Martin Crawford

by PJC · Published February 12, 2014 · Updated June 20, 2014

Martin Crawford is a pioneer in temperate-climate forest gardening, taking up the work of Robert Hart but applying it at a larger scale, with better plant spacing and arrangement, an academic fastidiousness, and much larger number of species. He has been publishing the excellent Agroforestry News from the UK since 1992, and more recently has authored the wonderful Creating a Forest Garden book and video, as well as How to Grow Perennial Vegetables and the forthcoming Food From Your Forest Garden.

His work is vitally-important as both a researcher and on-the-ground practitioner, and the world is lucky that he came along. In the essential 2-volume “bible” of Edible Forest Gardens, Martin’s garden was praised by Jacke and Toensmeier as the first one they’d seen which “got it right.” As his original garden matures, I’m very glad that Martin has recently been able to expand his work beyond the 2-acre property and acquire more land for trials of nut trees and other agroforestry crops.

PJ (whose 3-acre forest garden was inspired by Martin) has a subscription to Agroforestry News (and a dozen or two back issues), as well as copies of the Creating a Forest Garden book and video, if others would like to peruse them. Martin is located very near the original Transition Town of Totnes, a hotbed of Permaculture, forward-thinking, and awesomeness and I dream of making a pilgrimage to pay my respects someday.