Grow Tropical Edible Hedges with These Varieties

Reader Contribution by Joshua Burman Thayer and Native Sun Gardens
Published on August 1, 2018
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by Adobe Stock/okrasiuk

Edible hedges are a great way to fit more food into your landscape. Have a property line with nothing growing on the border? Have an annoying view of a road or apartment building? Plant for the future and plant an edible hedge with pineapple guava, pomegranate, and berries.

Pineapple guava.Feijoa sellowiana is a very special fruit. Originally from Brazil, it has the amazing qualities of being tropical and also quite drought tolerant. This versatility allows it to live in a Mediterranean design like the many I create in my design business, and yet also will grow fine next to a lawn. Its bark is stunning. Its flowers are not only gorgeous, but also edible! Its fruits are a sweet-and-sour combo that grows on you as you eat them. Even if you were not able to eat off this bush, it would be a great ornamental foundation planting if only for its aesthetics. Growing multi-branch and up to 12 to 15 feet tall, pineapple guava is a great candidate for a hedge that will give you privacy (and food!) without shading out the whole garden.

Pomegranate.  I am a huge fan of the Punica Granatum. Pomegranates are tough, grow into a strong, round or columnar hedge and give an abundance of fruit without much compost, pruning nor water. As they also get 12 to 15 feet tall, they are a great candidate for an urban edible hedge. I prefer the ‘Parfianka’ variety.

Multistory edible hedges. Want to mix up your hedge? Add these native plants around the fruit trees to create a mixed hedge of edible fun!

• Currant (Ribes spp)

• Elderberry (Sambucus Mexicanus)

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