Trees for the Future is dedicated to ending extreme hunger and poverty across Sub-Saharan Africa by revitalizing degraded lands using the Forest Garden Approach. The Forest Garden Approach, developed by Trees for the Future, diversifies farming systems with trees and food crops that meet subsistence needs and market opportunities. While conventional agriculture programs focus on one or few crops, the Forest Garden Approach is rooted in diversifying each farm with many food crops and thousands of trees so farming families will be self-sufficient in their production of food, timber and non-timber forest products.
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Forest Garden Technical Manual
- Also available in:
- English (en)
- Français (fr)
Trees for the Future. 2025. Forest Garden Technical Manual. TREES.
Modern farming is damaging the environment while failing to sustain farmers’ livelihoods. Trees for the Future (TREES) addresses this by providing farmers—the heart of our food systems—with hands-on agroforestry training. For more than 30 years, our Forest Garden Approach has helped farmers restore their land with diverse trees and crops, improving biodiversity, capturing carbon, and strengthening food security and incomes. By working with nature, farmers are reclaiming their agency, breaking cycles of poverty, and rebuilding our food systems.
The Forest Garden Technical Manual lays out a proven process for transforming marginalized agricultural land into highly productive and sustainable forest gardens. It offers detailed explanations, considerations, and guidance on the Forest Garden Approach and the various components, best practices, and processes needed to pursue it. This manual provides facilitators and practitioners with all the information they need to guide farmers through the planning, design, establishment, and management of their forest gardens. By facilitating the transition of subsistence farmers toward sustainable farming practices, this manual aims to make a lasting impact on the livelihoods of smallholder farming families.
