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Who said fruits
and vegetables can’t be
show-offs in the ornamental
beds? Mix fruits and veggies
into you flower and shrub borders
to add drama, texture, color
and food!
Displaying white flowers, tinged
in pink, in little tassels during
late spring, blueberries will
grow only in moist, peaty soil
with a pH lower than 5.5. The
best way to grow them is in
an informal border or along
a woodland setting with other
acid-loving plants like rhododendrons.
To ensure good pollination,
two different cultivars should
be planted together. Plants
should be protected from birds
with netting
when the fruit begins to ripen.
Apply cotton seed meal
to the soil in spring, water
regularly during dry summers,
and prune the plants in winter
by cutting out dead or damaged
branches. You can also lightly
trim plants in spring to keep
them compact. Blueberries are
rarely attacked by insects or
diseases, but will look chlorotic
if the soil is not acid enough.
Although not particularly ornamental,
brambles, when trained on wires,
offer a nice summer screen,
or they can be grown against
a fence or wall. Both Raspberries
and Blackberries require slightly
acidic soil, adequate moisture,
and will need support. Plants
will succeed in light shade,
but prefer a sunny location.
Mulch in early spring with manure
or compost,
then cut old canes down to the
ground after fruiting in early
to mid-summer. No more than
5 to 6 strong stems should grow
from each plant. Protect fruit
from birds and squirrels.
In the past few years, strawberry
plants have been increasingly
grown for their ornamental qualities.
Beautiful white flowers with
yellow centers become delicious,
glowing red strawberries. When
choosing cultivars, be sure
to try some June-bearing and
ever-bearing selections, as
well as alpine varieties that
are perfect for edging a path.
Strawberries require deep, well-drained,
nutrient-rich soil (see our
article on “healthy soil”
in the What’s Bugging
You section of our site), plant
in early spring and replace
plants every three years for
best results. Fertilize in spring
and cut off runners as they
form to keep plants fruiting
well, unless you are starting
new transplants. Spread straw
around plants as fruit starts
to develop to keep the berries
free from soil and well ventilated.
Protect from birds and watch
for slugs and botrytis (moldy,
grey fungus) with wet springs.
Trained over an arbor or combined
with clematis on a pergola,
grapes add an elegant touch
to any landscape. Plant grapes
in well-drained, fertile soil
where there is full sun. When
growing on a trellis, limit
your grapevine to a single stem
or trunk. Train the leading
shoot vertically and the lateral
shoots horizontally. There are
also various other ways to train
and prune grapes, but do not
let this task scare you. Grapevines
are very forgiving.
Offering beautifully colored
stalks of pink, white or red,
rhubarb can be grown in any
kind of soil in a sunny spot.
You can pick from this trouble-free
plant from spring until early
summer. Only the stems of rhubarb
are edible, the leaves are to
be discarded. Add plenty of
manure to the soil, keep damp
during dry summers, and remove
tall stems before they produce
flowers. Although decorative,
they tend to reduce plant vigor.
Divide every five years. Watch
for “tunneling”
insects on the leaves and treat
with Safer Tomato &
Vegetable Insect Killer.
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