You can either change your world or change your thinking. So says Robert Guyton, a forest gardener dwelling on the southern coast of New Zealand.
The local councillor, columnist and conservationist lives with his wife, Robyn, in the middle of a 1-hectare edible forest in Riverton. While natives form the framework of the forest, the Guytons’ focus is on food-producing flora, especially fruit and nuts. “We grow some salad plants, but I prefer to plant things that will outlive me. A lettuce doesn’t interest me so much,” says Robert.
Robyn and Robert were teachers, living and working in Riverton in the 1980s. “It started from a desire not to live in a schoolhouse and have restrictions put on us. I was an outspoken greenie, and we were yearning to do our own thing,” says Robert.
They found a piece of land on the outskirts
