You want to LEARN JUST ONE WEIRD TRICK that will have a guaranteed positive effect on a huge range of features including:

• Farm and garden productivity and profitability
• Reduced irrigation requirements
• Reduce the cost of fencing and livestock management and feeding
• Home and garden security
• Improved livability and reduced home heating and cooling costs
• Reduced pest and disease pressures
• Increased pollinators, native flora, and fauna,
• Increased soil health and fertility, 
• Increased water health,
• Increased biodiversity and overall ecosystem health
• Fight climate change by sequestering a whole lot of carbon
• And provide more food for less work than just about anything else you can do? 

Then here’s your word for the day: “hedgerows.”

Hedgerows are living fences that have been planted by humans for at least 6,000 years in order to provide a variety of services and simplify landscape management.

Most researchers think that systems created by humans are important for the health of ecosystems across different climates, including in the tropics. This is because research has shown that these systems have a lot of value for wildlife. They can increase biodiversity, help native bird and invertebrate populations, act as a buffer against agricultural pollution, clean water, recharge aquifers, mitigate soil loss and erosion, and sequester carbon.

In Europe and Asia, people are recognizing the value of hedgerows, which used to be a common landscape feature. These hedgerows are cherished for their associated cultural traditions and character within the landscape. For example, in the UK or Japan, hedgerows are associated with culinary traditions. In other places, such as France, hedgerows are considered an important part of the sense of place. Also, hedgerows have long-standing spiritual symbolism or religious and cultural traditions associated with them.

Despite the fact that we lack a deep appreciation for hedgerows in North America from a cultural standpoint, environmentalism is still heavily influenced by the mythology surrounding the wide-open American “wilderness.” This is due in large part to the fact that universities reinforce the idea that hedgerows and windbreaks are integral to ecosystem health and agricultural productivity. They also lament the loss of these features, attributing it to poor economic choices and a lack of understanding when it comes to food safety practices.

Some agricultural authorities who are working under the Food Safety and Modernization Act think that hedgerows might be dangerous and that removing some of them might be a good idea. However, research shows that hedgerows are not dangerous and that they can actually reduce the amount of risk. Agricultural authorities should not remove hedgerows.

However, there have been numerous studies that demonstrate the advantages to humans of restoring hedgerows in farming, gardening, and other productive landscapes; such as reducing pests and increasing pollination.

Hedgerows create a number of benefits for both ecosystems and humans. These benefits include firewood, building materials, reduced irrigation, increased soil fertility, free fertilizer, improved soil carbon, reduced soil loss, garden stakes, and trellises. Hedgerows also provide shelter for plants, which results in better plant growth. Finally, hedgerows yield a number of foods and medicines.

We were inspired to have an edible fence after seeing a couple of our favorite foraging spots. One spot in particular was a hedgerow that produced a large variety and quantity of fruits, nuts, and vegetables throughout the season with little to no maintenance from humans.

The hedgerow we were working on was extremely tough, and the rewards were high, so we decided to take it home with us.

Although we initially thought that the species and spacings of our favorite foraging spots would be ideal for growing an edible hedge, we were surprised to find that experts actually recommended against it.

Growing Edible Hedges

When planting a hedge, you can make it dual purpose by creating an edible hedge. This will mark your boundaries, block unsightly views, provide healthy food, herbs, and even medicine, while adding landscape beauty.

If you want to use your limited space to grow food, planting edible hedges and ground cover plants is a great way to do it.

Uses for Edible Hedges

Think about what you want your edible hedges to do.

• To keep out wildlife and dogs, select hedge plants with sharp thorns such as blackberry, gooseberry, and rugosa rose. Plant these thickly so they fill in quickly, forming an impenetrable wall.
• For an evergreen hedge that won’t lose its leaves. Depending on your area, these might include citrus, natal plum, sweet bay, and rosemary
• For edible berries, consider elderberry, blueberries, mahonia, blackberry, or raspberry
• Edible vegetables might include asparagus, corn, and sorghum
• Seasonal hedges can include beans, peas, squash, and other vining vegetables, growing on attractive trellis fences that should be fine even for picky homeowners associations.
• Nut bushes such as hazelnuts (filberts) make an attractive edible hedgerow

Fruit Trees for Fencing and Edible Hedges

Fruit trees can be trained to grow in an espalier style, which can create an attractive and elegant edible hedge. These structures will require some work to build, and the trees will need to be pruned to keep them in the desired shape. Alternatively, you can plant the trees close together, as you would for an orchard, and then keep them trimmed more like a hedge.

Fruit trees can be used to create edible hedges, but they may be better suited for espaliering. This is because if they are grown too close together, the interior fruits would be hard to harvest and more likely to rot on the branch.

Fruit Trees for Edible Hedges Best for Espalier Fences

• Apple
• Blueberry
• Cherry
• Citrus
• Fig
• Kiwi
• Peach
• Pear

List of Edible Hedges, Including Herbs, Plants, Shrubs, and Trees Good for Edible Landscapes

Below this list are expansions on some of these points.

• Asparagus
• Bamboo – (Arundinaria & Phyllostachys species); choose clumping varieties to prevent bamboo invasion
• Bay leaf tree or shrub – Willow Bay (Laurus nobilis)
• Blackberries
• Blueberries
• Camellia
• Chokeberries – Aronia melanocarpa
• Cornelian cherry dogwood
• Cranbush, American var. – (Viburnum trilobum)
• Currants
• Espalier fruit trees
• Gooseberry
• Huckleberry – (Vaccinium ovatum Pursh)
• Lavender
• Lingonberry
• Mahonia, (Mahonia aquifolium), AKA Oregon grape
• Mulberry – (Morus nigra)
• Natal plum – (Carissa macrocarpa), fragrant flowers, edible fruit, zones 9-11
• Oregon Grape – (Mahonia aquifolium)
• Raspberries
• Roses – especially, R. acicularis, R. rubiginosa, R. rugosa (make very good flowering hedges), & R. villosa for the largest rosehip fruit
• Rosemary – tall growing varieties for hedges; low growing, creeping variety for edible ground cover
• Serviceberry – (Amelanchier alnifolia), AKA Juneberry, the Saskatoon var. is the most flavorful
• Strawberry tree – (Arbutus unedo), hardiness zone 4-9
• Wax myrtle, (Myrica cerifera) – evergreen leaves and berries have culinary and medicinal benefits, and the waxy berries are also used for making candles
• Yucca – Yucca filamentosa – for an ornamental wide and low-growing hedge with edible, medicinal, and functional uses.

Asparagus

If you want an edible hedge that looks nice in the landscape, consider asparagus plants with their wispy ferns. You'll need to prop up the ferns after harvest and cut them back in winter, but they'll add a nice touch to your yard.

Asparagus takes three years to start producing edible spears, but it can produce for 20 more years or more once it starts. Plant it with care, since it will be in your landscape for a while.

The harvesting of asparagus spears does not stop the ferns from continuing to grow tall and wispy. They will, however, need some fencing support to help them stay upright.

As an edible hedge, asparagus is lovely, green, and fern-like in spring and summer, support as it grows tall. It will turn brown in fall and winter and is the best cut to the ground.

Blackberries

Blackberries can make a great addition to any garden as they can be used as part of a hedging system. Not only do they look aesthetically pleasing, but they are also edible, making them a practical and versatile plant.

Advantages to Blackberry Hedges

• Delicious fruit
• Blackberry leaves can be harvested for tea
• Thornless blackberry bushes are easier

Disadvantages to Blackberry Hedges

• Deciduous bushes are not useful for privacy hedges, due to leaf loss
• Can grow to be a thick protective barrier

Blueberries

Highbush Blueberry

The blueberry bush, another North American native, does best in acidic soil. It can tolerate soggy ground but prefers well-drained sandy soil and full sun. Planting at least 2 types of blueberries in your yard or orchard is best.

If your soil's pH is above the desired 4.5 to 5.2 range, use finely ground sulfur to lower it. Blueberry plants need at least one inch of water weekly during the growing season. To help the soil retain moisture, add peat moss or pine needles. In late winter or early spring, prune the plants.

Low Growing BerryBux Blueberry

The BerryBux blueberry plant is a great choice for suburban edible landscape gardening, also known as “foodscaping”. This plant grows to about the size of the Sweet Box plant, and produces lovely, fragrant blossoms in mid-winter, announcing that spring is on its way.

Planting Full-Sized Blueberry Hedges

• Plant blueberry bushes 2.5-3′ apart.
• Use the same variety of blueberry for the same hedge row.
• For a shorter blueberry hedgerow, use compact varieties such as Patriot blueberries.
• For tall hedges, plant faster-growing upright varieties such as Jersey or Bluecrop.

Blueberries can grow to be 6-12 feet tall, which makes them great for using as edible hedges, windbreaks, and privacy screens when planted 2.5-3 feet apart.

Camellia Bushes

Camellias are beautiful and hardy bushes that make evergreen privacy hedges with a number of benefits. For example, camellias can be used to add pink or white flowers to tea, or they can be used fresh or dried in cooking. In addition, camellia seeds can be used to make edible oil for cooking or for medicinal purposes.

Medicinal Benefits of Camellia Japonica

Salves and tonics of Camellia japonica flowers are used to make salves and tonica and are used for burns. Additional benefits of, camellia include:

• Astringent
• Anticancer
• Antihemorrhagic
• Hemostatic

Nanking Cherries

Nanking Cherries can be planted as either shrubs or small trees. They grow best in full sun and well-drained soil. For best results, plant more than one Nanking Cherry so they can cross-pollinate. For trees, plant them 15 feet apart. For hedges, plant them 4 feet apart.

Cranberry – Highbush Cranberry – Viburnum trilobum, AKA crampbark

This North American plant grows to 8-15 feet tall and 8-10 feet wide. It needs annual pruning to maintain the desired size and shape. Plant it in full sun to partial shade in rich and loamy soil, 2-3 feet apart, for a solid hedge.

The fruit is high in vitamin C, making it very tart. It is reminiscent of cranberries in look and taste. It is ready for an easy harvest in August. It is often sweetened and used in jams and sauces to make it more palatable.

The bark of the viburnum tree contains a bitter compound called viburnine. This compound has been used for centuries to relieve menstrual and stomach cramps, as well as asthma.

Mahonia Berry Bush – AKA – Oregon Grapes

The Mahonia shrub is a sturdy, evergreen plant with holly-like leaves. It is a reliable source of food and medicine.

We pick a small handful of Mahonia berries when they are in season, and freeze or dry them to enjoy throughout the year.

Some blueberries are considered to be tart while others find them to be reasonably pleasant. The berries are firm and elongated.

It is startling to learn that there are numerous fruits, vegetables, and weeds that people have not heard of. The primary reason for this is that items which do not travel well, have a short shelf life, or are not widely popular are not carried by most grocery stores.

So the Mahonia berry is not sweet enough for the modern western palate, as it does not have as many seeds as blueberries.

Roasted mahonia seeds are a coffee substitute.

Mahonia fruit, especially the bark and roots that are most yellow in color, contains berberine.

Mahonia Medicinal Benefits

• Antiamoebic
• Antibiotic
• Anti-inflammatory
• Antiseptic

The Common Privet Hedge, Not Edible, but…

Although it is not edible, the fast-growing privet hedge has many benefits. More studies need to be done to gain widespread acceptance in the western world, but we believe that there is value in traditions that have lasted for a long time, even if science has not yet proven it.

Plants that people can grow for their own remedies are often studied less because there is less funding.

Privet contains an active therapeutic compound called ligustrum. It has been used in Chinese medicine for more than 2,000 years. However, in the US, it is only advisable to eat privet under medical supervision. So do your research and seek out a Chinese health practitioner or other appropriate healthcare professional.

Rosemary, Salvia Rosmarinus

This plant is hardy to USDA zone 7 and can be used as a low-growing hedge in warm areas. It reaches 3-5 feet tall, has dense growth, and produces beautiful blue flowers and wispy foliage. It also has a memorable scent.