Topic: potaging/making an attractive, edible garden

[aquilegia]

I have another plan for next year - a bit more workable than my other plan! To make my garden as edible and as attractive as possible.

I'm planning to make my veg beds look pretty by using attractive varieties of veg and planting edible/beneficial flowers in gaps. Plus using a more informal planting scheme than the standard rows.

And I'm also hoping to plant edible crops in my flower beds, to blur the distinction between the flower beds and the veg patch. My thought was to put a few cordon tomatoes in the gaps in sunny border (I'm being a bit ruthless with a few plants I'm not too keen on, but will make great compost!) May also put teepees of climbing peas and/or beans in my central bed.

Plus there's also a space which I plan to fill with a globe artichoke and asparagus between flowers.

I'm in the research stage at the mo (it's my winter project) and am reading a Joy Larkcom book on the subject. Any info, advice, feedback, comments, etc would be most welcome...

[Meg]

You know how you dream about your lottie at night well I did just that this year and it was going to be so pretty. It didn't quite so next years plans will really be better!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Moggle]

Aqui, would reccommend St Victor leeks as pretties - at least for leeks. I will try to post a photo once mine have dont the business. The foliage is a lovely green/blue/purple. I saw them growing at Royton on the potato day in January this year, and decided I had to have em.

Oh, and is it the organic catalouge, or somewhere that suggests growing 3 colours of flowers for runner beans, and then chucking some sweet peas in the mix too. Could look fab grown up a fancy obelisk-type thing.

... Just checked the net and it is T&M, a medley mix with Sunset, Desiree and Lady Di. runners. But you could easily do this with some french beans if you prefer those, or some borlottis would look fab in the mix too, especially at the end of the year. There's a purple-flowered pea too - from..... Organic catalogue?

[aquilegia]

Wardy - they both look lovely. It's amazing as well just how much you can cram into the space! That's the sort of thing I was thinking of.

Moggle - I remember you saying before about those leeks. I shall have a look out for them (if I can manage to grow leeks next year - they've failed two out of two years!) I shall have to mix around my beans too - that's a good idea. I have all diferent coloured podded ones. And some purple flowering peas too - they are gorgeous!

I just hope I don't get confused and pick off the edible bean flowers when they are fading and cook the sweet pea pods!

[Mrs Ava]

Don't forget fruit bushes. Currants and goosegogs make handsome standards, leaving you room at the base for more planting!

I would (and do) go for all the different coloured and shaped salad leaves, savoy cabbage look great, all crinkly like course crepe paper, black or red kale, sweet corn, as Wardy has showed, makes a great back drop and the beans are all fabulous, and can be long lasting.  I have only just finally pulled mine up!  Aubergines, chillis and toms can all be put into the bed, and you could create little edges/hedges with clipped herbs like lavender, rosemary or sage. 

Then think of the leaves of some of the root crops.  Carrots have lovely feathery leaves, beetroot have wonderful red leaves, and don't forget things like bright lights chard, all those glorious dayglo colours! 

I garden at the allotment and at home in quite an informal manner, always plan to do the straight line thing, but find I start filling in gaps, then doing a little block, then a sprinkle here and a sprinkle there......  ooo Bronze fennel is a good one, and angelica for height at the back of a bed, but they are big boys, altho not as big as globe artichokes or cardoons!

[aquilegia]

Ej - more great ideas - thanks! (just a shame I don't like goosegogs or currants - although I will be shoving my raspbs in somewhere and letting them go wild!) I already have wild strawbs under the bench (for plucking and munching while having a rest!)

Wardy - I'm utterly inspired by your sunflower pic in particular. I may even get sketching ideas... (even though I really cannot draw!)

Things I have so far that will fit are:

veg
beetroot (chogia, yellow and white)
Bright lights chard
French beans (climbing and dwarf - purple, yellow and green podded)
peas (especially purple podded/flowered)
courgettes (different colours/types)
squashes (different colours/types)
tomatoes (different colours/types)
carrots (in pots - too many slugs!)
spring/pickling onions
leeks
lettuce (in pots - slugs)
drawing a blank now!
Plus asparagus, globe artichokes (if I get any for christmas/birthday!)
and maybe (if I can bear not to eat them first!) letting some things run to seed!

edible flowers
nasturtians
borage
chamomile
sweet peas (well not edible, but you know)
poppies (ditto)
marigolds
phalacia (sp?)

herbs
sweet cicely
angelica
fennel
rosemary
sage (many different colours - in the flower beds)
lavendar
parsley (curly and flat leaved)

Also be growing what I can in pots and make them look pretty too.

getting rather excited about all this. Thanks for listening to my waffling - really cheered me up today!

[busy_lizzie]

A lottie at the top of my alley has some bright red Swiss chard growing and next to it is some deep purple kale.  The colour combination is really attractive.   The colours are very rich and royal looking and really hit you in the eye when you pass by.  busy_lizzie

[Tulipa]

Aqui, Geoff Hamilton did a series and wrote a book for Gardeners' World called Ornamental Kitchen Garden where he did just what you are thinking of, it was wonderful.  I looked on Amazon but they only have second hand copies now, your library may have one.

http://www.barnsdalegardens.co.uk/ie-index.html

This is the link to his gardens at Barnsdale which still has the ornamental kitchen garden to visit.

[Moggle]

Flicking through a catalogue last night and saw another idea for you Aqui - Blueberries. You could probably try to train it somehow, but it may look quite nice any way. Flowers in spring, berries in summer, and apparently they have great autumn foliage.

Hmmm, wonder if you could fit a trained grape in to a potager somehow....

[aquilegia]

More excellent suggestions!

Now where can I put my sunflowers? I'm running out of room. Do they like potatoes I wonder? (I'll have to ask Bob).

Wardy/BL - the red chard is amazing. I have some in the garden already and it looks fantastic (and only slightly nibbled by slugs)! I love it. Haven't eaten any yet as it looks too good (and we keep getting chard/spinach in the box) I hope it lasts through the cold and will definitely grow it again.

Moggle - blueberries - good idea. Mr Aqui loves those. and they do look fantastic.

Yesterday I spent ages dreaming about next year's garden. I'm so excited about all this! Also planted up the last of my garlic in pots (the bed wasn't big enough for it all!) and also put some spring bulbs in with some - just to see if it'll work!