Overheard at kitchen garden consults:
"My husband's preference is to hide the kitchen garden behind the garage over there."
"I'm wondering if we should put the garden back here with the pool equipment since it won't look that great throughout most of the year."
"I'd never put my garden in the front yard or make it visible from the street—I know there will be times when it looks unsightly."
My clients' words make it obvious: when thinking of a vegetable garden, most people picture an overgrown, dilapidated section of the yard.
But it doesn't have to be this way. The system I created with Rooted Garden and now train Gardenary Society members with uses design principles that stand the test of time and create a garden that looks beautiful year-round, no matter what's growing (or isn't).
Use these four design principles as you set up your own kitchen garden, and you won't have to worry about hiding your kitchen garden from the rest of the neighborhood again.
Kitchen gardens, when done right, can be as beautiful and dependable as ornamental trees and bushes. But the key to a beautiful garden that you'll want to show off, rather than hide, is the set up.
Follow these four principles for kitchen garden setup and you'll never need to hide your kitchen garden again. Instead, you'll be taking garden selfies and doing the 'humble brag' right alongside the rest of us at Gardenary.
There's a way to create a kitchen garden to stand the test of time and look beautiful year-round, no matter what is (or isn't) growing inside.
Separate the garden space from the other parts of the landscape
By creating a special space that's dedicated to your kitchen garden, your garden will feel tidy and more beautiful, even when things are overgrown or just starting to sprout.
When the kitchen garden is just tossed out in the middle of the yard somewhere, it's bound to look messy or unkept, simply because it's not distinguishable from the rest of the yard. Take some time to separate the garden, showing that it's special and unique.
Use raised beds instead of in-ground gardens for most of your vegetable production
Raised beds will provide enduring beauty throughout the entire year, keep your crops growing healthy, and ensure your success. Not to mention, raised beds make tending a kitchen garden so much more enjoyable.
Raised beds aren't just practical for kitchen gardening, they're beautiful too. One thing that often makes a vegetable patch look wild is the lack of hardscape. Raised beds can provide that structure for the garden that you were missing with simple rows or piles of soil.
Plant your gardens with border plants that are perennial or evergreen
Perennial and evergreen plants give consistency and promise green in the garden space as annual plants in the interior rise and fall each season
You getting the theme here? Consistent and permanent features in the kitchen garden are what can keep the space looking beautiful even as the seasons change and the plants go from seed to harvest. So, choose some perennial and evergreen features to plant around the exterior of your kitchen garden to feel consistently great about the way your garden's looking all year long.
Use trellises as important pieces of architecture in the garden
Trellises add height and structure, both when they’re covered in summer vines and even when they’re bare in the dead of winter.
Trellises are the crowning touch of beauty in your kitchen garden.
Reaching six to eight feet above your raised beds, trellises provide a vertical element that brings the whole look of your kitchen garden together. Your eyes (and the eyes of your neighbors!) will love the up and down of the garden structures. You'll feel as if you're observing a work of art, not a sprawling veggie patch.
Virtual Kitchen Garden Design
Whether you have read Kitchen Garden Revival or not, designing your own kitchen garden can be overwhelming. A virtual kitchen garden design combines the experience of a professional designer with the convenience of a virtual planning session so that you can plan, design, and build your own kitchen garden with confidence. Let Gardenary-trained designers help you grow yourself and your garden.
So, don’t hide your kitchen garden from your neighbors and friends, or worse yet, avoid going for it because you’re afraid it’s going to be a mess. Instead, apply these four principles to create a space that's beautiful season after season and join us for the Kitchen Garden Academy, where you'll learn so much more about creating a gorgeous and productive kitchen garden directly from Nicole Burke, Owner of Rooted Garden and Gardenary.
