Build a Backyard Edible Ecosystem

By Zach Loeks
Published on April 30, 2018
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Use a tarp to kill any grass or other plants before you set up the bed.
Use a tarp to kill any grass or other plants before you set up the bed.
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Cover the area with a layer of overlapping cardboard to deter weeds.
Cover the area with a layer of overlapping cardboard to deter weeds.
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Butt the straw bales together to make a sturdy frame for the bed.
Butt the straw bales together to make a sturdy frame for the bed.
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Top off the filled beds with a layer of finished compost or topsoil.
Top off the filled beds with a layer of finished compost or topsoil.
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Plant a nitrogen-fixing cover crop to load the bed with nutrients.
Plant a nitrogen-fixing cover crop to load the bed with nutrients.
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Lay out your food plants after killing the cover crop for in-place mulch.
Lay out your food plants after killing the cover crop for in-place mulch.
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You can use edible ecosystem beds to propagate cultivars you wish to share, too.
You can use edible ecosystem beds to propagate cultivars you wish to share, too.
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With everything in place, you won't need to water or weed often.
With everything in place, you won't need to water or weed often.
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A well-planned edible ecosystem can provide astonishing yields with little input from the gardener.
A well-planned edible ecosystem can provide astonishing yields with little input from the gardener.
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Keep your climate in mind when you choose the tree at the center of your permaculture garden.
Keep your climate in mind when you choose the tree at the center of your permaculture garden.
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"The Permaculture Market Garden" by Zach Loeks, is an ideal read for anyone looking to expand their gardens use the whole area.

Fruits, vegetables, and flowers can transform neighborhoods into abundant, beautiful, healthy environments. If we plant fruit trees, berry bushes, and herbs, we can begin to form new food landscapes throughout our communities. The best way to start this process is by building a small edible ecosystem in your backyard that includes a simple compost system that will become the bed for your perennial food plants.

What’s an Edible Ecosystem?

An edible ecosystem is a planned garden that features diverse food plants that complement each other’s forms and functions, imitating the structure of a natural ecosystem. I create ecosystems that include a mix of three or more varieties of herbs, berries, and fruit trees, along with beneficial fungi, which all work together to produce an abundance of food. These miniature permaculture gardens also provide space to trial potential food plant guilds and propagate new plants to share with your community.

By starting small and trialing different combinations of perennial food species, you can learn what works well and then share that successful design with your neighbors. For instance, if a certain berry cultivar is delicious and works well with a ground cover of thyme, you can suggest that design to others in your area. You’ll also be able to turn your garden into a nursery source for propagating other sites in your yard and community.

Permaculture Gardens Mimic Nature

A well-designed edible ecosystem will offer improved yields and require less maintenance than a traditional food garden by mimicking the form and function of natural ecosystems. Form refers to the different canopy and root shapes and the plant sizes used — fruit trees, berry bushes, and ground covers have notably different forms. You can maximize water, nutrient, and sunlight use within your garden plot by layering diverse leaf and root profiles.

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