Not a patch on yours: planting veg out front is latest trend

GARDENERS are moving their vegetable patches into their front gardens to impress their neighbours, a survey has found.

Vegetable patches hidden at the bottom of the garden have been replaced by beds of strawberries, tomatoes and beans integrated with ornamental plants in baskets and pots outside the front door.

The findings come from a survey of more than 27,000 British gardeners by Wyevale Garden Centres.

Hanging baskets have also experienced a resurgence, with sales of ready-made baskets up by a third in the past year, the company said.

Climbing roses and clematis plants, which curl attractively around a front door, are also selling well.

Front gardens are receiving more attention partly because many British gardens are smaller than those tended by previous generations.

However, gardeners also want to be the envy of their neighbours and show off to passers-by and on social media, the survey found.

“People are spending as much time if not more on their front garden as the back,” said Mark Sage, the head of horticulture at Wyevale Garden Centres.

Mixing vegetables with ornamental plants in window boxes “looks good, smells good and tastes good”, he said.

An attractive front garden can also increase the value of a property and even have a knock-on effect on the whole street. “Suddenly half a dozen people on the street will have tended their front garden,” Mr Sage said.