Foodscaping

We’ve all heard about landscaping, but what about foodscaping?

Since the economic downturn of 2008, a surprising number of households have begun to grow some of their own food. Financial conditions aren’t the only reason. Heavy chemical use, monoculture, GMOs, and agricultural politics have also played a role. [How many hands and machines do you really want touching your food, anyway?]

My garden was featured on FineGardening.com! (Kate Russell)

Foodscaping, or edible landscaping, is a great way to make your yard more productive, while still being pretty. Rather than simply installing raised beds, container plants, and traditional rows to hoe, foodscaping uses food plants in place of more traditional (non-edible) landscape plants.

In practically every location, indoors and out, food plants can be grown in place of ornamentals. Before you transform your garden design, however, it is important to find out what you are working with, identify your microclimate, and decide what you will eat, using these tips:

1. Determine your USDA Hardiness Zone (there have been recent changes, so double-check)
2. Contact the Cooperative Extension Office to learn your local frost dates (keep in mind, these are statistical averages - your yard may be somewhat different)
3. Observe and note sun exposure and wind patterns across your landscape (full sun, partial shade, protected, exposed, etc)
4. Get your soil tested at a reputable local lab 
5. Before opening any seed catalogs, make a list of food plants that your family will actually eat and that grow in your microclimate
6. To help with site selection, research desirable food plants and note their mature size, sun and water requirements, and temperature preferences (the southern side of your home will probably be the warmest)

Hedges

Many landscapes feature boxwood hedges. Hedges add structure and privacy (once they become tall enough). Instead of boxwood, you can get the same effect while cutting your grocery bill with rosemary, American cranberry, natal plum, bush plum, blueberries, hazelnut, or pineapple guava.

Shrubs
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Most landscapes feature ornamental shrubs that require regular pruning, feeding and watering. While they may look nice, they don’t produce food for your table. Instead of yet another arborvitae, barberry, or abelia, you can grow lavender, blueberry, raspberry, currants, gooseberry, or bush plums.

Trees and vines

Fruit and nut trees are excellent investments in a foodscape. In addition to the shade, a single orange tree can produce 130 pounds of oranges each year, for 50-100 years. That’s a lot of citrus! Almond, peach, pear, nectarine, avocado, plum, cherry, fig, pecan, hazelnut, walnut, hickory, and apple trees can often produce more food than a single family can eat in a season! Luckily, there are plenty of ways to put food by, and friends and neighbors are usually very happy with gifts from your foodscape! If you have a pergola or apartment balcony, you can also grow grapes or kiwifruit. [Check out this article in TreeVitalize, The Best trees For Small Gardens, where yours truly was counted as one of the experts!]
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Herbs

Herbs are some of the easiest plants to grow. Once established, they generally prefer to be left alone. The oils that make them so delicious to us tend to make them less desirable to many garden pests. Rosemary, basil, thyme, parsley, cilantro, oregano, lavender, bay laurel, sage, chives, marjoram, and dill can all be grown indoors or out and they make great additions to your culinary efforts, without costing a dime at the grocery store.

Perennials

Depending on your local climate, there are many perennial food plants that can add shape and structure to the garden and put food in the pantry. Rhubarb, asparagus, lovage, ginger, artichokes, horseradish, mint, Saffron crocus, and strawberries are just a few edible plants that will come back each year, providing your family with fresh food.

On-going annuals

Many edible plants are not technically perennial, but can be regrown from uneaten parts. These plants include garlic, onions, leeks, potatoes, dill, fennel, peas, and sweet potatoes. When harvesting fennel, simply cut off the portion to be eaten at ground level, leaving the roots intact. New plants will continue to emerge from the same root system.

Annuals

Annuals are the mainstay of most gardens, but they don’t have to be limited to traditional garden beds. Lettuces and spinach can be used as colorful accent plants around trees, among roses (pictured), or in containers. Sweet and hot peppers, tomatoes, celery, and radishes make lovely additions to the landscape, transforming what was simply visual into something delicious and useful. A note on radishes and Napa cabbage: If allowed to go to seed, these plants can provide hundreds of delicious seed pods that work well in salads and stir-fry. The seed pods that fall to the ground can be allowed to grow, giving you an even bigger harvest next year.

Seeds and starts

Most seed packets contain far more seeds than you will ever need. Rather than allowing these potential food plants to go to waste, you can host a seed party, where guests are invited to bring a particular seed packet. Guests then swap seeds, so everyone ends up with the quantity and variety they need to get started. Many public libraries are now offering seed libraries, as well. Seed libraries allow people to take just a few of the seeds they desire, making the rest of the seeds available to other visitors.

While it isn’t recommended, due to the risk of disease spread, I have personally used the seeds from store-bought tomatoes, sweet peppers, hot peppers, pumpkins, squash, and avocados, without any problems. I also use potato eyes, scallion, onion and leek ends, and celery bases. Many commercially grown food plants are sprayed with growth inhibitors, to prevent sprouting in transit, but you can rinse these chemicals off in most cases. Some seeds, however, should not be used. Trees, such as apples, are grown on grafted rootstock. The seeds from your grocery store apple will not produce what you want to eat.

You can transform your entire landscape into a foodscape, or you can slowly phase out ornamentals and replace them with food-producing plants. Whichever way appeals to you, I urge you to begin the process of providing your family with food grown by your own hands.