Organised & Low Density Food Forest

The most docile and tidy version of Food Forest. It includes a Mini Edible Jungle and an area of orchard, where Treasure Trees (long-term crop) are nursed by Hero Trees (providers of biomass and protection). A more simple and traditional design.

Miyawaki Food Forest Organized at 3 months old

Protocol:

  • Soil preparation: decompaction at 80 cm, 15% plain compost, 5% composted horse manure

  • Density: 1 plant per m²

  • Not planted randomly: all Target trees are planted at a minimum distance of 1.80 cm to 2.4 m

  • Between our target trees, “Hero” trees are planted: not long-lived, non-invasive, fast-growing, easy to chop and drop if necessary

  • Size: 140 m²

Assessment: (1 *: low to 5 *: high)

  • Growth rate: ⧫ ⧫
    Less fast during the first year than in the very dense experiment.

  • Resilience (biodiversity and quality of soil microbiology): ⧫ ⧫ ⧫
    Probably good, providing habitat for several insects, birds, frogs, etc.

  • Quantity, quality, and predictability of fruit production: ⧫ ⧫ ⧫ ⧫ ⧫
    To be assessed. Expected results are that the sun requirement of each plant is taken into account, and enough space is available for better development of target fruit trees. We expect much better results than in a randomly planted food forest.

  • Maintenance: ⧫ ⧫
    Easy.

  • Cost-effectiveness: ⧫ ⧫
    Not very expensive.

  • Scalability: ⧫ ⧫ ⧫

    Easier to implement on a large area.

  • Water efficiency: ⧫ ⧫ ⧫ ⧫
    After one year, approx 10 liters per m²/day during the summer period.

Miyawaki-inspired Organized Food Forest's Mini Edible Jungle at 3 months old

Mini Edible Jungle in our 3-month old Organized Food Forest, October 2022

Organised & Low Density Food Forest

The specifics:

  • Planting date: July 2022

  • Area: 160m² = Mini Edible Jungle (30m²) + Orchard (130m²)

  • Number of species: 45

  • Total of plants: 120 = Mini Edible Jungle (90) + Orchard (30)

  • Planting density:

    • Mini Edible Jungle: 3 trees/m²

    • Orchard: 1 tree/4m²

  • A small Miyawaki-inspired ‘Mini Edible Jungle’ was planted on the west side, to act as a windbreak and to create a fast-growing green patch of biodiversity.

  • In the other section — the ‘Orchard’ side — the trees we want to keep in the long-term for their crop (which we call ‘Treasure or Target Trees’) were all planted at a minimum distance of 2 to 3 meters from each other.

  • Amongst those Target Trees we planted ‘Hero Trees’, that is, edible plants which grow fast and will not live too long, or can be pruned severely for their biomass, which is dropped to mulch and build soil (mostly the nitrogen-fixing Cajanus cajan — pigeon pea — and also Moringa oleifera). They also provide protection to our more valuable trees in the first years. We were inspired to use Hero Trees by the Syntropic Farming approach.

  • For more detailed information on this experiment, you can read our Full Experiment: Organised & Low Density Food Forest article here.

Miyawaki-inspired Organized Food Forest at 9 months old

Miyawaki-inspired Organized Food Forest at 9 months old, April 2023. The Mini Edible Jungle is visible to the left (west), with the much less dense Orchard section to the east

The expected results:

  • Fast and healthy growth

  • High productivity

  • Ease of harvest

Data monitored:

  • Plant height

  • Trunk diameter at 20% of the total height

  • Food production

  • Average water usage

  • Plant survival rate

  • Pests & diseases

Measuring a tree trunk diameter at 20percent height

Measuring a tree trunk diameter at 20% height

Miyawaki- inspired Organized Food Forest - Mini edible jungle

The Organized Food Forest’s Mini Edible Jungle, 2 months after planting

Species in this Food Forest

  1. Acca sellowiana — feijoa

  2. Aloysia citrodora — lemon verbena

  3. Annona x atemoya “Red Israel” — custard apple

  4. Atriplex halimus — salt bush

  5. Azadirachta indica — neem tree

  6. Bixa orellana — achiote

  7. Bulbine frutescens — bulbine

  8. Cajanus cajan — pigeon pea

  9. Canna edulis — achira

  10. Capparis spinosa “Inermis” — thornless caper

  11. Chrysopogon zizanioides — vetiver

  12. Cnidoscolus aconitifolius — chaya

  13. Cymbopogon citratus — lemongrass

  14. Dimocarpus longan “Chompoo” — longan

  15. Diospyros digyna — black sapote

  16. Eriobotrya japonica — loquat

  17. Eugenia brasiliensis — Brazilian cherry

  18. Eugenia pitanga — pitanga do Cerrado

  19. Eugenia uniflora — Surinam cherry

  20. Hemerocallis “Sammy Russels” — daylily

  21. Hovenia dulcis — Japanese raisin tree

  22. Inga edulis — ice-cream bean

  23. Litchi sinensis — lychee

  24. Mangifera indica “Ataulfo” — mango

  25. Mangifera indica “Maya” — mango

  26. Moringa oleifera — moringa

  27. Musa “Chini Champa” — banana

  28. Pereskia aculeata — ora-pro-nobis

  29. Pouteria campechiana — canistel

  30. Pouteria viridis — green sapote

  31. Psidium cattleianum — strawberry guava

  32. Psidium guajava — guava

  33. Saccharum officinarum “Ko honua ula” — black sugarcane

  34. Saccharum officinarum — sugarcane

  35. Salvia officinalis — common sage

  36. Solanum betaceum — tree tomato

Make sure to check out our main article on Miyawaki-inspired Food Forests and our Theoretical Foundations, where we explain the whole concept and how we’re putting it in action at the Orchard of Flavours site. Also, don’t forget to compare this Experiment with all the others already growing:

This article was compiled by Miguel COTTON & Miguel PEREIRA. If you have any questions or suggestions, do not hesitate to contact us. Please write us anytime at miguel@orchardofflavours.com