FOREST GARDEN
Introduction – How we came to Parc Teifi
We created and successfully ran a community forest garden near Cardigan for 10 years which came to an end in 2017. During the 10 years many hundreds of children and volunteers were involved by: Working, planting, picking, learning and playing in the garden. The old land was bought by a new landlord and came to an end. We began to look around for a new site and saw the land at Parc Teifi. We made contact with the Welsh Government and they were impressed with our work and achievements over the last 30 years with communities in London and in the last 15 years in West Wales. Much of the work was achieved through a huge volunteer commitment and funded primarily through the Eco Shop and kind donations from local businesses in Cardigan. Community Asset Transfer and Getting the Keys
After writing a proposal for a community asset transfer in June 2017, and working with the solicitors to agree all the terms. We were given the keys to the new site at Parc Teifi in February in 2019. The picture shows the first small group to see the official new site ate Parc Teifi. Community Interest Company In order to receive the land we put in place a community interest company CIC. This is a community benefit company that will keep the land secure indefinitely for the benefit of the community and environment. We felt it was time to invest in a project that would have a safe and secure future. Starting the planting
We began planting the forest garden in the winter of 2019. During the first year we out in place infrastructure like the bridge, sheds, shelter and made the site safe. This was a huge amount of work, employing many skilled people to build and develop the site which was all managed by Alpay.  Funding The Eco Shop was set up in 2010 in Cardigan which successfully operates today and is kept open 11am – 3pm six days a week by a dedicated bunch of volunteers. The money the shop makes has funded all the work in the new forest garden site thus far. We also received a grant from the community fund which funded the open day, permaculture course, forest schooling planning and planting days and administration. What is a Forest garden?Forest gardens are sustainable, edible landscapes designed to work like the natural structure of forests with their tree, shrub and herb associations. These are some examples of what a forest garden can be made of: fruit and nut trees (plum, apple, pear, almond, hazel) fruit bushes (currants, worcester berries, raspberries and loganberries) herbs (rosemary, sage. lavender, mint, and borage ) Making use of companion planting, these can be intermixed to grow in a succession of layers to build a woodland habitat. Community Forest gardening is about people and their communities , learning and working with nature not against it to fulfill their diverse needs. Forest gardens can be planted in back gardens, school grounds, public space. They have the potential to contribute enormously to the social, physical, spiritual, economic and environmental well being of communities. Forest gardening is a prehistoric method of securing food in tropical areas. It was in the 1980s that Robert Hart coined the term “forest gardening” after adapting the principles and applying them to temperate climates. |
2023 Community Woodland Grant
‘Haenau Digonedd’ yn cael eu ychwanegu i Ardd Goedwig Gymunedol leol. Mae Naturewise wedi enill £36,966 o gyllid er mwyn gwella’r mentro 5 erw ar gyrion Aberteifi. Ariennir y prosiect yma gan y cynllun Coetiroedd Cymunedol. Mae’n cael ei ddarparu gan Gronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Genedlaethol mewn partneriaeth â Llywodraeth Cymru.
‘Layers of Abundance’ added to local Community Forest Garden. Cardigan’s Naturewise Community Forest Garden scoops £36,966 of funding to further enhance the 5 acre venture. This project is funded by the Community Woodlands scheme. It is being delivered by The National Lottery Heritage Fund in partnership with the Welsh Government.
Full blog post here: ‘Layers of Abundance’ Community Woodlands Grant
Latest Forest Garden News
- Children are invited to make and tell stories – Gwahoddir plant i adrodd a chreu straeon (5/26/2024) - A free story making project for children 7-12 years Saturday June 8th & June 15th 11-2.30pm. Open day 22nd June 1pm Prosiect creu stori am ddim i blant 7-12 oed Dydd Sadwrn Mehefin 8fed a Mehefin 15fed 11-2.30yp. Diwrnod agored 22ail Mehefin 1pm Through fun activities with local storytellers in small… ...continue reading
Open Day – Saturday 22nd June 2024 – Diwrnod Agored – Dydd Sadwrn 22ain Mehefin (5/17/2024) - The Open Day Programme June 22nd 2024 Welcome to the Naturewise community forest garden open day. This is the programme for the day and we are lucky to have some excellent facilitators to share with us their knowledge and creativity for our learning and fun. The garden is 5 acres… ...continue reading
Happy St David’s Day – gwnewch y pethau bychain (3/1/2024) - The saying "gwnewch y pethau bychain" "do the little things" attributed to St David encourages us to focus on small acts as often they are the ones that can make a big difference. Volunteering locally in forest gardens is a great way to make a positive impact in your community.… ...continue reading
Where to find us
Parc Teifi, Cardigan
Opening times
We are open every Tuesday from 10am till 4pm (in summer when the light is good we often work on). We are also open 3rd Saturday of every month where we usually cook food on the fire.
Bring your own drinking water/ food/ gloves. We provide tea and biscuits.
Volunteer At The Forest Garden
All are welcome, there is always something to be done and ways to enhance your gardening skills and knowledge in forest gardening and permaculture.
With a vast range of plants to look after and designs to implement, there are jobs for
all and families are welcome. We meet Every Tuesday and the 3rd Saturday in the month 10-4 pm . Children are the responsibility of parents and can play freely or contribute to tasks.
If you’d like more information please contact us directly simply visit our contact page
For all future events at the Forest Garden please see our events page, you can be kept up-to-date with all news and updates by subscribing to our mailing list on the right column of this page.