Edible Landscaping and Backyard Food Production

Come join us for a fun filled workshop with Richie Mitchell, Owner of Bear Creek Organics- Edible Landscaping Company and Plant Nursery. This event is a combination indoor presentation, a lunch and discussion, and then hands on workshop outside in the gardens of Stonehedge. You will learn about edible landscaping, backyard food production and ecological design. You will also have an opportunity to evaluate an edible landscape in progress. Finally you have the opportunity to purchase edible landscaping plants from Bear Creek Organics after the workshop to implement what you have learned.

The workshop will start indoors, beginning an action packed presentation. During the presentation, Mitchell focuses on teaching principles of design and problem solving that can help us succeed when beginning to transform our own properties. Mitchell will drive home the importance of having a process for clarifying your vision and developing your land in a way that maximizes the balance between your property context and your ideal lifestyle.

We will identify some of the biggest mistakes that homeowners, businesses and farmers make with their land and how to avoid them. We will discuss the value of planning and problem solving before acting. We will understand the benefits of an edible landscape design and why a design process is so important to choosing the right plants and systems that lead to success on your unique property.

Richie will present many real-life examples of his edible landscaping work for families, organizations, and educational institutions. Then he will discuss the considerations he took while designing, installing and maintaining them. You will get a crash course in many different fruit trees, berry bushes, nut trees and native flowering perennials that grow well in our area. You will also start to understand how weather, water, soil, microclimates and many other aspects of the land come into play when deciding what, when, and where to plant.

We will have a lunch break where Richie will answer questions and engage in an open discussion about edible landscaping design, problem solving and implementation. After lunch we will go outside to examine a work in progress where Bear Creek Organics is developing a small edible landscape on Stone Hedge property. Richie will review his approach for designing the landscape and implementing the work so that we can see how the process happens in real life.

Richie is action oriented. He will also help us identify how to begin on our own properties, how to have some easy wins, and how to observe our land and our work to further unveil how to develop our edible landscapes. He will bring along with him many unique fruit and nut trees, berry and nut bushes, and native perennial flowers. These plants will be available for purchase.

Workshop $25: includes a afternoon lunch break meal
About the Speaker:

Richie is an ecological consultant and designer. He creates custom food production systems for homeowners, small farms, and schools. His focus is on finding balance between the values and goals of the organization and the context of the land. His company, Bear Creek Organics, provides consultation, design, installation, and management of ecological edible landscapes.

Richie has a B.S. in Environmental Science from St. Michael’s College, VT, and a lifetime of experience growing food in the Northeast. He has worked under Dr. Elaine Ingham at the Rodale Institute as a Mycorrhizal Fungi Technician. In 2016, Richie received the Environmental Partnership Award from the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC) for his work in the state.