From the start, I was interested in reading Michele Owens’s book, Grow the Good Life, more out of curiosity, than anything else.

In the gardening world, Michele makes up a quarter of the edgy garden blog, Garden Rant, where four bloggers like to rant (and rave) about gardening or, as I like to think of them as, the gardening world’s op-ed — often saying what most of us are just thinking.  Michele’s book proved to be an op-ed worth reading.

I found Michele’s book to be without nonsense; on the money, and again, saying only what I have been thinking…and feeling for decades.

Michele didn’t tell me how to do anything.   I liked that.  I didn’t need to read another book on how to do something in the garden only to pick up the next book telling me how to do it differently.  It’s confusing out there.  What we all need to do is think – and experiment -  a little bit for ourselves.

It gets old being told what to do, especially when there is always more than one way to do anything.  Michele’s book was more of an understanding of her own motivation, which will no doubt, mimic other’s, even if they don’t know it yet.  If nothing else, her book gives insight to what can go wrong in the garden, giving comfort in knowing that when things do go wrong, and they will, it might not be you.   And frankly, so what if it does? It’s not like we have our lives depending on it.  Or do we?

I’m teaching my kids how to garden because I think it’s a good skill to have.  It’s also good for them.  As a survivalist by nature, I like to know how to do things in the event I will ever need the skill.  Although, I’m confident I can forage for or grow my own food, I will be lost without half and half for my morning coffee, but I’ll cross that bridge if I have too.

Pick up Grow the Good Life if for no other reason than to give you food for thought.  Michele’s comfortable, breezy conversational style is backed up with data from studies to support what she has known for years and has re-affirmed what I’ve known, as well.  So, in a lot of ways, Michele’s book is just an reaffirmation.  But for those new to gardening, it’s inspirational.

Reading Grow the Good Life will make you want to get outside and dig.
Helen  Yoest is a garden writer, speaker and garden coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™.

Lily has decided making sure Le Petit Potager is watered when needed will be her job this summer and even my teenager (although just) has committed to pulling weeds when she is up to it.  I’ll accept that.

I have the lucky job of designing it.  If you have been following this series, Part 1 and Part 2 below took the reader through my design process.  One thing I failed to tell you, and many designers often do, is share with you my inspiration.  That is the purpose of this post.

Each year, I attend the Davidson Horticultural Symposium and have enjoyed it for years.  One of this year’s speakers was Robin Ripley, co-author of Grocery Gardening and blogs at Bumble Bee.  Her lecture was on the Artful Vegetable Garden. I knew I wanted to attend  this session, passing up two other speakers I also wanted to hear, but  I was looking for inspiration to not only making my potager productive, but good looking too.

One row back, I watched in amazement at the good, the bad, and the ugly.  I knew I wanted the good.  What really struck me with her presentation was the amount of beautiful, gorgeous vegetable gardens that were presented.  Nice rows, study trellis that were not only pretty, but functional.  There was plenty of access, and situated in good sun. Robin had examples, from coast to coast, that inspired me to want my Le Petit Potager to be all she could me.

Recently, Robin posted on Garden Rant a tongue and cheek rant about pretty vegetable gardens.  Not all agree with Robin’s goal of an artful vegetable garden.  But, alas, this gardener was inspired by Robin’s talk at Davidson and her rant and looks forward to creating not only beauty, but a productive garden my family will enjoy all summer long.  Thanks for being my inspiration, Robin!

Le  Petit Potager, Part 1

Le Petit Potager, Part 2

The Tomato

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

My dad’s dad grew tomatoes because his dad did  in the Old Country.

My dad planted them as a child during the depression, because he had to. As an adult, he grew tomatoes because they were symbolic of never going hungry. It gave him comfort to know if all else failed; he would have a tomato to eat.

I (the last of the baby boomers) grew them because I wanted to be with my dad.  My dad was in the garden, so I was in the garden. We would talk about so many things; we laughed a lot doing mundane, every day chores.

Still, as a child, it was a new era. We were rich (in that my dad had work, mom stayed at home to raise the family; we had no debt, owned our own home and we were loved.) Also, my youth happened between wars; neither war precipitated the need to grow a tomato.

As an adult, I never grew tomatoes well; maybe I stuck one in the ground now and again.  But it wasn’t for any altruistic reason, like my dad did. It was a tomato.  It had no meaning for me.

I didn’t get the tomato thing. I got that my dad never forgot the depression, but I wanted to grow pretty flowers. I didn’t feel the pangs of hunger that motivated my dad.  That was his thing, give me ornamentals; give me beauty. Beauty is priceless. I can buy a tomato.

As my generation basked in the glory of the profits following the depression era, a new era was built on steady work and the power of compound interest, we didn’t want to GROW our own tomatoes we wanted to BUY them, because we could. We wanted to have pretty, manicured gardens around us. Tomatoes were bought just like packaged beef was bought. We wouldn’t think of making our own hamburger, would we?

Now my kids look around and see flowers, pretty flowers, everywhere. As they became informed, they noticed I had no tomatoes; they wondered and asked why.  I explained, that, for the most part, my generation didn’t want to grow food. We wanted to grow beauty, our symbol of comfort.

Last year, from a request of my youngest child, Aster, we put in a small veggie garden, dubbed Le Petit Potager. As a family, we tore up a patch of the front lawn and planted the potager we now tend together. We grow tomatoes; and cucumbers, sweet peas, lettuce, spinach, bell peppers, hot peppers, carrots, radishes, collards, and more. We also grow sunflowers and zinnia and dill and cilranto.

As we harvested our first, fresh tomato, I thought of my dad and his dad. I believe in the future, when my kids harvest tomatoes with their children, they will think of me.

I am hopeful my kids will never need to grow a tomato, but if they had to, they could. It is my hope they will want to grow a tomato. It is my hope that the experience of our own little potager will instill a want in them.

In the meantime, I have three children hanging outside with me in our little potager, tasting the fruit of the vine, doing mundane chores and giggling a lot.

Le Petit Potager, Part 1

Le Petit Potager, Part 2

Fried Green Tomatoes

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum

Last year, at Aster’s request, we added a small vegetable garden in Helen’s Haven™.  Our vegetable garden was dubbed, “The Victory Garden.”  That was a fine name and worked for the space at the time.  We called our vegetable garden, The Victory Garden, because it was located in the front lawn.  If it were in the back, we probably would have just called it the vegetable garden.

The Victory Garden included tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and such.  Planted along with these vegetables were iris, lambs ear, juniper and other holdovers.  This winter, we decided to expand the garden to use the entire space  for vegetables.  As such, we are elevating the garden’s status by calling it, Le Petit Potager.

As a child, my dad had a vegetable garden; this garden was where I learned not only to garden, but I also learned  how my dad proposed to my mom , heard stories from his youth and heard many tales of my dad’s adventures from his naval career, something he would not otherwise talk about.

Today, I get to teach my son and daughters about gardening, and to show them how to grow delicious, fresh food that is also organic, picked just a few steps from the front door.

Dedicating a garden with just vegetables allows us to distribute the needed resources, such as water, in a corralled area.  The space in front of the drive was also just sitting there; the cars blocked it so we weren’t giving up any decent ornamental space.  With a nationwide move towards front yard gardens, it seem like the time was ripe.  We embraced our space.  With a blank slate, let the planning begin.

We want to maximise the use of the space, growing what we like and allowing us to try new varieties. This spring, we know we will add lettuce, radish, parsley, carrot, broccoli.  This summer, we know we will have  tomato, basil, cucumber, various peppers, and sunflower.

We will run our potager in an intensive, succession planting approach,  in which a crop is grown, harvested, removed and then another planted in its place.  Mostly, our potager will be what is considered square foot planting.  Square foot planting is when a square foot is allocated for each plant – with a plant in the center of each square foot.  We will fudge this some, but it gives a great visual as to how the planning will be laid out.

Since the space is 15 foot x 15 foot, there will be 15 squares parallel in front (in lines following the line of the top of the driveway, or rows going north and south) with 15 squares perpendicular (running from the top of the drive to the house, or rows going west to east.)

Le Petit Potager faces west, thus receiving the hottest afternoon sun.  With an unobstructed view, the area receives about 6 – 8 hours of sunlight per day with the section closest to the house only receiving about 4 – 6 hours per day.  This is sufficient for most any vegetable.  Larger plants will be planted towards the back, not only for better viewing, but also so the taller plants won’t shade out the smaller ones on the east side of the plant.

I’ve drawn lines on the image, below, that depicts the planting squares.  These lines don’t accurately depict the spacing since the image is destored due to the angle of the shot.  But it does serve as a visual of the space I get to work with.  The happy flowers up against the house are where the sunflowers will go.

The graph below better demonstrates how the rows will be laid out.     North <——–

With a blank slate to work with, a good visual and a graph, I can now begin making

my selections and deciding where they will go in the garden. Stay posted as Le Petit

Potager in Helen’s Haven™ develops.

Helen Yoest is a garden writer and coach through her business Gardening with Confidence™

Follow Helen on Twitter @HelenYoest and her facebook friend’s page, Helen Yoest or Gardening With Confidence™ Face Book Fan Page.

Helen also serves on the board of advisors for the JC Raulston Arboretum