Seeds for growing Edible Landscape Plants for the home garden

Seeds for Edible Landscape Plants

Edible landscaping is the use of food-producing plants in the constructed landscape, principally the residential landscape. Edible landscapes combine fruit and nut trees, berry bushes, vegetables, herbs, edible flowers and ornamental plants into aesthetically pleasing designs.

There are many reasons to incorporate edible plants into the residential landscape. These include:
To enjoy the freshness and flavor of home-grown, fully ripened fruits and vegetables.
To control the quantity and kind of pesticides and herbicides used on the foods you consume.
To increase the food security of your household.
To save on grocery bills.
To grow unusual varieties not available in stores.
To get outside, interact with the natural world, and have fun.

Edible landscaping is as old as gardening itself and has undergone a recent revival. Ancient Persian gardens combined both edible and ornamental plants. Medieval monastic gardens included fruits, vegetables, flowers, and medicinal herbs. Plans for 19th century English suburban yards, which modeled themselves after country estates, often included edible fruits and berries. The edible components of residential landscapes were largely lost in this country to the now familiar shade trees, lawns, and foundation plantings.

DCM016 Edible Flower Garden Mix

This annual and perennial mixture is a colorful and tasty blend of edible flowers. The flowers in this mix have a tangy, spicy, peppery, sweet floral, licorice or minty flavor.
Mix Includes: Borage, with a cucumber-like flavor; Cilantro, with its tangy, fresh flavor and aroma; Nasturium, whose bright yellow, orange and red blooms have a spicy, pepper-like flavor; Calendula, which has a yellow-orange flower and a mild, peppery flavor; Cornflower, with its bright blue flower and mild taste; Dianthus with a clove-like flavor; onion-flavored Chives; Lemon Mint, which has a strong mint flavor; Pansy and Johnny Jump-Up, both with brightly colored flowers with a mild, slightly sweet flavor; licorice-flavored Lavender Hyssop; and English Daisy, also a lovely flower with a sweet, mild flavor.
2 ounce package of seeds will cover 200 square ft.

AW56 Trailing Nasturtium Mix ( Tropaeolum majus )

Brilliant blossoms contrast with abundant green foliage.
Flowers in red, rose, orange, and yellow. Perfect for hanging baskets and containers, or even as a ground cover. Use the leaves, pods, and flowers in salads or as garnishes, or stuff the flowers with soft cheese. The flowers can be minced and added to butters and the immature seed heads can be pickled. Nasturtiums are a popular choice for adding color to salad mix. Will "climb" if tied to upright supports. Also known as garden nasturtium and Indian cress

LET818 Everleaf Thai Tower ( Ocimum basilicum )

Everleaf Emerald Tower Basil is a beautiful herb that is known for its striking appearance and delicious flavor. This basil variety has a sweet, slightly spicy taste that is similar to traditional Genovese basil. It is commonly used in Italian cuisine, particularly in pesto sauces and other herb-heavy dishes.
Named for its unique growth habit which features tall, upright stems, the leaves of the plant are a vibrant shade of green and have a glossy, slightly ruffled texture. It is beautiful in pots, and this boldly flavored basil is slow to bolt. 65 days.

JB178 Balls Improved Orange Calendula

These stunning 3" double blooms are a deep orange hue with the classic Calendula aroma, which acts as a natural mosquito repellant. This easy-to-grow annual is lovely as a cut flower or as a garnish. Grows to a height of about 24 inches. From seeds to flower in about 7 weeks.

3596 Florist Blue Boy ( Centaurea cyanus )

Classic cornflowers with many uses. Also known as cornflower, garden cornflower, and bachelor's buttons.
This is an easy-to-grow annual heirloom cut-flower. The double flowers have a light fragrance. They are a mysterious color that appears purple or blue at different times during the day. The plants are carefree and drought tolerant.
Upright plants produce abundant 1-1½" blooms and grows about 24 to 36 inches tall.
Prefers cool temperatures. Edible Flowers: Use the petals of this great edible flower for decorating desserts. Centaurea is also a popular choice for brightening up salad mix. Flavor is bland and mildly floral.

D2285 Strawberry Tree ( Arbutus )

The strawberry tree is a beautiful small evergreen tree or shrub that usually grows about 15 feet tall.
The strawberry tree produces masses of beautiful white flowers followed by small fruits. Since the fruit takes 12 months to ripen, the tree carries both mature fruit and flowers at the same time and is then incredibly beautiful. This is a superb plant to grow as a specimen in a lawn, and it also grows very well on the sunny edges of a woodland garden.
Best grown in a rich, well draining soil for best results, though it will grow to some degree in most type soils, except for water-logged soils. Does well in full sun or partial shade.
The small strawberry shaped fruits ( hence the name )have gritty skin and must be fully ripe to be eaten. It has a sweet, delicate flavor that some people love, and others do not care for. The fruit can also be made into wine and is used to make delicious jams and preserves.
Grow this shrub in USDA Zones 7-10. It originally comes from western Europe and the Mediterranean region.

Image: By H. Zell from Wikimedia Commons

2121 Oregon Grape ( Mahonia aquifolium )

This is a very beautiful and useful evergreen shrub. It's upright stems and coarse leaves form an irregular mound up to 8' tall. As the bush matures, it sends out additional stems to form a clump up to 6' wide. The bluish green leaves are coarse and spiny and resemble holly. The compound leaves are radially arranged at the end of each stem. Bright yellow flowers appear atop the stem in spring.
Location: Oregon grape holly is native from the northwestern United States on into Canada. It is widely grown as an ornamental.
Culture: Light: Needs shady conditions, hot direct sun will burn leaves. Moisture: Likes moist soil high in organic material, but adaptable. Hardiness: USDA Zones 5-9. Propagation: Clumps can be divided.
Usage: This plant thrives in shady areas where selection of plants is limited. Can be used in entry ways and under roof eaves if adequate moisture is maintained. Looks great under a canopy of pine along with azaleas and camellias. Can also be used as an outdoor container plant.
Features: The bright yellow flowers are beautiful against the lustrous blue green leaves. The bright blue berries on dark red stems are even more striking. The grape like berries can be made into jelly.
Oregon Grape Jelly Recipe.

3588 Red Spike ( Amaranthus cruentus )

Outstanding dark red cut flower material. Ideal color and form for late summer and fall arrangements. We found Red Spike to be more useful in arrangements than other amaranth varieties because of its gracefully arched, feathery plumes. When plants are young and leaves are tender, the foliage makes a nice edible green.
An annual plant growing 48-60 inches tall.

Image: BerndH Wikimedia

W268 Purple Deadnettle ( Lamium purpureum )

(Purple archangel) Useful frontal plant, pinky purple flowers, will overun borders in early spring with color, grows 12 inches tall, hardy for zones 4-9.
The entire plant is edible raw or cooked, high in fiber and iron. For internal use, purple dead nettle can be made into an infusion or (with sweetener of your choice, preferably honey) a tea, and taken orally to induce sweating or as a diuretic. It has a reputation, historically, as being valuable in flushing out the kidneys and spleen of toxins. For women's health issues (ie., menstrual problems) it also can be of help taken internally.

Click here to visit an excellent webpage for how to use this useful plant.

Image: By Daniel Capilla [CC BY-SA 4.0], from Wikimedia Commons

D2267 Pomegranate ( Punica )

A very decorative ornamental that has a pleasant tasting fruit. It has vermilion red flowers and small glossy leaves.
Pomegranates are adaptable to many soil types, though they grow best in loamy soil with good drainage. The ideal climate is zones 7 to 12, with short, mild winters and low humidity. They may be grown in containers in colder places, and kept indoors or in a greenhouse over winter.
It is not necessary to prune your pomegranate trees, but it can help with ease of harvest, better fruit, and for a shapelier tree. Pomegranates naturally grow in bush-form, and produce lots of suckers. This is ideal for hedges or living walls, but not for most other situations.

Image: Georg Slickers Wikimedia

D2220 Honey Locusts ( Gleditsia )

This tree is cultivated for its golden fern-like foliage. The small, greenish-yellow flowers bloom in May and June and are fragrant. The fruit are actually 7" to 18" long, twisted, flattened pods, approximately 1" wide and strap-like, color changes from green to dark brown. The pulp is sweet and thus the name. The pods are often fermented to make beer or to feed to livestock. Beware, lots of thorns! Hardy to zone 4.

HR175 Oregano ( Origanum vulgare )

Best suited for zones 4-8. This is an herb that is grown almost exclusively for culinary use. A rhizomatous, sprawling plant which typically grows to 18" tall with a similar spread. Features pungently aromatic, flavorful, oval, dark green leaves (to 1" long) which are commonly used in cooking as a seasoning. Leaves may be clipped fresh as needed or dried for year-round use. Best leaf flavor usually occurs just prior to flowering, but the quality of flavor can vary considerably from plant to plant. Tiny, white to rosy pink flowers appear in loose, terminal or axillary spikes throughout the summer.

Image: Meggar at Wikimedia

E3102 Juneberry, Saskatoon Serviceberry ( Amelanchier alnifolia )

Low water requirements, grows as high as 10,000 feet. A deciduous shrub that seldom exceeds 15 feet in height and occasionally suckering to form a slowly spreading clump. An easily grown plant, it prefers a rich loamy soil and thrives in any soil that is not too dry or water-logged. The largest yields, and best quality fruits, are produced when the plant is grown in a sunny position, though it should also do reasonably well in semi-shade. The plants are fairly lime tolerant and they will also grow well in heavy clay soils. They are very cold-hardy and will tolerate temperatures down to at least -20°c and probably much lower. Flowers in Early Spring, these white flowers are produced before the plants come into leaf, and are usually produced so abundantly that the whole plant turns white. They look particularly beautiful at this time. By late June, or more commonly early to mid July, the plants will usually be carrying large crops of fruits. These fruits are about 15mm in diameter, they are soft, sweet and juicy with a taste that reminds us of apples. Small enough to be eaten without problems, though they can add a slightly bitter almond-like flavour to the fruit if they are crushed whilst eating. The fruit can also be cooked in pies etc., when dried it is quite sweet and can be used in the same ways as raisins.

Image: By Thayne Tuason [CC BY-SA 4.0], from Wikimedia Commons

D2219 Russian Olive ( Elaegnus Angustifolia )

Zone 6-9. A very fragrant plant when in bloom, with a rich honey like fragrance. Russian-olives are non-native, deciduous shrubs or small trees that grow to 20 feet tall. It has yellow flowers and dry yellow mealy fruits. Silver scales occur on the underside of the leaves. The twigs of Russian-olive are typically covered with thorns. These shrubs begin to flower and fruit annually after 3 years. An individual plant can produce 8 pounds of fruit each year. The leaves are covered with small scales which give the foliage a distinctive silvery appearance. The fruit is berry-like, and is silvery when first formed but turns brown at maturity.
Although its fruits are used in drinks and to make preserves, it is more sought after for its white shoots and silver undersides of leaves which give them an ornamental appeal.