Edible Gardens

Picture 7Chris Spagnoli's kitchen garden, Photo Credit: Steven A. Gunther, Sunset Magazine

Every spring, I get the urge to plant a real edible garden. I think more and more, we all feel this way; knowing where our food is coming from, shrinking our eco footprint and well, there's just something about that. Knowing our food is safe, not affected by pesticides and that we grew it. Our neighbor offers us her zuchinni's, tomatoes and lettuce during the summer and another offers us their plums, but it just would be nice to have our own (if you know what I mean). So earlier this week I went looking for online sources, finding a wealth of info at Sunset Magazine. We don't have a backyard to grow a real garden in our townhouse but we do have space to build larger container gardens than we did before in the condo, but this article isn't just about us. We've found some good links for smaller container gardens too. How about you? Are you planning a garden this year? If so and you'd wish to share, (maybe some tips) just shoot me an email or leave a link in the comments, it would be fun to see! Here's a few related links:

No. 1 One pot vegetable garden
No. 2 Edibles in boxes
No. 3 21 best crops for your edible garden
No. 4 Your perfect tomato

Picture 6Spinach (three to four sixpacks) and 'Bull's Blood' beet greens (three sixpacks) fill a 4- by 4-foot bed., Rob D. Brodman, Sunset Magazine

Picture 5Sunburst squash and Early Girl tomatoes in big glazed pots (Photo Credit: Thomas J. Story), Sunset Magazine.

Picture 4'Early Girl ' tomato, 'Purple Ruffles' basil, garlic chives, and jalapeño chiles in a large galvanized planter. (Photo credit: Thomas J. Story), Sunset Magazine

Jan Halvarson

25 comments:

Kickcan & Conkers said...

I know I'm really lucky because we have a huge garden in the country. We moved out here to offer our children a different lifetyle and creating a veggie patch was one of our main priorities. Our first attempt last year produced an abundance of strawberries, squash, radishes, tomatoes (dead easy to grow), cabbages and gooseberries. There's nothing nicer than eating your own homegrown fruit, veg and herbs. It really isn't as difficult as we thought, so no matter how large or small your gardening space, have a go, experiment and enjoy!

Jan Halvarson said...

Oh how lucky you are! I often wonder about slugs and things. What do you do about them, or maybe there isn't any in the south of France?

Jessica said...

I've often wondered that myself. (About pests that is). What does one do to keep cats, mice and squirrels out?

Di Overton said...

Every year I say I will have an edible garden and have yet to do it. Maybe this year, maybe not

Kickcan & Conkers said...

We put ashes around the veggie plot to deter ants, our biggest "predator" believe it or not. Seemed to work. Slugs didn't seem to be too much of a problem last year, my main concern was the rabbit that suddenly appeared in the garden in the Summer...

Jan Halvarson said...

And Di, don't you have heaps of land?

Jan Halvarson said...

Kickcan and Conkers - A rabbit. How cute! We have many raccoons (and mice I think). Yikes! (oh and slugs).

lesley [smidgebox] said...

my grandparents had the most amazing veggie + fruit gardens in their yard, and i've always wanted to do the same. lack of space has always been my problem, but i have done tomatoes and strawberries in pots before. my 'pest' is my 2-yr-old, who just loves to dig in the dirt and disturb any plantings :)
for slugs, my nana put empty grapefruit halves upside down around the borders of the garden. in the morning, they'd always have several slugs trapped underneath! works well + natural, too!

cara. said...

great post as i'm going to try to plant some things this week for the first time ever. i've heard you can use a water based solution (that you make) with chili powder and garlic to keep pests at bay without harming your plants or using pesticides.

thanks again!

Jan Halvarson said...

oh thanks lesley - that's a great tip - especially around here with the enormous ones roaming around.

Jan Halvarson said...

i did find a link to a little info on controlling pests:

http://www.sunset.com/garden/garden-basics/caring-for-vegetables-00400000012282/page2.html

Mallory - Miss Malaprop said...

We started a garden last spring, but my boyfriend has been expanding it this year. We've been learning a lot along the way. I actually posted just the other day about some natural pest control methods we've picked up:
http://www.missmalaprop.com/2010/04/natural-methods-of-garden-pest-control/

Adventures in Dressmaking said...

Me too! But all I have is a little balcony. I started basil and other herbs inside and they're doing well, but I also want to do tomatoes and lettuce!

Unknown said...

I did a community garden last year with some friends and it was so wonderful. There is just nothing like being able to go to your own backyard or patio and pick dinner though, and this year I get to have my own garden. here is what I've done so far http://bobbilewin.blogspot.com/2010/03/and-im-plugged-back-in.html

Jan Halvarson said...

Hi Bobbi - thanks for linking to that - fun to see!

nichole said...

You read my mind! I have been obsessed (to say the least) with planning an edible garden, and I am very grateful for these resources!

Lots of inspiration here. Thanks so much.

LINDSAY said...

I'm so happy to see people leaning towards growing their own food! Last year we planted our first urban garden, you can see it here if you wish:

http://lindsaybrackeen.blogspot.com/2010/02/how-does-your-garden-grow.html

Coleman's Four Season Harvest was my go to book for planting dates, organic growing tips, etc. I highly recommend the book! It's so informative. :)

leila brewster photography said...

i would lOVE to have a huge garden someday with everything i need to eat.. so great! i have a little garden growing on my balcony that is all of 3 feet wide.. lol.. but we shall see i have berries and herbs and flowers.. :)

come by my little blog for a sweet giveaway...
www.olivejuicephotoblog.com

Kickcan & Conkers said...

All this response to your post is wonderful Jan - so many people interested in "growing their own".

Jan Halvarson said...

Thanks Lindsay, I'll take a look for that book.

Deborah - yeah, I know - would be fun to do a garden tour.

Tiffany said...

that's so good you're doing that! i wish i had the time and energy to go out and do the same. Maybe in the future when I have my own house :)

pinkbathtub said...

We have a large garden every year with heirloom tomatoes, a variety of peppers, corn, peas, lettuces, herbs, etc. We have raised beds in the yard but we also love our Earth Boxes which can be used in the smallest of yards (or decks) and produce amazing results. They are perfect for the beginning gardener too.

rachel said...

i am really enjoying your tumblr garden posts. my blog is mostly about my balcony garden this summer, so i would love for you to come and take a look. and thanks so much for the inspiration!

Catherine said...

I think edible gardens are fantastic. We started off growing cherry tomatoes with our kids in hanging baskets. Then we built them their own vegetable patch and the vegetables you get from there taste 10 times as good to them as anything you can buy.

Cloud+Lolly said...

Short on space? I just found these online, cheap too!

You can grow herbs, flowers, strawberries etc. I bought 10, can't wait to try them. (love love your blog BTW)