[cc85]

Hi there , i'm interested in growing my own . I was wondering what varieties of vegetables and fruits can be quite decorative and floral  ? Does anyone have any pictures to show me some examples .



Thanks

Craig

[Ice]

Strangely enough one of my neighbours does ornamental cabbages, and very nice they look too.

[dawninspain]

Hello Craig

Last year I grew ornamental gourds - they were quite easy to grow:



Dawn

[GreenOwl]

-Runner beans used to be grown for their flowers rather than their fruit.
-Nasturtiums are supposed to be nice in salads (peppery).
-Courgettes produce nice looking flowers, which are also edible, plus you get the courgettes themselves.  
-Cardoons are very decorative
-Rainbow chard has bright stems in different colours

Sorry no piccies but go to a seed site and search on those veg to see pictures.

You can sow red and green lettuce in blocks and give it a patchwork appearance.  

Not sure what you want to achieve but you could make a kitchen garden potager-type thing where you grow your veg among flowers all higgledy-piggeldy.

[cc85]

I'm actually designing a self watering container . Hopefully it will become something that is a feature in the garden. What purple carrots? not quite sure what they are.

[mashauk]

Asparagus peas are pretty and unusual, and they have lovely red flowers that lasted months last year.

http://fothergills.co.uk/en/asparagus-pea-602.aspx

[GreenOwl]

Purple carrots are exactly what they say they are - purple!  Above the ground they look like ordinary carrots but when you dig them up they have purple skins.  The ones I grew year before last were orange inside the skin so if you peeled them rather than washed them they were no different to ordinary carrots.  They're not especially decorative while growing.

[Jaye]

Try reading The Great Vegetable Plot by Sarah Raven - that has lots of ideas! I am growing quite a few decorative vegs eg courgette "tromboccino" the only climbing courgette and also growing companion flowers such as marigold, nasteurtium and ones that attract beneficial insects.

Sarah Raven's website has ornamental veg seeds for sale and pictures too!

(yes it's the second time I have recommended her site this morning but I am completely in awe!)

Jaye

[Rob the rake]

 

Sarah Raven's website has ornamental veg seeds for sale and pictures too!
 

Jaye

....at a price. Products for the discerning (ie rich) gardener only. I like the lady's writings, but her prices are a joke, surely. :shock:

[Jaye]

shhhhhhhh  :oops:

Jaye

[noshed]

Rainbow chard is quite pretty. I just plant a few flowers around the plot. My cosmos last year were fantastic.

[Jaye]

I want to grow some chocolate cosmos - for obvious chocolate smelling reasons....

Jaye

[gobs]

I don't know about the chocolate smell, but they are sure pretty dark chocolate brown.

Vegetable wise, I find kales very ornamental, so are a lot of herbs and fennel and also think red cabbages are handsome, not talking about chickory or allium flowers or flowering fruit. Lovely.

[naturesparadise]

Hello Craig

Last year I grew ornamental gourds - they were quite easy to grow:



Dawn

it should be said for people that dont know you cant eat gourds

they are toxic

[666]

Dawn[/quote]

it should be said for people that dont know you cant eat gourds

they are toxic[/quote]

I am glad you said that-I was thinking mmmm... they look good!  LOL oops! :oops: