Plants For A Future and the Transition Movement The Plants For A Future (PFAF) research project and the Transition Network (originally Transition Towns) both came from permaculture (‘permanent culture’ and ‘permanent agriculture’). Ken Fern, who created PFAF in 1989, explained in his book Plants For A Future that he discovered permaculture without realising it via […]
Category: Forest Gardening
Service Tree, Sorb Apple | Sorbus domestica
A delicious fruit for the autumn. Sorbus domestica is a deciduous tree growing to 15m (50ft) at a medium rate with a trunk up to 1m (3′ 4″) in diameter. On exposed sites it may only grow to be a shrub 2 – 3m (6–10ft) tall. Leaves are 15-25cm (6–10”) long, pinnate with 13 – […]
Tropical | Cashew | Anacardium occidentale
A favourite nut growing on large evergreen trees, Cashew (Anacardium occidentale), grows up to 10-12m tall with a short and usually irregularly-shaped trunk. The dwarf version growing to 6m is preferred for commercial crops. It has spreading branches and a canopy that can spread up to 12 m. The leaves are arranged in an alternate […]
Edible Weeds | Urtica dioica | Stinging Nettle
Stinging Nettle is a fantastic underused weed with excellent edible, medicinal and other uses. The Young leaves are cooked as a potherb and added to soups etc. They can also be dried for winter use. Nettles are a very valuable addition to the diet, they are a very nutritious food that is easily digested and […]
Apple Serviceberry, Juneberry | Amelanchier lamarckii
Serviceberry is a small deciduous tree or large shrub growing to 6 m (19ft) by 4 m (13ft). It is in flower in April, and the seeds ripen from Jun to July. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by bees. The plant is self-fertile. Good planting habitats include […]
Sheepberry | Viburnum lentago
Sheepberry is a small to medium sized deciduous tree with edible and medicinal uses. It grows to 9m (30ft) by 5m (16ft) with a short trunk up to 25cm (10″) in diameter. It is one of the largest of the viburnums and has a good compact habit, lustrous foliage, abundant beautiful flowers and an attractive […]
Siberian Pea Tree | Caragana arborescens
The Siberian Pea Tree – a species of legume – is a very easily grown deciduous shrub/small tree growing to 6m (20ft) by 4m (15ft) at a fast rate and yielding a good crop of edible seeds. Leaves are alternate and compound with small leaflets and can be light to dark green. Small, yellow fragrant […]
Strawberry Tree | Arbutus unedo
The strawberry tree is a beautiful small evergreen tree or shrub that can occasionally reach 9m tall and 8m wide, though it is usually rather smaller. There are several named forms and some of these are no more than 2–3m tall. The plant produces beautiful lily-of-the-valley type flowers in late autumn and is particularly eye-catching […]
PFAF Projects
Plants For A Future (PFAF) is a charitable company established nearly 30 years ago to support the work of Ken Fern on his experimental site in Cornwall. Ten years ago a group of new trustees took over its management and since then PFAF has focussed on maintaining and further developing the online plants database originally […]
Dartington Agroforestry Project: PFAF visit 3 August 2017
In 2017 two PFAF trustees, Wendy Stayte and Chris Marsh, began a research project involving making cooperative links with people in the South West growing unusual plants in innovative ways. They began with a visit to Incredible Vegetables near Ashburton, where they made notes and took photographs, publishing the resulting photo essay on the website […]