Creating a Forest Garden: Working with Nature to Grow Edible Crops [Hardcover]

Martin Crawford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2010

Growing food sustainably is becoming more and more important in the light of our changing climate. Forest gardening is a way of working with nature that is not only productive and requires minimal maintenance, but also has great environmental benefits. A forest garden is a managed ecosystem modelled on the stucture of young natural woodland, with a diversity of crops grown in different vertical layers. Unlike in a conventional garden, nature does most of the work for you.

Creating a Forest Garden tells you everything you need to know - whether you want to plant a small area in your back garden or develop a larger plot. It includes advice on planning, design (using permaculture principles), planting and maintenance, and a comprehensive directory of over 450 trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, herbs, annuals, root crops and climbers - almost all of them edible and many very unusual.

As well as more conventional plants you can grow your own Nepalese raspberries, chokeberries, goji berries, almonds and hops-while creating a beautiful environment that benefits both you and the ecosystem. Forest gardens offer one solution for a long-term, sustainable way of growing food without compromising soil quality, food quality or biodiversity.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This book is a magnificiently produced and massive tome that is sure to become every forest gardener's horticultural toolkit and bible." Grow It "Marting has produced a book that is not only visually beautiful but very practical, offering advice on planning, designing, planting and general maintenance." Positive News - Summer 2010 "If you are seriously considering the creation or maitenance of a forest garden then you would do well to have this book on your shelves. Even if you are only looking for novel ground cover suggestions in shaded areas or approaches to inter-planting trees, then this book offers bountiful food for thought." Green Prophet "Creating a Forest Garden is a fascniating read for gardeners interested in how to plant communities that work." Gardens Illustrated "Martin Crawford has produced a spectacularly useful guide to new horticultural and ecological terrain of great importance." Permaculture Activist "This semina piece of work is not only visually entralling, it's incredibly easy to use and it contains a level of detail and explanation that makes it, I believe, a must read for anyone who is serious about building a truly sustainable forest." WWOOF Ireland "Martin's book is visually stunning with beautiful photography and illustrations, accompanying very informative and well constructed text." Self Sufficient-ish Website - 11 June 2010 "This book is a must if you are interested in producing food from your garden, becoming more self-sufficient or just curious about plants and their uses." The Cottage Gardener - June 2011 "The ultimate book on the subject... extremely thorough and beautifully illustrated" Let's Talk (East Anglia)

About the Author

Martin Crawford has spent over twenty years in organic agriculture and horticulture and is director of The Agroforestry Research Trust, a non-profit-making charity that researches into temperate agroforestry and all aspects of plant cropping and uses, with a focus on tree, shrub and perennial crops. It produces several publications and a quarterly journal, and sells plants and seeds. See www.agroforestry.co.uk for more information.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Green Books (July 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1900322625
• ISBN-13: 978-1900322621
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 1.3 x 10 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #92,188 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #28 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Agricultural Sciences > Forestry
  • #51 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Gardening & Landscape Design > Fruit
  • #84 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Natural Resources

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Resource - Buy It! August 22, 2010

By Greg

Format:Hardcover

I just finished reading "Creating a Forest Garden" cover to cover. It's one of the best books on forest gardening I've come across and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in permaculture/edible landscaping. Martin's experiences with his forest garden are concisely presented to the reader and guide you to avoid many mistakes that are often made when starting out. The book not only guides you through the process of successfully laying out the garden, but gives many specifics, has pictures and information on many, many suitable plants and has many creative ideas born from working in the forest garden for so many years. If I were new to permaculture and forest gardening I'd start here. If you've read a lot in this area (like me) this book will become one of your best finds. I'd give it 6 stars if I could.

56 of 59 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book marred by typos and inaccuracies June 3, 2011

By a reader

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This was a bit of a splurge for me; having known Martin Crawford's name for years, I was really looking forward to seeing his work in print. I must say that the actual book is a bit of a disappointment. I knew that it would be aimed at a UK audience, so that's not a strike against it. In fact, it joins wonderful works by Patrick Whitefield and John Seymour to round out the picture of British forest gardening. But despite the beautiful photography, the book is neither as practical nor as detailed as Gaia's Garden or Edible Forest Gardens. This book adds very little to what they have already contributed, with the exception of a thoughtful consideration of global climate change and its presumed effect on forest gardening, and a chapter on fungi.

More damning, the text is full of typos, and several of the photographs are misplaced and mislabeled. A picture illustrating Oregon grape is actually some sort of currant, for example. Discussions of design are general to the point of frustration; the section on water use says, in essence, "in a drought you'll use more than you think" and then spends two pages on irrigation methods. Again, it's possible that a British climate requires less thought about water than the southeastern U.S., but that sort of generality pervades the book. Save your money for Jacke and Toensmeier.

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars forest gardening made easy!!! (or easier at least) September 3, 2010

By blackbear

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

That's right five stars. Martin has a 16 year old forest garden and talks from experience, not theory. His chapters are brief and concise. I finished the book feeling content that I actually assimilated all valuable info presented by Martin. Unlike some other forest gardening books I've read (cover to cover mind you) this one is short, easy to read and understand, and by no means intimidating. Let me reiterate; martin speaks from 16 years experience. And the icing on the cake... the photos are of an actual forest garden!