MICROFOREST MAKER MASTERCLASS - build your confidence to design a microforest or tiny forest

Climate-cooling microforests are one of the best ways for landscape professionals to use their skills to deal with the climate crisis. A densely planted microforest will cool the landscape, provide habitat, bring community together and create hope for the future. 

This Master Class will give landscape professionals and students the confidence to design a public microforest or tiny forest. The Class is led by Founder and Landscape Architect, Edwina Robinson. Edwina has worked with communities to build four microforests in public spaces in Australia since 2020. 

Edwina is a TEDx speaker and has taught landscape design at the University of Canberra and the Canberra Institute of Technology. She wants to inspire other landscape professionals to integrate microforests with water harvesting to future proof landscapes. 

What we cover in our session together. 

Miyawaki method

• What is the Miyawaki method?
• Miyawaki forests in Australia
• What makes The Climate Factory’s microforests unique?
• Examples of microforests we’ve built – Downer, Watson, Hol in the ACT and Moruya, NSW www.climatefactory.com.au/projects

Future climate

• What’s your climate likely to be like in the future?

Water harvesting

• Will you incorporate water harvesting? This depends on your location and future climate scenarios. We typically include 40 lineal metres of water harvesting trenches average 800mm deep and dry creek beds. What does this cost?
• Best resources for water harvesting
• Choose a water harvesting designer

Site Selection

• How to choose a site – tenure, flat vs steep, trees vs no trees, proximity to other features, existing pathways and services
• Before you dig enquiry
• Soil testing
• Do I need to seek approval?  

Crunching the numbers

• The microforest budget (we provide you with a template with figures from a built project). This includes design fees, preliminaries, materials (organics, tree guards, additives, stakes, mulch, sand, gravel, river rocks and feature boulders), plants, catering.

Strict Miyawaki or Miyawaki with a twist?

Will you replicate a local forest community or will you create a hybrid model? Example: Compare Moruya Dry Rainforest threatened ecological community vs Watson Microforest (hybrid Miyawaki using trees likely to cope in a hotter drier future).

The Landscape Design

We’ve created a formula or template that works and fits in an area of 1000-1500 square meters. It includes:

• 500m2 of planted shrub beds (the microforest)
• Broad paths
• A central gathering area
• Dry creeks beds which double for nature play
• Nature play if the budget allows
• Seating
• Pollinator patches, street libraries

Creating the Plant List

• How many plants will you design for? We typically design for 1500 native plants from a range of structural categories at 3 plants per sqm.
• How to create a plant list (we provide a template with plant categories and species and information from a built project) and order plants in advance.
• Features – pollinator patches, planting, paths, seats, boulders, gathering spaces, other features

There will be plenty of opportunity to ask questions during the session and if I can't answer them in the timeframe allowed I will respond to you personally. 

This session will be recorded and made available to you afterwards. The budget and plant templates will also be emailed to you.

Our microforests featured on ABC Gardening Australia in 2023.