Creating an Asian Edible Garden: Beauty Meets Bounty

Japanese, Asian, Zen—gardens designed with an Eastern sensibility go by many names but share recognizable traits: aesthetic (artistically placed rocks), symbolic (Buddha statues), or sensory (falling water). There's no rule against breaking tradition to incorporate a functional component: edible plants.

An Asian edible garden looks the part, except food plants are integrated where possible. Sometimes it's substituting an edible version of a traditional ornamental. Other times it's recognizing food plants already in the Asian palette and harvesting them. Above all, it's about getting to know traditional species in Asian cuisine.

Adamson + Molina

Rich Mathers Construction, Inc.

Start with Ornamentals That Are Also Edible

Bamboo is a classic in-the-closet edible. Bamboo shoots—the emerging canes cut as they poke through soil—are a culinary staple. All bamboo species are technically edible, but sweetshoot bamboo (Phyllostachys dulcis, USDA zones 7–10) and tortoise shell bamboo (P. edulis, zones 7–10) are among the most delicious.

Bamboo fits any niche in an Asian garden, with varieties ranging from under 6 feet to over 60 feet tall, thriving in sun or shade. While bamboo has a reputation for invasiveness, that applies only to running bamboo—clumping varieties stay put. Even running types can be contained with underground barriers or aboveground planters.

Learn more about growing bamboo in a small garden

Daniel Moran Architect

Lotus flowers are icons of enchantment to Western gardeners, but in Asia they're a staple food source—mainly the fleshy root. Lotuses need a very long, hot growing season, but if successful, try digging a root for stir-fry with your bamboo shoots.

Plant lotuses in a rich soil mixture using a basin wider than tall. Once spring temperatures warm, submerge the basin about 12 inches deep in a water feature for ultimate Zen garden ambience.

Emphasize a Focal Point with an Edible

Asian gardens are often sparse on plant materials for spaciousness and tranquility, so when choosing a botanical focal point, consider edible options. Any fruit tree, shrub, or vine can fit an Asian motif if complemented by traditional features like a sand garden, pagoda lantern, bamboo fence, or gong.

Some Asian food plants particularly set the tone: Japanese eggplants with thin, graceful curves; kiwis (Actinidia deliciosa) with fuzzy, bright red stems; or a loquat tree (Eriobotrya japonica), an unusual evergreen fruit tree with decidedly Oriental flair.

Use Spring-Flowering Fruit Trees

Flowering plums are among the most elegant fruit trees in the Asian cornucopia—ancient symbols of Japan, where spring bloom is celebrated annually with festivals. Rather than an ornamental plum, plant a good edible variety; they're just as spectacular in flower. For authenticity, seek ume plum (Prunus mume), used to make traditional umeboshi (pickled plums).

Photo by fumihirokato

Kathleen Shaeffer Design, Exterior Spaces

The Asian persimmon is another traditional Eastern fruit gaining popularity in American gardens. Like loquat and flowering plum, its appearance feels right in an Asian-inspired garden. Fruit ripens as leaves turn brilliant sunset colors in autumn, then hangs on bare branches into the new year.

Fruit trees are perfect focal points for sunny locations in Asian landscapes. Keep surrounding vegetation sparse to highlight the tree's form—limit understory to moss, tidy evergreen ground cover, or sand and rocks.

See how to grow your own persimmon tree

Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group

Design with Flavor in Mind

Asian food traditions center on strongly flavored garnishes, just as Asian gardens emphasize striking contrasts against a still, reverent canvas. When breaking from calm, austere plantings to add brightness, think edible.

Daylilies (Hemerocallis spp.) are common ornamentals few gardeners realize are edible—the blossoms are used in spicy Asian stir-fries. Suitable for sunny or partially shaded niches, keep it simple and resist cluttering with multiple varieties.

Andrea Meyers

Hot peppers bring color and flavor into an Asian landscape. Red is prominent in Asian design, and cayenne peppers add it potently. Ornamental hot peppers with dark foliage work best integrated in a glazed pot—try one per pot alongside eggplant and decorative Asian herbs like Thai basil and shiso (a mint-family herb often eaten with sushi).

See how to grow peppers

What better beverage after an Asian meal than green tea? Few realize its source: the leaves of camellias, particularly Camellia sinensis, a shade-loving shrub thriving in acidic soil. Camellias are quintessential flowering shrubs for Asian shade gardens—now you can enjoy blossoms outdoors and snip leaves for a healthy drink.

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