Food Forest Botanical Signs?

Food forest botanical gardens… do they even exist?

Yes! But how do we recognize what each plant is in any botanical garden? How do we make that information useful? String along with us for a moment to make sure we have this covered correctly for YOU.

How would you want to use this information? For your curiosity, for sure. And then what? This is, after all, a FOOD forest. It would make sense for you to know if the plant is edible as it is, raw. If not, whether it must be cooked, and how.

Next, you would want to know if it’s worth eating, that is, if it’s nutritious. What exact nutrients are in this food, and how much of them in my daily dietary needs. Too much, or too little in just one mouthful or serving.

After that, or maybe first of all, what does it taste like if I’ve never tried it before? What other food or combination of foods does this plant taste like? This would tell me right away if I even want to know more about the plant.

We think most people, if they find a new food plant interesting so far would want to know more information about eating and serving this food to others among family and friends. It certainly would be great conversation over a dinner party. So, information links to further information on a sign would be really great. But how would you transfer the link information to the internet? A QR code on the sign for passersby to capture on their phone!

This combination of factors will be on the signs of the plants for our Heartland Trial here in Arizona. Once planting begins, the signs will attract attention from the public for years to come. That is our hope and conviction. Will you join us in coming together as a group to see this, once it is in operation? More details on the Heartland Trial are coming up soon, so stay tuned!