While Edible Eden was founded to support people in local, seasonal eating and we do get most excited about interesting food plants...we also design and install ecological pollinator gardens using native plants and perennial cutting flowers. The gardens feature diverse species that attract butterflies, humming birds and other desirable wildlife while yielding beautiful flowers for the vase.

Last year I planted some cardinal flower (lobelia cardinalis) in the Edible Eden demo garden. Imagine my surprise the first time I stepped out on the porch to see a brilliant hummingbird sipping nectar from the tall spikes of scarlet blooms. I was mesmerized; I’d never seen one in my yard before.

Native wildlife gardens are a great compliment to food gardens for a variety of reasons: they attract pollinator and predator species and give shelter to beneficial insects that help control garden pests. Did you know that the Ruby Throated hummingbird, besides being beautiful and fascinating to watch, is one of the biggest predators of the spotted wing drosophila, scourge of MidAtlantic berry growers?

When designing a native garden, I like to incorporate different kinds of plants: decorative grasses with seedheads to feed the birds in the off season, nectar bearing blossoms to attract butterflies and humming birds in the summer, colorful berries that last into the fall, alternative foliage textures and beautiful scents to titillate the senses of human visitors.

One of the nicest things about these gardens, is that because most of the plants are perennial native species, they require little maintenance and keep blooming year after year. There are wildlife garden species that look good in full sun, partial shade and even full shade and many of the plants are deer resistant as well.

Contact Edible Eden today for an initial consultation and get started bringing beauty and abundance to your yard.

Read the rest of the July edition of the Gardener's Almanac here