Turning͏͏ a͏͏ simple͏͏ backyard͏͏ into͏͏ a͏͏ Florida͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ is͏͏ one͏͏ of͏͏ those͏͏ things͏͏ that͏͏ sounds͏͏ like͏͏ a͏͏ dream,͏͏ but͏͏ trust͏͏ us͏͏ when͏͏ we͏͏ tell͏͏ you͏͏ it’s͏͏ perfectly͏͏ achievable!
A͏͏ well-designed͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ can͏͏ give͏͏ you͏͏ fresh͏͏ produce͏͏ while͏͏ protecting͏͏ the͏͏ environment͏͏.͏͏ It’s͏͏ a͏͏ win/win͏͏ for͏͏ everyone͏͏ involved,͏͏ even͏͏ pollinators,͏͏ and͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ make͏͏ it͏͏ a͏͏ reality͏͏ with͏͏ the͏͏ help͏͏ of͏͏ Baker͏͏ Company.
At͏͏ Baker͏͏ Company,͏͏ we͏͏ help͏͏ our͏͏ clients͏͏ turn͏͏ their͏͏ yards͏͏ into͏͏ their͏͏ dream͏͏ landscape!͏͏ From͏͏ a͏͏ beautiful͏͏ yard͏͏ with͏͏ hardscape͏͏ and͏͏ native͏͏ plants,͏͏ to͏͏ a͏͏ thriving͏͏ Florida͏͏ food͏͏ forest,͏͏ we͏͏ have͏͏ the͏͏ skills͏͏ to͏͏ do͏͏ it͏͏ all,͏͏ so͏͏ give͏͏ us͏͏ a͏͏ call͏͏ and͏͏ let͏͏ us͏͏ help͏͏ you!
What is a Florida Food Forest?
A͏͏ Florida͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ is͏͏ a͏͏ type͏͏ of͏͏ garden͏͏ that͏͏ mimics͏͏ the͏͏ conditions͏͏ of͏͏ a͏͏ natural͏͏ forest͏͏ and͏͏ produces͏͏ edible͏͏ plants͏͏ year-round.͏͏ It’s͏͏ a͏͏ symbol͏͏ of͏͏ self-reliance,͏͏ and͏͏ a͏͏ way͏͏ of͏͏ supporting͏͏ yourself,͏͏ your͏͏ community͏͏ and͏͏ the͏͏ local͏͏ ecosystem.͏͏
By͏͏ understanding͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ layers,͏͏ choosing͏͏ the͏͏ right͏͏ plants,͏͏ and͏͏ implementing͏͏ the͏͏ right͏͏ maintenance͏͏ techniques,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ create͏͏ a͏͏ garden͏͏ that’ll͏͏ feed͏͏ you͏͏ and͏͏ your͏͏ family͏͏ while͏͏ also͏͏ looking͏͏ amazing.͏͏
Food Forest Layers
Food͏͏ forests͏͏ are͏͏ made͏͏ out͏͏ of͏͏ seven͏͏ layers͏͏ that͏͏ balance͏͏ each͏͏ other͏͏ to͏͏ create͏͏ a͏͏ successful͏͏ ecosystem.͏͏
Canopy͏͏ Trees
Think͏͏ of͏͏ mango͏͏ or͏͏ avocado͏͏ trees.͏͏ This͏͏ layer͏͏ of͏͏ the͏͏ ecosystem͏͏ will͏͏ give͏͏ you͏͏ fruits,͏͏ while͏͏ also͏͏ providing͏͏ shade͏͏ to͏͏ protect͏͏ delicate͏͏ plants͏͏ from͏͏ the͏͏ scorching͏͏ sun.͏͏
Sub-canopy͏͏ Trees
These͏͏ smaller͏͏ trees͏͏ will͏͏ fill͏͏ the͏͏ space͏͏ between͏͏ the͏͏ canopy͏͏ trees͏͏ and͏͏ the͏͏ herbaceous͏͏ layer,͏͏ maximizing͏͏ your͏͏ produce͏͏ production.͏͏ Lemon,͏͏ guava͏͏ and͏͏ loquat͏͏ are͏͏ some͏͏ of͏͏ the͏͏ most͏͏ popular͏͏ fruits͏͏ for͏͏ this͏͏ purpose.͏͏
Shrubs
A͏͏ great͏͏ way͏͏ to͏͏ fill͏͏ empty͏͏ spaces͏͏ and͏͏ provide͏͏ protection͏͏ to͏͏ delicate͏͏ plants,͏͏ some͏͏ shrubs͏͏ can͏͏ give͏͏ you͏͏ berries͏͏ while͏͏ adding͏͏ valuable͏͏ nitrogen͏͏ to͏͏ the͏͏ soil.͏͏
Herbaceous͏͏ Layer͏͏
This͏͏ mid-layer͏͏ is͏͏ delicate,͏͏ but͏͏ invaluable.͏͏ Here͏͏ you’ll͏͏ find͏͏ basil,͏͏ peppers,͏͏ kale͏͏ and͏͏ asparagus,͏͏ amongst͏͏ many͏͏ other͏͏ varieties.͏͏
Ground͏͏ Cover
These͏͏ plants͏͏ do͏͏ the͏͏ heavy͏͏ lifting.͏͏ They͏͏ suppress͏͏ weeds,͏͏ retain͏͏ moisture͏͏ and͏͏ give͏͏ food.͏͏ Think͏͏ spearmint,͏͏ strawberries͏͏ and͏͏ oregano.͏͏
Vines
A͏͏ tricky͏͏ but͏͏ invaluable͏͏ layer,͏͏ here͏͏ you’ll͏͏ be͏͏ able͏͏ to͏͏ maximize͏͏ the͏͏ use͏͏ of͏͏ space͏͏ and͏͏ grow͏͏ things͏͏ like͏͏ chayote,͏͏ kiwi͏͏ and͏͏ passion͏͏ fruit.͏͏ Just͏͏ be͏͏ careful͏͏ to͏͏ avoid͏͏ plants͏͏ that͏͏ might͏͏ overextend͏͏ and͏͏ suffocate͏͏ the͏͏ rest͏͏ of͏͏ the͏͏ garden.
Root͏͏ Crops
The͏͏ invisible͏͏ layer,͏͏ here͏͏ you’ll͏͏ be͏͏ able͏͏ to͏͏ grow͏͏ things͏͏ like͏͏ ginger,͏͏ turmeric͏͏ and͏͏ cassava.͏͏
Expert͏͏ Note:͏͏ Some͏͏ food͏͏ gardens͏͏ even͏͏ have͏͏ an͏͏ eight͏͏ layer,͏͏ known͏͏ as͏͏ the͏͏ Fungal͏͏ Layer,͏͏ but͏͏ those͏͏ usually͏͏ work͏͏ best͏͏ in͏͏ colder͏͏ areas.͏͏ For͏͏ a͏͏ Florida͏͏ food͏͏ garden,͏͏ this͏͏ layer͏͏ should͏͏ be͏͏ optional͏͏ and͏͏ there’s͏͏ no͏͏ guarantee͏͏ it’ll͏͏ work.͏͏
Designing͏͏ Your͏͏ Food͏͏ Forest
With͏͏ a͏͏ well-thought-out͏͏ plan,͏͏ the͏͏ chances͏͏ of͏͏ your͏͏ backyard͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ succeeding͏͏ will͏͏ skyrocket,͏͏ so͏͏ you͏͏ should͏͏ consider͏͏ the͏͏ following͏͏ elements͏͏ very͏͏ carefully͏͏ when͏͏ designing͏͏ it.
Location
It’s͏͏ not͏͏ just͏͏ about͏͏ choosing͏͏ the͏͏ right͏͏ place͏͏ in͏͏ your͏͏ backyard;͏͏ it’s͏͏ about͏͏ choosing͏͏ the͏͏ right͏͏ place͏͏ for͏͏ each͏͏ plant.͏͏ Make͏͏ sure͏͏ that͏͏ every͏͏ plant͏͏ receives͏͏ the͏͏ sunlight͏͏ it͏͏ needs͏͏ and͏͏ has͏͏ the͏͏ right͏͏ kind͏͏ of͏͏ soil͏͏ and͏͏ irrigation.
Trees͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ planted͏͏ so͏͏ that͏͏ they͏͏ provide͏͏ shade͏͏ to͏͏ plants͏͏ that͏͏ do͏͏ poorly͏͏ under͏͏ direct͏͏ sunlight,͏͏ while͏͏ vines͏͏ can͏͏ fill͏͏ in͏͏ spaces,͏͏ but͏͏ should͏͏ be͏͏ planted͏͏ away͏͏ from͏͏ spearmint͏͏ or͏͏ other͏͏ crawlers͏͏ who͏͏ might͏͏ take͏͏ advantage͏͏ of͏͏ the͏͏ support͏͏ structure.
Choosing͏͏ each͏͏ plant’s͏͏ location͏͏ carefully͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ the͏͏ difference͏͏ between͏͏ success͏͏ and͏͏ failure.
Companion͏͏ Planting
Often,͏͏ plants͏͏ can͏͏ do͏͏ much͏͏ more͏͏ than͏͏ just͏͏ grow͏͏ food.͏͏ They͏͏ can͏͏ fix͏͏ the͏͏ soil’s͏͏ nitrogen,͏͏ repel͏͏ pests,͏͏ provide͏͏ shade͏͏ and͏͏ structure,͏͏ or͏͏ even͏͏ hybridize͏͏ if͏͏ the͏͏ conditions͏͏ are͏͏ right.
Considering͏͏ the͏͏ role͏͏ each͏͏ plant͏͏ has͏͏ on͏͏ the͏͏ ecosystem͏͏ is͏͏ just͏͏ as͏͏ important͏͏ as͏͏ thinking͏͏ about͏͏ where͏͏ you’ll͏͏ plant͏͏ them.
Water͏͏ Needs
Not͏͏ all͏͏ plans͏͏ have͏͏ the͏͏ same͏͏ water͏͏ requirement,͏͏ and͏͏ you’ll͏͏ need͏͏ to͏͏ be͏͏ able͏͏ to͏͏ provide͏͏ water͏͏ in͏͏ just͏͏ the͏͏ right͏͏ amount͏͏ to͏͏ ensure͏͏ your͏͏ backyard͏͏ food͏͏ garden͏͏ thrives.͏͏ Rain͏͏ catchment͏͏ and͏͏ swales͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ retain͏͏ the͏͏ soil’s͏͏ moisture,͏͏ but͏͏ it͏͏ really͏͏ does͏͏ boil͏͏ down͏͏ to͏͏ location,͏͏ location,͏͏ location.
Another͏͏ powerful͏͏ alternative͏͏ you͏͏ should͏͏ consider͏͏ is͏͏ implementing͏͏ a͏͏ smart͏͏ irrigation͏͏ system͏͏ from͏͏ the͏͏ start,͏͏ and͏͏ at͏͏ Baker͏͏ Company,͏͏ we͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ with͏͏ that͏͏ and͏͏ more.
Reach͏͏ out͏͏ to͏͏ us͏͏ when͏͏ designing͏͏ your͏͏ Florida͏͏ food͏͏ garden,͏͏ and͏͏ we’ll͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ set͏͏ up͏͏ an͏͏ irrigation͏͏ system͏͏ that’ll͏͏ tie͏͏ everything͏͏ together!
Weather͏͏ Appropriate͏͏ Plants
Florida’s͏͏ climate͏͏ makes͏͏ it͏͏ perfect͏͏ for͏͏ a͏͏ great͏͏ number͏͏ of͏͏ fruit͏͏ trees,͏͏ perennials͏͏ and͏͏ edible͏͏ shrubs,͏͏ and͏͏ if͏͏ you’re͏͏ planting͏͏ a͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ in͏͏ Florida,͏͏ it͏͏ makes͏͏ sense͏͏ to͏͏ stick͏͏ to͏͏ tropical͏͏ plants.
- North͏͏ Florida:͏͏ Pears,͏͏ blueberries,͏͏ lemon,͏͏ chestnuts,͏͏ muscadine͏͏ grapes
- Central͏͏ Florida:͏͏ Citrus͏͏ in͏͏ genera,͏͏ loquats,͏͏ mulberries,͏͏ figs,͏͏ bananas
- South͏͏ Florida:͏͏ Mangoes,͏͏ papayas,͏͏ avocados,͏͏ coconuts,͏͏ guava
Native,͏͏ drought-resistant͏͏ plants͏͏ are͏͏ also͏͏ a͏͏ great͏͏ way͏͏ of͏͏ creating͏͏ a͏͏ well-thought-out,͏͏ sustainable͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ in͏͏ Florida,͏͏ but͏͏ you͏͏ should͏͏ check͏͏ how͏͏ the͏͏ plants͏͏ interact͏͏ with͏͏ each͏͏ other͏͏ before͏͏ making͏͏ your͏͏ final͏͏ choice.
Design Your Florida Food Forest with Baker Company!
A͏͏ backyard͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ is͏͏ a͏͏ long-term͏͏ investment͏͏ that͏͏ will͏͏ not͏͏ only͏͏ beautify͏͏ your͏͏ backyard,͏͏ but͏͏ will͏͏ also͏͏ provide͏͏ you͏͏ and͏͏ your͏͏ family͏͏ with͏͏ fresh,͏͏ organic͏͏ food͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ take͏͏ directly͏͏ to͏͏ your͏͏ plate.
Not͏͏ only͏͏ that,͏͏ but͏͏ a͏͏ solid͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ design͏͏ can͏͏ also͏͏ help͏͏ the͏͏ environment,͏͏ giving͏͏ refuge͏͏ to͏͏ native͏͏ pollinators͏͏ and͏͏ other͏͏ species͏͏ while͏͏ nurturing͏͏ the͏͏ soil͏͏ and͏͏ preventing͏͏ erosion,͏͏ which͏͏ means͏͏ that͏͏ rather͏͏ than͏͏ just͏͏ a͏͏ backyard͏͏ design,͏͏ a͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ can͏͏ be͏͏ a͏͏ backyard͏͏ haven.
From͏͏ design͏͏ to͏͏ installation͏͏ and͏͏ maintenance,͏͏ here͏͏ at͏͏ Baker͏͏ Company,͏͏ we͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ every͏͏ step͏͏ of͏͏ the͏͏ way.
Whether͏͏ you͏͏ want͏͏ a͏͏ small͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ or͏͏ you͏͏ want͏͏ to͏͏ transform͏͏ your͏͏ entire͏͏ backyard,͏͏ we͏͏ have͏͏ the͏͏ knowledge͏͏ and͏͏ the͏͏ skills͏͏ you͏͏ need.͏͏ Contact͏͏ us͏͏ today,͏͏ and͏͏ we’ll͏͏ start͏͏ designing͏͏ the͏͏ Florida͏͏ Food͏͏ Garden͏͏ of͏͏ your͏͏ dreams.
FAQs
Can͏͏ I͏͏ create͏͏ a͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ in͏͏ an͏͏ HOA-restricted͏͏ neighborhood?
It͏͏ really͏͏ depends͏͏ on͏͏ your͏͏ HOA,͏͏ as͏͏ some͏͏ have͏͏ pretty͏͏ strict͏͏ guidelines͏͏ on͏͏ what͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ grow.͏͏ Here͏͏ at͏͏ Baker͏͏ Company,͏͏ we͏͏ can͏͏ try͏͏ to͏͏ design͏͏ a͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ that͏͏ fits͏͏ those͏͏ guidelines,͏͏ but͏͏ make͏͏ sure͏͏ to͏͏ research͏͏ what͏͏ is͏͏ and͏͏ isn’t͏͏ allowed͏͏ before͏͏ we͏͏ start͏͏ working.
How͏͏ do͏͏ I͏͏ keep͏͏ pests͏͏ and͏͏ wildlife͏͏ from͏͏ eating͏͏ my͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ plants?
The͏͏ key to successful food garden design is͏͏ in͏͏ companion͏͏ planting,͏͏ where͏͏ certain͏͏ plants͏͏ can͏͏ repel͏͏ pests͏͏ and͏͏ bugs.͏͏
To͏͏ keep͏͏ out͏͏ larger͏͏ animals,͏͏ like͏͏ raccoons,͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ always͏͏ use͏͏ some͏͏ netting͏͏ and͏͏ fencing,͏͏ but͏͏ it’s͏͏ important͏͏ to͏͏ remember͏͏ that͏͏ animals͏͏ will͏͏ be͏͏ naturally͏͏ attracted͏͏ to͏͏ your͏͏ food͏͏ forest,͏͏ and͏͏ you͏͏ really͏͏ don’t͏͏ want͏͏ to͏͏ scare͏͏ away͏͏ birds͏͏ and͏͏ pollinators͏͏ if͏͏ you͏͏ want͏͏ your͏͏ backyard͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ to͏͏ succeed.
Can͏͏ I͏͏ integrate͏͏ a͏͏ small͏͏ pond͏͏ or͏͏ water͏͏ feature͏͏ into͏͏ my͏͏ food͏͏ forest?
Of͏͏ course,͏͏ and͏͏ that’ll͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ attract͏͏ the͏͏ kind͏͏ of͏͏ wildlife͏͏ that’ll͏͏ actually͏͏ benefit͏͏ your͏͏ backyard͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ while͏͏ giving͏͏ you͏͏ the͏͏ ability͏͏ to͏͏ plant͏͏ edible͏͏ aquatic͏͏ plants͏͏ like͏͏ watercress͏͏ and͏͏ taro.͏͏
The͏͏ trick͏͏ is͏͏ creating͏͏ a͏͏ pond͏͏ with͏͏ proper͏͏ drainage͏͏ and͏͏ mosquito-control͏͏ features,͏͏ while͏͏ also͏͏ making͏͏ sure͏͏ if͏͏ your͏͏ pond͏͏ overflows͏͏ it͏͏ won’t͏͏ damage͏͏ your͏͏ food͏͏ garden.
What’s͏͏ the͏͏ best͏͏ way͏͏ to͏͏ create͏͏ pathways͏͏ and͏͏ access͏͏ points͏͏ in͏͏ a͏͏ dense͏͏ food͏͏ forest?
The͏͏ best͏͏ thing͏͏ you͏͏ can͏͏ do͏͏ is͏͏ integrate͏͏ the͏͏ path͏͏ design͏͏ into͏͏ your͏͏ food͏͏ forest͏͏ design͏͏ so͏͏ that͏͏ you͏͏ have͏͏ easy͏͏ access͏͏ to͏͏ the͏͏ food.͏͏ Wide,͏͏ curving͏͏ paths͏͏ work͏͏ the͏͏ best͏͏ for͏͏ this͏͏ kind͏͏ of͏͏ backyard,͏͏ and͏͏ integrating͏͏ hardscape͏͏ features͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ tie͏͏ everything͏͏ together.͏͏
Our͏͏ experts͏͏ at͏͏ Baker͏͏ Company͏͏ can͏͏ help͏͏ you͏͏ design͏͏ paths͏͏ that’ll͏͏ work͏͏ to͏͏ enhance͏͏ the͏͏ look͏͏ and͏͏ function͏͏ of͏͏ your͏͏ Florida͏͏ food͏͏ forest,͏͏ so͏͏ give͏͏ us͏͏ a͏͏ call!
Are͏͏ there͏͏ any͏͏ Florida-specific͏͏ grants͏͏ or͏͏ incentives͏͏ for͏͏ planting͏͏ a͏͏ food͏͏ forest?
Yes!͏͏ Florida͏͏ has͏͏ various͏͏ programs͏͏ that͏͏ incentivize͏͏ sustainable͏͏ landscaping͏͏ and͏͏ edible͏͏ gardens.͏͏ Programs͏͏ like͏͏ the͏͏ Florida-Friendly͏͏ Landscaping initiative͏͏ promote͏͏ responsible͏͏ gardening͏͏ practices,͏͏ and͏͏ some͏͏ cities͏͏ have͏͏ incentives͏͏ for͏͏ reducing͏͏ water͏͏ use͏͏ through͏͏ xeriscaping.͏͏
Check͏͏ with͏͏ your͏͏ local͏͏ authorities͏͏ or͏͏ environmental͏͏ department͏͏ to͏͏ learn͏͏ more͏͏ about͏͏ what͏͏ kind͏͏ of͏͏ programs͏͏ exist͏͏ in͏͏ your͏͏ area.
