Edible Landscaping: Berry Good!
If you’ve not grown fruit before, strawberries and blueberries are good starter plants that require little or no chemicals. Besides their appetizing benefits, these plants are lovely ornamentals that fit perfectly in an herb garden, flower bed or border. With their compact size and dainty white flowers, strawberries make good edging plants and ground covers. Blueberries work well as a hedge or as specimen plantings. Many have beautiful orange-to-red fall foliage and are often semi-evergreen. The tiny, clustered flowers, whitish to pink, resemble lily-of-the-valley.
Strawberries
Strawberries are arguably among the easiest of berries to grow and offer nearly instant gratification. Junebearers produce a bountiful set quickly; everbearers produce fruit throughout the summer, but a smaller amount at any given time. Everbearing varieties have not performed well in North Carolina, but you can choose from several Junebearing varieties to extend the fruiting season. They are best planted in early spring. Once established, they should last several years.
Blueberries
Blueberries require a little more patience—two to three years for an appreciable crop. Experts recommend pinching flowers from young plants to divert energy toward root growth the first couple of years. In North Carolina, two types of blueberries are planted primarily: Southern highbush and rabbiteyes. Rabbiteyes and Southern highbush are both appropriate for the Piedmont or Coastal Plain region; Southern highbush consistently survives the mountains’ cold winters. Like azaleas, blueberries prefer a richly organic, acid soil and need good drainage. Water well and often, as blueberries have short, fibrous roots. Blueberries like sun but can take some shade.