Putting Edible Plants in the Garden: Why Do It?

There’s something special about being able to eat what you’ve put time and love into growing. This Old House hosts an article full of gorgeous pictures and useful information about how to integrate edible plants into your garden so you can do just that.

Why Grow Edible?
There are plenty of reasons to incorporate edible plants into the ornamental flowers and shrubs already in your Minnesota garden.

  • Save Money:  When you grow what you eat instead of going to the grocery store for it, you already saved money on transportation and branding.
  • No Mystery:  A frightening fact about buying produce from the store is that you don’t know what was used on it as it grew or what kind of coating may have been put on it to preserve it for the trip.
  • Beauty and Function:  Many plants, like cucumbers and runner peas are wonderful to look at. They can add more color and texture to what you already have.  The okra plant commonly used for Cajun cooking and Southern stews is actually in the hibiscus family and bears beautiful blossoms as well as edible pods.

There are many other ideas to support adding plants you can eat to your landscape, but in the end, the meals you share with your family will be worth the effort.  Growing edibles doesn’t require a full-fledged produce garden plot; with a little creative landscape design, you can incorporate fruit and vegetable plants into most garden beds, or you might consider container gardening on your deck or patio.