lower layers, but if they are closer than the diameter of
the questions: the mature trees, one or more trees will have to be
grubbed out before they reach maturity.
• What is the relative importance of food production: The mature diameters of fruit trees on a range of
beauty, wildlife, playspace etc.? rootstocks are given in detail in Chapter 7, shrubs in
• Is it to be low-maintenance with a moderate yield or Chapter 8. If a tree you want is available on more than
high-maintenance with maximum yield?
• Will it contain tender plants which are marginal in
TREE SIZES WHEN MATURE
this area, or just hardy ones?
• Will the emphasis be on fruit or vegetables? Apple M26 2.5-4m
M9 2-3m
You should also have:
Pear QA 3-7m
• a list of specific things you want to grow in the garden, QC 2.5-6m
with quantities;
• the base map and information on microclimates, Plum St.JA 3.5-4.5m
soils etc. Pixy 2.5-3m

The task is to fit the former into the latter – to fit the Sour Cherry Fan Colt 3m wide
plants into the available space and the environment of
the garden. Quince 4m

The Overall Concept Hazel 4.5m

The first thing to do is to make a sketch of what
the garden will be like overall, or a number of different Compact Hazel 3-3.5m
sketches representing different options. This should be
one rootstock, check how many of these rootstocks are You need a number of pegs to mark the trunks
suitable for your garden. Some may be too big, others of the trees, and a compass made with a peg and a
may not be suitable for your soil. Don’t try to be too piece of string to see where the edges of their crowns
accurate at this stage. The list we made when designing will come to. Edges can be marked out by laying
Tricia’s garden, described later in this chapter, is given a hosepipe or rope on the ground, but it is unlikely
in the box as an example. that you will have enough of these to mark out the
Some of these trees were not selected in the end. In whole garden at once. An alternative is to mark out
fact hazel was dropped as a result of making this list, the edges with sawdust or sand, but these are very
because it is too big for the garden. (There is only one difficult to move from one place to another if you
reliably compact variety and this would need at least change your mind.
one pollinator.) An important part of C is looking at the vertical
The next step can be done three different ways: dimension: one person holds a stick vertically on the
spot where a tree is to go and the other stands back
A. Make a copy of the base map, leaving out all the to get an idea of what it will be like. It is easy to
features that are to be removed, and draw the adjust to the expected mature height of the different
proposed design on it. trees if you lash two or more shorter sticks together
This is more suitable for smaller gardens. A pair of to get the length, rather than use a single stick. This
compasses is an invaluable tool. Always work in not only gives you an idea of where the shade will
pencil and press lightly, so changes can be made fall, but helps you to visualise how the new planting
without messing up the map. To start with it is as will change the appearance of the garden.
well to use a standard diameter for the trees, say
3m for a typical bush fruit tree. As the design Whichever method or methods you use, the design
begins to crystalise and you have a better idea of process is a dialogue between the structure of the garden
which individual tree is to go where, you can draw and the choice of plants and varieties. A change in one
the diameters of the trees more accurately according often leads to a change in the other. For example, if you
to variety and rootstock. decide to grow your early apples on cordons instead
of in bush form, you may have to drop the idea of a
B. Make the same map, cut out circles of card to the
tip-bearing variety; if you decide on a vigorous
scale size of the trees you want to include, and pin
cooking apple it can enable you to make use of a shady
them to it.
or exposed spot.
This is best for larger gardens, with a greater number
At this point it is a good idea to calculate the approx-
of trees. As the number of trees rises the number of
imate yield of different fruits which you expect to get
possible combinations rises by geometric progression.
from the selection of trees you have made, and see how
It would be hopelessly complicated to place a large
it compares to the quantities you came up with at the
number of trees with a pencil and rubber, whereas
evaluation stage.
the cards can be swapped around and exchanged
one for another easily and quickly as many times as
Shrubs and Vegetables
you need.
The shrubs and vegetables must not be forgotten while
You will need to tape the map to a board. Each
you plan where to put the trees. Space needs to be left
kind of tree can be represented by a different colour,
for them. This means placing the trees sufficiently far
green for apples, yellow for pears etc. It is best to cut
apart to allow light into the lower layers when the trees
them out to exact scale to begin with, and have a few
have grown to maturity. It also means leaving space at
in reserve in case you decide to change a rootstock
the edges for planting Sun-loving shrubs and vegetables.
or a variety or even swap an apple for a plum.
Once the basic arrangement of trees has been designed
C. Mark the trees out on the ground in the garden. the shrubs can be added to the map, or on the ground
This method can be used on its own, at least in small if you are working that way. They should be drawn to
gardens, but it should also be done to complement scale, in pencil. If you have used method B, using circles
either of the on-paper methods. It is a check on your of card to represent the trees, it is best to switch to
mathematics. If you have made any mistake in working drawing for the shrubs, or the whole process would get
to scale on your map it will be revealed when you try too fiddly. This will mean you are drawing partly on the
to actually lay your plan out on the ground. It also paper and partly on the cards, but that should not be
gives a much more realistic idea of what the garden a problem.
will be like, especially for people who do not find it Remember that you have represented the trees at the
easy to visualise how things will look from a map. size they will be when mature. They will be smaller than
this during the life of soft fruit bushes and canes which Implementation
are planted at the same time. So you may be able to design
You can do it all at once, but there are three good reasons
a succession, taking a crop of soft fruit for a few years
for putting the design into action in stages:
off an area that will eventually become too shady for it.
Once you have drawn in the shrubs it is as well to
• to spread the cost;
calculate what yield of soft fruit your design will give
you, and see how well it matches the family’s needs. At • to spread the work;
this point you may want to redesign some parts of the • because some things need doing before others.
tree layer, either to increase or decrease the amount of
space allowed for shrubs, or to adjust the amount of Although a forest garden takes little work to maintain
light reaching the shrub layer. once it is established, the initial planting is a big job.
The vegetables can be planned in less detail. Unless It can be daunting. But splitting it up into ‘bite-sized
you have very clear ideas of what you want it is usually chunks’ makes it much more inviting. It also means that
enough to designate areas for shade-tolerant perennials, you can do it in an unhurried way, giving it the attention
self-seeders, and Sun-loving perennials and leave it at that. it really deserves, so that the plants can get off to the
But again you do need to have an idea of how much best possible start in life.
yield you can expect from the space you have allowed. Whether you do the whole job at once or over a
As there are few reliable figures for the yield of these number of years, some things will dictate their own
little-known plants, this may be simply a matter of time sequence. Windbreaks, for example, must be up
checking that the areas allowed are realistic. For example, and functioning before you plant the tender plants they
if you find that your plan gives you space for an average are designed to protect, perennial weeds must be
of two plants each of the kinds of perennial vegetables cleared before planting starts and so on. Even if you
you want you will not have enough of each to make a do not make an absolute timescale, with dates given
meal. If you find it gives you space for 50 plants of to particular jobs, a relative timescale, giving the order
each you can be sure that you will never eat it all. in which different jobs must be done, is often needed.
If you find that your needs for forest garden vege-ta-
bles can be met by planting only part of the area
with vegetables you will need to decide what to plant
at ground level on the rest of it. Simply planting the A SAMPLE DESIGN:
vegetables you want at a wider spacing is the worst Tricia’s Garden
possible option: the intervening ground will soon get
colonised by weeds and the garden will become a Collecting Information
never-ending source of work. The vegetables should
be placed at the recommended spacing and the remaining The Land
area planted with ground cover. Ecological Value. There is no special wildlife value in
This is a very important point. Inadequate ground the garden. There are a number of wild flowers, and
cover, leading to a terrible weed problem, is another very some perennial ground cover. There are few nesting sites
common fault in forest garden design. for birds, and a resident cat, which makes successful
nesting difficult.
Landform. The garden is approximately 20m x 13m.
Costing It is uniformly flat, except for the rockery, marked A on
Now is the time to find out just how much the plans you the base map (overleaf) which is gently domed.
have made are going to cost. The result of your calculation Climate. The garden is in East Devon, with mild,
may prompt you to go back and revise the design some- equable temperatures and an annual rainfall of around
what. But there is no reason why you should plant the 900mm (35in).
whole garden up at once; and you can spread planting over
a number of years according to your budget if necessary. Microclimate
Fruit nurseries vary in the prices they charge, so it is Light and shade. The area marked E on the base map
possible to shop around. But getting good quality planting is shaded by the house in the morning and the mock
stock that will grow well and thrive for many years is orange shrub in the afternoon. The area marked A is
worth a few extra pounds, and it is certainly not a good shaded in the afternoon by the wall to the west, which
idea to go for the cheapest unless you are satisfied that the is about 1.5m high and slightly overtopped by trees
quality is also good. The best way to check on the quality growing on the far side. The clump of tall cypresses in
of a nursery’s goods is to speak to previous customers. the SW corner cast their shadow over the whole
garden for a time each afternoon, but as they are tall Existing Vegetation
and narrow it passes quickly. See base map opposite. Most of the herbaceous vegetation
Wind. The garden is well protected from all sides is perennial or self-seeding flowers and herbs. The large
except the south-west. When a strong wind blows from cypress trees, judging by the vegetation at their feet, are
this direction the part of the lawn between the cypress not inordinately strong competitors.
trees and the greenhouse is exposed. It also causes The ornamental amelanchier overhanging from next
strong winds in the passage to the north of the house, door is starting to shade the wall below it. In the bed
where it blows from west to east, and along the west beneath it the ground cover plants are rose of Sharon
side of the house, where it blows from north to south. and periwinkle, except for the eastern third of the bed
which contains various herbaceous plants. These two could
prove difficult to eradicate.
The cotinus by the house is too big for its position
and has to be pruned fiercely each year to prevent it
shading the house excessively. The pittosporum is attrac-
tive, but is too big and casts significant shade on the house.

The People
In addition to Tricia herself, the people living in the house
are her teenage son, Carey, and her young daughters,
Lucy and Rosie. They have two dogs and a cat.

Tricia’s wants:
• dessert fruit;
• fruit for bottling and preserving, which she already does;
• nuts;
Figure 10.2 Wind directions in Tricia’s garden.
• some vegetables to compensate for the allotment she is
currently giving up;
Frost. There is no problem with late frosts. • a low-maintenance garden;
Warm Walls. The western wall of the house has potential
for training fruit, though the lower part of it is rather • to keep plenty of sunshine in the garden;
shaded at present, especially towards the southern end. • ideally to have two woodland glade areas;
The space between the windows is rather narrow for • a pond;
fan-trained fruit. The north wall of the garden (i.e.
south-facing) is 1.5m high and made of brick. It is too • flowers and interesting plants;
low for fan-trained trees but could take cordons, espal- • an attractive garden, with a good view from the upstairs
iers or soft fruit. The concrete path in front of it will windows as well as down; the window most often
add to the warmth of the microclimate as long as it is looked out of is the dining room window, the most
not shaded from the south by new plantings. northerly one shown on the base map;
• the large cypresses are attractive, and give privacy from
Soil the only house that could otherwise overlook the garden.
This is a free-draining sandy loam, at least a metre deep
without differentiation. The dark colour of the soil The Children’s Wants
suggests a high level of organic matter, and the general • to keep the large cypresses, which they use for a den;
health of the plants in the garden indicate it is
reasonably fertile. • Lucy wants her own garden of about 2 square metres;
• the lawn is too small for extensive games and would be
Water equally useful if it were smaller.
The present water sources for the garden are the tap on
the western wall of the house, and the rain water butts Fruits Wanted
filled from the house roof. The grey water downpipe is Apples, pears, plums, figs, hazel nuts, quinces, raspberries
outside the house and situated east of the rainwater – summer and autumn fruiting, blackcurrants, red
downpipe (see base map opposite). The roofs of the shed currants, gooseberries, elder, grape vine, rhubarb, some-
and greenhouse could be used to collect water. thing unusual and preferably both edible and ornamental.
 WALL 1.5m

Cypress Perennial shrubs and ground cover Ornamental Amelanchier

(next door) Rain Rain
Butt Butt

ROCKERY pe pe
pi pi ter)
wn of) n
w wa
B Do (ro Do rey
A (g
B

Cotinus

Cypress B
e
n G
c
Rowan h

LAWN Table Bench

HOUSE
G G
Pittosporum
C
Cotoneaster
N
ia
ell

SHED GREENHOUSE
C am

Tap
F
Cypress

D E Buddleia
Mock Orange

LARCH-LAP FENCE AND WALL 1.5m

5 metres

Figure 10.3 Base map

Evaluation wind, and prevent a wind tunnel forming between
the greenhouse and the other trees. The fence on the
Existing Vegetation and Structures
southern boundary will be heightened by 60cm with
The clump of large cypresses will remain, but the two
trellis.
smaller ones will be removed. Any new planting on the
Bush pears were ruled out because they are too
rockery, where the two smaller cypresses are growing,
large: they would take up a good deal of space, as two
will only be possible once the rocks have been removed.
varieties are needed for pollination; and since they do
The rowan, cotinus and mock orange will be removed.
not keep for as long as apples they would produce more
The pittosporum will be pruned back and kept at a
fruit than could be used.
smaller size.
The cordon pears are placed on the south-facing
The neighbour’s amelanchier will be cut back to the
wall, approximately equidistant from both house and
wall. The rose of Sharon and periwinkle in the bed
apple trees to minimise shading from both, but
below it will be difficult to remove completely, but this
slightly closer to the house so that they get more
must be done before perennial plants can be grown there.
afternoon light than morning light. They are also
The existing vegetation in beds A to E on the base
near the existing water butts. This is important as
map will be retained.
wall-trained pears on this free-draining soil will need
The existing paths will be retained. The area of
watering from time to time.
hard standing by the shed door is particularly useful
The fig is placed on the west-facing wall of the
as a working surface, e.g. for servicing bikes and for
house, where it is also well protected from the north.
temporary storage of materials.
The width available between the two windows is rather
restricted for a fig, so it will have to be trained upwards
The Family’s Wants
and over the windows. This will entail working from a
It will be possible to fit all these things into the garden,
ladder for picking and pruning, but it is worth the extra
with the exception of hazel nuts. They would take up
trouble for this delicious fruit.
too much space (see pages 139-140) and are reluctantly
The cherry plum is in a rather shady position, but
dropped from the design.
it is included as much for its decorative qualities as its
In order to keep the need for maintenance to a
fruit. Any fruit harvested from it is regarded as a
minimum, fruit trees in restricted forms and on the
bonus. The hawthorn is already growing behind the
more dwarfing rootstocks will be kept to a minimum.
small cypress which is to be removed, and should expand
For the same reason no family trees will be included.
to take its place.

Design Shrubs
Structure All the shrubs grown beneath the apples and plum are
See design map opposite (Figure 10.4). gooseberries and redcurrants. None of them are placed
near the cypresses to avoid excessive shade and root
Trees competition. The tree lupin is included for decorative
The trees are kept to the western part of the garden purposes.
so as not to shade the house. A mixture of upright and The blackcurrants are given a sunny position, and
more spreading varieties will give visual interest and the autumn-fruiting raspberries one which will be
perhaps reduce competition for light. The four trees on sunny until the trees have grown up. By that time they
the lawn are placed so that the cherry plum will be vis- will be at the end of their productive life, and they can
ible from the dining room window. be replaced with something more shade-tolerant.
The one tree on a very dwarfing stock is placed to The elder is a longer-lived plant and will make good
the south-east of the group, a) so that it gets minimal use of what will eventually be a relatively shady
shading from the other three trees and the cypresses, position.
and b) to reduce the amount of shade cast by the trees A japonica and a Japanese wineberry are grown
on the house and lawn area in front of it. The cooking up the trellis added to the south fence, mainly for
apple is the most vigorous and least light-demanding of decorative and windbreaking purposes, as this is rather
the trees, and so it is placed nearest to the cypresses as an exposed position for fruiting. But they will produce
it will be best able to stand the root competition and some fruit, especially in good seasons.
shade from them. The grape vine is planted outside the greenhouse
No fruit trees are planted in the southern part of and trained to grow inside it. Existing climbing roses
the garden, which is most exposed to the wind. One are allowed to take up the space vacated by the
of the functions of the crab apple tree is to reduce the mock orange.
 Autumn fruiting Raspberries
Elder Black currants
Cordon Pears
PV Rain Rain
Butt Butt

Pe Paved
Cherry re
GR
nn Salads or
Plum ial
Czar Sunset gravel

Veg
Plum

e
Apple

Summer fruiting Raspberries

tab
les
STEPS
Tree
Hawthorn Lupin B
GR LAWN e
n Fig
D PATH c
MULCHE
Salads h
GR
Annie-Elizabeth Table Bench
HOUSE
Apple Tydeman’s Early
Crab
Worcester
Apfel
GR Grape
RAMP es
ege tabl LAWN N
Perennial V
SHED

POND Edible
Ornamental
GREENHOUSE
Rain
Butt
Rain Japanese Wineberry
Butt Japonica Climbing Roses
GR : Gooseberries and Red Currants
5 metres

Figure 10.4 Design map

Vegetables etc. Apples
Areas A to F (see base map on page 143), are mainly kept The cooking apple is Annie Elizabeth, a vigorous,
as they are. There are two exceptions. B will eventually upright variety which should be well able to stand
become too shady for some of the plants growing there, competition from the cypresses. The fruit is attractive
and these will be moved to the south edge of the trees to look at, of good quality and moderately prolific,
when necessary. F is enhanced with a ground cover of with a long season of use from December to June.
wild strawberries and some additional herbs. The existing Rootstock: M26. Expected yield when mature: 50-60lb.
plants in A will continue to grow quite happily as shade Pollination group: 4.
levels increase. The maincrop eating apple is Sunset, a Cox type
The apples and plum are underplanted with a recommended for this area, resistant to scab and mod-
mixture of perennial vegetables, including ramsons, er-ately vigorous. The fruit is of good quality and keeps
sea beet, perennial kale, Good King Henry and sorrel, from October to December. Rootstock: M26. Expected
together with woodland wildflowers. A rhubarb plant yield when mature: 60-80lb. Pollination group: 3.
is also planted here. The bed marked PV are planted The early eating apple is Tydeman’s Early Worcester,
with Sun-loving perennial vegetables, including nine- earlier-ripening than Worcester Pearmain, juicier and
star broccoli, sea kale, skirret and Welsh onion, and bearing fruit on spurs as well as tips. It is chosen in
Sun-loving herbs and flowers. preference to the Cox-type varieties partly to give
The salad beds contain mixed annual vegetables and some variety of taste. The fruit is ready in September
flowers, such as pot marigolds, as well as salad plants. and will keep into October. Rootstock: M9, because the
They are placed closest to the house as they need the fruit does not keep for long. Expected yield when
most frequent attention. This area contains Lucy’s plot mature: 40-50lb. Pollination group: 3.
of 2 sq. m. The crab apple is Golden Hornet. It is a multi-purpose
tree, providing shelter, pollination, an attractive
Other areas appearance, and fruit for jam-making. Its small, erect
Water is collected off the shed and greenhouse roofs to habit will enable it to fit into the space provided
feed the pond. The water butts are raised just enough so without blocking off access or casting much shade.
that this can be done by gravity. The pond must be lined
on this free-draining soil. The existing water butts fed Plums
from the house roof could be replaced with a larger The cooking plum Czar has been chosen in place of a
container, raised off the ground to allow watering to dessert type, because Tricia reckons that dessert plums
be done by hosepipe, if such a container can be found. grown in this area do not taste very good. It is a tough,
Eventually Tricia would like to make use of the grey water. reliable variety, likely to succeed on this soil which is
The ramp leading from the shed to the pond area is perhaps excessively well-drained for plums. It has an
to make it easier to get the lawn mower onto the lawn, upright habit of growth, so it will not obscure too much
which at present is difficult as there is a 50cm drop from of the view of the cherry plum from the house. Rootstock:
lawn level to the path. St. Julien A, as Pixy would be unlikely to do well on this
The area under the clothes line is to be paved or soil. Expected yield when mature: 80lb. Self-fertile.
gravelled, and steps put in to make it more accessible. The cherry plum, Trailblazer, is actually a cross
Steps will also be put in to make the lawn more accessible between the Japanese and cherry plums. It is a decorative
from the house. variety, with purple foliage, masses of blossom and
juicy crimson-purple fruit of good size. It is vigorous
Varieties and Rootstocks with a tendency to grow one-sided, which should suit
All the apples and plums are grown in a bush form its position. Rootstock: St. Julien A.
with a relatively long stem so as to allow space for
underplanting. On the rootstocks chosen there will Pears
eventually be a surplus of some kinds at the family’s Two varieties are to be planted, two cordons of each.
present rate of consumption. But the advantage of Fertility Improved ripens in October and is a very
having robust, low-maintenance trees with space for hardy, disease-resistant pear which bears heavy crops,
underplanting outweighs this. In any case, fruit if not of the finest quality. It also has attractive autumn
consumption will rise in the face of such abundance, foliage. Nouveau Poitou ripens in November, has good
and the surplus can be traded for foods not grown in quality fruit, and is resistant to scab – important here
the garden. Tricia is a member of the Local Exchange in a wet climate on a light soil. Rootstock: Quince A,
Trading Scheme (LETS), which is a good medium for as the soil is rather poor for Quince C. Expected yield
exchanging surplus produce. when mature: 5lb per tree. Pollination group: both 3.
Fig Blackcurrants
Brown Turkey is the obvious choice for an outdoor fig. Ben Sarek, a new compact variety has been chosen.
Four plants can be grown in the space available, rather
Elder than the three of other varieties, yet it is said to yield
Since only one plant is to be grown it must be a native more per bush than them. It is also frost-hardy and of
elder, as they are self-fertile. A cutting taken from the good flavour.
wild will do perfectly well.
Red Currants
Raspberries Red lake, a vigorous plant and a heavy yielder is the
Two summer fruiting varieties have been chosen, one choice. As it is rather an upright variety care must be
early and one mid season. Glen Moy is the early one, taken not to plant it too close to the trees.
a heavy cropper, with good flavour and virus resistant.
The mid-season one is Malling Delight, very heavy Gooseberries
cropping and virus resistant. Autumn Bliss is the On this very well-drained soil a mildew-resistant
autumn fruiting variety, by far the heaviest yielder, and variety is essential, and Invicta has been chosen. It is
resistant to aphids. a cooking gooseberry, very high yielding and of good
quality.

COSTING Grape
Black Hamburg is a good reliable greenhouse grape.
Trees £
Apples 3 bush trees @ £10.50 31.50 Rhubarb
Pears 4 maidens @ £8.50 34.00 Reed’s Early Superb has been chosen, an old favourite
Plum 1 maiden @ £14.00 14.00 for forcing.
Cherry plum 12.00
Crab apple 12.00
Fig 7.50
Implementation
111.00 This design has been prepared in June. The following
Shrubs outline can be extended over a longer period or
Raspberries 3 x 10 canes @ £6.00 18.00 compressed into a shorter one according to the amount
Currants 10 plants @ 2.45 24.50 of time, energy, help and money available.
Gooseberries 5 plants @ 2.95 14.75
Wineberry 5.00 This Summer
Japonica 5.00 Put up trellis along south fence. Prepare new salad and
Grape 6.00 perennial vegetable beds. Pave under washing line and
Rhubarb 4.00 install steps. Prepare for planting fig. Prepare for
77.25 planting pears. Start removing periwinkle and rose of
Vegetables Sharon. This will be a long job and should be taken at
Seeds + plants 25.00 a steady pace. Hand-digging is the only way, possibly
assisted by some poisoning as a last resort.
Materials
Trellis 3 x 6ft x 2ft @ £5.35 16.05 This Autumn
Pond liner 2m x 4m @ £4.50 9.00 Remove trees which are to come out.
25.05 Plant: apples, Czar plum, pears, fig, gooseberries,
red currants, japonica and Japanese wineberry. If at all
Total £ 238.30 possible, well-rotted manure or compost should be
dug into all planting holes and surrounding soil. If
Some help will be needed with the heavy work, there is not enough to go round the pears should get
including making a root box for the fig and re- priority, followed by the dwarf apple, Tydeman’s Early
moving stones from the rockery. Tricia will not Worcester, and the gooseberries. All trees and shrubs
have to pay cash for this as the work can be done are planted with a grow-through mulch. Areas
within the LETS bartering system. between the trees and shrubs can be left unmulched
till the vegetable layer is ready to plant.
Next Spring A Note on Maintenance
Sow seeds of perennial vegetables and herbs, plant out any
To some extent the design is a compromise between
which are available as plants with a grow-through mulch.
the desire for low maintenance on the one hand,
and the small size of the garden on the other. Trees on
Before Next Autumn relatively vigorous rootstocks, pruned in an unrestricted
Continue removing periwinkle and rose of Sharon as it form require the least maintenance, while more
regrows. Remove stones from rockery prior to planting dwarfing rootstocks and restricted forms give smaller
cherry plum and summer-fruiting raspberries. sized trees.
The cordon pears will need more looking after
Next Autumn than any of the other trees in the garden. They would
Plant remaining fruit if the ground is ready. The rasp- suffer more from any neglect of pruning, and will need
berries in particular should have well-rotted manure or thorough mulching and occasional watering through
compost dug in before planting. the summer, and have more need of feeding with
nutrients than the other trees. The dwarf apple will
At any Time come second in line for whatever mulch material and
Install pond. plant nutrients are available.
 WEIGHTS & MEASURES

1kg = 2.2lb 1lb = 454g

1cm = 0.4in 1in = 2.5cm

1m = 1.1yd 1yd = 0.9m

Approximate imperial equivalents are given below for some of the metric measurements most
commonly used in this book.

5cm = 2in 1.2m = 4ft

10cm = 4in 1.5m = 5ft

15cm = 6in 2m = 6ft

30cm = 1ft 3m = 10ft

45cm = 18in 4m = 12ft

60cm = 2ft 4.5m = 15ft

1m = 1yd 10m = 30ft

Simplicity is given a higher priority than pin-point accuracy here, and the same approach has been
adopted where imperial equivalents are given for metric weights of fruit yield in the text. Plants
are variable things. It is not possible to be very accurate when predicting the ultimate size or yield
of a fruit tree, and to give exact equivalents would be to suggest a degree of accuracy that is not
possible in practice.
 FURTHER READING

BACKGROUND in colour, there are notes on how to use them plus other
interesting information, yet the book is small enough to
The Forest Garden fit in your pocket.
Robert Hart; Institute for Social Inventions; 1991.
This booklet gives a concise account of Robert Hart’s Fruit
pioneering work in his own garden in Shropshire. It also Harry Baker; R.H.S./Mitchell Beazley; 1992.
conveys much of the inspiration and spirit behind this A beginner’s guide to growing fruit at home, Fruit
kind of gardening. gives clear and simple instructions for growing the tree
and shrub layers of a forest garden. It gives rather
Forest Gardening less detail than The Fruit Garden Displayed (below),
Robert Hart; Green Books; 1996. but covers a wider range of plants, also including:
An inspiring and stimulating read, this is Robert Hart’s mulberries, elderberries, quinces, medlars, chestnuts,
personal testament. It explores a wide range of green walnuts, worcesterberries, grapes, kiwis, low bush
issues, and is beautifully written in a graceful and readable blueberries and cranberries. Design considerations,
style. For the practical forest gardener it adds little pruning, renovating neglected trees and fruit storage
information to the booklet above. There is a chapter on are all covered. Highly recommended as a companion
forest gardens in other countries, mainly in the tropics. to How To Make A Forest Garden.

Permaculture in a Nutshell The Fruit Garden Displayed

Patrick Whitefield; Permanent Publications; 2000. Harry Baker; Royal Horticultural Society/Cassel; 1991.
A concise introduction to permaculture as practised in This book gives comprehensive growing instructions
Britain and other temperate countries, it helps to put for: apples, pears, plums, cherries, peaches, apricots,
forest gardening in context. figs, hazels, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries,
hybrid berries, black currants, red and white currants,
Orchards, a Guide to Local Conservation gooseberries and highbush blueberries. General principles
various authors; Common Ground; 1989. of fruit growing and renovation of neglected fruit trees
A delightful little book, although not strictly about are also covered.
forest gardening it contains much to interest and inspire
forest gardeners, especially those with an interest in Grow Your Own Fruit
maintaining continuity with the past. Appendices include: Ken Muir; self-published; (see List of Suppliers).
a list of local apple varieties by county, nurseries, This is the catalogue for Ken Muir’s fruit nursery, but it
fruit collections and useful organisations. (Available from contains so much information on how to grow the plants
Common Ground, Gold Hill House, 21 High Street, offered that it constitutes a concise guide to fruit growing.
Shaftsbury, Dorset SP7 8JE.) The information is practical and well presented, covering
all the common fruits and some less common ones. It is
free from the nursery with first order.

GENERAL Bob Flowerdew’s Organic Garden

Bob Flowerdew; Hamlyn; 1995.
Food for Free The information on organic pest control for fruit in
Richard Mabey; Collins; 1989. this book will be of particular interest to forest gardeners
Undoubtedly the best book about wild food plants, who do not want to go along with Harry Baker’s
it contains details of 240 edible plants, including chemical approach. It also covers the principles of
fungi, many of which can be grown successfully in organic growing, how to grow vegetables, fruit, herbs
forest gardens. Each plant is described and illustrated and ornamentals, with chapters on weed, pest and
disease control, all based on the author’s experience in wealth of her experience. It is an invaluable companion
his own garden.The information is less detailed than in to choosing apple varieties, with some cultural infor-
either The Vegetable Garden Displayed or Fruit. mation for each one (flowering time, vigour, tip/spur
bearing, disease resistance, picking time and eating season
Grow Your Own Vegetables etc.) as well as notes on its taste and culinary qualities.
Joy Larkcom; Frances Lincoln; 2002.
A general guide to growing vegetables by the foremost
Directory of Apple Cultivars
authority of our times.
Martin Crawford; Agroforestry Research Trust; 1994.
Details of over 2,650 apple varieties are given, including
The Organic Salad Garden
where the trees can be bought. Slightly more information
Joy Larkcom; Frances Lincoln; 2002.
on each one is given than in The Book of Apples, and
A beautiful, mouth-watering encyclopaedia of salad plants,
there are 19 separate lists of varieties for specific purposes,
including many of those mentioned in this book, with full
including: forest gardens, no-prune growing, organic
details on how to grow them. Lesser-known plants, herbs,
growing, high rainfall, late frosts, Northern Britain,
edible flowers, wild salad plants and salad making are all
chalk soils, fruit for drying and for juicing.
covered. It is a beautifully illustrated and inspiring book.

Gaia’s Garden Directory of Pear Cultivars

Toby Hemenway; Chelsea Green Publishing Company Martin Crawford; Agroforestry Research Trust; 1996.
(USA); 2001. This has details of over 600 varieties, including perry
A permaculture approach to gardening with much pears and Asian pears. It is similar to the Directory of
ecological information. Although primarily for North Apple Cultivars, but the lower number of varieties, and
America, it is relevant to forest gardeners everywhere. comparatively less information about them, reflects the
lesser importance of pears generally. As ever, Martin
Agroforestry News Crawford gleans all the information there is to be had
Periodical; The Agroforestry Research Trust; on the subject.
(see List of Suppliers).
‘News’ is a bit of a misnomer; this is a compendium of Plums
information on many aspects of agroforestry and forest Martin Crawford; Agroforestry Research Trust; 1996.
gardening, including profiles of various fruit and nut This is both a guide to growing plums and a directory
trees. The approach is scientific, and the information of varieties. The directory contains less information than
more detailed than most forest gardeners require, but there the above two, but does give all the available informa-
is much of interest to the serious student or experimenter. tion on disease resistance – something which is often
missing from nursery catalogues.
Permaculture Magazine
Quarterly; Permanent Publications (see address on page 152).
Hazelnuts
Read worldwide by enquiring minds and original think-
Chestnuts
ers who care about the environment. Each issue gives
Walnuts
practical thought provoking information on: organic
Martin Crawford; Agroforestry Research Trust; 1995-6.
gardening, sustainable agriculture, agroforestry,
These three booklets probably represent the fullest
ecovillages, alternative technology, eco-architecture and
information available in English on the cultivation of
building, community development and much more.
these nuts. Comprehensive variety lists are included.

Plants For A Future

SPECIAL SUBJECTS Ken Fern; Permanent Publications; 1997.
Subtitled ‘Edible and Useful Plants for a Healthier World’,
The Book of Apples this is a compendium of unusual plants for those who
Joan Morgan & Alison Richards; Ebury Press; 1993. want to experiment. They are almost all perennials,
The first half of this book is a history of apples, the second including trees, shrubs, climbers, perennial vegetables,
half a complete listing of all the apple varieties held by edible flowers, water plants, ground covers and even
the Brogdale Horticultural Trust. Joan Morgan is probably edible lawn plants. Many of them are suitable for forest
the only person alive to have tasted almost every one of gardening. Instructions for using the plants, as well as
the world’s apple varieties, and this book contains the growing them, are given.
Planting A Natural Woodland The books in this Further Reading list,
Charlotte de la Bédoyère; Search Press; 2001. plus many others, are available through
A full colour guide to selecting and planting native
trees, shrubs and woodland herbs.
Permaculture Magazine’s Green Shopping
Catalogue which can be obtained from:
Mushrooms in the Garden
Hellmut Steineck; Mad River Press; 1984. Permanent Publications
This is a comprehensive and detailed account of the
subject for anyone who is seriously interested in making
The Sustainability Centre, East Meon,
the most of the mushroom-growing potential of their Hampshire GU32 1HR
forest garden. Tel: (01730) 823 311 Fax: (01730) 823 322
Overseas: (int. code + 44 - 1730)
Soil Care & Management Email: [email protected]
Jo Readman; HDRA/Search Press; 1991.
An excellent practical guide for gardeners, including
WWW: www.green-shopping.co.uk
forest gardeners.

Pests
Healthy Fruit & Vegetables
Pauline Pears & Bob Sherman; HDRA/Search Press;
1990-1.
Sound practical advice. Organic pesticides are included
as a last resort when all else fails.

Lifting The Lid

Peter Harper and Louise Halestrop; Centre of Alternative
Technology Publications; 1999.
All you need to know about dealing ecologically with
your domestic sewage, including detailed plans for a
compost toilet.
 LIST OF SUPPLIERS

This list is by no means exhaustive. The more common plants used in forest gardening can
be bought from many different suppliers, and there is not space here to include them all.
The omission of any supplier from this list should not be taken as adverse comment. But
the less common plants can be difficult to find, and the sources listed here should between
them be able to provide all the plants mentioned in this book. PW

Agroforestry Research Trust Clive Simms

46 Hunters Moon, Dartington, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6JT Woodhurst, Essendine, Stamford, Lincolnshire PE9 4LQ
Seeds and plants of many shrubs and trees suitable for Tel: 01780 55615
forest gardening, mostly unusual kinds. Will search for Unusual nut trees and uncommon fruits – a small range,
plants or varieties not in their catalogue on request. but including some not readily available elsewhere.
Mail order only. 2 x 1st class stamps for descriptive
BTCV Enterprises catalogue.
Plashett Wood, Rose Hill, Isfield, Uckfield, East Sussex
TN22 5UQ Future Foods
Tel: 01825 750 750 Luckleigh Cottage, Hockworthy, Wellington, Somerset
Native trees, shrubs and wildflowers. TA21 0NN
Tel: 01398 361 347
Buckingham Nurseries Specialists in unusual foods, supplying seeds or tubers
Tingewick Road, Buckingham MK18 4AE of many trees, shrubs, vegetables and herbs which are
Tel: 01280 813 556 useful for forest gardening and hard to obtain elsewhere.
Self-fertile kiwis, a small range of fruit and several of Also spawn of a number of edible mushroom species,
the edible ornamentals mentioned in this book. including those mentioned in this book. For informa-
tive catalogue send 4 x 1st class stamps.
Butterworths’ Organic Nurseries
Garden Cottage, Auchinleck Estate, Cumnock, Ayrshire John Chambers
KA18 2LR 15 Westleigh Rd, Barton Seagrave, Kettering NN15 5AJ
Tel: 01290 551 088 Specialist in seeds of wild plants, including most of the
Apples, pears and plums raised to Soil Association edible ones mentioned in this book.
standards. Varieties suitable for organic growing.
Ken Muir
Chiltern Seeds Honeypot Farm, Weely Heath, Clacton-on-Sea,
Bortree Stile, Ulverston, Cumbria LA12 7PB Essex CO16 9BJ
Seeds of uncommon vegetables, herbs, trees and Tel: 01255 830 181
shrubs, some of which are useful for forest gardening. Fruit – not the widest selection, but the catalogue gives
Informative catalogue. full instructions for growing the fruits offered for sale.
(See Further Reading.)
Chris Bowers & Sons
Whispering Trees Nurseries, Wimbotsham, Norfolk Nutwood Nurseries
PE34 8QB 2 Millbrook Cottages, Lowerton, Helston,
Tel: 01366 388 752 Cornwall PL22 0NG
Good range of fruits, especially soft fruit, including Nut tree specialists, with the best range in Britain.
traditional varieties. Informative catalogue. Send A5 SAE for catalogue.
National Fruit Variety Collections R. V. Roger Ltd.
Brogdale Experimental Horticulture Station, The Nurseries, Pickering,
Brogdale Road, Faversham, Kent ME13 8XZ North Yorkshire YO18 7HG
Tel: 01795 535 462/535 286 Tel: 01751 472 226
Rare varieties of apple, pear and cherry; any variety Fruit suited to the north of England.
from the collection grafted onto the rootstock of your
choice, with aftercare instructions. Also supply graftwood Scott’s Nurseries
and budwood for you to propagate at home. Merriott, Somerset TA16 5PL
Tel: 01460 72306
Organic Gardening Catalogue Good range of fruits, plus ornamentals. Specialists in
River Dene Estate, Molesey Road, Hersham, top fruit, especially apples. Their catalogue is probably
Surrey KT12 4RG the best aid to choosing top fruit varieties available:
Tel: 01932 253 666 £1 + postage.
A range of seeds, including many vegetables mentioned
in this book plus comfrey plants and a small range of Suffolk Herbs
organically grown apple trees. (Most perennial vegetables Monks Farm, Coggeshall Road, Kelvedon,
are listed under ‘Herbs’.) Essex CO5 9PG
Tel: 01376 572 456
Plants For A Future Seeds of many of the vegetables and herbs mentioned
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beauworthy, Devon EX21 5DF in this book, including a wide range of chicories.
Tel: 01409 211 694 Informative catalogue £1.
Permaculture specialists, supplying plants of trees, shrubs
and perennial vegetables, a selection of the most useful from Thornhayes Nursery
the 1,800 kinds grown at this remarkable research site. St. Andrews Wood, Dulford, Cullompton,
Many plants, including perennial kale, are unobtainable Devon EX15 2DF
elsewhere to my knowledge. Informative catalogue. Tel: 01884 266 746
Edible hawthorns, wide range of apples. (Mainly wholesale,
Poyntsfield Herb Nursery but open to ‘discerning gardeners’.)
Black Isle, by Dingwall, Ross & Cromarty IV7 8LX
Herbs grown organically in tough Scottish conditions. T & W Christie
Forres, Moray IV36 0EA
Reads Nursery Fruit varieties suitable for Scotland, plus trees for
Hales Hall, Loddon, Norfolk NR14 6QW forestry, hedging etc.
Tel: 01508 548 395
Grape and fig specialists, with a very wide selection of
varieties. Good selection of hazels. Send 4 x 1st class
stamps for catalogue.

As far as I am aware all the suppliers in this list do their

best to provide a first-class service, but I cannot take
any responsibility for the quality of any goods or services
supplied. PW
 PLANT INDEX

Alder, as nitrogen fixer 46-48 Bergamot 129 Chervil 128

Alexanders 120 Bilberry 110 Chestnut 97
as pest predator attractant 54 Bindweed 55, 60, 61 coppiced 20
Alfalfa (see lucerne) Birch 95 Chickweed 63, 123
Almond 19, 98 in windbreak 38 Chicory 124-125
light requirements 73 Blackberry 1, 19-20, 104 as dynamic accumulator 49
Amelanchier (see juneberry) in windbreak 38 Chinese gooseberry (see kiwis)
American groundnut 132 wall-grown, aspect 74 Chives 130
Angelica 128 Blackcurrant 19-20, 103 Chinese or garlic 131
wild 120 example of placement 144 Ciboule (see onion, Welsh)
Apple 16, 19, 84-86 Blackthorn 1, 87 Claytonia (see winter purslane)
altitude 72 Blaeberry 110 Cleavers (see goosegrass)
as host for climber 22 Blueberries 110 Clover 47
biennial bearing 16 Borage 129 as ground cover 62
crab (see crab apple) Boysenberry 104 Cob nut (see hazels)
diseases 78 Bracken 58 Coltsfoot 129
dwarf 15, 32, 42 Bramble (see blackberry) Comfrey 121-122
example of placement 144 Broccoli, Nine Star 119 as dynamic accumulator 48-49
example of variety choice 146 light requirements 74 as liquid manure 66
frost tolerance 74 Broom 21, 47 as mulch 49
information on varieties 78 Buartnut 98 as weed barrier 54
light requirements 73 Buckthorn, sea 38 establishing 60
microclimate 37 Bullace 88 Corn salad (see lamb’s lettuce)
pollination 81-82 Buttercup, creeping 57, 60, 137 Cornelian cherry 111
rainfall 72-73 Butternut 98 Couch grass 23, 36, 54, 57, 60, 61
replant disease 26 Cow parsley 128
season of ripening/keeping 79-80 Cabbage as pest predator attractant 54
wall-grown, aspect 74 family 118-120, 125, 126-127 Cowslip 63
with walnut 97 spring 118 Crab apple 91-92
Apricot 19, 98 wild 118 example of placement 144
light requirements 73 Chard 117 in windbreak 38
microclimate 42 Chequer tree (see wild service) Cresses 126-127
replant disease 26 Chequerberry (see juneberry) Currants, red and white 19-20,
wall-grown, aspect 74 Cherry 19 102-103
Artichoke (see Jerusalem artichoke) duke 89 light requirements 74
Ash 4, 5, 32, 96 information on varieties 78 wall-grown, aspect 74
Asian pear 90 morello (see sour) Cypress, Leyland 32
Azerole 94 pollination 81-82
replant disease 26 Daisy family 34
Balm (see lemon balm) sour 89-90, light requirements 73 as pest predator attractants 54
Beach plum 112 sweet 88-89 Damson 88
in windbreak 38 wild 88 in windbreak 38
Beech 96 Cherry plum 87, 88 Dandelion 23
in windbreak 38 example of placement 144 as dynamic accumulator 49
Beet family 34, 115 example of variety choice 146 as leaf vegetable 125
 as pest predator attractant 54 Hairy bittercress 23, 126-127 Legume family
as root vegetable 132-133 Hawthorns 94 as dynamic accumulators 48-49
as volunteer 57 native 4, in windbreak 38, 38 as nitrogen fixers 46-48
Deadnettles 127 Hazels xv, 4, 6, 13, 32, 99-101 Lemon balm 128
Dogwood and grey squirrels 100 Lime 4, 96
Chinese 111 coppiced 20, 21, 114 Locust tree
native 114 form 20 black 47
in windbreak 38 honey 47
Eglantine 109 light requirements 99-100 Loganberry 105
Elder 13, 44, 105-107 pollination 81, 82 light requirements 74
example of placement 144 size 139-140 wall-grown, aspect 74
in windbreak 38, 38 wild 44, 101 Lovage 33, 69, 120-121
light requirements 106 Heartnut 98 Lucerne 47
Eleagnus 110 Hogweed 120 as dynamic accumulator 48-49
as nitrogen fixer 46-48 as volunteer 57 as mulch 49
in windbreak 38, 38 Holly 113
Eucalyptus 32, 40 Honewort (see mitsuba) Mahonia (see Oregon grape)
Honeysuckle Maple 95
Fat hen 23, 63, 116 edible 112 Marigold (Tagetes) 61
Fennel 129 native 114 Marjoram 129
Fig 19, 91 Hop 22 Medlar 93-94
as coastal plant 73 Hybrid berries, 104-105 light requirements 73
example of placement 144 wall-grown, aspect 74 replant disease 26
light requirements 73 Miner’s lettuce (see winter purs-
microclimate 42 Ivy 114 lane)
Filbert (see hazels) in windbreak 38 Mints 33, 127-128
light requirements 74
Gage 42, 87-88 Jack-by-the-hedge 125 Mitsuba 127
microclimate 37 Japanese wineberry 105 Mulberry 92-3
wall-grown, aspect 74 example of placement 144 in windbreak 38
Garlic wall-grown, aspect 74 light requirements 73
common 130 Japonica 93 wall-grown, aspect 74
wild (see ramsons) example of placement 144 Mushrooms 24, 134
Garlic mustard Jerusalem artichoke 132 Myrobalan (see cherry plum)
(see Jack-by-the-hedge) light requirements 74
Golden saxifrage 44, 63, 122 Juneberry 111 Nashi (see Asian pear)
light requirements 74 Nasturtium 23, 127
Good King Henry 23, 115-116 Kale, perennial 69, 119 as ground cover 62
Gooseberry 19-20, 101-102 Kings Acre berry 105 light requirements 74
in windbreak 38 Kishmish (see kiwis) Nectarine 90-91
light requirements 74 Kiwis 108-109 Nettle, stinging 44, 121
rainfall 73 climate 72 as dynamic accumulator 49
wall-grown, aspect 74 New Zealand, wall-grown, as liquid manure 66
Goosefoot (see beet family) aspect 74 as pest control plant 54, 102
Goosegrass 122 Kolomikta vine (see kiwis) light requirements 74
Gorse 1, 21, 47
Grape 22, 107-108 Labiate family 34 Oak 96
climate 72 Lamb’s lettuce 23, 123-124 Oleaster (see Eleagnus)
microclimate 42 as green manure 58 Olive 73
wall-grown, aspect 74 Lamb’s quarters Onions 24, 129-132
Grass 33 (see fat hen and orach) and carrot root fly 35
Ground elder 60, 121 Land cress 126 Egyptian (see tree)
light requirements 74 as green manure 58 everlasting 131
Guelder rose 4, 112 Leaf beet (see chard) tree 131-132
 Welsh 23, 131 Snowy mespilus (see juneberry)
Orach 116 Quince 93 Soft fruit (see subject index)
shrubby (see salt bush) Sorrel 24, 113, 125
Oregon grape 112 Ramanas rose 109 Spinach
Osier willow 114 in windbreak 38 mountain (see orach)
Oyster mushrooms 134 Ramsons 4, 33, 63, 113, 130 New Zealand 118
germination requirements 64 perpetual 118
Parsley Raspberry 19-20, 103-104 Spinaches (see also beet family) 42,
common 128 light requirements 115-118
Japanese (see mitsuba) autumn fruiting 74 microclimate 41
Peach 19, 90-91 summer fruiting 74 rainfall 73
light requirements 73 Reed 49-50 Spindle 114
microclimate 42 Rhubarb 133 Spring beauty (see winter purslane)
replant disease 26 Rocambole 130 Strawberry 133
wall-grown, aspect 74 Rosa rugosa (see ramanas rose) Sweet briar 109
Pear 16, 19, 42, 86-87 Rosemary 129 Sweet cicely 128
altitude 72 Roses 22, 109 as pest predator attractant 54
diseases 78 Rowan 98
example of placement 144 in windbreak 38 Tagetes (see marigolds)
example of variety choice 146 Rubus tricolor 133 Tarragon 129
light requirements 73 as ground cover 58 Tayberry 105
microclimate 37 Russian olive (see Eleagnus) Thimbleberry 111
pollination 81-82 Thyme 129
rainfall 72-73 Sage 129 Turkish rocket 126
replant disease 26 Salad burnet 124
season of ripening/keeping 79-80 Salmonberry 111 Umbellifer family 34, 120-121
wall-grown, aspect 74-6 Saltbush 111-112 as pest predator attractants 54
with walnut 97 in windbreak 38
Pennyroyal 128 Samphire, rock 121 Valerian, red 123
Plantains 122 light requirements 74 light requirements 74
Plum 16, 19, 87-88 Saskatoon (see juneberry) Veitchberry 104
altitude 72 Savory, winter 129
dwarf 15 Sea beet 117-118 Walnuts 97
example of placement 144 and seasonal shade 76 pollination 82
example of variety choice 146 Sea kale 69, 120 white (see butternut)
information on varieties 78 light requirements 74 Watercress 126
light requirements 73 Shadbush (see juneberry) Whitebeam 98
microclimate 37 Shaggy ink cap mushroom 134 Wild service tree 95-96
pollination 81-82 Shallot 130 Willows
replant disease 26 Shepherd’s purse 127 trees 32, 40, 96,
wall-grown, aspect 74 Shii-take mushroom 134 shrubs 113, 114
with walnut 97 Siberian pea tree 94 Wood blewit mushroom 134
Poplar 32, 96 as nitrogen fixer 46-48 Worcesterberry 102
Privet 32 in windbreak 38 in windbreak 38
Purslane Silverberry (see Eleagnus)
pink 24, 124, light requirements 74 Skirret 69, 132 Yarrow 129
tree (see salt bush) Snowball bush (see guelder rose) as dynamic accumulator 49
winter 23, 124, as green manure 58 as volunteer 57
 SUBJECT INDEX

Access 25, 30-31 Clubroot disease 118-119 local 77-78

Agroforestry 5 Companion planting 31-32, 35-36 pollination 81-82
Allelopathy 26, 34-35, 61 Compost toilet 49 season of ripening 79-80
in elder 106 Composting, pro and con 65-66 self-fertile/self-infertile 81-82
in herbs 129 Coppicing 20, 113, 114 size of tree 15, 82-83
in sage 128 Costing 141 taste 83
in walnuts 97 Cut-and-come-again 68
Allotment 12 Gardening, advantages of 3-4
Altitude 72 Dandelion ‘coffee’ 133 Geese 53
Annual vegetables 6-7, 22, 36 Diet 5-7, 76 Grafting, reasons for 14-15
(see also self-seeders) Digging (see no-dig) Green manure 46, 58
Aphids 54 double-digging 60 Greenhouse effect 2
Aspect 27 Disease control (see plant health) Ground cover plants 62, 133, 141
of walls, effecting plant choice 74 Diversity 5-7, 8-9, 8-9, 45
Availability of plants 139 Domestic prairie 1 Hart, Robert xv, 2, 6, 12, 51, 128
Drainage (see soil moisture) Harvesting through the year 6-7, 69-70
Ducks 51-52 Hedges (see windbreaks)
Baines, Chris 9 Dynamic accumulators 48-9, 120- Herbs 13, 23, 24, 127-129
Basketry 114 122 aromatic 34, 74
Beauty 9, 83, 84, 94-95, 101, Holmgren, David 71
112-114, 124 Ecological benefits 1-2, 11-12, 25 Hoverflies 54
Bees 53 Ecosystem xvi, 9, 43-44, 112-114 Humidity 41
Biennial bearing 16 Edge 20-21, 24, 27-30
Biological resources 45, 61 aspect of 27 Inputs 26, 45, 138-139
Birds and soft fruit 102 Example garden design 141-48 Integrated pest management 66
Blanching 120 Experimenting 71, 73, 74, 75
Bletting 94 Jam making 92
Books, as aid to choosing plants 71, 77 Family trees 19 Juice production 84, 85
Bullfinches 87 Fertility patch 48-49
Burton, Mark 116 First aid 122 Kitchen Window principle 12
Bush fruit 101-103 Flowers 22, 23 Kourik, Robert 35
Food
Cane fruit 103-105 requirements 137-138, 139 Ladybirds 54, 67
light requirements 74 value (see diet) Larkcom, Joy 122
Chickens 53, 61, 65 year-round production 6-7 Layering 100
Children 9-10 yield of 3-4, 5-7, 26 Layers of forest garden 13
Climate, as influence on plant choice Food production, conventional 3, 12 Layout 25-44
71-73 Frogs 52 overall concepts 27-30
coastal, plants for 73 Frost 39-40 Light and shade 4-5, 13, 27-30
maritime 71-72 observing 136 observing 43-44, 136
of cities 73 tolerant fruits and nuts 75 pruning and 17
regional 72-73 Fruit varieties, choosing 76-83 requirements of specific plants 73-4
Climbers 22 disease resistance 78-79 shrubs and 20-21
edible 107-109, 127 ease of growing 78-79 trees and 13-14
non-edible native 114 identification service 78 vegetables and 23-24, 75-76
Liver fluke 126 slugs and 8 fruiting, summaries 99, 105
Pergola 107, 108 native 112-114
Manure 8, 56, 57, 58, 61-62 Permaculture xvi Site, choosing 12-16, 25, 27
animal 65 Pest predator plants 54 Slugs 8, 51-53, 69
Mapping 138, 140-141 Pests 51-54, 66-67 and mulch 59, 62, 65
Market gardening 10-11 Pigs 61 and onions 131
Mabey, Richard 95-96, 105-106 Plant health 8-9, 66-67 Soft fruit 19-20, 32-33, 69-70
Microclimate 37-41 composting for 65 disease 78
and plant choice 73-75 disease-resistant fruits and nuts examples of variety choice 147
observing 135-136 78-79 light requirements 74
Mixed greens 122 liquid manure as tonic 66 Soil 7-8, 41-43
Mollison, Bill 71, 135 Plant nutrients 45-49, 64-66 and rootstocks 15
Monocarpic plants 120 Plant spacing 32-34 compaction 42, 60
Morgan, Joan 77 Planting 62-64 erosion 8, 25
Mulch 55-59, 62 sequence 36 examination 136-137
clearance 55-6, 61 timing 62 influencing plant choice 66-7
materials for 55 vegetables lime content 43
functions of 55 in drifts 33 fruits for limey soil 75
grow-through 56-57, 62 in mixtures 34 moisture 25, 41, 41-42, 136
materials for 57 Play 9-10, 112-114 effect of mulch 59
main kinds of 55 Ploughing 60-61 plants for wet soil 75
maintenance 57-59, 69-70 Poisons xv, 60-61, 67 structure 42
advantages and disadvantages Pollination temperature effect of mulch 59
of 57-59 of fruit 14-15, 81-82 Spur-bearing trees 16
economising on 58-59 groups 81-82 Squirrels 100
home-grown materials for 49-50 incompatibility groups 82 Subsoiler 60
materials for 58 triploids 82 Succession 1, 36, 140-141
of paths (see paths) of nuts 82 and access 31
slugs and (see slugs) of self-seeding vegetables 115 shrubs in 21
Mushrooms 24, 134 Pruning vegetables in 24
reasons for 15-17 Swales 42
Native plants (see wild plants) shrubs 20
Natural vegetation 1 times of 70 Tidiness 67
compared to forest garden 67 trees 15-19 Tip-bearing trees 16
Niche 5, 67 Top fruit 84
Nitrogen fixers 46-8 Records 138 Tree forms 16-19
No-dig 7-8, 10, 59-62, 65 Reedbed 49-50 ballerina 18-19
Nursery Replant disease 26 bush 17
as source of advice 73, 77 Ripening season of fruits 79-80 cordon 18
catalogues 77 Root competition 32, 34, 38 dwarf bush 17
value for money 141 Root crops 22-23 dwarf pyramid 19
Rootstocks 14-15 (see also main espalier 19
Observation 135-138 entry for specific fruits) fan 19
Offsets 64 illustration 85 half standard 17
Orchard 12 rotovating 60-61 minaret 19
Oxalic acid 115 Rotting 59 open-grown 17
restricted 17-19, 30
Paths 25, 30-31 Scion 14 spindlebush 17
mulching of 57 Seaweed solution 63, 66 standard 17
Paved areas 41 Self-fertile fruits 81 Trees
Perennials Self-seeders 22, 67-69 and house foundations 40
advantages of 8 light for 24 fruit and nut
vegetables 22-23, 24 thinning 68, 70 sizes 139-140
annuals grown as 118 Shrubs summaries 84, 90, 97
 neighbouring wild 63-64 preventing invasion 54
as competitors 32 Vertical layer 13 wind-blown seeds 68
Trees (continued) Vertical space 29-30 Whole garden design 6-7, 27
as food sources 96 Virus diseases in soft fruit 78 Wild plants
old 25 Vitamin C 108, 109 shrubs 112-114
self-sown 96 trees 90, 94-96, 98, 114
Tub, mini forest garden in 29 Wall-trained trees 17-19, 40-41 vegetables 63-64, 76
Two-layer garden xv, 13, 73 and soil moisture 41 Wildlife 11, 25, 53, 94-96, 112-114
Walls, plants for different aspects 74 evaluation 135
Urine 65, 66 tender herbs and 39 nettles and 121
Wasps, parasitic 54 Wind 37-39
Varieties (see fruit varieties) Water 49-51, 136 observing 136
Vegetables grey 49-50 Windbreaks 37-39
choosing 75-6 rain, collecting 50-51 edible 38-39
climate and 72 Weeds 8, 60-61, 62, 70 Woodland garden xv
establishing from seed 63, 64 and self-seeding vegetables 68 Woodland, natural 1, 4-5, 21, 43-44
example of placement 146 composting to kill 65 Work 7-9, 26, 138-139
invasiveness 76 defined 23 establishing a garden 141
maintenance 67-69 in existing orchard 36 the daily and yearly round 69-70
planting out 63 mulch for controlling 55-59, 69

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HOW TO MAKE A FOREST GARDEN
A forest garden is a food-producing garden, based on the model of a natural woodland
or forest. It is made up of fruit and nut trees, fruit bushes, perennial vegetables and herbs.
It can be tailored to fit any space, from a tiny urban back yard to a large rural garden.

A close copy of a natural ecosystem, it is perhaps the most ecologically friendly way of
gardening open to us.

It is also a low-maintenance way of gardening. Once established there is none of the digging,
sowing, planting out and hoeing of the conventional kitchen garden. The main task is
picking the produce!

This highly practical, yet inspiring book gives you everything you need to know in order to
create a beautiful and productive forest garden, including:

 Basic principles
 Layout
 How to choose plants
 Details of over one hundred plants, from apples to mushrooms
 The most comprehensive account of perennial
and self-seeding vegetables in print
 A step-by-step guide to creating your garden
 Full details of an example garden, and pictures of many more

Forest gardening is an important element of permaculture. This book explains in detail per-
maculture design for temperate climates and contains much of interest for anybody wanting to
introduce sustainable practices into their garden.

“Patrick Whitefield’s excellent book gives numerous practical details of the steps
that many of us can take to realise this alluring vision.”
Robert Hart

Cover photo: Robert Hart’s Forest Garden (Patrick Whitefield).

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