(EDITOR’S NOTE: I recently went for a walk with Paul Wilson (pictured above) around the site of the future Blackstone Community Park near his home. Like many new parks in our community, city staff are planning to build a play structure, a swing set, a splash pad, some sports fields, and so on. But when Paul looks out over the field of dirt and snow, he sees potential for a permaculture food forest. In this letter, he explains what the concept is all about. -GG.)
I would like to see all new community and district parks include food forests. The initial Blackstone food forest can become a community engagement destination and support charity and educational engagement. The food forest, and nearby park features, can provide outdoor community spaces for numerous activities, including quiet reflection or picnics, in a setting conducive to education on the benefits of planting edible trees. It is intended to develop close ties to the other synergistic groups in the region.
My goal is to establish organic food forests within Stittsville and City of Ottawa with an emphasis on permanent, restorative agriculture. By design, a permaculture approach in these forests builds soil structure, uses less water and can yields a dramatic amount of highly nutritious food per square meter.
Caveat: I am using many words, definitions and images created by others.
While I’m not an expert, there are a few things I’ve discovered about creating more sustainable forests, in particular why permaculture is important. While the name is tossed around or omitted sometimes (as it is assumed), it’s important because it is the design system for food production that can be sustainable and minimizes the maintenance issues associated with forest management. For it to be used in city parks, low maintenance costs can make a difference. For any volunteers, less work is better.
Permaculture is a system of agricultural and social design principles centred around simulating or directly utilizing the patterns and features observed in natural ecosystems. Let nature do what nature does best: grow and evolve.
A food forest is a gardening technique or land management system which mimics a woodland ecosystem by incorporating edible trees, shrubs, perennials, mushrooms and annuals. This is more than a garden with trees. It is a seven-layer system where a key aspect is diversity: a polyculture of native plants with careful selection of non-native and non-invasion varieties; promoting a symbiosis, less disease, longer grazing period for pollinators.
Permaculture food forest principles emphasize plant selections that are edible by people and support natural ecosystems such as bees, birds, and native inhabitants.
I think of the 3 P’s: Plants, Participants and Produce. Key is a good design of plants and in establishing the forest, the multi-year approaches to creating synergies between the layers (it is easier than it sounds). The participants are the people/volunteers, insects, birds, animals – the community enables the forest to thrive. The produce is more than all the wonderful edibles and includes the environmental benefits, soil enrichment and all what may be viewed as intangibles – the ways the participants thrive in the forest… some claim, a “breathable, life enhancing, realm”.
I’ve always liked the following image to show the seven layers:
As described in the image, these are the edible polyculture layers:
- Canopy layer consisting of tall nut and fruit trees.
- Low-tree layer of smaller nut and fruit trees on dwarfing root stocks.
- Shrub layer of fruit and nut bushes such as currants and berries.
- Herbaceous layer of perennial vegetables and herbs.
- Rhizosphere or underground dimension of plants grown for their roots and tubers.
- Ground cover layer of edible plants that spread horizontally.
- Virtual layer of vines and climbers
The plants selected would be appropriate for our local community and climate zone, and suitable for a public park.
On February 8 from 6:30-8:45 pm there will be a public information session on the proposed design plan for the Blackstone Community Park at the Goulbourn Recreation Complex. The current proposed plans for this park have recently been posted (you can see them here) but this current proposal does not fully establish a food forest; rather a provision for a future community garden and the initial planting of fruit and nut trees.
If you are interested in seeing a food forest in our community, please provide your input and if possible, attend the meeting. I’m hopeful many members of our community will take the time to express their views. The city is encouraging residents to provide their feedback on the proposed plans to:
- Councillor Shad Qadri at Qadri@ottawa.ca or 613-580-2476
- City Planner Jennifer Shepherd at Shepherd@ottawa.ca or 613-580-2424 ext 13771
Paul Wilson
Stittsville
Anything that might give Stittsville something unique to hang it’s hat on. We used to have the Market. I like this idea and would definitely support it!
I think this would be an absolute benefit to not only our little part of the world, Stittsville, but it would be So beneficial to our children . I strongly believe that our children should be taught how to source their food from Mother Earth, including wild-grown fruits, nuts and berries and growing their own vegetables. It would give teachers the opportunity for a great field-trip that would actually teach the kids something that they may all need to know in their lifetime. I agree with it 100%!
What a wonderful idea! As a teacher watching kids at recess in our local park, I always notice the children gravitate to the wild area of the park, where they can gather sticks to build forts or watch insects or wildlife, rather than the big expensive play structure or concrete gazebo area. They love to observe and experience nature.
Also, Rick makes a very valid point. We used to have more wetlands and rural land that is slowly disappearing, so anything that can bring some of that back even if only on a small scale would certainly be welcome. We as a community used to be more concerned about environmental issues, so we could set a good example for other urban areas. The idea of low-maintenance and sustainable makes the whole proposal even more appealing!
I wonder if some of the numerous apple trees on the land could be saved? (There are still some left in the non-bulldozed parts.) Some of them would probably be too big to move, but there are smaller ones.
As I saw the clear cutting of the area it really saddened me. But this idea is brilliant. The soil should be fairly good as it was farm land and planting something sustainable and unique would be something Stittsville would be proud of. I am behind this idea.
I believe some commentators are confusing the area that the author is referring to, in the Blackstone development off Terry Fox, near the Walmart on Fernbank, and the Shea Woods (Unofficial Stittsville Dog Park) where Richcraft is currently prepping the site (clear cutting, bulldozing and blasting) for the future phase of the Fernbank Crossing community off the new Robert Grant Rd near the Abbott St extension by the near French-Catholic high school, Paul D. The land that the author is referring to in the Blackstone development doesn’t have any trees on it currently but will lie next to the Monahan Drain. All in all more natural forest canopy would be welcomed either by keeping existing forested areas, as in the Shea Woods, and also adding to the natural canopy in a brand new community park as Paul is suggesting.
What a great idea! This could serve as a model for future park developments.
THis is a wonderful idea, specially if there are no trees in this area. I think it is important for young people and students to know how our food is grown. I would like to see all schools taking part in this initiative. I hope it can be realized, bringing not only a new concept in city parks but bringing nature closer to the residents.
There are plans, as part of the overall community master plan, to have several schools within a short walking distance of the larger community park.
Yes to less grass and more diverse habitat. We need to restore as much as we can in the bits between roads and buildings. Opportunities for food production coupled with space for wildlife is what our children will thank us for 20 years from now.