Homegrown produce can instantly transform any landscape. Berrys, tomatoes and herbs can add color and vibrancy to your garden and further amplify its beauty.
Seeds or starters purchased from local markets, farms or greenhouses often produce fruit more easily and at lower cost than comparable items available from supermarkets.
How to Choose a Site
Success in gardening depends upon selecting an ideal site. Vegetables require ample sunlight for photosynthesis – the process by which they convert carbon dioxide and water into fleshy fruits like tomatoes or herbs – making a location that gets full sun from either west or south ideal.
Choose an area free from obstructions like sidewalks, buildings, fences and hedges which might obstruct water flow or sunlight availability. Also try to stay away from low-lying areas where accumulated rainwater could reduce oxygen availability to plant roots and decrease their chances for success.
At first, it’s best to conduct a soil test. Your local county extension office should offer information about soil quality and planting dates – you can locate one online by typing your county name with “extension.” Most vegetables thrive best in full sun while some leafy varieties tolerate partial shade conditions; try finding an area where at least 6 to 8 hours of direct sun can reach it daily if possible.
Soil
Soil is one of our planet’s most complex natural resources, composed of mineralized dead and living organic material that continually changes as weather, animals, wind and water shape it into something new. A soil test can give an indication as to its suitability in growing vegetables or herbs of your choosing.
Edible plants often prefer starting from seeds or seedlings over annual sowing, depending on your available space and desired vegetables (i.e. tomatoes or bell peppers). Therefore, when planning your edible garden space it’s important to keep in mind how large it should be and whether a raised bed would be necessary.
Instead of planting edibles in neat rows, interweave them among flowers and other plants for a more visually appealing effect. Add beautiful yet productive kiwi or blackberry vines for additional beauty and productivity. If you have children, create an area where they can plant and harvest without touching soil directly.
Planting
Edible landscaping offers the unique advantage of seamlessly fitting into existing garden beds without disrupting or replacing any lawn areas. Simply identify those parts of your landscape where there is sufficient sunlight, and decide what plants or fruits would thrive there.
From underground root vegetables like radishes to vine-climbing cucumbers and squash, adding color and flavor to your garden through plants you choose is easy and rewarding. Many food crops pair beautifully with flowers too – such as nasturtiums with summer squash or marigolds with tomatoes!
Before planting any vegetable, do your homework about its optimal growing conditions and timing; for example, cool-season plants like kale and spinach as well as warm-season ones like corn and eggplant thrive best when planted during spring or fall planting seasons. Furthermore, your local Cooperative Extension service offers invaluable localized knowledge of growing conditions.
Harvesting
An edible landscape, also known as foodscaping, combines food-producing plants into garden designs for maximum harvest potential. From underground roots like radishes to climbing vines with edible blooms such as blueberries or trellis-climbing vines like grapevines trellises that climb trellis-climbing vines trellis-climbing vines or bushy fruits such as blueberries; many edible plants offer interesting textures, colors and shapes that enhance an edible landscape’s design – such as chive’s onion-flavored stems combined with edible pom-pom blooms while other plant species such as fennel dill or rosemary add height and textural qualities that create visual interest within an otherwise static garden landscape.
Once you know which vegetables you wish to grow, locate garden spots with sufficient sunlight that can support their maturity size. Think carefully about how their shapes, colors and textures will complement ornamental plantings: root crops like carrots and corn require lots of sun while leafy greens such as kale and chard may thrive even in shadeier spots. When purchasing seeds or seedlings suited for your climate from reputable nurseries you’re assured of high germination rates and robust growth.
