Every garden and edible landscape evolves and follows the patterns of succession, a natural change in the biological community over time. As trees and shrubs grow, the amount of light on the ground decreases. The herbaceous layer or ground cover plants may thin out or if they self-seed, the seedlings may pop up in sunnier spaces. More shade-loving species will start to grow more vigorously. The amount of rain and heat is also an important factor in how productive the plants are.

What I love about a natural and edible landscape is the experimentation it allows us to do and the observation, learning and pleasure we derive from interacting with an evolving ecosystem. When you spend some time observing the changes and taking stock of what’s happening in your yard, you can make some interesting discoveries. Here are some things that have captured my interest in my yard this summer.
 
Arctic Beauty Kiwi is Growing Fruit!
I purchased a pot with a male and female kiwi and planted it in a fairly dry spot in almost full sun about 7 years ago. Some sources recommend that it be grown in part shade, in well-drained soil that should not be allowed to completely dry out. My kiwi certainly does not have the benefit of perfect conditions and while it has grown a little bit every year, it’s still only about 4 feet high. It now receives a little bit more shade from spruce trees in the area, and in April the temperature barely dipped below freezing. These conditions were favourable and for the first time, the vine is growing a few kiwis. They are still very small and I don't think there is more than a handful, but it’s exciting to see this exotic fruit develop into a berry-sized treat in our cold climate! Scroll down for a photo.
 
Wild Strawberry Bounty
Another sweet little treat is the wild strawberries that have been producing with abundance this early summer. I dug them up in a quarter of land that was being developed. Over the years, they have spread to cover bare soil, moving to sunnier spots but also doing well under the apple tree and other partially shaded areas. For many years, I rarely saw any fruit, especially in very dry areas. However, in the last couple of years, maybe due to warmer weather in April, I have been able to pick small handfuls of what I call “edible sunshine”.
 
Sea Kale Here to Stay?
Permaculture aficionados love to find unusual edible plants, especially when they are a perennial, reducing the amount of work it takes to plant every year. Sea Kale is an edible perennial listed in “Perennial Vegetables” by Eric Toensmeier and other sources. Many years ago, I met some friendly folks from the Devonian Botanic Garden who were selling seeds, and I was excited to discover sea kale. I planted the seeds but only a couple of them grew. Outdoors, they did not thrive and I lost one to a pest. After moving the remaining plant once, it seemed to be doing better, but the plant was small and I almost forgot about it. However, to my delight, it has almost doubled in size this year! Sea kale is listed in some sources as a Zone 5 or Zone 4 plant. So that’s a bit of a stretch for our gardens, but with a warming climate, we should be able to grow it in Edmonton. My spot in my Edmonton front yard is proving to be pretty good. It receives almost full sun and in winter, the plant is under a pile of snow from the driveway. I have renewed hope that it’s here to stay, and next year I may be able to harvest some leaves in early spring. For more info, visit this online info.

To grow your own sea kale, you can contact a local garden centre to ask if seeds or plants can be ordered in. Apache Seeds had some seeds this spring from Sutton (UK), but you’ll have to put this on the list and make some calls for 2017. If you want to order your own, this Canadian company has it listed.

I like experimenting with edible plants in my garden and this year, I decided to seed Salad Burnet and Strawberry Spinach (aka Strawberry Blite) to add to our salads. I started both plants indoors in early May and transplanted them outside around mid-June. In late June, I left for a trip to Switzerland and was pleasantly surprised how much the plants had grown in three weeks, and that they were ready for picking!

Salad Burnet is a perennial plant native to Europe (I actually found it while walking in a meadow near my home town in northern Switzerland). It is marginally hardy but some previous plantings in other parts of my garden have mostly survived for several years. I purchased the seeds at Seedy Sunday a few years ago from Brother Nature, www.brothernature.ca. This spring I seeded another batch indoors in early April. I decided to plant the new seedlings close to my honeyberry shrubs as that bed is in part shade and fairly moist. In mid-July, the plants were fully grown and already started making seed heads. The leaves have a slight cucumber flavor and I also think they taste slightly nutty. They are best harvested when the leaves are young and soft. Although we have been enjoying them in salads in July, the leaves will soon be a bit tough. Salad Burnet stays in a nice clump but re-seeds slowly.

Strawberry Spinach is a native plant of Alberta and it was used by the First Nations for food and the red fruit was also used as a dye. The plant is in the Goosefoot family, so it’s related to Lamb’s Quarters. The leaves and fruit are edible, though they contain oxalic acid and should not be consumed in substantial quantities. The seeds I purchased are from McKenzie Seeds purchased at a local garden centre. I started the seeds indoors in mid-April and transplanted them out into the garden some time in June. Since our return from holidays in mid-July, we have been adding the “berries” to salads. The fruits do not have a lot of flavor – I would describe them as slightly juicy and nutty. When added to a spinach salad, they look like a bit like strawberries and also release tiny black seeds similar to poppy seeds. It’s certainly a conversation piece!

A word of caution – although the seed packages states that this annual plant re-seeds, some online research has brought up the following comments “May re-seed vigorously”. Yikes. I will be harvesting a few more berries and the rest will go in the garbage, to be composted by the City. I know I have dropped quite a few fruits already and do not want my veggie plot taken over by this plant next year. It might be safer in a large pot on a patio where stray seeds can be swept up. The lesson? Know your plants before bringing them into your yard!