Food forest at Charlotte’s Blueberry Park has expanded

The food forest at Charlotte’s Blueberry Park has grown to nearly twice the planned size, ensuring people from Tacoma’s South End will have nutritious produce to pick year-round.

People have flocked to the park for decades to glean blueberries in summer months and the dream of expanding the food forest became a reality last year thanks to a $171,000 grant from Washington State Department of Natural Resources. The grant is meant to address social and environmental disparities by investing in urban forestry needs.

Partnering with the South End Neighborhood Council (SENCo), Parks Tacoma has planted 69 fruit and nut trees in three quarters of an acre of Blueberry Park. Other trees, fruiting shrubs and native plants will be added in the coming months.

“This food forest won’t feed the entire neighborhood or eliminate food insecurity, but it’s an opportunity to get Tacomans into the park to try healthy foods they may not try on their own,” said Kevin Johnson, Parks Tacoma community and special projects coordinator.

Blueberry Park’s food forest now offers 27 different types of trees, including plum, cherry, persimmon, fig, apple, pear, pomegranate, hazelnut, almond and mandarin. There are also 17 types of fruit shrubs ranging from gooseberry to guava and 31 types of perennial vegetables and herbs.

Cultural gardening groups from Mexico, Vietnam, Cambodia and Black African Diaspora were paid to consult on which foods from culturally appropriate cuisines they’ve had success growing in Washington, and which should be added to the park.

Outside of trees and shrubs, willow bark was included because many cultures use it medicinally. Marigolds were planted as pollinators but are also used in key celebrations in India and Mexico. Dahlias are pretty but their bulbs are sometimes consumed.

SENCo and Parks Tacoma hope these items will augment what people are able to find at grocery stores and food banks. In the South End, 14 percent of people identify as foreign born, with that number reaching 23 percent in the neighborhoods around Blueberry Park.

Many cannot find desired culturally significant foods in local grocery stores, and many do not have an accessible grocery store within walking distance, making the neighborhood a food desert.

“It will be helpful for the community to walk through a place and see foods they recognize,” said Rachel Wilkie, SENCo’s vice chair. “We want Blueberry Park to feel welcoming to everyone in our diverse neighborhood.”

The additional plantings will also contribute to urban tree canopy, which offers multiple health benefits, shade on sweltering days and a connection to nature.

Tacoma has the least amount of tree canopy coverage of any city in the Puget Sound region, and the South End is one of the most affected neighborhoods. 

The collaboration and commitment to greening up Tacoma in an equitable way is why DNR awarded the grant money to Blueberry Park.

In planning for the food forest, Johnson and SENCo visited Beacon Hill’s food forest for inspiration and gave a lot of thought to landscape architecture and permaculture. Landscape beds that will hold vegetables and herbs are made of recycled concrete. Washington Conservation crews installed the hardscape and planted most of the trees and shrubs. The last plantings were done Saturday by a group of 30 volunteers.

Most trees planted are mature, with the tallest about 7-feet high. By May, Tacomans should be able to pick and enjoy the first harvest.