Designing Forest Gardens to be sustainable
Many of the projects supported by Sustainably Run target land that has been denuded of trees, often felled for fuel or monoculture crops such as tobacco or palm oil. Replanting with fruit trees to form Forest Gardens helps restore the ecosystem.
Agroforestry is designed – and farmers are educated – to restore soil depleted of nutrients, resist soil erosion and increase resilience against drought or flooding. Many designs include live fencing or green walls that protect the fruit trees and rotated crops planted in alleys between the trees (alley cropping), helping to fix nitrogen in the soil, enhancing fertility and the sustainability of the Forest Garden.