Hey everyone! My wife and I are transforming our backyard into a permaculture-inspired food forest, and we’d love some guidance from experienced folks.
Our Backyard Setup • Challenges: Pool, grass patch, gravel patch (constantly covered in pine needles from a neighbor’s tree), and borders covered in landscape fabric & tons of river rock. • Progress so far: • We’ve been giving away the river rock little by little. • Started container gardening last year, including fruit trees. • Planted arborvitae for privacy, but they’re struggling, likely due to poor soil and lack of moisture retention. • Started two compost piles and Bokashi composting for food waste. • Brewing JADAM microbial solution from nearby Pine Barrens leaf mold soil.
Our Plan for 2024: Soil First
Since we’re in a pine-heavy environment, we’re aiming to mimic Pine Barrens conditions—focusing on acid-loving, well-draining plant guilds around our evergreens and fruit trees.
1️⃣ Soil Rescue for Arborvitae & Future Plantings: • Clear a ring around each tree, remove/break up landscape fabric. • Lay down cardboard chunks soaked in Bokashi liquid & JADAM solution. • Build layers of finished Bokashi, compost, worm castings, biochar. • Top with peat moss, topsoil (to use up our pile), JADAM solution, and acidic mulch (straw/wood chips/pine needles). • Plant Comfrey Bocking 14 to break up compact soil & use as mulch.
2️⃣ Guild Members to Introduce: • Ground cover & nitrogen fixers: Wintergreen, ladino clover, sweet woodruff. • Fruit & berry layer: Blueberries, cranberries, lupine.
Looking for Advice & Resources
💡 Feedback on our overall plan—anything you’d adjust or improve? 🌱 Best places to source Comfrey Bocking 14 in South Jersey? • Best nurseries or garden centers? • Anyone local have comfrey cuttings to spare? 🏡 Garden centers or suppliers in South Jersey that support permaculture? 📚 Best resources (books, websites, local groups) for building a food forest?
Thanks in advance for your help! We’re excited to learn from the community and share our progress. 🙌
submitted by /u/DrSmushmer
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