These were just some of the options for guests at the San Francisco Flower and Garden show as they walked through the 5,000 square feet of edible gardens arranged by Oakland-based Star Apple Edible Gardening.

The company displayed what a modern urban homestead can look like. Throughout the four days of the show, Leslie Bennett, one of the three co-owners spoke to garden growers. "For reasons hard to comprehend, not everyone is growing food," Bennett said. She said two of the main obstacles she hears about from prospective gardeners are a fear of killing plants and the hefty time commitment.

"We try to show people that if you build in some structure and work with perennial planting and the right hardscaping," Bennett said, "you can have a garden that looks great all year round."Get the rest of the story by Nicole Jones, plus audio clips and some tasty spring recipes for your home-grown lemons and basil, at Oakland North.