Fran Welch trained at Schumacher College, then went on to work alongside Martin Crawford at the Agroforestry Research Trust (ART) from 2022 - and at The Mother Tree heritage fruit and nut nursery in Dartington. In January 2026 she took over the ART plant nursery and re-launched it as Edible Canopy: a specialist edible plant nursery at Littlehempston, in the South Hams of Devon. The catalogue carries the unusually wide range the ART built up over twenty-five years: fruit trees, nut trees, soft fruit, perennial vegetables, edible woodland plants, ground covers, climbers and the kind of uncommon species you don't easily find at standard nurseries. Stock carried over from the ART nursery is available first; the rest of the range goes live for pre-orders through the summer. Fran is also propagating new plant material of her own, which will start appearing in the catalogue as plants come ready to travel. The nursery is on the same Littlehempston site as the trust's research forest gardens and is included in the Agroforestry Research Trust's Littlehempston tour days, four of which run in 2026 between May and August.

Social Media

https://www.instagram.com/ediblecanopy/

Can people visit or buy direct?

You can order online through ediblecanopy.com once the full website is live; stock carried over from the ART nursery is available first, with the rest of the catalogue going live for pre-orders later in the season. Direct visits to the nursery happen on the Agroforestry Research Trust's Littlehempston tour days (four in 2026, between May and August), where you can see the plants growing and may be able to buy from Fran on the day. The nursery is not generally open to walk-up visitors outside those tour days.

Website

Website:
https://ediblecanopy.com

Address Summary

Littlehempston, Totnes, Devon