About Fruitful Forest


Our vision is to promote low-effort and long lasting foods: the many nuts and fruit that we can
grow in the Maritimes, as well as the growing number of available perennial vegetables that give
back year after year.

We dream of a fully self-reliant region, transforming underutilized public and private space to
create true food security for all!


One of our intents is to grow more food -producing trees. Why? Tree foods mitigate climate
change by taking carbon and putting it into the soil where it can do the most good. Anchoring
more carbon is a goal, and so we will focus on growing more nuts and fruits to plant throughout
cities and in smaller orchards.


Rather than using unsustainably strip-mined top soil and peat moss, we use renewable compost
and coconut coir in our business. We take our seed supply from our own adult plants or by
sustainably wild-crafting them. In this way, we promote regional self reliance and give back to our
economy and our bioregion.


Whether by Bunching, Running, or Self sowing, all plants reproduce, and the way in which they
do so will indicate whether they are the right plant for your location.

Plants can be expansive by seed (Sapphic Violet); rhizomes, which are underground stems (the
Mints, Sweet Woodruff); Stolon, which are over-ground stems (some buttercups, strawberries); or
layering, which are stems that bury their tips, root and becoming a new plant (Forsythia, some
Roses, Raspberries).

For a small location we recommend only one strongly running plant, or none, and several
bunching plants. For a larger location, running plants may be confined by changes in
microclimate, swathes of mowed area, buried barriers such as vinyl siding or grazing.

Bunching: a plant gets bigger by doubling or quadrupling at the base. This creates a bunch that
gets bigger over time.

Running: The plant acquires territory by sending out underground stems or runners, creating a
loose assembly that fills a space quickly. Many of the mints are runners. Good for filling large
spaces or the space between bunches. Not great if you want a tidy look for a very small space.

Self-sowing: A plant disperses seed which causes new plants to pop up in sometimes unexpected
locations. Can make for a pleasant surprise and allows the plant to take care of its own
replacement, seeking out locations that are best for its growth while sparing you the effort of resowing.

Invasive potential: We will always say how a plant may become invasive so that you can decide if
it’s suitable for a location which can control it. The plants we have included are in our opinion of
value and should not be excluded based on the potential that they may be aggressive or exclusive
in some circumstances. Almost all invasive plants are signs that an environment is disturbed or
depleted or otherwise unhealthy.