We are a small community of friends dedicated to growing the Cookeville Food Forest and Foraging Path—a project aiming to create the largest public food forest in the country, right here in the Upper Cumberland. This initiative was inspired by one woman's vision to provide "tens of thousands of pounds of free, fresh, nutritious food to her community for a hundred years."

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Driven by a desire to address food insecurity and promote sustainable living, the idea of the food forest took root as a bold community-driven solution. In December 2023, a grant from the TN Department of Agriculture's Urban and Community Forestry Program provided the needed catalyst. The Friends of the Food Forest partnered with the City of Cookeville's Department of Leisure Services and the GFWC Cookeville Jr. Woman's Club to apply for the grant.

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In May 2024, we received the exciting news that the Cookeville Food Forest and Foraging Path was awarded $250,000!

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Now, we invite you to join us on this extraordinary journey. This isn't just about planting trees or growing food; it's about sowing the seeds of change and building a legacy of abundance for generations to come, creating a model for landowners and other rural communities to follow.

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In December 2024, Haller's Landscaping planted the first trees along the lake trails and Jackson bike path at Cane Creek Park. These included Peach, Elderberry, Pecan, Persimmon, Fig, Swamp White Oak, and many more. We hired Wild Violet Permaculture to draft a master plan/design. 

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The great pause of 2025. We had a bobble with grant funding. The state paused funding while federal grants were evaluated and adjudicated.  We charged ahead with a pruning workshop and other maintenance for the plants that were in the ground and weathered a mild spring followed by a summer drought. The Cookeville Tree Board conducted inspections.

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December 2025, we met with the community for feedback on the first draft of the design and planted more trees in connect path areas. The infrastructure is opening soon for us to being our work on the property in 2026!