Beacon Food Forest facts for kids

A ground-making event at Beacon Food Forest in 2012

The Beacon Food Forest is a special 7-acre garden in Seattle, Washington. It's located on Beacon Hill, right next to Jefferson Park. This amazing place is called a "food forest" because it grows many different kinds of food, like fruits, nuts, and vegetables, all together.

What makes it extra special is that it's built on land owned by the city. This means it's one of the biggest food forests on public land in the United States. Besides the main food forest, there are also smaller garden plots called P-Patches. These are like mini-gardens where people can grow their own food.

How the Food Forest Started

Glenn Herlihy (center left) at an early Beacon Food Forest workshop

The first public workshop for the Beacon Food Forest in 2011.

The idea for the Beacon Food Forest began in 2009. A group of students, including Jacqueline Cramer and Glenn Herlihy, came up with the plan. They were studying something called "Permaculture Design." Permaculture is a way of designing gardens and farms that works with nature, like a forest, to grow food in a sustainable way.

Jacqueline Cramer is a landscape designer and activist. Glenn Herlihy was already working with the community on plans for Jefferson Park. Together, they helped bring the idea of a food forest to life. They got support from a local community group called the Jefferson Park Alliance.

Getting City Support

To make the food forest happen, the project needed help from the City of Seattle. In 2010, they received a grant (money) of $20,000 from the city. This money helped them hire a team to design the food forest. The design was based on ideas from three public meetings where people shared what they wanted to see.

In December 2011, the project got even more money, $100,000, from the city. This allowed them to start building the first part of the food forest.

Growing and Expanding

The first trees were planted in September 2012 on about 1.75 acres of land. These trees included tasty fruits like apples, pears, plums, and quince. They also planted medlar and hazelnut trees.

In 2014, the P-Patch area was created. It has 27 separate garden plots for people to use.

The group that runs the food forest, called the Food Forest Collective, became an official nonprofit organization in 2017. This means they are a group that works for the good of the community, not for profit.

In 2019, the food forest grew even bigger, adding another 1.5 acres of land.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the food forest grew more vegetables. They wanted to help local food banks. Most of the food in the forest is free for anyone to pick. However, some areas are set aside for food banks or for the P-Patch gardeners.

Traditional Indian Medicine Garden

Inside the Beacon Food Forest, there's a special garden called “sust̓əlǰixʷali.” This name comes from the Lushootseed language, which is spoken by local Native American tribes. It means "a place where medicine is created." This garden grows traditional Indigenous plants. These plants are used for medicine and to help Native American communities have access to their traditional foods. The Seattle Indian Health Board's Traditional Medicine Department helps with this garden.

Reaching Out to the Community

The people behind the Beacon Food Forest worked hard to get support from the community. They talked to many people, including local gardeners and groups who care about nature. Their efforts were very successful, and many people wanted to help.

Publicity and Recognition

The Beacon Food Forest has become quite famous! It has been featured by news organizations like the Associated Press and National Public Radio. It even got a mention on a TV show, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. The host, Craig Ferguson, joked about how cool it was.

Images for kids

• 

  A ground-making event at Beacon Food Forest in 2012

• 

  Glenn Herlihy (center left) at an early Beacon Food Forest workshop

• 

  The first public workshop for the Beacon Food Forest in 2011.