Creating a Medicinal Forest Garden

Forest gardening has always been one of the most ecological ways to produce food and medicine. It integrates species that are useful to humans in ways that mimic our native ecosystems in form and function.  In this class we will map out practical ways we can design a medicinal landscape using wild local plants, natives, and exotics. Fruits, flowers, roots and barks of medicinal plants will be examined for their horticultural and propagative aspects as well as their relationships with local ecology. This lecture style class will include background on the forest garden concept as well as successional agroforestry in our region. Various woody, native, and perennial medicinal plants will be investigated for sustainable harvest, horticultural and propagative aspects, as well as ecological niche.