The Garden Decoder: What Is ‘Mini-Forest Gardening’? – Gardenista

A mini, micro, or small-footprint forest is a resilient alternative to the convention of lawn and trees. Don’t let the word “forest” put you off; the modest scale of this approach to re-balancing your backdoor ecology is eminently achievable. Also known as the Miyawaki Method, a mini forest can work within a more conventional garden or park when it is planted into an area of at least 12 by 12 feet, or ideally a bit bigger, the size of a former tennis court or a section of parkland.  The point is to implement an ecosystem that is cooling, self-sustaining, and nourishing to the soil—as well as the animals below and above ground (including us).

Part of the appeal of mini forests is that they are quick to establish, with some soil preparation and the kind of research that would pique the interest of anyone curious about their neighborhood. Which of the trees, shrubs, and perennials that you see around the highways and byways are native to a particular region? It is these hyperlocal plants that will make up your mini forest, nurturing maximum biodiversity in a small, layered community.

To learn more about the Miyawaki Method, read on.

Photography by Britt Willoughby Dyer, except where noted.

The idea of a fast-growing mini forest was devised by the late botanist Dr Akira Miyawaki, whose concern with remedial afforestation in the 1970s led to a close study of Japan’s primordial forests. The essence of his idea is to grow young, indigenous plant species close together, mimicking the interactive community of an ancient forest. He saw that a forest environment could be fast-tracked: instead of taking hundreds of years to reach maturity, a mini forest gets there in a few decades, and is self-maintaining after three years. Out of an overheated, shadeless patch of lawn springs an environment that holds moisture, cools the air, provides habitat and food for pollinators and birds, conditions the soil, and stores carbon.