FOOD FOREST

Walking through the grass paddocks along the straight boundary of the native forest. Paddocks cleared in the nineteen twenties, made suitable for dairy farming. Native forest crossed by a former railroad and bordered with a fence to keep out the increasing number of kangaroos. Encountering a sudden pattern of rows that happened to be a just new created food forest.

LAYOUT

Landversation located around the feltscape of the food forest. Anthony, an agricultural consultant and organic soil specialist and Nick, the owner of the food forest and tug boat driver. After two years of observing the grass paddock and the shimmering locked up water that wells up during winter, a start for the layout could be made. Based on feeling without a fixed plan, both men walked on the land to put sticks into the soil for the road to be made. Glad they didn’t do just straight lines, a conventional north-south, east-west set up. Rows created on a clean slate to create immediate drainage, letting out the water that wells in winter. When the forest grows mature it will create its own wind-break from every angle.

To avoid a mono-culture orchard, citrus, stone fruit, fig, almond, apples and quinces were planted. In disperse between the fruit trees are native trees to bring nitrogen into the soil.