Edible Perennial Plants

We now have an EDIBLE PERENNIALS handbook containing over 150 plants!

AVAILABLE FROM OUR ONLINE SHOP HERE

Perennials in the vege garden are nothing new, in fact many old gardens would have had easy care perennials and self sowers as the basis of their food supply. It is only the more modern times where we have stepped away from these foods and embraced the hybrid vege, the seeds of which no longer produce true to type. But there has been a shift back to the heritage crops, a renaissance of seed savers and the rise in popularity of food forests which has seen the perennial veges regain their place in gardens.

I thought when I began compiling this list for my ‘Survival Garden’ that I knew most of what was available in New Zealand. However, a read through Kahikatea Farm’s unusual vegetable pages soon showed me that there was much more. Jo from Kahikatea Farm has kindly given me permission to include her resources here. So, we have compiled a list of perennials, and some Biennials, many which can hold a permanent place in your garden. This means they also create a haven for the soil life, a place where no tilling takes place, like an anchor point in a quiet bay. Where the fungi can spread their fragile and beautiful mycelium. Where the underground critters can find a thriving colony of life and food.

The greater the balance of life you have in your soil the healthier and more nutritious your plants will be and the less work you need to do to have a ready supply of food. Perennials give you the opportunity to create ecosystems within your garden. They can provide shelter, support and mulch for your annuals or less hardy plants. Their established root systems pull the nutrients from deeper in the soil and the processes of growth and decay feed those nutrients back through the system in a bio available way, cycling the nutrients throughout the surrounding garden. Utilising chop and drop mulching for the more wayward growth keeps the surrounding soil covered further supporting the life beneath.

Above the soil the permanence of many of these plants provides a year-round habitat for many insects and wildlife. (Though in this regard I am still tossing up whether the Californian Quails are friend or foe in our garden. Hopefully they are helping control the slugs, but the flip side is they love to scratch in the mulch around the young plants.) But diversity should be encouraged and that includes insects and birds, all are part of a thriving ecosystem, it’s about achieving the right balance.

In our larger systems there are our livestock animals, they too benefit from our perennial plantings for fodder and forage. Many of these plants are suitable for feeding a range of creatures including ourselves. Some we grow as feed purely for the livestock, especially the pigs, the Jerusalem artichoke for example. It is a great summer shelter plant, bee plant and leaf fodder, then as it dies down the tubers become pig fodder and the stems are chopped and added to our autumn composts as carbon. The multi-use of so many of these plants is another reason to utilise them in your growing space. By utilising plants that are multipurpose we can add elements to our vege garden which go beyond just food and make maximum use of what space we have. The most common uses are food, fodder, bee plant, compost and mulch. But there are also those which are mineral accumulators, mining nutrients from deep in the soil, nitrogen fixers and some are medicinal. Many of our herbs can be included here too, rosemary, lavender, thyme, chives, oregano, French tarragon, marjoram, mint, lemon balm and so many more. There are some herbs included in the list below as they can be used more as veges rather than seasonings.

These days most of these perennial edibles are unknown, apart from asparagus and rhubarb many will not be found at the green grocers or supermarket. It may take some adjustments for us to get used to cooking and eating many of them. Perhaps more of a move back to eating seasonally.  We love it when spring brings us the first shoots of asparagus and the fat tender globe artichokes covered in melting garlic butter. The fresh green tips of the NZ spinach are harvested as other veges are just popping their heads up. Summer is a chaotic mass of food, annual, perennial and self-sown proliferation. Then autumn brings an abundance of chokos for us and the pigs, plus yams and earth gems freshly bandicooted from their beds. But some, like the cutting celery pop up through the garden all year round. Add to these the ‘wild’ self-seeding greens and there will always be food in our garden no matter the season.

The world of perennial veges opens a whole new lot of possibilities for your garden. I have tried to find as many New Zealand available perennial veges as I can.

The plants below highlighted in green link through to Kahikatea Farm’s information.

Alehoof – Glechoma hederacea

Alexanders – Smyrnium olusatrum

An ancient herb also known as Wild Celery, Black Lovage and Horse Parsley (horses love it). The entire plant can be eaten including the leaves, flowers, stems and roots with a taste somewhere between celery and parsley, though the older leaves and stems can be bitter and some people blanch (via deep mulching) to reduce this. Use the leaves and stems like you would celery and the seeds can apparently be used as a pepper substitute. The roots can be boiled and used in soups or grated in coleslaw or tossed in salads, roasted like parsnips or deep fried. All parts are also used to make syrups, wine and beer.

It is actually a biennial, producing leaves in the first year and then flowers and seed in the second, but is great at self-seeding throughout the garden so we will include it with the perennials. Alexanders can grow to 1.5 meters tall and are a lovely addition to your garden or food forest.

Alfalfa – Medicago sativa

Aquilegia – Aquilegia vulgaris

Arugula – Diplotaxis tenuifolia

Asparagus – Asparagus officinalis

Asparagus is a popular spring vegetable which produces thick green or purple spears (depending on variety) with sweet and succulent tips.  Asparagus prefers deep well drained soil with added sand or fine stones under crowns with annual side dressing of rich deep mulch. If starting from seed allow the first year “ferns” to grow on as these feed and help develop the roots, don’t cut them until they die back naturally in autumn. The crowns should stand a moderate cut the second year, but it is often best to leave harvesting to year 3. A well cared for asparagus bed can last for 15 or more years.

Bamboo – Moso – Phyllostachys edulis

There are over 100 different edible bamboos from which the tender young shoots are harvested for eating. The Moso shoots are harvested in the spring when they are about 8cm above the ground, cutting them about 5cm below the soil level with a sharp spade. The dormant young shoots are also eaten and are harvested in the winter before they emerge above the ground. The hard outer skin is peeled to expose the core which must be cooked before eating. Often this is done by boiling, rinsing and boiling again till tender.

The Moso bamboo reaches an impressive 15m in height and up to 20cm diameter. It is also used as building material but has a spreading habit so needs to be well managed.

Bean Scarlet Runner – Phaseolus coccineus

This attractive scarlet flowering bean produces many large flat pods before it dies back in autumn. The root system will resprout again in spring putting on rapid growth in fertile soils. A sturdy climbing structure is needed to support the runner beans growth. They tend to slow production as they age so plants may need to be replaced every few years. While hardier than most beans the runner bean is frost tender and will rot in cold, wet soils.

Bean Asian Winged/Asparagus Pea – Psophocarpus tetragonolobus

This climbing bean from New Guinea is perennial in warm climates but an annual in cooler climates. It is not your usual bean shape with the pod having four winged edges.  It is a nutrient rich high protein bean, but the entire plant is edible. The pods are best picked when immature and about 3cm long as they become fibrous when older, they have the flavour of both peas and asparagus combined and can be eaten raw or cooked. Seeds can be shelled from older pods but is recommended they be cooked for 2 to 3 hours to remove any antinutrients which inhibit digestion. The fresh leafy tips can be used in salads, but the older leaves, stems and tuberous roots are best eaten cooked.

A fast-growing plant which needs support and can reach 2m in height.  It’s blue pea-like flowers make it an attractive addition to the garden and being a legume, it has nitrogen fixing properties where symbiotic bacteria are present.

This plant appears to often be confused with the winged pea (Lotus tetragonolobus) also known as asparagus pea, which is an annual ground cover and has red flowers. Only the pods and flowers are considered edible on the winged pea.

Bellflower – Campanula sp

Bellflower – Creeping – Campanula rapunculoides

Bellflower – Dalmation – Campanula portenschlagiana

Bellflower – Greater – Campanula latifolia

Bellflower – Korean – Campanula takesimana

Bellflower – Milky – Campanula lactiflora

Bellflower – Nettle-leaved – Campanula trachelium

Bellflower – Peach Leaved White – Campanula persicifolia

Burnet Saxifrage – Pimpinella saxifrage

Cardoon – Cynara cardunculus

Clover Frosty Feathers (White) – Trifolium rubens ‘Frosty Feathers’

Clover Red Feathers – Trifolium rubens ‘Red Feathers’

Cutting Celery / Parcel – Apium graveolens

Cutting Celery Red Stem – Apium graveolens

Chicory – Cichorium intybus

Upright perennial which grows year-round with broad leaves and bright blue edible flowers. The young leaves are used in salads, stir fries, fritters, pesto etc, they are bitter which is great for digestive health and full of vitamins. The root can be boiled or roasted like parsnips and is often roasted as a coffee substitute. The roots are also used in beer brewing as they are rich in the starch inulin which can easily be converted to alcohol. It is traditionally used medicinally in the treatment of jaundice, liver enlargement, gout and rheumatism, as well as to eliminate worms. Chicory is great fodder/forage for cows, deer, sheep, pigs, chooks and rabbits which find it highly palatable and nutritious.   It is a mineral accumulator which can be added to compost heaps to aide bacterial activity or used as chop and drop mulch.

Chinese Artichoke – Stachy affinis

Chinese Toon – Toona sinensis (syn. Cedrella sinensis)

Choko – Sechium edule

A rampant climber which produces avocado shaped fruit in autumn, which are a bit like a hard cucumber with no seeds. The vine is frost tender and will die down over winter only to come back with a vengeance the following year. Trimming is often needed to keep the vine in check as it can easily cover sheds and smother nearby plants. While better suited to warm climates, high night-time temperatures (20 to 30°c) will delay fruiting. The juicy growing vines are great fodder for pigs and chooks, I haven’t tried them for our other livestock yet.

Chokos can be peeled and chopped to use in stews, soup or as a stir fry vegetable. They can also be boiled, stuffed, mashed or pickled, with a very mild flavour it is best used with other flavourful foods or with a cheese sauce.  While you often see mature fruit available many prefer to eat the younger fruit at about 6 to 8 cm for best taste and texture.

Collards – Brassica oleracea

Dandelion – Taraxacum officinale

A very hardy perennial herb which is naturalised throughout NZ. The leaves and the tap root are harvested for eating and medicinal purposes. The young Dandelion leaves can be added to salads, green smoothies or as cooked greens, bitter flavour stimulates digestion, and they are a good source of minerals. The root is used for supporting liver function and stimulating digestive secretions, which helps with indigestion, poor appetite, constipation etc.

Dahlia – Dahlia pinnata

Plant tubers of the Dahlia pinnata were eaten by the Aztecs and are still widely consumed in Mexico. Two other varieties are commonly classed as edible D. coccinea and D. varibilis, with a 1914 cultivar ‘Yellow Gem’ classed as a ‘choice’ edible. The plant is frost tender, but in most areas the tubers can remain in the ground over winter, resprouting in the spring. If you have hard frosts, you may want to lift the tubers and store until the frosts have passed. Tubers for eating are lifted in the autumn after the plant has died back.

The tubers can roasted, boiled or eaten raw, though it may be preferable to peel them first. A sweet syrup can be made from the tubers which is made into a beverage or used as a flavouring. Flower petals can be used in salads and the leaves are also said to be edible, but it is hard to find information on that.

Daylilies – Hemerocallis fulva

A hardy perennial, tolerant of most conditions, it is most often valued for its beautiful flowers which usually open only for one day. But in eastern countries the daylily is more often utilised for food and medicine. All parts of the plant can be eaten, the young leaves, flower buds, flowers and the rhizomes. The flowers are said to be high in protein and Vitamin A. Hemerocallis fulva is the common variety and preferable if you wish to consume it as with some of the cultivar’s edibility is uncertain. Do not confuse it with other species of lilies as many of those are toxic.

Eryngium Sea Holly – Eryngium planum

Evening Primrose – Oenothera lamarckiana

This biennial herb readily self-seeds which is great as all parts are edible. In the first season the young roots can be eaten raw or cooked like potatoes. The leaves can be used in salads or as cooked greens, while the young flowering stems are peeled and eaten raw, cooked or pickled.  The flowers are also edible and are often used in salads or desserts, while the seeds are a rich source of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA).

False Valerian ‘Pretty Betsy’ – Centranthus ruber var coccineus ‘Pretty Betsy’

Fennel/ Bronze Fennel/ Florence Fennel – Foeniculum vulgare /Foeniculum vulgare ‘Purpureum’

A very hardy, tall perennial herb with yellow flowers and feathery leaves.  A highly aromatic and flavourful herb with an anise flavour used in cooking. Florence fennel is a variety with a swollen, bulb-like stem base that is used as a vegetable. Fennel is a useful companion plant for attracting bees, hoverflies and ladybirds. The Fennel plant accumulates sulphur and potassium, it is great for a woody mulch or cut up and added to composts.  It is suited to most soil types and very drought tolerant. Fennel also has medicinal qualities, especially as a digestive aide and as part of a medicinal herbal ley for stock.

French Sorrel Silver Leaf – Rumex scutatus ssp glaucus ‘Silver Leaf’

Globe Artichoke – Cynara scolymus

The Globe Artichoke is a stunning perennial suitable for both the edible and ornamental garden. It’s large grey-green leaves add an architectural element to the garden and the large globe shaped buds open into attractive purple blooms, which are loved by the bees. Vigorous, prolific, and hardy, this perennial is also edible and medicinal. The globes are harvested at about fist size and before they open, but the stems and fleshy leaf parts can also be eaten. Medicinally the artichoke is thought to have the one of the highest antioxidant levels of all vegetables.

Artichokes are best grown in full sun in reasonably fertile and well-drained soil. They may flower in their first year but fully mature in their second year with the plants lasting 3 – 4 years before needing replacing. However, they can continue from side shoots and dividing every 2 –3 years will keep them producing. Cut back the stems in autumn and use in the compost or as mulch around the plants returning the nutrients to the plants. In cold areas mulching the plants well in late autumn can help protect plants from the cold winter weather. Globe artichokes can reach 1.8 m and have a spread of about 1 m so give them room to grow, planting about 60 cm+ apart in a group creates a stunning mass planting.  

Good King Henry – Chenopodium bonus-henricus

Greater Burnet – Sanguisorba officinalis

Horokaka / Iceplant – Disphyma australe

Horseradish – Armoracia rusticana

A tall (1.5m) perennial root vegetable from the brassica family. Horseradish has long been cultivated for its spicy pungent root which is grated and mixed with vinegar to create a sauce. A reasonably hardy plant though like most brassicas it is prone to white cabbage butterfly attack. The roots are dug arfter the first frost knocks back the leaves. The main root is used to make horseradish sauce and the side shoots can be replanted for next years crop. If unharvested horseradish can spread by underground shoots and become invasive.

Hosta/Plantain lily – Hosta sp.

These shade loving herbaceous perennials are usually grown for their attractive foliage, however the leaves, stems and flowers are edible as well. Most commonly the spring shoots are harvested before the leaves unfurl, these can be eaten raw, stir-fried or boiled. The opened leaves can also be eaten stir-fried or like you would spinach. As the leaves age they develop a more bitter taste. Flowers and stems are said to be rather bland but are still edible.

Italian Bugloss – Anchusa azurea

Kale Thousandhead – Brassica oleracea var napus

Lady’s Mantle – Alchemilla mollis

Lemon Sorrel – Rumex acetosa

Lovage – Levisticum officinale

Lovage is herbaceous perennial, dying back in winter then reappearing in spring. It prefers rich moist soil in either sun or part shade. The whole plant is edible with the celery-flavoured leaves used cooked in soups, sauces, stews, and casseroles. The fresh leaves go well chopped into salads, meat and fish dishes. In the garden it is considered to be a good companion plant to root crops like potatoes and swedes. Lovage was also a popular medicinal herb recognised for its use in stimulating for the digestive organs and as an inner cleanser for the body.

Malabar Spinach – Basella alba and Basella alba ‘Rubra’

Mitsuba Japanese Parsley – Cryptotaenia japonica

Perennial Nettle – Urtica dioica

NZ Spinach – Tetragonia expansa  –  Kōkihi

New Zealand Spinach is a reasonably hardy native trailing plant that covers the ground with long stems of soft fleshy foliage with a crystalline appearance. It is drought tolerant though the leaves can become bitter, and so is best to maintain soil moisture for succulent leaves and stem tips. Hard frosts will knock it back, but it will withstand light frosts. NZ spinach responds well to picking, if you pinch out the top 10 to 15 cm of a stem it will branch, and the plant will produce more leaves. Leaves contain oxalates and so should preferably be cooked or not eaten raw in large quantities though the tips are nice in salads. Steam, boil or stir fry the leaves, or add them to soups and stews.

Nine Star Perennial Broccoli – Brassica oleracea

Oyster Leaf – Mertensia maritima ssp. asiatica

Plantain Broad leaf and Purple Broadleaf – Plantago major and Plantago major ‘Rubrifolia’

Purslane -Pink/Siberian – Claytonia sibirica

A perennial relation of miner’s lettuce, with a similar self-seeding ground cover habit. It’s pretty pink flowers and succulent leaves are edible and it is said to have a slight beetroot flavour. Often used in salads or it can be lightly cooked, added to stirfrys etc. while it is usually evergreen the leaves may be small during the coldest part of winter.

Scorzonera – Scorzonera hispanica

A herbaceous, perennial plant often grown as an annual for its edible roots. These long black, edible roots have good nutritional value and a mild but slightly sweet flavour. The roots contain inulin which can cause flatulence in some people. The washed, unpeeled roots are cooked by boiling for 5-10 minutes, then the black skin (which is not edible) is easily peeled off. The boiled roots are often served with a sauce or eaten with other veges like peas and carrots etc. The leaves, unopened flower buds and flower petals are often eaten in salads and the young flower stems are cooked like asparagus.

Sea Kale – Crambe maritima

Sea kale is a mound forming and spreading perennial also known as sea-colewort and scurvy grass (The plant was pickled and eaten to prevent scurvy on long sea voyages)

The shoots, roots, leaves and flowers are all edible. The shoots are eaten much like asparagus though blanching/mounding is recommended to keep them tender, the younger leaves are used like spinach or kale.

A reasonably easy-care plant which does like a slightly alkaline soil and regular top ups of compost or mulch and well-rotted manure. While it is a salt tolerant coastal plant it also grows well away from the coast.

Sheep’s Sorrel – Rumex acetosella

Solomons Seal – Polygonatum biflorum

A spreading woodland plant which grows from rhizomes Solomon’s seal has sweet young shoots in spring which can be cooked like asparagus. The rhizome is also said to be edible but needs to be boiled three times or sun-baked. The berries are unfortunately considered toxic, so caution is needed if including this plant in your edible garden.

Spoonwort – Cochlearia officinalis

Sweet Cicely – Myrrhis odorata

A tall herbaceous perennial plant growing to about 2 m in height. The fern like feathery leaves smell strongly of aniseed when crushed. Its leaves are sometimes used as a herb or salad green, either raw or cooked, with a rather strong anise like taste. The roots can be eaten raw, boiled or roasted and the seeds also are edible. It has a traditional use as a medicinal herb.

Rhubarb – Rheum rhabarbarum, Rheum x hybridum

This easy-care plant is grown for its red stems which are commonly used in desserts. Rhubarb likes moist, fertile free draining soil in full sun. It is a mineral accumulator, pulling up nutrient from deep in the soil. However, the leaves are toxic so save those for your compost or chop and drop mulch. Harvest the stems by gently pulling low on the stem and twisting away from the base.

Russian Stonecrop – Sedum kamtschaticum

Texsel Greens / Garlic Kale / Ethiopian Cabbage – Brassica carinata

Tutae Koau/Native Celery – Apium prostratum

Walking Stick Kale – Brassica oleracea var acephala

Water Celery ‘Flamingo’ – Oenanthe javanica

Water Spinach Bamboo Leaf – Ipomoea aquatica

Violets – Sweet – Viola odorata

Both the flowers and the leaves of the sweet violet are edible and are a beautiful addition to salads. But the fragrant violet flowers also can be candied or used to make tea, syrups, vinegars, jellies or in baking. The flowers have a sweet perfumy taste while the leaves are slightly tart. A clumping perennial the violet grows best in partly shaded areas and spreads readily making a lovely fragrant ground cover. The flowers appear in spring, though in warmer areas they will flower all winter.

Violet – Labrador – Viola riviniana Purpurea Group

Violet – Australian – Viola hederacea

Yomogi – Artemsia princeps

Tubers and Root crops

Earth Chestnut – Bunium bulbocastanum

Also known as Pignut, this is a hardy, easy-to-grow perennial vegetable in the carrot family, with pretty leaves and white flowers. Once cultivated widely in Eastern Europe but now not widely known, all parts are edible – the seeds can be used like cumin, the leaves can be used as a parsley substitute, and the clusters of tubers can be eaten raw or cooked and taste like chestnuts. Full sun or part shade in most soil types but prefers free draining with some humus. Height to 60cm when in flower, otherwise just an extremely low ground cover.

Earth Gem – Ullucus tuberosus

A trailing ground vine from South America, which produces small roundish yellow and pink tubers. The tuber is the primary edible part, but the leaf is also used and is similar to spinach. They are known to contain high levels of protein, calcium, and carotene. Because of its high-water content, Earth Gems or Ulluco is not suitable for frying or baking, but it can be cooked in many other ways like the potato.

Jerusalem Artichoke – Helianthus tuberosus – SunChoke

An erect, rhizomatous herbaceous perennial herb, which grows up to about 3 m high. Mainly grown for its edible tuber for both people and livestock, the Jerusalem Artichoke is a high yielder with each tuber capable of producing 75 – 200 tubers a year in good soil. It also produces stalks and leaves which are highly palatable to livestock and should be fed or foraged prior to the small sunflower like flowers developing as the stems become woody. These stalks are often used as compost carbon, but the plant can deplete soils, so it is best grown with mineral accumulators or fed yearly. The stalks and leaves can be harvested for fodder throughout the growing season, but this drastically lowers the production of tubers. While the plants are hardy in most environments, they are considered frost tender, though the tubers will survive and grow back. Jerusalem Artichokes have also been used as a pioneer species on damaged ground.

Skirret – Sisum sisarum

Yacon – Smallanthus sonchifolius

Yacons produce the edible tubers and smaller reddish rhizomes, it’s the rhizomes which you need to grow the plant or a whole ‘crown’ which is the rhizomes attached to the plant base. As Yacon are frost tender wait till all frost have passed before planting or plant in a frost-free area. Otherwise, they are a very easy-care plant, reasonably well drained soil and plenty of compost and mulch should ensure a good crop. But give them a bit of room as they can get to 2m tall, 1 metre spacings are often recommended. Harvest by digging up the whole plant after frosts and when the plant dies down for maximum sweetness. You can set aside the rhizomes or crowns, which can be kept in a paper bag in a dark place or potted up in the greenhouse ready for replanting once the frosts have finished, though in warmer areas you can replant and cover mulch the crown over winter.

The edible tubers should be brushed off without damaging the skin, and air dried, before laying them in a cardboard box with newspaper between the layers and over the top. Store in a cool dark place for about 3 months, they can go wrinkly but are still edible.

Yacon can be roasted or boiled, used in stews and casseroles or in salads, juiced or used in smoothies. It has been said to treat it like a juicy, crunchy potato or a mild apple. The leaves are also apparently edible used like spinach or to wrap food and as a tea. Yacon is considered to be good stock fodder, both the leaves and the tubers, and the plant is thought to encourage healthy bacteria both in the soil and in the human gut.

Yams or Oca – Oxalis tuberosa

Yams are technically a perennial but due to their being frost tender are usually grown as annuals. But once you plant yams, being a member of the oxalis family, they will just keep coming back. Any small yams left in the ground will resprout as the soil warms again in spring. For this reason, yams are best planted in an area where you are happy for them to stay. This also makes them a reasonably easy care vege if they are in free draining soil.

The sweet colourful tubers are harvested in late autumn/winter usually after the tops die down and are delicious roasted in butter, but can also be boiled, steamed, stir fried etc

Yellow Asphodel – Asphodeline lutea

Alliums

Elephant Garlic – Allium ampeloprasum vara ampeloprasum

Egyptian walking onion – Allium proliferum

These onions produce little bulblets at the top of the flower stem which can be planted to provide the following years onions. They got the name ‘walking onion’ from the fact that if left the stem will collapse and the bulblets will root into the ground. This gives the appearance that the onions are ‘walking’ around the garden. In well drained, rich soil in full sun these onions produce and multiply very well hence the name proliferum. The onions can be harvested in late summer, and they will store well if kept in a cool dry place.

Garlic chives – Allium tuberosum

Multiplying Spring Onions/Chives – Allium schoenoprasum

This easy-care perennial from the onion family is more commonly known as chives but can however be treated as a multiplying spring onion. The whole plant including the flowers are edible, just harvest as you need it. Chives will produce most of the year but will die down over winter and return in spring. They are great self seeders but can also be propagated by division. Their mild onion flavour makes them a great addition to many dishes including salads.

Multiplying Shallots – Allium cepa

Shallots are a cool-season perennial but are usually grown as annuals over in summer. They multiply by dividing and forming several bulbs around the original bulb. If the ground is fed regularly and kept moist over spring and summer, they should provide a good crop. Harvest late summer and dry before storing in a cool dry place. Keep some bulbs for replanting in spring or if the ground allows leave some to naturalise in a permanent bed.

Multiplying Leeks – Allium ameloprasum

‘Small leeks which will grow as thick as your thumb. They multiply into clumps which can be harvested for use and/or divided up and replanted. Plants die down in mid-summer and then pop back up in autumn with more stems. Plant in full sun and feed regularly with compost.’

Welsh Bunching Onions – Allium fistulosum

‘A perennial onion comprising a clump of small bulbs, each bearing long tubular leaves.  Plants grow approximately 75cm tall and onions are 1.5-2cm in diameter with a mild sweet taste.  Use like spring onions but harvest the leaves only to start with. Once your clump has formed up you can harvest from the base (bulb). Essential in Chinese and Japanese cooking, easy to grow and great for small gardens or pots.  Allow to flower in spring and then begin harvesting again. The flowers are attractive to bees. Good companion for apple trees – said to reduce the incidence of black spot (scab).’

Perennial Bunching Onion Red – Allium fistulosum

‘A perennial red skinned onion comprising a clump of small bulbs, each bearing long tubular leaves.  Plants grow approximately 75cm tall and onions are 1.5-2cm in diameter with a mild sweet taste.  Use like spring onions but harvest leaves only to start with. Once your clump has formed up you can harvest from the base (bulb). Essential in Chinese and Japanese cooking, easy to grow and great for small gardens or pots. Allow to flower in spring and then begin harvesting again. The flowers are attractive to bees. Good companion for apple trees – said to reduce the incidence of black spot (scab).’