Free Daily Podcast Summary
The Forest Garden: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Ben Bishop & Mike Amato
Have you ever wanted to transform your organic gardening practice into something more? Are you interested in ecology, permaculture, or sustainability? This podcast takes a deep dive into these topics, through in-depth commentary and relevant interviews with forest gardeners, permaculturalists, and regenerative system designers. The Forest Garden Podcast is a joint venture between Ben Bishop and Mike Amato, two plant nerds who in the summer of 2020 realized they shared the same alma mater and the same interests in alternative solutions to our rapidly evolving climate.
Latest Episodes
The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- Mar 22, 202447 min
Regenerative Orcharding with Jonathan Carr of Carr's Ciderhouse
Join us for an engaging conversation with Jonathan Carr on the topic of regenerative orchard practices and a variety of other topics on the podcast today. To quote the writing on one of the hard cider bottles I've got on top of my fridge... "Preservation Orchard is the home of Carr's Ciderhouse, where we practice regenerative agriculture and evolutionary orcharding-- low input silvopasture for carbon sequestration, no spray for avian and pollinator habitat, and traditional and experimental cultivars for pest & disease resistance." If any of these topics interest you, tune in today to learn about how Jonathan, his family, friends, and cooperative farmers are putting regenerative principles into practice in Western Massachusetts. Preservation Orchard Links: https://www.carrsciderhouse.com/ https://www.instagram.com/carrsciderhouse/ https://www.meadowfedlamb.com/ https://www.instagram.com/meadowfedlamb/ https://pioneervalleyapiaries.com/ Lotta Crabtree Fund: https://www.umass.edu/stockbridge/lotta-agricultural-fund ^And here's a UMass news article elaborating further. Tree crop varieties Jonathan name drops in the episode: Baldwin apple Virginia crab, Hughes crabapple Old Fashioned Limbertwig apple Grimes Golden apple Ralls Janet apple English Apples: Dabinette apple Kingston Black apple Yarlington Mill apple White Jersey apple Kokusu mulberry Imshu heartnut from Grimo's Nut Nursery P.S. this episode is a follow up of sorts to an interview we did with Matt Kaminsky a.k.a. Gnarly Pippins last year. Check out our "Feral Apples with Gnarly Pippins" episode if you haven't already.
- Mar 2, 202450 min
Black Walnut with Ben Bishop
Black Walnut in alley cropping systems is the topic of today's podcast episode. With a very special guest who you may have heard of. Join us to learn all about Ben's thesis research in a fun co-host interview that we've been meaning to record for many months now. This species is so much more than the juglone, get over it non believers! Don't forget to follow us on instagram @forestgardenpodcast First chapter of Ben's thesis (published): https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10457-023-00909-0 Ben's thesis via Mizzou online archive: https://mospace.umsystem.edu/xmlui/handle/10355/91489 Ben's instagram and youtube: https://www.instagram.com/the.forest.gardener https://www.youtube.com/@theforestgardener4011 Other relevant links: https://centerforagroforestry.org/ Center for Agroforestry Youtube
- Feb 26, 20241h 3m
Medlars with Jane Steward
Medlar is the topic of today's podcast episode! We've talked about this unusual and delicious fruit on the podcast in snippets here and there, but today it gets the attention it deserves. Join us for an in-depth interview with Jane Steward, author of Medlars: Growing and Cooking, on the fascinating history of the medlar, cultivation and harvest tips, and best ways to process or cook this fantastic fruit. Jane's business website: https://www.eastgatelarder.co.uk/ Jane recommends purchasing Medlars: Growing and Cooking from bookshop.org or from your local independent bookstore. Jane can be found on instagram at @eastgatelarder In this episode Jane name drops Scott Farm in Vermont and Hortus Gardens in NY. If you're interested in watching the country life Medlar cheese ASMR video that Mike mentioned in the episode, it can be found here.
- Feb 12, 202449 min
Hazelnuts with Tom Molnar
Join us for a deep dive into the Hazelnut, a tree crop that has not been discussed enough on this podcast! Today we primarily talk about European hazelnuts (Corylus avellana) and hybrids (Corylus avellana x americana), and learn from Dr. Tom Molnar about the decades of germplasm collection, evaluation, and breeding research his lab has conducted at Rutgers University. In 2020, Rutgers released a handful of EFB resistant cultivars of european hazelnuts and a hybrid hazelnut called 'The Beast'. Tune in to learn all about them. We also discuss other hazelnut breeding programs in the U.S. involving both European and American hazelnuts, and how climate change may impact tree crop agriculture in the coming decades. Tom recommends contacting him via email if you are interested in growing hazelnuts released by Rutgers: Tom's Contact Page Tom also recommends checking out, and considering membership with, the Northern Nut Growers. To acquire hazelnut cultivars released by Rutgers, Tom recommends:Foggy Bottom Tree Farm Grimo Nut Nursery Z’s Nutty Ridge Burnt Ridge Nursery Topics covered in our discussion on climate adaptation related to Hazelnuts was inspired by the climate change chapter of the book Growing Hybrid Hazelnuts by Phil Rutter Listeners may be interested in learning more about the Oregon State University Hazelnut Research Program. The Badgersett Research Farm is also mentioned in this episode.
- Feb 1, 20241h 30m
Forage, Harvest, Feast with Marie Viljoen
It's 2024 and we're back! Marie Viljoen is our first guest on season four of the podcast. Join us as we discuss some of the underutilized edibles featured in Marie's book Forage, Harvest, Feast: A Wild-Inspired Cuisine. Marie Recommends: https://integrationacres.com/ to find spicebush listed as "Appalachian Allspice" Sam Thayer's Field Guide to Wild Edible Plants as a fantastic resource for foraging information. Marie's Links: Forage, Harvest, Feast + 66 Square Feet (Books) https://www.instagram.com/marie_viljoen/ 66 Square Feet (Blog) Relevant literature regarding urban foraging and pollutants, particulates, etc: Food safety considerations of urban agroforestry systems grown in contaminated environments Particulate Matter Accumulation on Apples and Plums: Roads Do Not Represent the Greatest Threat
- Sep 11, 20231h 14m
Pawpaws with Neal Peterson
It's pawpaw season! So today we have a very timely episode for you all, an interview with Neal Peterson of Peterson Pawpaws. Neal has spent decades working with Asimina triloba, collecting fruits from orchards across the Eastern United States and improving the largest tree ripened fruit of North America into the seven named cultivars that we know so well today. Allegheny, Potomac, Rappahannock, Susquehanna, Shenandoah, Tallahatchie, Wabash...you may have heard of these cultivars, but do you know how they came to be? In this episode we take a deep dive into Neal's breeding work and learn about the selection process that lead to these improved fruits release into the nursery industry. We also discuss the growing requirements for pawpaw, the culture that has evolved around this species over the past half century, food allergy/annonacin content concerns, and much more. This is an episode not to be miss missed, stick with us. Peterson Pawpaws: https://www.petersonpawpaws.com/ Places to buy pawpaws in the northeast: Cricket Hill Garden - https://www.treepeony.com/ Broken Arrow - https://www.brokenarrownursery.com/ Logees - https://www.logees.com/ Perfect Circle - https://www.perfectcircle.farm/ Upcoming festivals (shoutout to Encygropedia for this epic list!): Ohio Pawpaw Festival: https://ohiopawpawfest.com/ Frederick Maryland Festival: https://ecologiadesign.com/paw-paw-festival-longcreek-homestead/ Powhattan, Virginia Festival: https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/event?id=2023-05-24-17-33-29-969019-x6b Pawpaws at West Farm Nursery, Branchburg, NJ: https://nofanj.org/event/farm-tour-pawpaws-at-west-farm-nursery/ 1st Annual Pawpaw Festival, Louisville, KY: https://www.louisvillenaturecenter.org/upcoming-events/2023/7/27/first-annual-pawpaw-festival York County Pawpaw Festival, York, PA: https://hornfarmcenter.org/pawpawfest/ West Virginia Pawpaw Festival, Morgantown, WV: https://arboretum.wvu.edu/wv-pawpaw-festival Annonacin Content Research: Progressive supranuclear palsy and pawpaw - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7156197/ Annonacin and Squamocin Contents of Pawpaw - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32761515/ Annonacin in Asimina triloba fruit: implication for neurotoxicity - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22130466/
- Sep 4, 20231h 4m
Hybrid Chestnuts with Dick Jaynes
With the chestnut harvest season approaching, we have our annual chestnut themed episode today with a true living legend in the field of tree crops research, Dick Jaynes. On today’s episode we discuss Dick’s decades of research on hybrid chestnuts, specific cultivars that emerged from his breeding work, limitations to commercial chestnut growing, Nut Tree Culture in North America (the handbook he published with the Northern Nut Growers Association) and a variety of other related topics. If you are interested in reading some of Dick's published work, try searching google scholar or jstor for Richard A. Jaynes with keywords like chestnut or Castanea. Alternatively, you could try to hunt down a copy of Nut Tree Culture in North America. The book is out of print, but resellers are still circulating copies. Finally, if you join the Northern Nut Growers Association you can gain access to a massive pdf that is a digitized version of all of the NNGA annual reports, where Dick contributed for many years. Linked below are a few of his published articles that don't require a school or library login to view. Finally, check out Broken Arrow Nursery in Hamden, CT for all of your rare tree and plant needs! Links: Sample of published works: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/CAES/DOCUMENTS/Publications/Bulletins/B657pdf.pdf https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=7aatGd2WqCAC&oi=fnd&pg=PP5&dq=richard+a+jaynes&ots=x7yuqO5Agc&sig=eMyyQKlOoO9__UN7AO6xZUSZBno#v=onepage&q=richard%20a%20jaynes&f=false Lockwood Farm & Sleeping Giant Plantation: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/CAES/DOCUMENTS/Biographies/Anagnostakis/LOCKWOOD-FARM-chestnuts.pdf https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/CAES/DOCUMENTS/Biographies/Anagnostakis/PLANTATION.pdf https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/CAES/DOCUMENTS/Biographies/Anagnostakis/Chestnut-Work-at-CAES.pdf Broken Arrow Nursery: https://www.brokenarrownursery.com/ https://www.instagram.com/brokenarrownursery/
- Jul 14, 202351 min
Feral Apples with Gnarly Pippins
Today's episode is all about the pomes! Tune in for our discussion with Matt Kaminsky, aka Gnarly Pippins, on the topic of wild/feral/seedling apples. Matt is a fruit explorer and orchardist who specializes in feral trees that kick it on the sides of highways, edges, and other forgotten places without any management from humans. Why are these trees important? Seedling apples and other pome fruits (like pears) that grow in these edge ecosystems are frequently much more resistant to the many pests and diseases that affect their cultivated cousins in commercial and organic orchards. The genetic diversity of these feral fruits is astounding. There is a movement of like minded fruit hunters who have started to champion these trees in recent years, and Matt is one of these folks. This episode cannot be missed! Check out the links below to learn more about the topics discussed in the episode. Acquire scion and grafted trees from: gnarlypippins.com Follow Matt on instagram: instagram.com/gnarlypippins Keep up with silvopasture work at: meadowfedlamb.com instagram.com/meadowfedlamb Preservation Orchard + Carr’s Cider House: https://www.carrsciderhouse.com/ https://www.instagram.com/carrsciderhouse/ Pomological Exhibition: stay updated on gnarlypippins.com Pomological Series: https://gnarlypippins.com/product/pre-order-pomological-series-wild-apple-exhibition-vol-2/ William Mullin: https://www.instagram.com/Pomme_William/ Franklin County Cider Days: https://ciderdays.org/ Cummins Nursery: https://www.cumminsnursery.com/ Fedco Trees: https://www.fedcoseeds.com/trees/ Feral Seedling Apples Discussed Today: I-95, discovered by Jack Kertesz: https://www.fedcoseeds.com/trees/i-95-apple-147 Old Fertile, discovered by Gnarly Pippins: https://fedcoseeds.com/trees/old-fertile-cider-apple-219 Gnar Gnar of New Philadelphia, submitted to Pomological Exhibition by Teddy Weber of Tin Hat Cider: https://www.tinhatcider.com/ Darth Maul, submitted to Pomological Series by Sam Exhibition of Quivering Twig Horticulture: https://www.quiveringtwig.com/
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About The Forest Garden
Have you ever wanted to transform your organic gardening practice into something more? Are you interested in ecology, permaculture, or sustainability? This podcast takes a deep dive into these topics, through in-depth commentary and relevant interviews with forest gardeners, permaculturalists, and regenerative system designers. The Forest Garden Podcast is a joint venture between Ben Bishop and Mike Amato, two plant nerds who in the summer of 2020 realized they shared the same alma mater and the same interests in alternative solutions to our rapidly evolving climate.
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