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Hi! I’m brand new to gardening and permaculture in every way but would like to start making plans for a low-maintenance, all-native forest garden in my backyard in northern Illinois. Does anyone have ideas for what plants I should start with? I’d love to have as many as possible be things I can also eat in order to reduce dependence on non-local foods. I do have a decent amount of space but I’m wary of getting in over my head. There’s a lot of info out there and it’s very hard to sort through and figure out how to actually begin! Also trying to be budget conscious, which makes things even trickier.

I’m also curious folks’ thoughts on starting a small indoor winter garden with growth lights?

Hey y’all. I’d love some feedback on this guild idea. I’m in Louisville KY looking to help design a food forest for a friend just over the river in southern Indiana (so zone 7B). She already has 6 fruit trees: 3 apples, 2 cherries (sweet), and 1 peach. Plus 2 pawpaw. And room for more. The trees themselves are about 4 years old, planted Oct 2020 as little whips. I’ve studied permaculture for over a decade but my only opportunities to implement have been in urban areas… So for the first guild, the Liberty semi dwarf Apple: Does this look like it will work? Too many plants, or not enough? I mapped a 20′ canopy, with a ring of daffodils no closer than 4-5′ from the trunk. The hatching would be yarrow and/or clover seeded as ground cover (or maybe just mulch) Am I planting too close to the CRZ? I put the honeyberries to the east so they’ll get some afternoon shade bc mine have suffered burning in the hot western sun. No personal experience with currants but I’ve read they handle shade so they’re placed to the north… Not sure what to put on the West side, open to ideas. I’m also planning on adding in 1-3 nitrogen fixing trees like honey locust to the west (maybe 30′ over) so they’ll eventually add more shade too… Strawberry patch to the south. I also already have garlic chives, Comfrey, daffodils, and strawberries that I can share with her (some at least to get it started) hence their inclusion. I figure there’s always annuals that could be sprinkled in as well. Zinnias, salvia, nasturtiums, marigolds, etc…

I Appreciate your perspective!

Once I get a good layout, I plan to repeat with other two apples and tweak for other fruits; also depends on how much of what fruit she wants (e g. may do more honeyberry or figs in other spots)

Ps- Happy American Thanksgiving if you celebrate (not the destruction of indigenous people and their landscape of course, but the being thankful for life’s blessings and delicious food part 😉)