The outcome could be a network of “food forests,” community spaces where volunteers tend fruit trees and other edible plants for neighbors to forage. These food forests, forest gardens, and edible parks have sprouted up at churches, schools, empty lots, and street corners in numerous cities, including Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Seattle, and Miami. “All of those efforts, I think, are moving us in a positive direction.”Researchers say food forests are unlikely to produce enough food to feed everyone in need of it. Their network of orchards and food forests generated more than 11,000 pounds of fresh produce last year, according to Phil Forsyth, co-executive director of the nonprofit. “There are over 400 native food plants in the Sonoran Desert, so we tapped into that,” Lancaster said.