When I was first managing the organic market garden at Gorman Heritage Farm, I remember harvesting the season’s first batch of cherry tomatoes. I had to sample a few to make sure the quality was top notch. During lunch that day, I made a salad with fresh greens from the garden and some of those tomatoes.
Afterwards, I felt much more present and focused during the afternoon. “This is amazing,” I thought. Who knew a simple fresh salad could provide better mental clarity? I was hooked.
This was just one of the memorable sparks that has fueled my belief that quality grown food is so important to our daily lives.
With that, I want to highlight five superfoods that can be grown right now in your yard. The term superfoods refers to whole foods that have outstanding nutritional quality that directly aids your body’s health in a big way.
These five superfoods were chosen based on nutrition, ease of growing, and their ability to be incorporated into your home’s landscaping.
These choices are especially a good fit for my home region: the Cincinnati metropolitan area. We are growing zone 6a.
KALE (Brassica oleracea)
Whether in a salad, smoothie or even baked, this leafy green provides a wealth of nutrition. Kale has definitely garnered public attention recently and for good reason.
The Health Benefits of Kale
Kale contains a good amount of fiber, iron, vitamin K, C, A and antioxidants like carotenoids and flavonoids. These antioxidants help protect against various cancers. It even contains the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of omega 3-fatty acids, which help prevent arthritis and autoimmune disorders.
To round it out, kale is higher in calcium per calorie than milk!
Tips for Growing Kale
Kale is best grown in the fall, but it can have a run in the spring time. In the Cincinnati area, growing kale in the summer can be more trouble than it’s worth. Fall’s cooler weather brings out a sweetness in the leaves that typically does not occur in the spring.
Another bonus for fall growing is that kale can be harvested well into November and sometimes even December without extra protection.
Learn more about growing kale @ Epic Gardening: Growing Kale: The Ultimate Guide To Growing Your Own Superfood
Edible Landscaping with Kale
Beyond the vegetable garden, kale can be planted along landscape bed edges. This creates a ‘frame’ for the bed and allows for easy access for harvesting.
Planting kale alongside your sidewalk entrance will allow for daily interaction and a quick harvest on your way in or out of the house.
HONEYBERRY (Lonicera caerulea)
Relatively still unknown in North America, honeyberry has been a part of Japanese culture for millennia and is known as “The fruit of life longevity” and “fruit of vision.”
I chose honeyberry over the well-known blueberry in this list for a few reasons. Honeyberry is more adapted to our clay soil types and don’t need an acidic soil base like blueberries do. Yet honeyberries’ taste and nutrition are similar to and even go beyond blueberries in some categories including antioxidants, potassium, calcium, and phosphorus.
The Health Benefits of Honeyberry
Honeyberries are particularly high in anthocyanins. This is the flavonoid pigment in the berry that has anti-inflammatory properties and aids eyesight by improving circulation in the retinal capillaries.
It is also rich in polyphenols, which supports this anti-inflammatory property as well. Honeyberries also are extremely high in antioxidants. They have two to three times more antioxidants than blueberries!
Tips for Growing Honeyberry
Honeyberries can handle our clay soil, but you want to make sure the soil will not hold water for too long after a rain. This can cause drought-like stress to the plant if its roots are always wet.
If you do not have soil that drains well, try amending with a compost/leaf mulch mix around the planting area. In terms of sun exposure, honeyberries thrive in partial shade/full sun. The plants need at least 6 hours of sun a day.
To ensure good fruit set, you will want to plant different varieties of honeyberry to allow for cross-pollination.
Learn more about growing honeyberries here.
Edible Landscaping with Honeyberry
Honeyberries vary in size and can be utilized in areas that don’t have full sun all day. They range in size from 3-4’ to 6-8’ and beyond. This creates opportunities to utilize them as a hedge in the backyard or even planting them in the front yard along the foundation of the home.
Extra points will be given if you plant them by high traffic areas, such as your front sidewalk, for on-the-go harvesting.
SUNCHOKES (Helianthus tuberosus)
Photo credit: allispossible.org.uk
Also known as Jerusalem artichokes, sunchokes are part of the sunflower family but are a perennial native to our Cincinnati region and most of the US. The edible portions are underground tubers which have a nutty, slightly sweet flavor and are likened to potatoes.
These tubers have a penchant for spreading, so locating them appropriately is key to ensuring they remain a low-maintenance edible plant.
The Health Benefits of Sunchokes
Sunchokes are packed with iron, potassium, and thiamine. Thiamine (vitamin B1) helps the body convert sugar into energy and also helps improve memory and concentration.
Its main carbohydrate is inulin, not starch, so it won’t spike your blood sugar level like a potato will. The inulin contains fructans, which help feed beneficial gut bacteria. Fructans also have been shown to suppress cancerous tumor cells in the colon.
Tips for Growing Sunchokes
You will start your sunchoke journey by planting the tubers in spring or fall. They need full sun and ideally will be planted in well drained soil, but they can handle heavier soils. Do not plant them in constantly moist areas as the tuber will rot!
Putting mulch around the sunchokes will allow for easier harvesting of the tubers as the soil will be less compacted. Plant them in areas where if they spread it will not be a problem.
Edible Landscaping with Sunchokes
Careful planning should be given to your sunchoke location. They are not difficult to grow, but grow they will! Planted in the right location, they can provide beauty and a healthy treat for years.
Points to consider:
Try to not plant them in areas of high wind, as they can fold over.
They are tall, growing up to 10’ in height, and as mentioned will spread. It is best to site them in naturalized areas in your yard, such as a woodland edge or in a raised bed in your vegetable garden. These massing plantings will look spectacular late summer / early fall as the yellow blooms will be prolific.
SWEET POTATOES (Ipomoea batatas)
Photo credit: jalexartis Photography
