If you love forests with their variety of plant life and natural shade, consider turning your backyard into a private woodland. This landscape transformation requires careful planning and attentive maintenance, resulting in a beautiful, self-sustaining wooded backyard that will enrich your property.
Below is a brief step-by-step guide to help you transform all or part of your yard into a peaceful forest experience.
Determine Your Zone First
Before you can even begin shopping at your plant and tree nursery, you must determine what hardiness your future forest will need to survive. Remember that plants can be picky about their environments, so you must choose those that can handle your region’s climate and soil.
You can research which trees, shrubs, and plants thrive in your area by visiting the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s website for more information. You can also refer to an online hardiness zone map to learn more about the types of species you can include in your forest plans. This information will help you narrow your options and simplify your landscape planning.
Create a Canopy with Taller Tree Varieties
One of the primary features of any forest is its canopy. This roof comprises trees that add height and shade, but be careful of your chosen species. Too much shade will starve the lower-level plant life you plant later. On the other hand, if your region can support them, more giant nut trees are a great option, especially because you can harvest them in a few years, providing an element of added sustainability.
Use Shorter Trees for a Lower Canopy Level
Forests comprise several layers of vegetation and trees, and yours should try to mimic this by having shorter species of trees, as well. These can be ornamental or fruit-bearing; it’s really up to you. Choosing native plants is highly recommended so you can be sure the different varieties you incorporate get along and are known to thrive in your region. However, choose species that can self-pollinate and don’t require cross-pollination to bear fruit.
Stagger the Ground Level with Shrubs
Next, you want to enhance the ground level with different shrubs and ferns. Flowering varieties like Lily of the Valley bushes, Lilac, and Forsythias are a great way to add splashes of colour. These will also attract pollinating insects to help any nut or fruit-bearing trees to produce.
You can also plant more sustainable options like raspberry or blueberry bushes. Or Layer #3 is where your berry-producing shrubs will live. These could attract wildlife, however, so you might have to invest in barriers to protect the berries unless you don’t plan to harvest.
Add More Depth with Perennial Herbs and Flowers
No forest is complete without flowers and herbs on the ground level. This is called the herbaceous layer and should comprise perennial plants that will reseed independently. This strategy requires minimal maintenance rather than cutting back in areas you don’t want them to grow. This is another opportunity to add colour and design, especially if you plan to put in a walking path and want to accent it. If you’d like to continue along the theme of an edible forest, add herbs like dill and ginger.
Use Plants for Additional Ground Cover
You’ll still need some ground cover if you plan to have minimal grass in your forest. You’ll develop erosion issues without plant growth on top of the dirt. Some ideal plants to provide a protective ground layer include:
- Dewberry
- Hostas
- Periwinkles
- Ground Cover Comfey
- Canadian Ginger
- Alpine Strawberry
- Eastern Teaberry
All of these plants are easy to propagate and maintain. They are also ideal for areas where there is significant shade.
Add Vines to Accent Your Tree Trunks
In deep forests, you’ll often find vines. You can mimic this effect in your pocket forest by adding creeping species of plants that won’t hurt the tree or surrounding foliage but add that additional texturing. Morning glories are a popular option that adds beautiful green leaves with long blossoms ranging from white to light purple. Clematis is another creeping vine with striking flowers contrasting beautifully with your surrounding landscape.
Final Thoughts
Creating the forest of your dreams requires planning, a keen understanding of plant life, and the balance you’ll need to strike to ensure all your foliage and vegetation gets enough nutrients and light. You’ll also need to ensure that this part of your yard is well-irrigated and drains efficiently to prevent root rot. Finally, if you live in a zone that can experience cold weather temps, ensure you have the necessary supplies to protect young trees and perennials from damaging frost, snow, and ice.
Despite the hard work involved, the satisfaction you’ll get while watching your new forest mature is beyond measure. It’s a true accomplishment that will provide you and your loved ones with generations of joy.
How To Make Your Backyard Look Like a Forest
If you love forests with their variety of plant life and natural shade, consider turning your backyard into a private woodland. This landscape transformation requires careful planning and attentive maintenance, resulting in a beautiful, self-sustaining wooded backyard that will enrich your property.
Below is a brief step-by-step guide to help you transform all or part of your yard into a peaceful forest experience.
Determine Your Zone First
Before you can even begin shopping at your plant and tree nursery, you must determine what hardiness your future forest will need to survive. Remember that plants can be picky about their environments, so you must choose those that can handle your region’s climate and soil.
You can research which trees, shrubs, and plants thrive in your area by visiting the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s website for more information. You can also refer to an online hardiness zone map to learn more about the types of species you can include in your forest plans. This information will help you narrow your options and simplify your landscape planning.
Create a Canopy with Taller Tree Varieties
One of the primary features of any forest is its canopy. This roof comprises trees that add height and shade, but be careful of your chosen species. Too much shade will starve the lower-level plant life you plant later. On the other hand, if your region can support them, more giant nut trees are a great option, especially because you can harvest them in a few years, providing an element of added sustainability.
Use Shorter Trees for a Lower Canopy Level
Forests comprise several layers of vegetation and trees, and yours should try to mimic this by having shorter species of trees, as well. These can be ornamental or fruit-bearing; it’s really up to you. Choosing native plants is highly recommended so you can be sure the different varieties you incorporate get along and are known to thrive in your region. However, choose species that can self-pollinate and don’t require cross-pollination to bear fruit.
Stagger the Ground Level with Shrubs
Next, you want to enhance the ground level with different shrubs and ferns. Flowering varieties like Lily of the Valley bushes, Lilac, and Forsythias are a great way to add splashes of colour. These will also attract pollinating insects to help any nut or fruit-bearing trees to produce.
You can also plant more sustainable options like raspberry or blueberry bushes. Or Layer #3 is where your berry-producing shrubs will live. These could attract wildlife, however, so you might have to invest in barriers to protect the berries unless you don’t plan to harvest.
Add More Depth with Perennial Herbs and Flowers
No forest is complete without flowers and herbs on the ground level. This is called the herbaceous layer and should comprise perennial plants that will reseed independently. This strategy requires minimal maintenance rather than cutting back in areas you don’t want them to grow. This is another opportunity to add colour and design, especially if you plan to put in a walking path and want to accent it. If you’d like to continue along the theme of an edible forest, add herbs like dill and ginger.
Use Plants for Additional Ground Cover
You’ll still need some ground cover if you plan to have minimal grass in your forest. You’ll develop erosion issues without plant growth on top of the dirt. Some ideal plants to provide a protective ground layer include:
- Dewberry
- Hostas
- Periwinkles
- Ground Cover Comfey
- Canadian Ginger
- Alpine Strawberry
- Eastern Teaberry
All of these plants are easy to propagate and maintain. They are also ideal for areas where there is significant shade.
Add Vines to Accent Your Tree Trunks
In deep forests, you’ll often find vines. You can mimic this effect in your pocket forest by adding creeping species of plants that won’t hurt the tree or surrounding foliage but add that additional texturing. Morning glories are a popular option that adds beautiful green leaves with long blossoms ranging from white to light purple. Clematis is another creeping vine with striking flowers contrasting beautifully with your surrounding landscape.
Final Thoughts
Creating the forest of your dreams requires planning, a keen understanding of plant life, and the balance you’ll need to strike to ensure all your foliage and vegetation gets enough nutrients and light. You’ll also need to ensure that this part of your yard is well-irrigated and drains efficiently to prevent root rot. Finally, if you live in a zone that can experience cold weather temps, ensure you have the necessary supplies to protect young trees and perennials from damaging frost, snow, and ice.
Despite the hard work involved, the satisfaction you’ll get while watching your new forest mature is beyond measure. It’s a true accomplishment that will provide you and your loved ones with generations of joy.
POSTED BY 
