North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["ethan roland" <eroland@gmail.com>]

Rivka -

Thanks for your note! I appreciate you concern for my young forest garden and my  ecological neighbours. I truly do not feel this is an appropriate forum to dive into the invasives/natives discussion, but I would like to clarify for folks that all the species I asked about are 'native' to North America, and only one (Glyccyrhiza lepidota, American licorice) is not specifically 'native' to the Eastern Forests - instead, it hails from the great midwestern prairies.

The running/suckering characteristic is one I am especially interested in for this specific forest garden design -- I am looking at low-maintenance, ecosystemically-based methods for establishing highly productive fruit + nut trees (persimmon, pawpaw, chestnut, hickory) to supply my family with local, fossil-fuel-free foods. 

If anyone has other suggestions for more 'native' species that can fill the ecological community niche I'm looking for (woody, running/suckering, nitrogen-fixing, fuel-making, food-producing, medicinal, small shrubs or herbaceous perennials), please let me know. I am indeed in a very experimental phase here, and I welcome input + discussion about this little forest garden design.

Cheers,
Ethan

P.S. To tie in with the plum discussion, I found a good selection of A. stolonifera over at Oikos Tree Crops.
P.P.S. For a great and mind-opening re-introduction to the native/invasive discussion, take a look at Dave Jacke + Eric Toensmeier's Edible Forest Gardens vol. 1 (
www.edibleforestgardens.com) Let me know if you have any questions!



Date: Mon, 29 Jan 2007 09:57:42 -0500
From: road's end farm <
organic101@linkny.com>

Why are you looking specifically for invasives?

Are the above native to your area? (I think some are, but am not sure
about others. I'm not an expert on the subject.) Is everything you're
planning for  your "forest garden" native to the area? You might be
planting problems for yourself, your neighbors, and remaining native
species already under stress.

I'm not saying, "never plant strange stuff that you haven't been able
to find already growing in your area". I'm just saying, "think first."
You may already have done so; in which case, apologies.

-- 
Ethan C. Roland
(518) 610-1375

AppleSeed Permaculture
Design - Teach - Advise
www.appleseedpermaculture.com

Northeastern Permaculture Wiki
www.northeasternpermaculture.wikispaces.com

8th International Permaculture Conference, Brazil, 2007
www.ipc8.org

" You can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you can't count the number of apples in a seed" - proverb via Paul Krafel