Edible Perennial Plants are an investment in your future food production. Perennials grow back each year and provide long-term sustainable harvests. When creating a self-sufficient garden, edible perennials can form a really good base to build from. Annual vegetables can be a lot of work and it can be devastating if you lose a crop after all that time and effort. Having a mix of edible perennials in your garden will give you the comfort of knowing you will still have food available that will re-grow year after year.
Most of the vegetables we see in the supermarkets are annual vegetables that are grown for a single season and then harvested. This means that perennials are a little unusual for home gardeners to grow and cook.
What is a Perennial Vegetable?
- Annuals – Grow for a single season and then harvested completely or die off
- Biennials – Grow for a season and then flower or seed for the second season. Most are grown as annuals or left to collect seeds.
- Perennials – Grow for more than two years and many can continue to grow for decades. They often die back in winter and re-grow in spring on their own accord.
Why Grow Edible Perennial Plants?
- Re-grow each year without planting
- Stable consistent food supply
- Create diversity in the garden
- Economical plant purchases
- Low maintenance
- Form deeper root systems to require less watering
- Stabilise soil and reduce erosion
- Require less feeding as they are slow-growing
- Habitat for wildlife long term
- Support no-dig gardens
Pros and cons of Edible Perennial Plants vs Annuals?
Many edible perennial plants are quite slow-growing. This helps them form strong established root systems to feed and support their growth for many years to come. This can mean that you may not get food from your perennial plants within the first year or two. However, all good things take time and time is going to pass anyway. Think of it as an investment that will have compounding growth and provide you with a sustainable future food supply. Saving your future self, time, and money!
Perennials stay in the same spot and regrow year after year so you need to make sure you select a suitable spot from the start. Look into how much sunlight/shade and type of soil they prefer before planting. This also means your garden beds will be allocated to that plant long-term. The great thing about annuals is that you can mix and match different plants constantly.
A-Z Top Edible Perennial Plants
Artichoke
Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus
Full Sun – summer harvest
- Edible flowers
- Beautiful aesthetic plant
- Very popular with the bees!
- Most produce in their second year
- Harvest buds before they flower
- Reproduce from side suckers
Asparagus
Asparagus officinalis
Full sun – spring & summer harvest
- Produces for up to 30 years
- Beds can look bare for part of the year
- Grow underground and pop up in spring
- Mulch well
- Feed with animal manure
- Seeds form from berries
Brazilian Spinach
Alternanthera sisssoo
Sub-tropical or tropical climate – All year round
- Low growing lush green plant
- Hardy easy to grow plant
- Use as you would spinach
- Propagate from cuttings
- Likes humid weather
Blueberry
Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus
Full sun – part shade
- Grow to about 2m tall
- Can fruit for up to 30 years
- Likes acidic soil
- Fruit starts really producing after two years
- High in antioxidants
- Produce up to 7kg of fruit each year
Chicory
Cichorium intybus
Full sun – part shade
- Eat fresh or cooked to reduce bitterness
- Great animal feed
- Beautiful edible flowers
- Attracts bees for pollination
- Can be grown as an annual or perennial
- Short lived 7 year perennial
Fennel
Foeniculum vulgare
Full sun – part shade
- Green variety can be invasive
- Edible leaves, flowers, seeds and bulbs
- Easy care free plant
- Leaves, seeds and flowers are great for flavouring pickles and ferments
- Medicinal qualites
Horseradish
Armoracia rusticana
Full sun – part shade
- Root crop that spreads (can be invasive)
- Edible leaves and roots
- “wasabi” like flavour used as a condiment
- Great for flavouring pickles and ferments
- Medicinal qualities
- Likes cooler climates
Jerusalem Artichoke (sunchoke)
Helianthus tuberosus
Full sun
- Edible roots
- Low maintenance
- Attracts Bees and Butterflies
- Abundant production of crops
- Drought tolerant
- Good for mulch and biomass
- Can be invasive – keep conatained
Pepino
Solanum muricatum
Full sun – part shade
- Low-lying fruiting shrub
- Melon flavour
- Abundant production
- Frost sensitive
- Easy to grow, low maintenance
- Easily grown from cuttings
Pineapple
Ananas comosus
Full sun – warm climates
- Low maintenance
- Re-grow from the top and side suckers
- Low lying and can be grown in pots
- Slow growing can take 2 years to fruit
- Regrow to have many on the go and have regular fruit
Queensland Arrowroot
Canna edulis
Sun – Part shade
- Edible leaves and roots
- Substitute for potatoes
- Reproduce easily from side tubers
- Easy to grow
- Leaves can also be used as mulch
Raspberry
Rubus idaeus
Full sun
- Plants grow for 8-10 years
- Grow easily from cuttings or if the canes touch the ground so can be invasive
- Prefer cooler climates
- Vigorous growing
- Canes die after fruiting so needs pruning
Rhubarb
Rheum rhabarbarum
Sun – part shade
- Edible stalks
- Leaves are toxic
- Likes plenty of compost and manure
- Takes 1-2 years to start producing well
- Can be reproduced by splitting at the crown
- Plants can grow for 10-50 years
Society Garlic
Tulbaghia violacea
Full sun – part shade
- Dense, low lying clumping plant
- Garlic flavour all year round
- Attracts Pollinators to the garden
- Edible flowers and leaves
- Drought tolerant
Sorrel – french
Rumex acetosa
Full sun – part shade
- Substitute for cooked spinach
- Great animal feed
- Abundant production
- Low maintenance
- Cut flowers off to reduce bolting
Strawberry
Fragaria ananassa
Full sun – part shade
- Edible flowers, fruit and leaves
- Bright vibrant colours
- Attracts Pollinators to the garden
- Can be eaten raw in salads or as garnish
- Added nutritional value
Sweet Potato
Ipomoea batatas
Full sun – part shade
- Edible perennial leaves and root
- Leaves are a substitute for spinach
- Living mulch
- May die off in winter (cool climates)
- Easily propagated from vine or tiny piece of root left behind in the soil.
Taro
Smallanthus sonchifolius
Part sun-shade
- Large root crops
- Great under-story plant
- Tubers cook similarly to potato
- Young leaves can be cooked
- Water regularly
- Harvest in Autumn as the leaves die
Turmeric
Curcuma longa
Part shade
- Multiplying root crop
- Plant in warmer months of spring
- Can harvest some at a time rather than all at once
- Attractive plant as low-middle layer
- Medicinal qualities
Walking Onions (Egyptian)
Allium cepa var. proliferum
Full sun – part shade
- Edible leaves, flowers and bulb
- Hardy low maintenance
- Stems fold over and regrow new plants
- Drought and frost tolerant
- Grows bulbs at the base and also mini ones on the end of the stem
Yacon
Colocasia esculenta
Part sun – shade
- Large sweet root crops
- Great under-story plant
- Tubers cooks similarly to potato
- Young leaves can be cooked
- Water regularly
- Harvest in Autumn as the leaves die