Many gardeners are not aware of all the perennial plants that can be grown for food in a garden. But I would highly recommend including plenty of perennial plants – especially if you want to create a low maintenance garden.
Perennials are simply plants that won’t just grow over one season. They will grace your garden for a number of years to come. Of course, in forest gardens and perennial polycultures, we include a wide range of trees, shrubs and other perennial herbs and flowers.
But you might not be aware of the wide variety of perennial vegetables that you could grow.
When you think of perennial vegetables, rhubarb, asparagus and artichokes might come to mind. But you could also grow perennial alternatives to a range of common annual crops.
For example there are plenty of perennial brassicas, such as everlasting cabbages and kales, tree cabbages and tree collards, sea kale, and nine-star perennial broccoli, to name but a few.
There are also plenty of perennial alliums, such as elephant garlic, walking onions, bunching onions, etc..
And a wide range of other interesting and unusual plants that you could consider. I grow Good King Henry, sorrels, and more in my forest garden. Some die back over winter, while others provide edible greens all year round.
Perennial plants can provide plenty of food and other yields and often involve far less work to grow than annual plants. And growing perennials can also help you do you bit to fight climate change by sequestering more carbon in your garden.
If you need some help to choose perennial plants for your garden, please do get in touch for consultancy. I can aid you in establishing a garden that can feed you and your family – not just over one season but for years to come.
EWSP Consultancy 