His latest book, “Landscaping With Fruit” (Storey, 2009), dives into the world of the little-known lingonberry, clove currant, maypop, shipova, hardy kiwi and other fruits that are easy to grow, he says, and as delicious as they are ornamental. I had come to his garden in New Paltz, N.Y., one day in May to discover some of them.

Image VINE ROW A variety of hardy kiwifruit grows on T-shaped supports in the garden. Credit... Phil Mansfield for The New York Times

Mr. Reich lives on this farmden, as he calls it (smaller than a farm, bigger than a garden), with his wife, Deborah Goldman; two dogs; two cats; a few geese and ducks; and a flock of chickens that eat the bugs, fertilize the gardens and provide eggs with bright orange yolks that don’t break in the pan.

On his terrace, which faces west and south, grape and kiwi vines ramble over a pergola, providing leafy shade. By September, clusters of grapes (Swenson Red, Brianna and Lorelei) will dangle overhead, along with smooth kiwifruits the size of large grapes, which taste like pineapple.

Currants abound in Mr. Reich’s garden. A red variety called Wilder is trained in a fan shape against a terrace wall; others  which will be crimson, pink and white  are espaliered along the low wooden fence surrounding the kitchen garden. A clove currant bush, five feet high and just as wide, is full of yellow trumpet-shaped flowers that smell of clove and vanilla. By midsummer, it will be covered with satiny little bluish-black berries.