I got a question from at-Foxys-T-V-Time on YouTube asking about the Kilrush Food Forest. I have to admit, I've driven past Cardinal Valley but I've never really known what that project was all about.

Oh, that's such a cool project. The Kilrush Food Forest is the largest public food forest in the state of Kentucky. It's located in Cardinal Valley, and Nachie Braga is the man who spearheaded its creation. Braga is the founder of Geomancer Permaculture.

A food forest sounds amazing, but what exactly does that mean?

It's a three-acre urban greenspace initiative that Nachie and his company have stewarded since twenty twenty. They're employing conservation practices to restore and redesign the riparian corridor with desirable plant communities and wildlife habitat at a gentle, sustainable pace. Wolf Run Creek flows along the eastern side of the property, connecting it directly to the local watershed.

So it's not just growing food, but actually helping the environment too?

Exactly. Since volunteers and land stewards have worked to clear out invasive plants like Amur honeysuckle, the view of Wolf Run Creek has opened up, making it an attractive place for kids to come engage with nature and play. The neighbors living in the community nearby have been intentionally integrated into the journey since its inception. The University of Kentucky's Urban Forest Initiative regularly hosts volunteer days there too.

That sounds like exactly the kind of community project we need more of in Lexington.

Absolutely. It's really become a model for what you can do with unused public land when you have the right vision and community support behind it.

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