EDIBLE LANDSCAPING WITH
SMALL FRUITS AND BERRIES
Connie Fisk
Sheridan College
June 15, 2013
What is Edible Landscaping?
• Definition – the use of food-producing plants in the
residential landscape
• Can install an entirely edible landscape or incorporate
some edible plants into existing gardens
This “yard“ contains:
• 8 different types of fruit
• 20 kinds of vegetables,
including 15 varieties of
peppers
• 28 different herbs and
seasonings
(Rosalind Creasy, author
of Edible Landscaping,
Sierra Club Books, 2010)
Why landscape with edibles?
• Enjoy the freshness and flavor of home-grown, fully
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ripened fruits
Control the quantity and kind of pesticides and herbicides
used on the foods you consume
Increase the food security of your household
Save on grocery bills
Grow unusual varieties not available in stores
Get outside, interact with the natural world, and have fun
Great for kids to experience food production
Why mow acres of lawn, repeatedly, when you can make
the space produce food?
Edibles have Ornamental Value Too!
• Love the pink flowers on a Dogwood tree?
Apple trees have beautiful pink blossoms.
• Enjoy the shape and deep red color of the leaves on a
Japanese maple?
Black elderberry has lacy, blackish leaves.
• Want brilliant fall color?
Serviceberry fall color is brilliant yellow to orange.
• Like the look of big leaf Hostas but don’t have enough
shade?
Rhubarb plants add drama with big leaves in the sun.
Grow Food Not Lawns
• Food Not Lawns was founded in Eugene, OR in 1999 by
a small group of activists
• Spawned a powerful, inspiring part of the growing
sustainability movement
• With the publication of Heather Flores'
book, Food Not Lawns… (Chelsea
Green Publishing, 2006), new FNL
chapters started popping up all over
(http://www.foodnotlawns.com)
• Grow organically.
• Save seeds.
• Host community workshops and
neighborhood seed swaps.
How to landscape with edibles
• Consider a one-for-one substitution:
• Where you have planted a shade tree, plant a fruit tree
• Where you need a deciduous shrub, plant a currant
• Where you have always had chrysanthemums, plant some edible
flowers (nasturtiums, pansies)
• Where you need a ground cover, plant strawberries or herbs
• Where you need a hedge plant raspberries or gooseberries
• Pots of herbs on patio
• Include cherry tomatoes in window boxes or hanging baskets
• Build a grape arbor
• Tuck lettuce, radishes or short-lived greens in a flower bed
• Plant colorful pepper varieties alongside flowers
What are the Small Fruits?
• They do not grow on trees!
• They are “smaller” plants
(making them ideal for the home landscape)
• Herbaceous perennials - strawberries
• Brambles/Caneberries - raspberries
• Bushes - currants & gooseberries
• Vines - grapes
* We do not have appropriate site conditions in Sheridan for home
production of blackberries, blueberries, or kiwifruit
BEFORE planting
• Choose a site with well-drained soil and full sun (except for
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currants & gooseberries that prefer partial shade)
Avoid planting near trees or large shrubs that will compete
for moisture and nutrients
Submit a soil sample for analysis and amend the soil as
recommended before planting
Research which small fruit varieties are best suited to the
climate (don’t just buy what’s on sale at Home Depot)
Determine when the best time is to plant, how to plant, etc.
Caneberries, bushes, and vines require annual dormant
pruning – be prepared for this task!
Know Your Zone
Strawberries
Strawberry Varieties
• June bearers
(1 crop, June/July)
• Dunlap (3)
• Guardian (3)
• Honeoye (3)
• Redcoat (3)
• Surecrop (3)
• Trumpeter (3)
• Everbearers
(2 crops, 1 in June/July
+ 1 in the fall)
• Fort Laramie (3)
• Ogallala (3)
• Ozark Beauty (3)
• Quinault (3)
• Day neutral
(almost continuously
throughout the growing
season)
• Tribute (4-5)
• Tristar (4-5)
Strawberries
• Produce fruit in 1-2 years
• Average yield per plant 0.5-1 qt
• Number of plants for 4 people: 50
• Life expectancy of plants: 2-5 years
• For home production, strawberries are
often grown in raised beds, pyramids,
decorative pots, and hanging baskets.
• Matted row system is easiest to follow
for the home gardener. Most of the
runners from mother plants are
permitted to grow during first season,
with only fruit buds being removed to
strengthen plants.
Additional Strawberry info
• Avoid planting strawberries where tomatoes, potatoes,
peppers, eggplants, melons, cherries, raspberries, roses,
or chrysanthemums have been grown within the last 5
year to minimize Verticillium wilt
• In late fall, continue to irrigate before the ground freezes
to prevent desiccation
• After several frosts below 28°F, mulch with 6-8 inches of
straw to protect plants from cold temperatures and wind
• In the early spring, before strawberries show new growth,
rake the mulch away from the plants
Landscape Examples
http://www.sunset.com/garden/fruits-veggies/how-to-grow-strawberries-00418000080679/
http://mygreenfork.blogspot.com/2010/06/landscape-no-2.html
Raspberries
Raspberry Fruiting Habit
• Summer bearers – one crop beginning in early to mid
summer
• Floricane fruiting - fruit is produced on laterals of 2nd year
canes
• Fall bearers – one crop in mid summer and another in late
summer or early fall
• Primocane fruiting - fruit is produced at tips of 1st year
canes
• By growing several cultivars, you can enjoy fresh berries
from early summer through late fall
Raspberry varieties
• Red summer bearing
• Boyne (3)
• Canby (3)
• Latham (4)
• Liberty (3)
• Nordic (4)
• Red fall bearing
• Amity (3)
• Autumn Bliss (4)
• Heritage (4)
• Redwing (4)
• September (3)
• Yellow fall bearing
• Fallgold (4)
• Black
• Bristol (4)
• Cumberland (4)
• Black Hawk (4)
• Purple
• Royalty (4)
Raspberries
• Produce fruit in 2-3 years
• Yields 3 qts per plant
• Number of plants for 4 people: 6
• Remain productive 8-12 years
• Allow plenty of space for your
planting:
• Plants 2’ apart (hedgerow)
• Row width of 12” for summer-
bearing, black, and purple
raspberries, 18” for fall-bearing
raspberries
Additional Raspberry Info
• Raspberries are also susceptible to Verticillium wilt –
avoid planting where tomatoes, potatoes, peppers,
eggplants, melons, cherries, raspberries, roses, or
chrysanthemums have been grown within the last 5 years
• Nursery-grown plants nearly always grow better than
transplants from established beds because they harbor
fewer pests and diseases
• Overhead sprinkling can encourage fruit and cane
diseases – to keep your canes healthy (and conserve
water) use drip irrigation or other method to apply water
directly to the soil
Landscape Examples
http://chateau-listeur.blogspot.com/
http://shabbycottagestudio.blogspot.com/2009_06_01_archive.html
Currants and
Gooseberries
Varieties
• Red currants and gooseberries generally are self-fruitful,
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so only one cultivar is needed for fruit production,
however, both types produce larger fruit if more than one
cultivar is planted for cross-pollination
Some black currants are self-sterile and require a second
cultivar for fruit production
Currants and gooseberries are minor crops in the US and
have few pesticides registered for their care, so selecting
cultivars that are highly resistant to disease is critical
Yield 4-8 quarts per plant
Produce fruit in 2 years
May produce for 12+ years
Varieties, cont.
• Black currants:
• Consort (3)
• Crusader (3)
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Red currants:
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Wilder (4)
Red Lake (4)
Hinnomaki Red (4)
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Gooseberries:
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Pixwell (3)
Captivator (3)
• Gooseberry x black
currant hybrid:
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Jostaberry (4)
Landscape Examples
http://plants.thegrowingplace.com/12120014/Plant/409/Red_Lake_Red_Currant
http://newhomeeconomics.wordpress.com/2010/05/10/my-edible-landscape/
http://conservationgardenpark.org/plants/207/gooseberry/
http://ecologiadesign.com
Grapes
Varieties
• Only marginally adapted here (zone 3-4)
• Success in growing grapes depends on attention
given to production – training, pruning, and
pesticide sprays
• Self-fertile so only one cultivar is necessary for
fruit production
Varieties, cont.
• Selection of cold-hardy varieties is essential to
survival and productivity
• Table varieties:
• Canadice (seedless) (4)
• Edelweiss (4)
• Swenson Red (5)
• Valiant (3)
• Vanessa (seedless) (4)
• Juice and preserve varieties:
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Beta (3)
Bluebell (4)
Fredonia (4)
King of the Hill (4)
Minnesota 78 (4)
Worden (5)
• Wine varieties:
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Edelweiss (4)
Elvira (3)
Frontenac (4)
St. Croix (4)
Additional Grape Info
• Produce fruit in 3-4 years
• Yields 20+ pounds per vine, depending on variety
and purpose (limit yield to improve wine quality)
• May produce for 25+ years
• Grapes need full sun and complete protection
from wind
• Do not locate in a lawn:
• Too much fertilizer and water for grapes
(excessive vine growth → decreased winter hardiness)
• Very susceptible to herbicide damage (Ex. Weed &
Feed)
Landscape
Examples
http://www.creativejuicesdecor.com/2012/07/more-landscape-ideaspergola-or-trellis.html
http://gardenhandyman.blogspot.com/2009_05_01_archive.html
http://ecologiadesign.com
http://ecologiadesign.com
http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/growing-grapes-is-easy.aspx#axzz2W9ytBEy3
Saskatoons
• Also known as juneberries,
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serviceberries, and
mountain blueberries
Yield 4-6 qt per plant
Produce fruit in 2-3 years
Will produce fruit for 40+ years
Varieties:
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Pembina (4)
Northline (4)
Smokey (4)
Elderberries
• When sold through nurseries, may not be distinguished by
cultivar
• Although elderberries are partially self-fruitful, they will
benefit from cross pollination
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Adams (4)
York (4)
• Easy to grow and need
little in the way of
special treatment
• Yield: 3-4 qt. per plant
• Produce fruit in 2 years
• Productive for 12+ years
Black lace elderberry - Dark purpleblack leaves and pink flower clusters.
Foliage stays dark throughout the
growing season.
For more information:
• University of Wyoming
• Raising small fruits in Wyoming…”berry” delicious!
(http://www.uwyo.edu/barnbackyard/)
• University of Idaho
(http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/edComm/catalog.asp)
• Growing Strawberries in the Inland Northwest & Intermountain West
• Growing Raspberries and Blackberries in the Inland Northwest &
Intermountain West
• Growing Currants, Gooseberries & Jostaberries in the Inland
Northwest & Intermountain West
• Growing Saskatoons in the Inland Northwest & Intermountain West
• Growing Small-Fruit Crops in Short-Season Gardens
Questions?
Former lawn now growing fruits, herbs, and vegetables http://www.ediblelandscapingmadeeasy.com/