Forest Gardening (Paperback)

In this book Hart develops the case for the urban dweller to adopt forest gardening to achieve economy of space and labor while producing fruit, nuts, root and perennial vegetables and herbs. He provides the guidelines required for temperate, tropical and sub-tropical climates. "Like the forest it is arranged in seven 'storeys', with the original apple and pear trees constituting the 'canopy' and the other plants occupying the lower tiers. Thus the garden has a well-defined vertical dimension as well as horizontal ones. Now that it has been established for several years, I can affirm that it requires minimal maintenance, as the plants - nearly all perennials - largely look after themselves and are very healthy. The main work involved is that of cutting back plants that try to encroach on others. The wide diversity of species ensures that any small invasions of pests never reach epidemic proportions, as they tend to do under monocultural conditions. The large number of aromatic herbs creates a deliciously fragrant atmosphere, and, I am convinced, contributes to the pest-and-disease-resistance of the other plants. As we eat the herbs and perennial vegetables daily in our salads, the garden makes a significant contribution to our diet throughout the growing season, from the first herbs and wild garlic in March to the last apples in November."

The author goes on to warn us that we must seek ordered diversity governed by the laws of plant symbiosis but the results can be that a half hectare can support a family of up to ten people. Java has the greatest concentration of forest gardens yet is one of the most densely populated rural areas of the world. Forest gardening is more than a system for supplying mankind's material needs; it is a way of life which addresses man's spiritual needs by its beauty and the wealth of wildlife it attracts. In the early chapters we follow the author's development as he wrestles with the problem, concluding that: "if one could devise an integrated system of land-use consisting mainly of perennial plants - fruit and nut tress and bushes together with perennial vegetables and herbs - as well as a diet based on this mix, the task of achieving self-sufficiency would be vastly simplified. This is how I discovered agroforestry."

There are plenty of good tips such as this one on potatoes. "The champion exponent of this technique, the aim of which is to grow a colossal crop of potatoes from a single seed, was a Sussex villager, Tom Cooke, known as the Ace of Spuds. This was his procedure: large seed potatoes, well supplied with eyes, were soaked in a solution of liquid seaweed and water for an hour a week for six months, starting in October. During the winter Tom prepared his plot, allowing eight-foot squares for each seed. The site was excavated one-foot deep and filled with wheat straw, to which dry seaweed fertilizer was added after the straw had weathered and was almost black. On top of this came a layer of manure and soil mixed with more seaweed. The tubers were planted at the end of March or early April and covered with a thin dressing of straw. Then, at fortnightly intervals, the growing plants were earthed up with layers of straw, seaweed and soil until they reached a height of some 3-4 feet, sending out numerous side-shoots liberally supplied with tubers. After a series of foliar feeds with liquid seaweed, the harvest was eventually reached: over half a ton of potatoes from just six seeds!"

If you are an avid gardener there will surely be something new in this book; if you simply want to make your garden more productive and did not know of the seven story concept, you will find this book helpful; if you have been overwhelmed by the work in the garden you should concentrate on perennials as Hart has done; if you have just a small plot this book will help you get the maximum production and help you to eat healthily; if you would like to attract more wildlife to your garden, read this book. It is difficult to imagine anyone not profiting from Hart's theoretical and practical research.

The book, though, is a total let-down. The first 40 odd-pages are wasted tree-pulp – if I’d wanted a biography of the author I’d have looked for one! This from someone who spends the rest of the book tub-thumping for ecology & sustainability!! Frankly, it would have been better titled with the sub-title, “Rediscovering Nature & Community in a Post-industrial Age”. That alone should give you a fair indication of the nature of the book. It’s a christian & vegan infected (& I quite deliberately choose ‘infected’ over ‘infused’!) polemic of Green meanderings.

Now, don’t get me wrong! If I wasn’t Green-inclined myself, I’d never have been interested in the subject in the first place. But I want a practical guide on how to create a productive, sustainable, chemical free, low maintenance garden, in my case in a fairly small space. Instead I got a lot of useless pseudo-philosophy, pseudo-science, & starry-eyed optimism.

The practical information in this book is almost entirely confined to the Appendices at the back and, to be perfectly honest, that is simply some brief information on flora, which is probably freely available as part of another source. In fact, it is! It’s called “How to make a Forest Garden” by Patrick Whitefield.. Luckily for me, I’d ordered it at exactly the same time as this one. If I’d only bought this effort, I’d possibly never have investigated the subject any further!

I'd award it No Stars if I could. Save your money for something useful &, just as the author would have wanted, save a tree or two at the same time – DON’T buy this!!