Foodscaping
[1] This may involve adding edible plantations to an existing ornamental garden or replacing traditional, non-edible plants with food-yielding species.
[4] The designs can incorporate various kinds of vegetables, fruit trees, berry bushes, edible flowers, herbs, and purely ornamental species.
[2] Foodscaping advocates attempt to subvert the conventional perception of vegetable gardens as unattractive and instead view edible crops as design features in and of themselves.
Kitchen gardens, vineyards, and orchard played an important role in the lives of ancient Romans, whose diets were largely based on fruit and vegetables.
Archaeological evidence suggests that, in roughly 1000 BCE, Assyrian Kings developed a naturalistic landscape style in which streams of water ran through gardens that grew plants such as junipers, almonds, dates, rosewood, quince, fir pomegranate, and oak.
Some of the common kinds of plants integrated into the elaborate Renaissance garden designs included figs, pears, apples, strawberries, cabbage, leeks, onions, and peas.
[12] These accelerated trends in urbanization and population density during the late 20th and 21st century have placed stress on the availability of agricultural land and contributed to growing food insecurity.
[6] Depending on the premise's size and scale, significant financial costs can be involved in the initial design and creation of edible landscaping.
[4] It is also believed that foodscaping can help to address the demand for food within the context of global issues such as overpopulation, an unpredictable climate and waning energy resources.
[16] Large-scale agricultural premises typically require large amounts of energy, such as the use of diesel, propane, and electricity to carry out farming operations.
These ships and trucks emissions leave a harmful carbon footprint, which could be reduced through the practice of growing edible plants at home instead of buying fresh produce.
[20] It is generally accepted that homegrown fruits and vegetables are fresher and more nutritious than supermarket produce, which is sometimes sold multiple days or even weeks after harvesting.
[21] In recent years, increasing concern has been expressed towards the health effects of the chemical additives and preservatives in commercially grown fruit and vegetables.
[5] This is as the aim of foodscaping is to yield edible returns while also remaining aesthetically pleasing,[2] which may involve added watering, fertilization, pest control and pruning.
[5] A lack of time and unsuitable conditions such as climate and insufficient shade can be significant deterrents for people wishing to create edible landscapes.
[15] However, maintenance requirements can be reduced by choosing plant species that are suited to the geographic location, climate, and conditions of the area to be foodscaped.
He also proposes that blueberry, elderberry and gooseberry plants can substitute popular decorative shrubs such as roses, hydrangeas and privet hedges.
Whilst certain fruit trees, berries and rhubarb are suitable for cooler climates, root vegetables, cabbages and peas are examples of plants that cope well in extremely cold conditions.
The Ornamental Kitchen Garden is an edible landscape on the grounds of the château of Villandry, located in the Loire Valley region of France.
These patches are lined with neat box hedges, and each displays vegetables of different colours such red cabbage, beetroot and blue leek.
[34] Edible Landscapes London is a non-profit organization that creates productive forest gardening spaces that integrate fruiting trees and herbs.
[16] The Food Forest is a property in Adelaide, Australia, which grows 160 varieties of organic fruit, nuts, wheat, and vegetables on 15 hectares of land.
[16] The Netherlands' first "roof field" was created on top of a large office building near Rotterdam's central station in 2012 by Binder Groenprojecten.
