The Prettiest Veggies to Plant in Your Flower Garden
Updated: Jul. 12, 2019
Vegetables can be a colourful and beautiful addition to your summer flower garden.
Edible landscaping ideas for your flower garden
Sure, roses are gorgeous. But did you know that many vegetables are equally stunning when grown in your flowerbeds? We spoke to Niki Jabbour, edible gardening expert, book author and frequent contributor to Birds & Blooms. She told us about the top edible landscaping ideas to create a garden that’s as beautiful as it is delicious.
Swiss Chard
Though this leafy green isn’t as well-known as its more popular counterparts, it’s pretty gorgeous in the garden. Any kind of rainbow Swiss chard is lovely, but Niki recommends picking up a cultivar like Bright Lights or Peppermint that really let their colours pop.
Strawberries
Not only are strawberries deliciously sweet, they add a gorgeous pop of colour to any garden, whether you plant them in the flowerbed or a container. The appeal lasts—before the bright-red fruits come along, strawberry plants bloom in white, red or light pink. Check out 10 ways strawberries can benefit your health.
Red-Veined Sorrel
Red-veined sorrel looks similar to Swiss chard—with green leaves and red veins—but its leaves are much smaller. It’s a great green to use in salad mixes or sautéed as a side, and unlike many other herbs and veggies, it can survive many of the harsher elements.
Scarlet Runner Beans
Niki explains that scarlet runner beans not only offer a gorgeous pop of red to your vegetable garden, but they also attract hummingbirds—and they make a great living wall, if you’re looking to build one or add to yours! Niki also recommends checking out a variety like Golden Sunshine, which has lime green leaves and red blooms.
Basil
Basil itself is a kitchen garden necessity—when left untrimmed, it will sprout white flower spikes. But many of basil’s sister varieties are equally, if not more, stunning. Spicy Globe basil has tiny green leaves that cluster—you could grow a full pot of this plant and never realize it was edible. And can we talk about Dark Opal basil? Its leaves are perfectly purple and it can grow to nearly a foot and a half tall. Honestly, I would grow a garden of just this herb. For a quick recipe, try this Tomato Basil Salad.
Purple of Sicily Cauliflower
Even when it’s white, cauliflower is a pretty cool-looking plant. But turn it purple and you’ve got a garden and dinner table standout. Purple of Sicily cauliflower is insect resistant and can yield several pounds at a time.
Not a fan of cauliflower? These 15 recipes will have you rethinking this underrated vegetable.
Lollo Rossa Lettuce
Red leaf lettuce generally has an ombre pattern, starting bright green at the roots and gradually shifting to a brownish-red at its leaves. Lollo Rossa’s leaves are ruffled, making it ideal to grow in small clusters and to add a pop of colour between green plants in the garden.
Globe Artichokes
The wonderful thing about globe artichokes is that they’re beautiful both before and after they bloom. Prior to blooming, they’re round and green—and edible! (It’s also one of the best foods to help prevent constipation.) After blooming, they’re no longer fit for the plate, but they can provide much-needed variety to monochromatic gardens.
Hot Peppers
Hot peppers come in so many different colours—red, yellow, orange, lime green, even purple—and that’s what makes them such a great choice for any vegetable garden, according to Niki. The plants themselves are beautiful, but the peppers stand out among the leaves, with gorgeous colours that attract the eye.
Curly Parsley
Unlike Italian parsley, the curly variety does exactly what its name implies—the leaves curve and twist, making them an ideal choice for adding visual variety to your gardening setup. Niki recommends using them to edge beds, or allowing them to hang over the lips of flowerpots and window boxes.
Next, use your harvest to try out one of these simple vegan salads.
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