Foraging in the Food Forest
With the help of a dedicated team of volunteers and a supportive community the Kaiapoi Food Forest has become a fabulous spot tucked away in the former red zone.
Words: Pattie Pegler Photography: Supplied
On a late autumn day that has seen some early morning frost a wild, ragged looking tomato plant continues to produce in a corner of the Kaiapoi Food Forest. It’s not carefully covered with frost cloth nor protected in a glasshouse; it’s never been neatly tied to a stake nor had the laterals carefully snipped out of it. But among its rambling, bushy leaves there are still tomatoes. This is low maintenance gardening – a lesson in how to keep things simple and get better results.
And low maintenance has the food forest thriving – there are fruit trees, nut trees, great clumps of rhubarb, strawberry plantings spreading out, there are crab apples and feijoas, over 30 types of heritage apples donated by a local business. And yet just 20 months ago this space was a bare paddock and the man charged with making the food forest happen, Brent Cairns, was a gardening newbie, “I’d only done a one day course,” he says with a laugh, “my mum and dad laughed when I told them I was trying to start a food forest. I had no gardening background.”
But with the support of other dedicated volunteers, the council and the wider community, that bare 1.5 acres of land has become a fabulous, rambling, diverse food forest. The forest relies heavily on the concept of companion planting explains Brett – large fruit and nut trees provide a canopy for smaller plants many of which in turn are nitrogen fixing. Rhubarb provides ground cover; garlic is a natural pest deterrent; comfrey draws in pollinators like bees. There is no spraying in the forest instead there is a lot of mulch to help keep the weeds down whilst the plants mature. “Nobody sprays or pulls weeds in national parks” says Brent. It’s a reasonable comment. And once this kind of garden is set up it’s low maintenance with the plants working with each other naturally.
The forest was something the community wanted. It’s a nod to the neighbourhood’s pre-quake days – with plenty of transplanted fruit trees from red-zoned gardens and scattered throughout the beds there are reminders that people once lived here – an old bicycle, a bed frame. But the forest is also something the community clearly believes in nurturing for the future. There have been numerous donations of trees, compost, mulch and other funds. Local MP Matt Doocey planted a feijoa tree and a Department of Corrections work crew provide maintenance services. There’s a regular Wednesday afternoon volunteer session that always sees people turn up to work on the forest. There are educational sessions on things like pruning and how to grow kumara (yes you can do it this far south apparently). There are school visits where Brent poses the question – what would you do for food if the supermarket closed for a week?
On the forest’s first open planting day in September 2017 there was a great turnout of people along with donations totalling 80 trees. Brent recalls a young guy in his twenties who turned up “I’d like to plant a tree but have no idea what to do” he said. He was partnered up with a mature lady with some gardening nous and the unlikely pair got to work planting.
The forest is also designed to draw people in. There’s a colourful playhouse for littlies, a wheelchair friendly picnic table and even a solar powered spot to charge your phone whilst you relax and contemplate nature – or forage for food.
“The community has connected more, we’re all helping the forest to grow and having fun, learning…and people just turn up and do things that need doing” says Brent.
As we’re walking around a woman wonders in the forest looking at some of the beds and plants. “I just popped in to see what you’re doing with your citrus” she says. Brent is off - giving her a lowdown on citrus maintenance – water them everyday, wet ground helps them against frost, put them under another tree to protect them.
Brent’s gardening knowledge has come a long way in a short time. Much like this bare paddock that the community has transformed into the wild and wonderful Kaiapoi Food Forest.