July is bare-rooted apple tree ordering time! It’s been a long wait, but we now feel confident that we have the water infrastructure, system establishment and knowledge in place to be able to grow apples (without killing them) at Milkwood Farm. Oh happy day.
As our forest garden slowly creeps across the hillside, greener and more dense with every season, I’m beginning to believe that our rocky ridge could truly one day be an edible forest garden and holistic orchard. And so it is time to chose the first batch of apple trees to plant. But which to chose? Read More »
Last weekend we ran an Urban Forest Garden workshop in Sydney… it was a great weekend of design, thinking and planting… Read More »
Recently Nick + I went to visit Ally and Rich (aka Happy Earth) who have created a truly amazing food forest garden in their suburban lot near Wollongong, NSW. It is a beautiful place of lushness, food, and fun.
The thing I like most about Happy Earth is that Ally and Rich have transformed this place from a very normal, suburban house on a sloping block to a madly wonderful jungle dripping with food and beauty, and they’ve done it all bit by bit, with thoughtful intent. The result is just magic. Read More »
December 24, 2011 – 7:40 am
Here is our Forest Garden in December 2007, four years ago. You might notice there’s nothing there. There wasn’t anything anywhere, at Milkwood Farm. Just out little caravan, and us, dreaming of turning this rocky hillside into a kick-ass permaculture farm.
We knew we wanted to create a rocking Forest Garden as part of Milkwood Farm’s design. And it’s taken four years but, thanks to good friends, good design, gravity fed water, and a certain amount of gumption, we’re now well on our way… Read More »
December 13, 2011 – 6:00 am
© Happy Earth
Happy Earth are a great little crew down in Wollongong, proving that you can create an abundant urban homestead. And they’re just created a really awesome community resource in the form of this garden guide, which is free to all.
Regardless of whether you actually live in the Illawarra region or not, make sure you have a look at this. It’s a super example of localized knowledge, small, slow solutions, and fair share. Read More »
November 22, 2011 – 6:00 am
So we’re creating a forest garden – a lush, shady place, dripping with fruit and springing with herbs, flowers and tubers. But when you think of a forest garden, do you think of paths, their construction, and their capabilities? Or do you just figure you’ll wind your way through the green herbage as you see fit?
The paths make the garden. And by consciously designing them before you begin, you can bring many benefits to the forest garden space that are difficult to retro-fit later on. So here’s how we designed the Milkwood forest garden paths… Read More »
November 18, 2011 – 6:00 am
Edible Forest Gardens – Volumes 1 and 2 by Dave Jacke and Eric Toensmeier is a spectacular double volume of knowledge. Really, truly incredible stuff. So it was with some excitement that i found this recent podcast with Dave Jacke on Gardening like a forest.
Author of Edible Forest Gardens- Volumes 1 and 2, Dave Jacke is a longtime permaculture teacher and designer. In this interview, he talks about the history of forest gardening, its many benefits, and how gardening like a forest can enrich your life... sounds good! Have a listen: Read More »
October 22, 2011 – 6:00 am
Forest garden in early spring (ie still plenty of frosts)
Garlic coming up, and all the chickens a-laying...
Spring is slowly but surely springing at Milkwood, and our new forest garden is beginning to wake up from the cold and grow, grow grow!
Read More »
October 1, 2011 – 6:00 am
Here’s a bunch of Forest Garden books and resources we’ve put together for the students of our Food Forest Garden workshops. There is so very much to learn, read, think about and absorb here! And it’s all incredibly useful and exciting information.
Many thanks to Milkwood Farm’s resident plant-whisperer Dan Harris Pascal for putting these resources together for everyone…
Read More »
