Edible Garden

The Edible Garden is a feast for the eyes, demonstrating that fruits and vegetables make beautiful landscape plants in addition to nourishing every culture on Earth.

Built on the site of the Garden’s former asphalt parking lot after the SAGE Parking Facility opened, the Edible Garden features three garden rooms: Vegetable Amphitheater, Green Wall and Outdoor Kitchen.

Upon entering, edible perennials such as paw paws and tea camellias whet the visitor's appetite. This area is anchored by the deciduous conifer, Metasequoia glyptostroboides, or dawn redwood, which was planted in 1980. This species is known as a "living fossil." It is a prehistoric plant that was thought to be extinct until 1941 when a grove of them was discovered in China.

In the vegetable amphitheater, an intricately woven tapestry of edibles rises above guests. Vegetables are combined to create interesting combinations of texture and color, much like an annual bed. 'Golden Delicious', 'Gala' and 'Liberty' apple espaliers ring the top of the amphitheater. In the center of the amphitheater is a small aquatic pond that features edibles that can be grown in water such as lotus, Nelumbo nucifera and rice, Oryza sativa.

Seasonal row crops reminiscent of southern agricultural fields lead visitors from the amphitheater to the water wall. The center wall along the greenhouses has a vertical trellis supporting the growth and production of hardy kiwi vines, Actinidia arguta ‘Issai’ and ‘Ken’s Red’. These small, grape sized fruits are often sweeter than the kiwifruit we see in stores and the hardy kiwifruit can be eaten whole and do not need to be peeled.

At the end of the garden lies the Outdoor Kitchen, which is surrounded by fig trees, Ficus carica. The three different cultivars, 'Celeste', 'Desert King', and 'LSU Gold' allow figs to be in season most of the summer. To one side of the kitchen is a traditional edible garden planted in rows where herbs and produce are grown for use in cooking classes and demonstrations. This state of the art open-air kitchen is where cooking demonstrations, classes and chef-helmed dinners take place. 

Produce grown in the Edible Garden not used in on-site classes or in Longleaf restaurant is donated to organizations like Concrete Jungle, Rescue and the Captain Planet Foundation.