Isère department of France, April 2021
Mid-February 2020, several classes at Grenoble-Saint-Ismier horticultural college planted 400 metres of hedges and trees as part of an orchard-vegetable garden system. In total, 64 apple trees (nine different varieties), 57 pear trees (seven different varieties), and 77 peach trees (eight varieties) were planted in addition to 750 various trees and shrubs (cherry, maple, elm, ash trees, etc.) selected to meet specific objectives.
This landscape structuring of trees and shrubs will nurture and support rich biodiversity within and along the edges of the agricultural plots. The main aim of these plantations is to boost biodiversity. The idea may seem far-fetched, but the college students soon realised that in this system that combines education-agroforestry-economy-biodiversity, the sustainability of this agroforestry system depends on living organisms (be they trees, shrubs, mushrooms, pollinators or earthworms).
The college students and teaching staff ran this educational project from A to Z – from selecting the plant materials to planting. The aim was to create a test bed for introducing agroecological practices and use the plot as a teaching aid for training courses at the college.
Despite the coronavirus health crisis, delayed on-site work was completed by the teachers in 2020, thanks to their constant efforts. Nevertheless, due to a lack of time and people, the fruit tree varieties that were to be grafted onto the rootstocks were replaced by fruit trees purchased from a nurseryman specialising in ancient varieties. Fencing to protect the seedlings from big game animals was also installed.
During the summer of 2020, the A Tree for You team went on site, accompanied by the agroforestry plantation manager. The team discovered the numerous plantations carried out at the horticultural college and exchanged with the volunteers on site.
Fruit produced in the long run (within three years) and vegetables grown on the plot by the market gardener will be sold locally. Timber will also be produced on the plot.
Maintaining the hedge is time consuming and requires specific equipment and skills. The planted hedges will be maintained annually by the landscape design teachers and students. Pruning waste will be used for mulch and green waste compost.
In addition, a follow-up of the plantations was carried out in autumn 2020 and a small amount of replanting was done along some parts of the hedge (a total of 30 trees were replaced). Overall, the trees are doing very well and so far no serious damage to the seedlings has been detected.
Next steps: The horticultural college students and teachers continue to maintain, prune and replant the plantations when necessary.
