Incorporate edible landscape plants for a beautiful and delicious garden. Common fruit options are backyard fruit trees, shrubs, and vines.
To determine the best plants for your site, you’ll want to consider several factors, including your desired yield and ornamental qualities, along with your particular location’s hardiness zone and available pollination (some plants need other plants nearby for pollination). For more information about landscaping with edible plants, see Turn Your Yard Into a Luscious Landscape and How to Select Fruit and Nut Trees.
Some of the Best Edible Landscape Plants: Fruit Edition
| Common name | Latin name | Yield | Hardiness zones | Pollination needs | Landscape use | Prominent ornamental qualities |
| Alpine strawberries | Fragaria vesca | 1/2 cup per plant | 3 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Ground cover or low border | Low mounds or lines of greenery |
| Apple and crab apple | Malus spp. | 60 to 300 pounds per tree | 3 to 9 | Cross-pollination needed | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms, tree form |
| Apricot | Prunus armeniaca var. armeniaca | 150 pounds per tree | 5 to 9 | Most varieties are self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms, tree form |
| Beach plum | Prunus maritima | Highly variable | 3 to 8 | Cross-pollination needed | Part of shrub border | Blossoms |
| Blackberry | Rubus spp. | 3 pounds per plant | 5 to 8 | Self-fruitful | Train along a fence or trellis, or tie up to a pole | Blossoms, leaves |
| Blueberry, highbush | Vaccinium corymbosum | 7 pounds per plant | 4 to 7 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield and berry size | Shrub border, foundation planting or hedge | Blossoms, leaves in summer and fall, canes in fall |
| Blueberry, lowbush | Vaccinium angustifolium | 5 to 10 pounds per 100 square feet | 3 to 7 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield and berry size | Ground cover | Blossoms, leaves in summer and fall, canes in fall |
| Blueberry, rabbiteye | Vaccinium asheii | 15 pounds per plant | 7 to 9 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield and berry size | Specimen shrub, foundation planting or hedge | Blossoms, leaves in summer and fall, canes in fall |
| Cherry, cornelian | Cornus mas | 30 to 50 pounds per plant | 4 to 8 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield | Shade tree | Blossoms, leaves in summer and fall, fruits in summer, bark in winter |
| Cherry, Nanking | Prunus tomentosa | 15 to 25 pounds per bush | 3 to 6 | Cross-pollination needed | Shrub border, hedge | Blossoms in spring, fruits in early summer |
| Cherry, sweet | Prunus avium | 300 pounds per full-size tree | 5 to 9 | Most varieties need cross-pollination | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms, tree form |
| Cherry, tart | Prunus cerasus | 100 pounds per tree | 4 to 8 | Self-fruitful | Small specimen tree | Blossoms |
| Currant, clove | Ribes odoratum | 4 to 8 pounds per shrub | 4 to 8 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield | Shrub border, hedge | Blossoms |
| Currant, red, white or pink | Ribes petraeum, R. rubrum, R. sativum | 3 to 10 pounds per shrub | 3 to 7 | Self-fruitful | Hedge, foundation planting or espalier | Blossoms, leaves in summer, fruits |
| Gumi | Elaeagnus multiflora | 10 pounds per shrub | 4 to 9 | Self-fruitful | Hedge | Leaves in summer, fruits |
| Grapes, European wine | Vitis vinifera | 10 to 30 pounds per vine | 7 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Train over an arbor or fence | Canopy of leafy branches, trunk (with age) |
| Grapes, fox | Vitis labrusca | 10 to 30 pounds per vine | 3 to 7 | Self-fruitful | Train over an arbor or fence | Canopy of leafy branches, trunk (with age) |
| Grapes, muscadine | Vitis rotundifolia | 10 to 30 pounds per vine | 7 to 9 | Most varieties need cross-pollination | Train over an arbor or fence | Canopy of leafy branches, trunk (with age) |
| Hackberry | Celtis occidentalis | Unknown | 2 to 9 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Bark, tree form |
| Celtis australis | Unknown | 7 to 9 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Bark, tree form |
| Celtis laevigata | Unknown | 5 to 11 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Bark, tree form, leaves in fall |
| Celtis reticulata | Unknown | 4 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Bark, tree form |
| Huckleberry | Gaylussacia baccata | Unknown | 3 to 8 | Probably partially self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield | Foundation planting or mixed shrubbery | Flowers |
| Juneberry (serviceberry, Saskatoon, shadbush) | Amelanchier spp. | 10 pounds per plant | 3 to 8 | Self-fruitful, except for white-fruited varieties | Hedge or loose, naturalistic plantings, specimen trees or shrubs | Blossoms, form of tree or shrub, fall color, bark in winter |
| Jujube | Ziziphus jujuba | 60 pounds per plant | 6 to 9 | Most varieties need cross-pollination | Specimen plant or hedge | Leaves in summer |
| Kiwifruit | Actinidia deliciosa | 50 to 200 pounds per plant | 7 to 9 | Cross-pollination needed | Climbing vine for arbors and trellises | Canopy of leafy branches, trunk (with age) |
| Kiwifruit, golden | A. chinensis | 50 to 200 pounds per plant | 8 to 10 | Cross-pollination needed | Climbing vine for arbors and trellises | Canopy of leafy branches, trunk (with age) |
| Kiwifruit, hardy | A. arguta | 50 to 200 pounds per plant | 4 to 9 | Cross-pollination needed | Climbing vine for arbors and trellises | Canopy of leafy branches, trunk (with age) |
| Kiwifruit, super-hardy | A. kolomikta | 50 to 200 pounds per plant | 3 to 7 | Cross-pollination needed | Climbing vine for arbors and trellises | Canopy of leafy branches, variegated leaves, trunk (with age) |
| Lingonberry | Vaccinium vitis-idaea | 5 to 10 pounds per 100 square feet | 4 to 7 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield | Ground cover | Evergreen leaves, flower (two seasons), fruits |
| Maypop | Passiflora incarnata | 12 fruits per plant | 5 to 10 | Cross-pollination needed | Climbing vine for arbors and trellises | Flowers |
| Medlar | Mespilus germanica | 20 pounds per tree | 5 to 8 | Self-fruitful | Specimen tree planted singly or in a mixed border | Flowers, fall color of leaves |
| Mulberry, black | Morus nigra | 5 to 25 pounds per plant | 7 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Tree form |
| Mulberry, red | Morus rubra | 5 to 25 pounds per plant | 5 to 8 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Tree form |
| Mulberry, white | Morus alba | 5 to 25 pounds per plant | 5 to 8 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Glossy leaves |
| Pawpaw | Asimina triloba | 25 pounds per plant | 4 to 8 | Cross-pollination needed | Specimen or shade tree | Leaves all summer and in fall |
| Peach and nectarine | Prunus persica | 50 to 150 pounds per tree | 5 to 9 | Most varieties are self-fruitful | Small specimen tree, mixed border | Blossoms |
| Pear, European | Pyrus communis | 60 to 300 pounds per tree | 4 to 9 | Most varieties need cross-pollination | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms, leaves in summer and fall |
| Pear, Asian | P. pyrifolia, P. ussuriensis, P. {x} bretschneideri | 60 to 300 pounds per tree | 4 to 9 | Most varieties need cross-pollination | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms, leaves in summer and fall |
| Persimmon, oriental | Diospyros kaki | 40 to 400 pounds per tree | 7 to 10 | Some varieties are self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Tree form, fruit |
| Persimmon, American | Diospyros virginiana | 50 to 100 pounds per tree | 4 to 10 | Some varieties are self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Tree form, leaves in summer and fall, fruit |
| Plum, American hybrids | Prunus spp. | 50 to 100 pounds per tree | Variable | Cross-pollination needed | Bushy tree | Blossoms |
| Plum, European | Prunus domestica | 75 pounds per tree | 4 to 8 | Self-fruitful, but cross-pollination increases yield | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms |
| Plum, Japanese/Chinese | Prunus salicina | 75 pounds per tree | 6 to 10 | Cross-pollination needed | Specimen or shade tree | Blossoms |
| Quince | Cydonia oblonga | 75 pounds per plant | 5 to 9 | Self-fruitful | Small specimen tree or shrub, shrub border | Blossoms, fruits |
| Raisin tree | Hovenia dulcis | 5 to 10 pounds per plant | 6 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Leafy form |
| Rose hips | | | | | | |
prickly rose | Rosa acicularis | 4 pounds per plant | 2 to 9 | Self-fruitful | Shrub border | Flowers, fruits |
dog rose | Rosa canina | 4 pounds per plant | 3 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Shrub border, trained on fence or post | Flowers, fruits |
sweetbriar rose | R. eglanterea | 4 pounds per plant | 4 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Shrub border, trained on fence or post | Flowers, fruits |
Moyes rose | R. moyesii | 4 pounds per plant | 5 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Shrub border, trained on fence or post | Flowers, fruits, leaves in summer |
rugose rose | R. rugosa | 4 pounds per plant | 3 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Shrub border, hedge | Flowers, fruits |
apple rose | R. villosa | 4 pounds per plant | 5 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Shrub border, hedge | Flowers, fruits |
| Russian olive | Elaeagnus angustifolia | 20 pounds per plant | 2 to 7 | Self-fruitful | Specimen tree, large hedge | Leaves in summer, fruits (‘King Red’) |
| Seaberry | Hippophae rhamnoides | 20 pounds per plant | 3 to 7 | Cross-pollination is needed | Specimen hedge, shrub border | Leaves in summer, fruits |
| Shipova | {x} Sorbopyrus auricularis | 50 pounds per tree | 4 to 9 | Probably self-fruitful | Specimen tree | Flowers, leaves in summer |
| Sorbus | | | | | | |
sorb tree | Sorbus domestica | 30 pounds per tree | 6 to 10 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Leaves in summer and fall |
whitebeam | Sorbus aria | 30 pounds per tree | 5 to 9 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Leaves in summer and fall, fruits |
Korean mountain ash | Sorbus alnifolia | 30 pounds per tree | 4 to 7 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Leaves in summer and fall, fruits |
Yu’s mountain ash | Sorbus yuana | 30 pounds per tree | 4 to 7 | Self-fruitful | Specimen or shade tree | Leaves in summer and fall, fruits |
| Wintergreen | Gaultheria procumbens | Unknown | 3 to 6 | Self-fruitful | Ground cover | Evergreen leaves, fruits |
