First attempt with edible landscaping

[curly_kate]

After a second year where the strawberry patch has gotten completely overwhelmed by weeds, I decided to put them into the flower beds in front of my house. It seems silly, given the amount of room we have out here for planting, but I figure that putting them somewhere that I already keep mulched and weeded is probably the best bet for their survival. I've got them planted as a ground cover around some shrubs. Anyone else have experience with edible landscaping, with strawberries or other plants?

 

[digitS']

It wouldn't work for me the way I do things now, Kate. If earwigs and clickbeetles, aphids and flower thrips, quackgrass, crabgrass, cheatgrass, or bindweed show up in the ornamental beds - I spray. And, I spray with whatever I think will be more effective.

When any of those things show up in and around my food, I struggle with them in the least toxic way I can think of. Often that means a lot more work, altho spraying can be unpleasant, too ...

Kate, did you see @AMKuska 's thread on strawberries (LINK)? It's a real pretty way and probably weed free. I also posted a link to an outdoor growing that is more often used in greenhouse strawberry growing, as I understand it.

There are somethings I can imagine growing in the ornamental beds. Peppers! Another thing would be herbs. Many are perennials but putting annuals in and pulling them out at the end of their seasons might be a good way to keep the weeds out of the herbs.

Steve

 

[journey11]

I put a few wild strawberries into my landscaping. We found them out on a hike and I brought home a few just for fun. Like most of the tame strawberries I have grown, they multiplied themselves and spread out pretty quickly. They look happier there than they did where I found them in the wild. I am going to have to pull out a good many to keep them from taking over. Fortunately strawberries are easy to pull.

Aside from herbs, I have planted walking onions, rainbow lights swiss chard, scarlet runner beans and ornamental peppers in my flowerbeds before. Oh, and sweet potatoes in containers. But they never amount to anything but vines.

 

[thistlebloom]

I put a few wild strawberries into my landscaping. We found them out on a hike and I brought home a few just for fun. Like most of the tame strawberries I have grown, they multiplied themselves and spread out pretty quickly. They look happier there than they did where I found them in the wild. I am going to have to pull out a good many to keep them from taking over. Fortunately strawberries are easy to pull.

Aside from herbs, I have planted walking onions, rainbow lights swiss chard, scarlet runner beans and ornamental peppers in my flowerbeds before. Oh, and sweet potatoes in containers. But they never amount to anything but vines.

Oh, don't forget your rhubarb Journey!

 

[curly_kate]

I always toy with putting peppers in the flower beds because the plants always look so good the entire season. I don't know why I didn't think of it before, but I did put my herbs in the flower beds this year, too. It's been so much nicer to pop out for a snip of parsley or basil when I'm cooking, instead of running out to the veggie garden.

 

[digitS']

Be careful with those wild strawberries, @journey11 . I have alpine strawberries in my lawn!

I could have put this in @Nyboy 's planting a mistake thread ... except I don't think of them as a mistake. Well, they kinda blend in with the Dutch clover.

They might be easy to pull but I'd have to use tweezers! Surprisingly, the chickens won't eat the ripe berries! I can see the tiny red dots there in the lawn but it would take tweezers to pick them, too. More of 'em every year.

Steve
who once thought he'd made a mistake but then learned that he was wrong.

 

[baymule]

Since I don't have a real garden space, the flower beds are the garden! In the front bed, squash is growing!

 

[Smart Red]

I haven't focused on planting an edible landscape, @curly_kate, but I have put tomatoes and peppers in the flower bed and planted beans and morning glories under the same trellis for beautiful and delicious double-duty.

I have currants, quince, and boisenberries growing along a hedge of mostly flowering shrubs, and rhubarb growing in the front yard where the old asparagus bed had been.

@digitS', I have Alpine strawberries in the garden, but have never had them spread out of their assigned area. I find them very well-behaved.

 

[thistlebloom]

Around here the wild strawberries show up in everybodys landscape, and spread very easily. One of my clients with a sizeable property bordering natural woods has declared war on them and wants them GONE! I'm finding them very persistent and resilient to hand pulling.

 

[Jeni Ann]

I really like the concept of edible landscaping! I have used variegated Thyme, Pineapple Sage, various ornamental Peppers. I also have a short but steep slope behind the house that I am using Chocolate Mint as a ground cover on.