The more perennials you have in your Edible & Herbal Food Forest, the better! 

Remembering WAY back, before I ever discovered starting my own plants indoors, I would set out on a mission in the late spring to locate & secure 10-20 flats of veggies & flowers to line my spring & summer gardens with.

I would end up with loads of plants, and it would take DAYS of hard work to finally get it all perfectly placed & planted. All the digging, shoveling, watering, weeding, wheelbarrowing, and constant trips back to the store; it was exhausting.

This was always a big endeavor that took a lot of extra planning and a lot of extra time! I longed for an easier way!

What I didn’t realize was how easily I could actually achieve all of that without the repeated hard work, year after year! Wouldn’t it be nice to completely skip those expensive trips to the store and walk outside every spring to an automatic awakening of brilliance? To have almost ALL of your “plant list” already DONE?

Back then, I didn’t think too much about sustainability, or that there may be better choices. I never really thought about the difference between annuals, biennials, and perennials. I was planting what was available to me from my local shops, and I basically ended up with a lot more “annuals” rather than “perennials.” I guess that makes better sense for a nursery, so I don’t blame them. But this is not a better option for someone on the road to self-sufficiency!

Now, I have choices. I'm not saying annuals are bad; they are just extra work. There are some annuals I cannot live without, nor find a replacement for, so I will always plant a few. But, if I have my choice for a fully-functioning food forest, I would pick a perennial plant or a perennial equivalent every single time, simply based on the principles of perennials. You plant them once, and have them forever—that’s less work yearly!

Sometimes I even replace perennials for better options. These are my Cornelian Cherries. I replaced these for regular cherries, simply because they are much easier to grow in my food forest! The birds would take ALL my regular cherries before I even knew they were ready! Now, I have tons of delicious, sweet & tart cherries—the birds leave these alone.

I am not trying to stop everyone from needing their local nursery. ON THE CONTRARY! Mine worked with me, and still does, while I continue to build my Edible & Herbal Food Forest, with all 3 perennials, biennials, and annuals.

But now, I buy other products from them that I need and don’t currently supply on my own, like certain hardware, seed starting trays, and clean, bagged, fresh, soil for all my indoor & outdoor plant needs. My local nursery adapted right along with me. They even special ordered plants for me. I can only hope everyone has a wonderful, local nursery near them just like me!

IT IS YOUR JOB to know what perennial plants will work in your climate, which can easily be figured out by their suggested ZONES! For instance, elderberries are said to be hardy in USDA zones 3 to 8. I am in ZONE 6, so I know that elderberries might be a good option for my backyard food forest! Which, YES, they are an awesome option for PA. They are great for homemade cold remedies/necessities! My Edible and Herbal Food Forest Guide includes excellent recipes for cold remedies/necessities!

SOME PERENNIALS WILL RESEED THEMSELVES TOO! They never go away. Every year, the seeds drop and the plant starts all over again. Herbs like calendula & borage are great for that. A plant like valerian, the sleepy-time herb, will not only come back from the ground, but will also reseed itself all over your food forest. You will want to control this herb so it doesn't take over! This is simple to do, as they are easy to pull up in the spring when they emerge. You can move them to a new location, or you can give them away to friends. You can also STOP seeds from falling, by not allowing the flowers to go to final seed. Just remove them as soon as they start to dry up and turn brown! This is called deadheading.

SOME PERENNIALS are considered “tender perennials” and may not actually survive your climate without a little protection. It is all up to YOU to determine what perennials work in your exact location! Trial and error! You may lose some along the way, but it's the only way to find out!

Most perennial plants will take a few years to actually start producing flowers, if you started them from seed. So just know that most of the time you will have to wait a couple years for a blooming plant to be in full production! BE PATIENT! I PROMISE IT WILL BE WORTH IT!

If you can manage it, start planting all your perennials first. Do one at a time, and plant carefully—remembering everything about your sun placement…that is key! Get creative and make sure you pay close attention to exactly what each plant needs. Your choices and decisions will get easier as your food forest and biodiversity starts to unfold and display itself. There are so many options! 

If you want the start to finish, shortcut GUIDE to all of these concepts, FROM THE BEGINNING, then you NEED to check out my Edible and Herbal Food Forest Guide! Let me help you build your very own FUNCTIONAL backyard paradise!

Always remember:

The Future Is Worth The Patience Of The Present

-Michele

The Homemade Gardener