Every home should be growing a kitchen garden right outside their backdoor. A kitchen garden is meant to be separate from the rest of your garden spaces. It is grown close to your kitchen for convenience. Walking a few steps out the backdoor and into the kitchen garden to harvest fresh produce and herbs for cooking is quite rewarding. Nothing beats having fresh herbs and produce just a few steps from your kitchen.
A kitchen garden should be beautiful and reflective of your personality. You should want to spend time in it. A kitchen garden should be productive but is not meant for growing large quantities of food for preserving. Grow herbs, vegetables and fruit that you and your family normally eat and cook with. Make it your own. Have fun with it and let it be beautiful.
Why Grow a Kitchen Garden?
Having a garden close to your kitchen is convenient. You are more likely to go harvest fresh herbs or produce while cooking if it is nearby. If you grow everything in your larger garden, and it is not relatively close to your house, then you may not want to run out to harvest something while cooking.
One thing that I find beneficial about growing a kitchen garden is being able to grow my perennial herbs like rosemary, thyme and oregano without taking up space in my larger vegetable garden.
Even if you do not have another garden, growing a kitchen garden for fresh produce and herbs is a great way to cut costs on groceries. Plus, fresh from the garden always tastes better.
Location
Of course, you want to plant your kitchen garden close to your kitchen. However, you still need to keep in mind the amount of sunlight the area gets. Most of the plants you will grow in your garden will thrive best in full sun. That means your garden will need at least 6-8 hours of sun per day. It is best to grow your garden on the southern side of your property. This will maximize your sunlight hours. Be mindful of trees or structures that may cast shadows over your garden throughout the day.
Your garden should also be close to a water source. Just remember to plant your garden as close as you can to your kitchen so that it is convenient for you to walk outside while cooking to harvest something quickly.
Type of Garden and Design
There are three types of gardens that you can grow. In-ground raised bed or container. Or a mixture of any of these will work. Once you know which type of garden you want to go with you can design the garden.
Each of these garden types can work for any area. If the soil in your yard is good quality, then you may choose to plant in the ground. But if you have heavy clay soil or even very sandy soil you may want to plant your garden in raised beds or containers.
With that being said, you can still plant in either of those types of soils, you will just need to amend with lots of good quality garden soil and compost. Because I have very heavy clay I chose to garden in both raised beds and containers.
When designing your kitchen garden, you want to be sure that you give yourself enough room to move comfortably around your garden. You will also need to give perennials permanent spots, and enough room for them to grow.
What to Grow in a Kitchen Garden
Oh, the fun part! Herbs are a must in a kitchen garden. Vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, beans and summer squash are also great for a kitchen garden. I like to grow a few plants of whatever I plant in my kitchen garden.
Every year I add something new or cut back on something else. The kitchen garden is a learning process. You will learn as the seasons go by what you like to keep in your kitchen garden and how much to keep.
Here are a few ideas of plants to grow in your kitchen garden.
- Tomatoes – large tomatoes for slicing and cherry tomatoes
- Peppers – bell peppers and jalapeños are my go-to for the kitchen garden
- Cucumbers
- Bush beans – they take up less space. Pole beans are great if you have room.
- Summer squash
- Lettuce
- Kale
- Carrots
- Radishes
- Strawberries
- All of the herbs!
- Tons of flowers!
Flowers are also a must for a kitchen garden. Not only are they great for bringing in the pollinators, but they are wonderful for keeping your house decorated with fresh cut flowers. Flowers also bring so much beauty to the garden. A kitchen garden should be a pretty space.
The more you beautify it, the more you will want to be in it. The more you want to be in it, the more you will care for it and maintain it. And that is the best thing you, the gardener, can do for your garden.
