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Food Forest

The Eggleston Park Food Forest is a diverse planting of perennial edible trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants— including fruits, vegetables, nuts, and herbs—designed to mimic the natural balance of a forest by utilizing permaculture principles.

2020 Food Forest Work and Learn Days

Work Days and Work & Learn Classes are currently cancelled through April.

Individuals may get direction to work on their own by emailing our Food Forest chair at foodforest[at]edibleevanston[dot]org

We have great volunteer opportunities for individuals, families and groups thru regular monthly work days that frequently include learning presentations. (We are happy to arrange other special volunteer days for groups as needed. ) A waiver will be required to participate as a volunteer. No other registration is required, but pre-registration for learn portion encouraged

2020 Educational Work-and-Learn Days Schedule

Look for additional activities on most workdays—educational presentations, sharing of food, stories, song. Including:

2019 Food Forest & Orchard Work and Learn Days

We have great volunteer opportunities for individuals, families and groups thru regular monthly work days that frequently include learning presentations. (We are happy to arrange other special volunteer days for groups as needed. ) A waiver will be required to participate as a volunteer. No other registration is required, but pre-registration for learn portion encouraged

2019 Educational Work-and-Learn Days Schedule

Look for additional activities on most workdays—educational presentations, sharing of food, stories, song. Including:

2018 Food Forest & Orchard Work and Learn Days

We have great volunteer opportunities for individuals, families and groups thru regular monthly work days that frequently include learning presentations. (We are happy to arrange other special volunteer days for groups as needed. ) A waiver will be required to participate as a volunteer. No other registration is required, but pre-registration for learn portion encouraged

2018 Educational Work-and-Learn Days Schedule

Look for additional activities on most workdays—educational presentations, sharing of food, stories, song. Including:

Permaculture Primer: An introduction

By Tim Sonder, Education chair

If you have been volunteering with Edible Evanston you have, no doubt, been hearing about “Permaculture.” But what is it?

Most of the techniques applied by those working with permaculture aren’t revolutionary, they are evolutionary. But the way of looking at the world—and I mean that in the broadest sense—often feels revolutionary. Permaculture becomes a way of framing one’s outlook. And that can be applied not just to agriculture, but also to architecture and engineering, to urban planning, and to societal questions.

Food Forest conversion underway

Fall 2016 marked the beginning of Edible Evanston's conversion of the Eggleston Anniversary Orchard into a Food Forest. With the initial planning done, Spring 2017 is when the real work begins.

Grant News: A food forest is in our future!

Edible Evanston is excited to announce the awarding of our fourth grant from the Evanston Community Foundation, funded in part by the Green Communities Fund and Redbud Fund of the Evanston Community Foundation.

This funding will provide $5,725 in seed money to transform the Eggleston Anniversary Orchard into a demonstration Permaculture Food Forest as a community resources with educational opportunity for residents. Planning has begun, and we hope to include the community in design charrettes.

Design and Construction of the Eggleston Anniversary Orchard

Laying out the orchard grid

An orchard was designed and constructed in Eggleston Park (McCormick Blvd & Bridge Street, Evanston, Illinois, 60201) as joint project of the Northwestern University Brady Scholars (Brady Scholars) and the New Leaf Urban Garden (NLUG), with support from Edible Evanston (EE) and the City of Evanston (City) Parks and Recreation Department (Parks Department). This is the first orchard in an Evanston City Park. The new orchard, constructed in May and June 2013, includes nearly 50 fruit and nut trees and nearly 30 raspberry bushes.

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