The Beautiful Edible Garden

I finally got to spend some time cleaning up my garden this weekend. It was a busy weekend, but I took a free hour to pull weeds, remove dead plants, and do some light pruning. I hurt my back a couple of weeks ago, so I couldn't get in the garden until I recovered last week. When I finally checked on it there was a 3-inch-long tomato hornworm that had defoliated about 25% of my tomato plants. Fortunately, the vines were already huge to begin with, and the big, fat green tomatoes were untouched. But learn from me: check for tomato hornworms constantly before they get out of hand! If you keep an eye on your plants, there's no need to use chemicals, just remove the worms as you see them.

I had a hard time getting a good close-up of the giant
tomato hornworm, but you get the idea.

I'm delighted one of my lavender plants (which were kind of an experiment) has finally come into bloom. The red Flower Carpet rose behind it looks spectacular, too, so the front corner of my yard makes me smile every time I come and go.

Lavandula angustifolia 'Munstead' and 'Flower
Carpet Scarlet' roses bloom near the sidewalk.

I just finished reading The Beautiful Edible Garden by Leslie Bennet and Stefani Bittner. I am the sort of person who gardens more for the beauty than for the fruits and vegetables, but I also like the idea of harvesting my own home-grown produce (you can't beat a home-grown tomato). The title of this book intrigued me: the idea that I could have a beautiful garden and free vegetables in the same space. The colorful pictures on the cover were eye-catching, too:

The Beautiful Edible Garden by Leslie Bennet
and Stefani Bittner. Isn't it pretty?

The book was just as inspiring as the cover promised. The two authors outline the basic principles of designing a garden, and then go into detail on how to flesh that out in your various spaces: the front yard, back yard, side yard, and containers. They also cover basic principles of keeping your garden healthy and fruitful: soil preparation, light, water, fertilizer, planting techniques, tools, and more. To polish it off, they sprinkle the book with various indoor arrangements to make with a combination of flowers and edible plants, so you can enjoy the beauty of your garden indoors as well. Overall, the tone is practical, down-to-earth, and filled with specific examples.

I really enjoyed their many plant lists. They offer examples of edible plants that tolerate shade, that have low water requirements, that bloom in different seasons, or that lend themselves to different garden styles. They frequently refer to different kinds of fruits or unique varieties of vegetables or herbs that you would never see in a grocery store. It inspired me to grow my own food simply so I could try Fuyu persimmons, fresh chervil, or yellow wax beans. I loved the many pictures throughout the book; the pictures alone gave me ideas for my own garden.

The book is filled with lovely photos like these. I borrowed
these images from the authors' blog.

The one limitation to the book is that they frequently refer to tropical plants, such as citrus trees, that can't be grown year-round in Georgia (unless you want to bring them inside every winter). Likewise, for my Florida readers, they list plants like pear and apple trees that need cold winters. Before you get too excited about a specific plant, you'll want to double-check in your favorite plant book (or on the internet) to make sure it can grow in your climate.

In summary, if you want to get inspired to grow your own fruit, vegetables, and herbs in a unique setting, I highly recommend this book.