Giving your vegetable garden a wow factor may sound a little ambitious but John Manley knows a secret weapon
THE distinction in gardening between ornamentals and functional plants can be misleading. It tends to suggest that functional plants have less aesthetic value than their ornamental counterparts. We fruit and vegetable gardeners know better. Is there, for instance, anything more pleasing than neat rows of plump 'Lollo Rossa' lettuce or a bed full of strawberry plants in flower, hinting heavily at pleasures to come?
The ornamental edible garden philosophy is perhaps best expressed in the French potager - pronounced poh-taZHAY and literally meaning 'for the soup pot'. In gardening terms, it means a plot filled with fruit, vegetables and herbs that pleases the eye as much as the palate.
The French have sometimes taken the concept to opulent extremes, most notably at the 16th century Chateau de Villandry in the Loire valley, which is widely regarded as a classical French potager - though on a massif scale.
In addition to symmetrical rows of salad leaves, cabbages and onions, a great way to add impact to your own Irish potager is by adding height. And thankfully, while the boat has been missed for sowing quite a lot of veg, it's not too late for runner beans, a plant whose scarlet flowers will brighten up even the dreariest corner of the garden.
Those who were on the ball back in April and sowed their beans indoors will already have young beanstalks eagerly reaching for the sky. However, as someone who is never that well organised, I can vouch that if planted in a good fertile, sunny site this particular legume will germinate in early June, rapidly grow six feet-plus and bear flowers by the end of August.
If I'm honest, I choose runner beans more for their ornamental value rather than their culinary. That's not to say I find them disagreeable, but on balance they look better than they taste, and are are full of vitamins, fibre and antioxidants.
But not only are they good for us, growing this member of the legume family - or any other legume - will help enrich your soil. I reckon you'd need a PhD in biochemistry to fully understand the process but apparently the root nodules of legumes fix nitrogen into the soil and therefore provide a natural fertiliser for the crop that succeeds them. Ideally this should be brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, sprouts, etc) or any leafy greens (lettuce, chard, etc) that require a lot of nitrogen.
Dig plenty of organic matter deep into the soil before you sow your beans.
Freshly cut grass cuttings and even shredded newspaper can be used, but good rich homemade compost or well-rotted horse manure is best.
As they are a climber, the maturing beanstalks will need a scaffolding of sorts which they can scramble up. This offers you a chance to get in touch with your artistic side by fashioning variations on the standard bamboo cane wigwam. If you have willow or hazel that can be coppiced in spring, the straight cut branches will help create an authentic cottage feel, while my own preference for lengths of bleached driftwood and fishing net is desert island chic at its best.
Sow a couple of beans two inches deep at the foot of each upright and as the stalks appear gently wrap them round the canes if they fail to cling on themselves.
Plant on a slight mound surrounded by a shallow ring in the soil to avoid water running off.
If we have a typical Irish summer your beans shouldn't need additional watering and all that natural fertiliser you added before planting should keep them well fed.
Recommended varieties include 'White Apollo' and 'St George', which both have attained the RHS's Award of Garden Merit.