Who Gets to Eat Here?
Anyone. No permission needed. Food for wildlife and humans, in harmony with each other. Except for deer. Given their overpopulation, we have chosen mostly deer-resistant plants, and placed netting around many of the woody plants. It’s not perfect. One of the apples got chewed and several of the bean leaves got munched early on but they have survived. See below:
Use these charts to find out what you can harvest in the park:
Herbs in the Food Forest |
Uses for Humans |
Native? |
| Calendula | Medicinal, Tea, edible flowers | no |
| Chives | Culinary | no |
| Clustered Mountain Mint | Tea | yes |
| Comfrey | Medicinal | no |
| English Thyme | Culinary | no |
| Lemon Balm | Medicinal, Tea | no |
| Oregano | Culinary | no |
| Parsley | Culinary | no |
| Peppermint | Tea | no |
| Pineapple Mint | Tea | no |
| Purple Coneflower | Medicinal, Tea | yes |
| Rosemary | Culinary | no |
| Sage | Culinary | no |
| Scarlet Bee Balm | Medicinal, Tea | yes |
| St. John’s Wort | Medicinal | yes |
Shrubs in the Food Forest That Feed Humans |
What to Harvest? |
Native? |
| Arapaho Thornless Blackberry | Fruit | no |
| Caroline Everbearing Raspberry | Fruit | no |
| Highbush Blueberry | Fruit | yes |
| Nannyberry | Fruit | yes |
| Red Chokeberry | Fruit | yes |
Warning: We have Winterberry in the Food Forest because many birds eat its berries, but it is POISONOUS to humans.
Trees in the Food Forest That Feed Humans |
What to Harvest? |
Native? |
| American Chestnut | Nuts | yes |
| American Persimmon | Fruit | yes |
| Arkansas Black Spur Apple | Fruit | no |
| Beach Plum | Fruit | yes |
| Black Cherry | Fruit | yes |
| Celeste Fig | Fruit | no |
| Cortland Apple | Fruit | no |
| Dwarf Weeping Mulberry | Fruit | no |
| Elderberry | Fruit | yes |
| Favorite Lyubimy Pomegranate | Fruit | no |
| Hazelnut | Nuts | yes |
| Macoun Apple | Fruit | no |
| Nikita’s Gift Persimmon | Fruit | no |
| PawPaw | Fruit | yes |
| Pignut Hickory | Nut | yes |
| Pink Lady Apple | Fruit | no |
| Potomac Pear | Fruit | no |
| Red Nanking Cherry | Fruit | no |
| Serviceberry | Fruit | yes |
| White Nanking Cherry | Fruit | no |
And, we have Virginia Strawberries, which are neither tree nor shrub, but ARE edible and native.
Veggies in the Food Forest |
Uses |
Native? |
| Belleville Sorrel | Salad green | no |
| Jerusalem Artichoke | Use root; roasting is best | yes |
| Perennial Kale | Salad or cooked green | no |
| Pole beans | Cooked green | no |
| Red-veined sorrel | Salad green | no |
| Tracy Rhubarb | Sauce and pie | no |
| Wood Sorrel | Salad green | yes |
The chart below shows plants in the Food Forest that indirectly benefit humans; except for the Bird House Gourds, they are all native to Maryland.
Plants in the Food Forest That Benefit Wildlife |
Type |
Benefit |
| American Hornbeam | tree | Provides understory shelter for birds |
| American Linden | tree | Attracts pollinators |
| Aromatic Aster | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Bird House Gourds | annual | Provides nesting (used to make houses) |
| Blue Aster | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Blue Mistflower | perennial | Attracts pollinators |
| Carolina Rose | shrub | Attracts pollinators |
| Common Milkweed | perennial | Attracts Monarch caterpillars |
| Early Goldenrod | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Evening Primrose | perennial | Provides nectar and insects for hummingbirds; other birds eat seeds |
| Downy Goldenrod | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| False Indigobush | shrub | Moth/butterfly host plant |
| False Sunflower | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Flat top Goldenrod | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Foxglove Beardtongue | perennial | Attracts bees and hummingbirds |
| Golden Alexander | perennial | Attracts pollinators; host plant for butterflies |
| Great Blue Lobelia | perennial | Attracts moths, butterflies, and hummingbirds |
| Hairy Wild Rye | perennial | Forage plant for wildlife |
| Heirloom Sunflower | annual | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Hollow Joe-Pye Weed | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Honey Locust | tree | Attracts pollinators; shelters birds |
| Pasture Thistle | Perennial | Attracts pollinators; goldfinches eat seed |
| Red Maple | Tree | Attracts pollinators; shelters birds |
| Showy Goldenrod | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Spicebush | shrub | Moth/butterfly host plant; birds eat berries |
| Swamp Magnolia | tree | Attracts pollinators and hummingbirds; moth/butterfly host plant |
| White Heath Aster | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| White Oak | tree | Host for 534 species of moths and butterflies |
| Woodland Sunflower | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Wreath Goldenrod | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |
| Yellow False Indigo | perennial | Attracts pollinators; host plant for butterflies; birds eat seeds |
| Zigzag Goldenrod | perennial | Attracts pollinators; birds eat seeds |