What type of garden will you create this season?
Dear gardeners – we made it. Spring is upon us! I know you can feel it. The need to get your fingers in the soil. The want of the sun on your back. And the warm breeze on your skin, that carries the fragrance of spring.
Gardens at Wave Hill
This is our busiest time of year – pruning, clearing organics, and seeds, sourcing compost, and I’d argue the best part, planning out our gardens for the season.
Last summer I visited Wave Hill with my friend Winnie – a stunning, 28-acre space in the Bronx where gardens live within gardens above the Hudson River.
There, we came across a border garden along a walk. The concept: edible landscaping. The idea hit both Winnie and me as brilliant. We felt inspired. It pushes the creative boundaries of gardening; challenges gardening norms and centers on sustainability and ecology. Below I elaborate on edible landscaping and other interesting garden themes to consider this season!
Edible Landscaping: By definition, edible landscaping is the use of food plants as design features in a landscape. These plants are used both for aesthetic value as well as consumption. The veg plants are intermixed with beneficial non-edibles such as citronella grass, marigolds, chrysanthemums, and petunias. These companion plants keep pests away while attracting beneficial insects. Together, gorgeous colorful foodscapes, garden borders, and patches are created. Each year you redesign your edible landscaping with different vegetables and arrangements – so fun! Ditch the lawn, (please, please) and build out an eco-edible landscape this year.
Tea Garden: A themed tea garden is perfect for a small patch, a balcony, or a window sill with south-facing light. Plant chamomile, peppermint, lavender, lemon balm, and red clover to name a few. Lots of light and well-drained soil will do the trick. Use these herbs to create your own unique blends. At the end of the season, dry and store the herbs for an abundance of tea through the winter months.
Herb Garden: Also great for small spaces or a container garden, the textural varieties will look beautiful intermixed. Herb plants are valuable to bees, other insects, and your Sunday sauce. One of the joys for me in midsummer is popping out the back kitchen door, choosing my fresh herbs, and starting up a meal. Personalize your herb garden to your food likes or grow a medicinal herb patch.
Culture Garden: Create a garden centered around your ethnicity or a culture you embrace. Create this garden in honor of a friend or a loved one. The bounty of this garden will give you and your family everything needed to cook delicious, Latin food, Italian food, Indian, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and Polish cuisine – you choose. The foods of this garden will provide an endless variety of meals, under the umbrella of one chosen, the beloved country.
