This Permaculture Food Forest mimics nature’s patterns with a diversity of plants, building up the soil for optimum nutrient density, and harvesting water with two hugelkultur mounds– just like our forests around us. To create a hugelkultur mound, use logs, sticks, arborist chips, then soil. All of the organic matter decomposes with the help of mycelium and builds a wonderful soil that easily absorbs water and provides nutrient bioavailability for plants. Through this design, we are able to abundantly grow food for people and provide habitat for wildlife in a way that is healthy for us and the environment. 

The Canopy Layer of the Early Bird Mulberry (Morusrubra) is the overstory, positioned so as to take advantage of the solar aspect without blocking the sun of the layers beneath the tree. This tree serves to shade plants as needed, provide beneficial insects with pollen, and people with delicious aggregate berries. 

The Subcanopy Layer of the Siberian Pea Shrub (Caragana arborescens), Saskatoon Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), and Italian Plum (Prunus domestica) are able to take advantage of available light not blocked by the canopy layer. Both the Serviceberry and Plum tree provide us with delicious fruit, and the Siberian Pea Shrub goes one step further in being a nitrogen fixer for all of the plants in the food forest. This tree also bears a legume pod that’s edible. 

Next we have the Shrub Layer with the Golden Currant(Ribes aureum), which not only provides us with delicious berries in June, but also acts as a keystone native plant species that supports wildlife. 

The Vining Layer consists of Raspberry (Rubusidaeus) vines. Aggregate berries such as these are a way to quickly grow an abundance of food in a short period of time. 

The Herbaceous Layer serves a vital role in the food forest because the plants such as Blanket Flower(Gaillardia), Blue Columbine (Aquilegia cerulea), Common Yarrow (Rose Creek achillea millefolium), Firecracker Penstemon (Penstemon eatonii), Showy Milkweed (Asclepiasspeciosa Torr.), Missouri Goldenrod (Solidago missouriensis), and Aster (Aster Species) attract beneficial insects needed to pollinate the trees. Also, dynamic accumulators like Common Comfrey (Symphytum officinale) bring minerals up from deep in the soil necessary for other plants. 

The Ground Cover plants cover and protect the soil from the sun and also help keep the weed pressure down. Covering the soil also conserves water. Our ground cover plants serve other needs as well. Italian Oregano (Poliomintha longiflora)repels pests, invites pollinators, and is a delicious herb. Both the Albion Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa 'Albion') and Kinnikinuk (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) have edible berries. As a native species, Kinnikinuk serves beneficial insects too. 

Last, the Underground Layer plays its part as well in a multitude of ways. In this food forest, we have Common Camas (Camasia quamash), which Indigenous peoples of this region harvested and gardened for a healthy food source. 

The Food Forest is a way to work with nature, not against it. 

Mary Bishop, Permaculture Design Consultant 

At All Things Regenerative, LLC 

Sources: Temperate Climate Permaculture, Google+, onegreenworld.com