How to Make a Forest Garden [Paperback]

Patrick Whitefield (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 22, 2002

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 up 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 permaculture design for temperate climates and contains much of interest for anybody wanting to introduce sustainable practices into their garden.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"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

About the Author

Patrick Whitefield is a permaculture teacher, writer, designer, and consulting editor for Permaculture Magazine. He is the author of the mini-classic Permaculture in a Nutshell, which has been translated into four languages.

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Permanent Publications; 3rd edition (June 22, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1856230082
• ISBN-13: 978-1856230087
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #349,817 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

225 of 228 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars perennial paradise, June 21, 2000

By 

R. Griffiths "bookchoice" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Make a Forest Garden (Paperback)

In many climates around the world, forest is the natural state of vegetation. It grows without anyone's say-so. It takes no human effort at all for nature to be sustainable, diverse, productive, multi-dimensional, and beautiful. However, most people's gardens, even food gardens, are really none of these, despite large amounts of effort on the part of the gardeners. So what would it be like to garden in tune with nature, to grow a forest garden, with many of the features of a natural forest, and little of the labour usually involved in gardening? Robert Hart pioneered this approach to growing food sustainably, based on his long experience of agro-forestry around the world. He applied his wisdom to his backyard and wrote about it in the classics, 'Forest Gardening' and 'Beyond the Forest Garden'. However, much of what Hart wrote was general and philosophical - explaining the 'why' perhaps more than the 'how'. Patrick Whitefield has produced this intensely practical guide to the 'how' of forest gardening, starting from first principles and including all manner of precise details. Whitefield is an experienced permaculture practicioner and teacher, and he rightly places the forest garden in context as a very useful component of a larger system of sustainable living. On the strength of this book I am in the process of transforming my standard suburban plot into a beautiful forest garden, with apples, pears, cherries, raspberries, loganberries, figs, redcurrants, perennial herbs and salads. It has proved to be an invaluable and much thumbed manual, and an inspirational work. It is directly applicable to temperate climates, and will be of use to those living elsewhere too.

72 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Informative, December 26, 2004

By 

Charles Andrew Wingard (Brunswick, ME) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Make a Forest Garden (Paperback)

If you are into permaculture, agroforestry, or bored with row crop gardening, this book is for you. Peter is from Britain but, his book is very useful for the temparate US. Peter discusses planting trees, shrubs and an herb layer all in your garden, mimmicking the layers of a forest. There's lots of good info on cultivars, including some lesser known fruits and veggies. This book is much more practical and informative than Robert Hart's book Forest Gardening.

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Practical and Informative... A great concept for self-sustainability!, April 28, 2006

By 

Wabi Sabi "bona-fide bibliomaniac" (rural USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Make a Forest Garden (Paperback)

I happened upon this book while learning more about permaculture. As we are preparing to plant a private orchard, this book was invaluable - it altered our approach entirely! Being quite mindful of the ecology on our rural property, we are quite pleased that we can provide natural, healthy food for our family without altering the ecosystem that surrounds us. As a matter of fact, we are now living more harmoniously with the wildlife.

This book provided the framework for us to devise an effective plan for our property in the Mid-Atlantic region although it was written based upon UK geography.

I would have gladly given 5 stars to this book if it had included more color photography and detailed illustrations. Nonetheless, it's a valuable addition to your self-sustaining library.