The Woods

It takes a lifetime to grow a forest. Using natural agroforestry techniques, however, we are going to have to grow a young Mediterranean forest in Mallorca in seven years and build towards a climax forest in 15-30. The question is how does one build from bare ground to a maturing forest in fifteen years? 

Healthy woodlands must start with healthy soils which typically build up over decades. We can speed up the process by planting diverse grass and legume cover crops year-around for the first three years. This will result in huge gains in terms of building healthy soils; carbon sequestration, nitrogen fixing and water capture and storage for a healthy vibrant forest.

In time, shrubs and small trees will start to appear among the first grasses and pioneer plants, and a shrub-land develops. We will be able to speed up this process by planting a diversity of seedlings of shrubs and forest trees that will germinate, the trees will grow in the shelter of the shrubs then overtop them in five-to-seven years, forming a young pioneer forest. This layer will be largely pine species and other fast-growing trees such as ash and poplar, many of which will be ‘chopped ‘n dropped’ over the years to add biomass to the soil. As these rapidly growing trees grow tall and provide shade and protection from the winds, young Holm oak and other slower growing hardwood trees will be under the shade and protection of the taller pines, until they are able to mature, along with some pines, into a mature climax forest.

Mediterranean forests and scrublands are characterized by hot, dry summers and cool and moist winters. We now know that the forests and soils of the Mediterranean have considerable water retention capacity. In this way, they are a barrier against desertification. 

A diversity of first year cover crops is already planted. Among the cover crops is an even more diverse selection of tree seedlings and saplings. Thousands of trees are planned for the three-hectare forest.  We’ll be planting trees diligently for years. Most are and will be started from seed, seedling or sapling in our nursery, partially in our own soils so they are well adapted and grow strong and vigorous.

As the trees start to build mass over the next 3-7 years, we expect that they will provide habitat and food for birds, bats, pollinating insects, and other wildlife that chooses to return. We look forward to witnessing their arrival.

However, first and foremost right now in the arid Mediterranean climate, is restoring the soil’s ability to capture and store rain water and the nightly fog that rolls in off the sea.  Then as soil health is built, it will be about letting go and allowing nature to take over, waiting and seeing what succeeds, including the uninvited guests that sprout up or come to visit or stay.

The amazing thing about rebuilding nature is that it is like a party; throw a good one and they will come. I expect that being patient and giving nature the benefit of the doubt will reap huge rewards. 

Show me the Trees

The trees, bushes, shrubs and herbaceous plants that we are planting will tend to be indigenous or plants that grow well in our arid Mediterranean climate, and are drought resistant. They tend to fall into three categories:

• Chop n’ drop trees which grow quickly, generate a lot of biomass and are used to build the soil. They include, ash, poplar, honey locust, etc.

• Emergent trees, or the tallest trees in the forest, are strong trees that capture full sunlight and provide shade, shelter and wind break. Migrating birds, bats and butterflies are often found at this tree level. These trees are being planted now but should start to come into their own in about 2030. These would be trees such as the large pines, oaks, ailanthus (tree of heaven), blue wattle, carob, cypress, eucalyptus, jacaranda, mulberry, date and Washingtonian palms, acacia, black locust, mimosa and tamarix?). 

• Just underneath, canopy and subcanopy trees in a Mediterranean climax forest include black wattle, Persian silk, argan, Italian alder, casuarina, false pepper, tamarind, cherimoyas and flame trees. 

The Woods may also have a few ideas borrowed from the Mediterranean Food Forest which may include some olives, pecan, walnuts, mulberry, persimmon, loquat, fig, pomegranate, jujube red dates, jojoba (oil). 

The initial shrub layer that will one day be superseded by taller trees may include myrtle, thyme, rosemary, lavender, sage, oregano, fennel, nettles, aloes, capers, English broom, hibiscus, arboreal alfalfa, plumbago, lantana and caña brava.