Why Traditional Veg AREN’T the Future

For years I threw myself into traditional vegetable growing—trays of seedlings, endless weeding, watering, slug patrol, and crossed fingers.

I still grow annual veg every year because I enjoy it. But I’ve slowly come to realise that if you’re busy (and most of us are), then perennials are a far more sensible place to start.

Annuals need constant input. Perennials just get on with it.

Here’s what I mean:

Annual crops
These are plants you sow, grow, harvest, and then replant every year. Think:

• Carrots

• Lettuce

• Courgettes

• Tomatoes (technically perennial, but grown as annuals in the UK)

They can be brilliant—but they’re labour-intensive, often fussy, and short-lived.

Perennial crops
These stay in the ground and produce for years, with very little work once established. Examples include:

• Globe artichokes

• Asparagus

• Rhubarb

• Raspberries

• Egyptian walking onions

• Turkish rocket

• Sea kale

• Oca

Many of them aren’t sold in supermarkets—not because they aren’t delicious, but because they don’t store or transport well. That makes them perfect for home growers.

If you want to grow food in a garden that also needs to be a play space, a place to relax, or somewhere that actually looks good, then edimentals are the way forward. These are plants that are both edible and ornamental. You can weave them into your borders, grow them under fruit trees, or use them as groundcover. They don’t demand raised beds or sacrifice aesthetics. Instead, they blend beautifully into everyday gardens while still feeding your family.

What I love most is that once they’re planted, these perennials and edimentals get better every year. They support pollinators, bring structure and colour, and quietly produce food in the background—all with far less effort than the traditional veg patch.

P.S. The image for this post is Drimys lanceolata (Tasmanian pepperbush) - superb spice for flavouring dishes with a unique flavour profile of chilli, eucalyptus, bay and pepper! A real edimental.