Introduction to Forest Gardening - Shropshire Venue
A two day course with Steve Jones of Sector 39
Introducing you to the principles and practice of forest gardening and providing training in the key concepts and practical skills necessary to design, establish and maintain a basic forest garden.
21st & 22nd March 2011, 10am – 5pm
at
Berrington Hall, Shrewsbury, SY5 6HA
Who is the course for?
If you’re interested in gardening, growing your own food or trees & woodland or nature conservation, then you’re welcome to apply. We expect that the course will be of particular interest to allotment-holders, school gardening groups, small-holders, park-rangers, environmental groups as well as the wider community.
Cost:
£40 for the two-day course. Berrington Hall Housing Co-op gratefully acknowledges the funding received from Shropshire Council's Climate Change Grant Fund, which has enabled us to offer the course at this subsidised price. We have a limited number of concessionary places available – please contact us if you would like to apply for one of these places.
Lunches & refreshments:
A simple wholesome lunch – of homemade, organic, vegetarian soup and bread is available at £3 per day. Or you are welcome to bring your own lunch.
Booking a place:
To book a place on the course, please email crabapplecom@hotmail.com
or phone Annette on 01743 761418.
With financial support from Shropshire Council
More information about forest gardening and the course content....
The course will combine theory sessions including the benefits of forest gardening, site selection and design, species selection, plant propagation, maintenance and harvesting; as well as practical sessions focussing on site assessment and preparation, plant propagation, mulching and planting.
Forest gardens are modelled on natural woodlands and are designed to include several layers of vegetation, including trees, shrubs and perennial plants; growing in an interactive and mutually beneficial way. For example, the tree layer will include fruit and nut trees, the shrub layer may contain soft fruit and hazelnut bushes and the ground layer contains perennial and self-seeding vegetables, herbs and edible fungi. Temperate-climate forest gardening originated in Shropshire – it was pioneered by the late Robert Hart on his smallholding at Wenlock Edge.
Forest gardens offer sustainable food production and land management systems which mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change. In particular, they
• Offer an essentially zero-carbon system for producing food and other useful products; requiring little or no fossil-fuel inputs.
• Increase carbon retention and carbon capture by reducing soil erosion and by increasing the density of foliage through their multi-storey design.
• Maximise biodiversity and create a healthy and stable ecosystem, with considerable resilience to climate change.
