Queen of the food forest, this tasty “blueberries-in-a-tree!” favorite is easy to grow, is not too picky about its soil (unlike some plants I know… coughBLUEBERRYahem…), and will give you enough fruit to make pies, muffins, syrups, tarts, and a thousand other delights. SHRUB LAYER Cold hardiness zones: 2 – 7 (can withstand cold to -50° F) Soil PH: 6.0-8.0 […]
I’m totally nuts for this tree. One of the few particularly cold hardy nut pines (AKA stone pines), and it grows to 100 feet and lives 1000 years! Plus it has some serious staple potential… CANOPY LAYER Cold hardiness zones: 3 – 7 (can withstand cold to -40° F), and sometimes listed as going down to zone 2. Soil PH: […]
Yes, it is indeed the quintessential, typical domestic apple—with hundreds if not thousands of varieties. But there is nothing typical about its story, nor its history. Plus, because it’s been utilized by people for so long, and been bred so many different ways, there are SO MANY options. You can get the apple varieties that are just right for your […]
The best perennial green bean I can find. And they can also make perennial hard dry beans, too. And did I mention they are perennial? I will give a heads up, however—without the ground protection, many gardeners never see this bean again. VINE LAYER Cold hardiness zones: 4 – 11 (though you’ll want to provide heavy mulch for zones 4 […]
You’d be nuts not to get one. This tree walnut disappoint you. CANOPY LAYER Cold hardiness zones: 4 – 9 (can withstand cold to -30° F) Soil PH: 6.8-7.2, but it will survive in a wider range of soils Watering needs: Average, though they prefer more in summer Blooming Season: Mid-spring Harvest season: September-October Fruiting age: As early as 4 […]
Good for more than Nutella (which, by the way, you can make at home with roasted hazelnuts!), hazelnuts are one of the best nuts for the food forest.
Like yams, but too cold to grow them? Love yams but hate to have to kill your plant to harvest them? You’ve come to the right place, my friend! Possibly the best crop to qualify as a wild potato—or wild tater!
For those unfamiliar with Asian pears, picture a fruit with the shape of an apple, the color and texture of a pear, but the flavor of an extra-juicy spiced pear. Plus they sell for top dollar at the grocery store and farmer’s market.
AKA juneberry, AKA shadbush, AKA saskatoon, AKA Snowy Mespilus, AKA apple serviceberry, AKA quite-possibly-the-best-little-berry-you’ll-ever-find-growing-on-a-tree.
Get it started, and it will do the rest. A perfect candidate for food forest veggies.
No, it’s not really a corndog sticking out of the water, but it’s probably even more edible and nutritious. Cattail is a fabulous wild edible worth adding to the wettest part of your food forest.
Photo by Rasbak of Wikimedia commons, CC3
Picture lime-tinted chard or lettuce. It’s Romain meets rhubarb. In other words, you’ve got to try French Sorrel…
Probably the wild edible I eat most, Lambsquarters is a delicious green that makes a great spinach substitute. Close relatives include red goosefoot, orach, quinoa, and dozens of other similar-tasting, similarly edible plants.