Some edible plants are so attractive, they merit the front-yard flower beds
Some veggies do more than just taste good; they look good, too.
These multi-talented edibles are too pretty to be relegated to the vegetable-only section of the garden.
“Adding edibles to ornamental beds makes sense in so many gardens,” Michelle Gervais, a horticulturist at John Scheepers Kitchen Garden Seeds (www. kitchengardenseeds.com), said recently by email.
“If you’re a casual vegetable gardener looking to slowly branch out a bit, adding just an eggplant or two to a flower garden or an edging of a dramatic lettuce to the front of a bed gives you an opportunity to explore new veggies without making a huge space commitment.”
Even gardeners in tight quarters can experiment.
“If you’re a gardener with limited space, any small bare spot can be filled with something like Swiss chard or a gorgeous purple basil that will be both beautiful and delicious,” she said.
“Some leafy veggies make wonderful container plants, too.”
Leaf lettuce, for instance, makes a great way to start.
You can grow it easily from seed, raise it in the ground or a container, and start harvesting in a month or two.
Perhaps best of all: Lettuce is available in a range of colors and textures — greens, reds and speckles, and smooth, curled or frilly leaves.
“You might wonder how to harvest lettuces from your ornamental beds without ruining your composition,” Gervais said.
“Loose-leaf lettuces are best for these situations, because you can harvest leaves from here and there in your patch, basically thinning the plants.
“They’ll keep growing for quite a while until they eventually begin to wear out, when you can rip them out and sow a new crop — maybe something new and exciting!”
While gardeners have dozens of choices, she described a few standouts that easily hold their own among annuals and perennials grown solely for looks:
■ Chili peppers offer a colorful harvest on bushlike plants that bring zing to the landscape as well as the table.
She suggests a variety called Fish, with “whitevariegated leaves and fruits that ripen to fiery redorange chilis.” Different kinds of leaf lettuce make a colorful display.
(According to the Kitchen Garden Seeds website, Fish’s moniker was inspired by its traditional use in seafood dishes.)
■ Okra, which thrives in heat, produces sculptural pods that reach several inches long.
Cooks pickle it or use it in soups and stews.
■ Pole beans grow best on a trellis, making them practical for small spaces and dramatic as vertical accents.
A variety called Carminat Purple sports “velvety, 10-inch purple pods that are perfectly smooth, slender and completely stringless,” the website says.
■ Snap peas, which also climb up a support, produce tender, sweet pods.
Gervais recommends Sugar Magnolia, which features “purple flowers followed by dark-purple pea pods.”
■ Swiss chard is a versatile crop that can be eaten raw or cooked, newly sprouted or mature.
For ornamental use, try Peppermint or Bright Lights, whose brilliant stems will give your showiest flowers a run for their money.