Design Your Dream Garden Farm

As you sit at your computer, do you find yourself daydreaming of spending your mornings strolling through the calm and serenity of your very own food forest winding along enchanted paths leading right out your very own back door? Sunlight peeking through the leaves as you pick red ripe raspberries and crisp cool cucumbers. You know your lunch is going to be amazing today with all these ripe goodies bursting with flavor!

But one problem.....when you go to your window you dont see any of this. Where would you even start?

"You're so lucky" No really you are. You have a blank canvas to impart your exact vision!

Here are some quick and easy steps to get you on your way.

Observe. What resources do you already have? Pile of bricks? Established perenial food plants like berries, apple trees, asparagus??? Do you have beautiful flowering bushes or trees to attract our friendly pollinators?

Ask yourself, what do you want to preserve? Are there any views you want to maximize, some you want to minimize?

Then pull out a piece of paper and start sketching. Where are your lot lines? How is your house, garages, any other structures situated on the property? Where are the easiests access routes for cars, carts, deliveries, and harvests? Where do you naturally walk on your property? Sketch it all out.

Look at vertical spaces for opportunities to plant on. And don't feel limited to keeping your food plants confined to square and rectangle boxes. Incorporate them where ever you will spend time.

Now add in those areas you want to preserve and enhance. Identify those areas you want to change. With this new map in hand, go back and observe. Are those areas microclimates (something special about that location that makes their climate different from the rest of your property. Faces south so its warmer? Faces North so it is colder? Large rocks that trap the days heat and keep the nights warmer? Note everything down on your map.)

From here you can start choosing plants that meet your style, needs, food likes and be on your way to your dream food forest, right out your back door!

Let me know how it is working for you! I would love to see any pictures, especially the before and in progress photos!

Happy Designing!

XOXO

Megan