Voedselbos Gedeelde Weelde

Voedselbos Gedeelde Weelde is a volunteer-run food forest on the Ruige Weide in Oudewater, planted from 2019 onwards with fruit trees, shrubs and edible perennials, and reached by a hand-pulled ferry (trekpont).

Their website says the fruit isn't sprayed, and describes an apple sale offering the whole harvest, picked fresh: Elstar, Notarisappel, Goudreinette, Glorie van Holland, Melrose and Present of England, along with orange and green pumpkins, with friends of the food forest paying half price and the takings going towards expanding it. At festival stalls in Gouda they have also sold wild garlic salt, vinegar and oil, tarragon vinegar and oil, jams, and young edible plants such as tree spinach, sea beet, cardoon, horseradish and Chinese chives.

There is no regular shop or opening hours. Sales happen on announced harvest days, at events and on guided tours, so the way to buy is to follow their website or Facebook page, or to become a friend of the food forest. The most recent dated events on their website are from 2022.

The forest is being left largely to develop on its own for its first four or five years, which is why visitors on early tours find young trees among nettles and thistles.