I have a very sunny south facing wall. It gets about 8-10 hours of sun every day. Soil is clay but drains pretty well and is fertile. Zone 7a.
I’d love something that fruits, but also open to an ornamental/pollinator. I feel like this is a prime location and great microclimate for something interesting and maybe a little out of zone for 7a.
All suggestions welcome!!!
Goumi (flowers smell like lilacs)
Are you keeping that path or are you filling it in with plants ?
You could do something on the wire fencing? Kiwi? Grapes? Squash?
@EJh what does Goumi taste like?
We are keeping the pathway. Maybe an espalier?
These are some dated photos. We added a Concord grape on that wire fence last spring that is just now budding out and looking great.
So I haven’t gotten to taste mine yet (hopefully this year) but people say it’s similar to fruit punch, but there is some astringency. I did get to smell it tho, and it reminded me of lilacs, and then I googled it and it said that’s what it’s supposed to smell similar too.
If your keeping the path, goumi might be too big eventually, but they are very pretty though.
Maybe dwarf figs?
im sure people will give you lots of ideas.
For a tree, fig is probably your best choice. cornelian cherry could work too as an ornamental and fruit producer but I’m unsure if the roots would cause an issue with your foundation.
For vines, I’d consider grapes/muscadines or kiwis or maypops, but they all may require maintenance.
I’d also consider bushes like blueberries or goumis. Blueberries may require you to make your soil acidic, but they can also be ornamental too. Neither goumi nor blueberries really require the heat or light demands though.
If you don’t mind something not ornamental, then maybe consider less time investment varieties like strawberries or ground cherries.
@zone7a Figs are definitely on my short list. Any suggestions on varieties? I have some local unnamed figs grown from cuttings, they die to the roots every year though.
Thoughts on hardy citrus?
We planted blueberries and strawberries last spring in the East facing bed under the window (see above picture). I replaced the soil with peat and pine bark. They’re doing…okay. Purchased the blueberries from TyTy. Now I know better. Hopefully they’ll take off this year.
I’ll post an updated picture later today. Those are old from when we just moved in.
I’d avoid hardy citrus. I love the smell of citrus flowers but I’m not sure if the hardy ones smell as good. Also, despite the cool name, flying dragon citrus does not taste good supposedly.
There have been wars fought over fig varieties on this and other forums. I’d recommend deciding a few things:
If possible try some figs at a festival nearby and just buy a scion (~$5) and root it yourself. There’s lots of good options.
The answer is simple. FIGS. 
If you’re in a good zone for in-ground figs I think they are incredibly rewarding and not as prone to pest issues as many other fruits. Plus you get to share some exquisite fruits that many people have not had fresh, or possibly even know about.
YES, textbook spot for a fig tree! If you have a sweet tooth then maybe Improved Celeste; if strawberry jam sounds good then maybe Green Michurinska from Bulgaria, originally. Easier to find IC, cheaper but GM is worth tracking down, get on waiting lists now for rooted cuttings that will be for sale May/June-ish.
I’ve heard tales of these fig wars. I did get to try a fresh fig from one of my in-ground trees last year. It was phenomenal or “fig-nomenal” of you will 
…
Just looked up the flavor profiles for these varieties. They sound amazing especially the GM.
Herbs
Updated photos. The stacked 6x6 timbers are offcuts that I’ll use to make little raised beds.
South facing raised bed location.
Concord grape
Blueberry and strawberry bed
Concord grape coming on strong!
when is your last spring frost and first autumn frost dates
Isn’t the grape going to shade the beds you plan on adding? Maybe put herbs there and cool weather crops that will like the shade?
If you want something ornamental in there and it doesn’t get shaded by the grape, laced up elderberry would be pretty and work well with the narrow space, planted at the gutter. It’s a European cultivator that is just ornamental (at least I don’t get many berries between that and my black laces), but man is it a stunner.
Also consider phlox subulata to grow around the stone path, or again if it is going to be a bit shaded, phlox stolonifera or wild stonecrop (sedum ternatum). Or even stiff aster
I would fill the area between the grape trellis and the path with native perennials in the 1-3’ height range, so it’s beautiful and buzzing alive with pollinators. Go-to basics: echinacea purpura, rudbeckia (but plant surrounded by others to offer root competition), coreopsis, liatris (any variety they’re all awesome), butterfly weed (shorter than other Asclepias). If you want some fall blooms/late season nectar, look at some lower growing and less aggressive asters like “purple dome.” These are all easy to find- there are many other things you could put in if you have access to a good, local native sale. Plant dense so root competition keeps heights and spreading in check.
I would dump 8-10” of mulch on it all now to kill the weeds and then plant it in a month.
April 14th to October 20th
Figs will work but citrus trees will not
@Eme love these ideas! Looking up a lot of these. We just planted a strip of ground that we solarized all last summer with all native perennials and a few non native annuals (mostly sunflowers and zinnias we had left over from last year). So I love that idea! Big focus on natives in our yard over the last year. We planted close to 140 liatris in early March.
The grape is a little long and will get pruned back to about 6-8 buds (halfway). I wasn’t sure if it had survived the arctic blast we had and wanted to have some reserve buds just in case. It might shade a bit early in the day but the site in question should still receive 7+ hours of sun.
Then definitely go with “full sun” natives. If it is listed as “full or part” it should be fine. Monarda completes the easy 4 that I recommend people plant in full/part sun along with echinacea, rudbeckia, Asclepias. But, you would have to buy a dwarf cultivator online because they get to be 4-5’. I have 100+ varieties of natives, but dwarf monarda cultivator was short lived and rather pathetic for me where everything else thrives, so I tend to not want people to waste their money. If you have space out of the picture, put it there. It’s great late spring/early summer flowers and a hummingbird magnet. The only spring bloom in the easy grow mix I mentioned is phlox. If everything is getting too expensive, only buy one because monarda is so easy to divide even just after one year and keep adding to your yard. That and rudbeckia are my easiest plants for shopping in my own yard/giving away to people 
