Fruit Trees and Food Forests

Harvesting fruit off a tree you have nurtured is a truly rewarding experience! Join us for an afternoon on the farm where we focus on the knowledge and skills required to grow healthy fruit trees and productive food forests. This 3.5-hour workshop looks at the different types of fruit trees we can grow in our part of the world and teaches participants how best to care for these trees. Suitable for those who want a productive garden full of fruits, nuts, berries and tubers, for those who want an aesthetically beautiful ecosystem that also obtains a yields, and for those who would like a low-maintenance, wild garden that provides food and flowers for their household.

Come along and learn about:

• The fundamentals of perennial plants
• Characteristics of our favourite fruit trees
• How to plant a fruit tree, including where best to plant different trees
• How to ‘feed’ and prune fruit trees
• The seven layers of a food forest, and the species that can be used in these layers
• Inputs required for a food forest, and outputs gained
• Maintaining your food forest over time

A food forest is a consciously-designed perennial garden system that mimics patterns in nature to create a space that is both productive and sustainable. Food forests contain a diversity of plant species that complement each other to create a harmonious ecosystem and produce an abundance of food. Like a natural forest, a food forest contains many layers including fruit and nut trees, shrubs and bushes, ground covers, herbs, tubers and vines. All these plants are either edible or are selected to support the edible plants by providing nutrients, increase biodiversity, maintaining soil stability or to create microclimates.

This workshop is hands-on and will feature a tour of Green Connects perennial systems, which include over 30 types of fruit trees, to provide participants with a diverse range of examples of fruit trees and food forest systems.

Included:

• Afternoon tea
• A Food Forest starter kit – 12 different permaculture support plants
  
  

Tickets:

Book early to avoid disappointment! Early bird discounted tickets are available until 2 weeks before this workshop. 

About the facilitator:

Cal Champagne has been the manager of Green Connect Farm since its establishment. Growing up on a permaculture demonstration property on the Far South Coast of NSW, Cal moved to the Illawarra as a young adult to study environmental sciences at UOW, before going on to postgraduate studies in Sustainable Food Systems at the University of Sydney. During his studies, he got involved in permaculture locally, through the ‘Living Classroom’ school gardens at Cringila Public School, Port Kembla Public School and Warrawong High School. When an 11-acre piece of land adjacent to Warrawong High School was made available, Cal joined Green Connect to turn this land into what is now the Green Connect Farm, one of the country’s leading examples of urban agriculture.

Before you book, please consider the following:

• The site is a working farm and visitors must participate in a safety briefing before entering.
• The terrain at the farm is particularly steep and slippery in parts. Though we do take it slowly, the tour involves a moderately challenging walk and participants will be required to walk across uneven and sloping ground. If you have mobility restrictions or any concerns about your ability to navigate the terrain, please contact us before booking.
  
• Plants love rain and so do we! We don’t cancel tours in wet weather unless there is a dangerous storm so it is essential to come prepared for the weather. Rain and mud are all part of the fun! 
• Allergen advice: Our farm is home to domestic animals as well as bees, wasps, and macadamia trees. Please pack an EpiPen if allergic and keep it with you while on site.
  
  

All workshop participants must: 

• Wear enclosed shoes or boots (no thongs or sandals) and clothes you don’t mind getting dirty. Long pants are recommended.
• Bring a hat and sunscreen or rain gear, depending on the weather forecast.
• Bring a pen/pencil and paper if you wish to take notes.

If you have any questions about this workshop, please don't hesitate to contact us at activities@green-connect.com.au or 4243 1537.