The main function of this planting plan is to provide plants that are edible but also good to look at, providing interest throughout the year.

The berries and cherries will attract insects and animals who, in turn, disperse their seeds. The fennel will provide a tall see-through veil to the scheme, but will also produce edible seeds, roots and leaves. The chives will form groundcover, helping to lock in soil moisture and reduce weed growth.

Consider mulching the bare soil to help this further while waiting for plants to spread, preferably with homemade compost. Avoid spreading bagged potting compost on beds and borders. Mulches should be spread when the soil is already moist to help trap some of that moisture before it dries out in summer.

1 - Ribes rubrum ‘Jonkheer van Tets’

2- Prunus avium ‘Stella’

3 - Ribes uva-crispa ‘Invicta’

4 - Foeniculum vulgare ‘Giant Bronze’

5 - Allium schoenoprasum

6 - Fragaria x ananassa ‘Hapil’

2 - Prunus avium ‘Stella’ is a deciduous tree which bears regular, heavy crops of large black cherries from late July. Its green leaves show good autumn colour. 

3 - Ribes uva-crispa ‘Invicta’ is a green culinary gooseberry that crops heavily and has good flavour. It is very vigorous with a spreading habit and thorns.  

4 - Foeniculum vulgare ‘Giant Bronze’ is an aniseed-scented short-lived perennial with feathery, copper-bronze foliage, made up of fine, hair-like segments. Flat heads of small yellow-green flowers are borne in summer.  

5 - Allium schoenoprasum is a semi-evergreen chive with edible leaves, which produces clusters of brilliant pink-purple or white flowers in summer.

6 - Fragaria x ananassa ‘Hapil’ is an early to mid-season, heavy-cropping cultivar of strawberry with large, glossy red berries that have good flavour.