Tangled Branches: Cultivated
happenings in and around my zone 6b gardens in northern Virginia and in central Virginia
Friday, May 11, 2007
Breaking New Ground
For 20 years I've wanted a vegetable garden, and now that I have space for one, I'm turning it into a potager. Do you think I've been living in DC too long?
When we bought the place in the country, one of the things we wanted from it was a place to grow vegetables. 
We had grand visions of sweet corn, tomatoes, beans, squash, peas, lettuce, carrots, potatoes, eggplant, peppers, okra, onions, garlic, spinach and on and on and on. And we may still do that someday, but for right now, we just don't have the time. I also had grand visions of a long sweep of shrubbery and trees bordered by every flower you can imagine. Well. No, I don't think there's going to be time for that either. So I scaled things back a bit and ended up with this manageable plot.
The idea of the potager seems to be part of the gardening zeitgeist. 129,000 hits on Google for "potager" for pages updated in the last 3 months. Is it no longer good enough to plant a few rows of vegetables out back - now it has to be pretty? Or maybe we're just saying potager instead of vegetable patch because it sounds more upscale? Or has the publishing herd just latched onto a new topic? I don't know. Something to ponder while I plant. And it's ironic, because I've been planting my tomatoes together with ornamentals for a couple of years now, trying to get them into the sun while hiding them from the homeowners' association. Now I don't have to do it and I'm doing it anyway.
So I've got the geometric layout and started my tomatoes, eggplant, herbs, y muchos chiles. Good so far, but where are the ornamentals? They're going to be tucked in here and there in any leftover space. OK, where are the vertical elements? Maybe the deer, munching the whole thing to the gound?
Labels: CeVA, potager, vegetables
9 Comments:
Entangled, I get a different mental image from 'potager' as opposed to 'vegetable patch', possibly as a result of magazine articles and all the photos on garden web. [Did you know there is a separate Potager Forum?]
A vegetable patch can be just plants in the ground, but a potager seems to imply hardscape: paths, some kind of enclosure or boundaries, large containers and/or urns, height added with trellises or obelisks, some kind of decorative elements and beds laid out in a geometric pattern.
You could have a lot of fun turning your vegetable patch into a Potager!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
I always thought this was a good idea, and I'm told that some flowers can help repel insects (like marigolds), so why not?
Annie, thanks for that link - I haven't been to GardenWeb for a while.
I hadn't thought much about the hardscape features, except possibly some kind of ornament in the center. For now, I'm just going to mow (weed-whack) the paths. My original plan included an enclosure in the form of a "herbal hedge" - some of the taller, woodier, aromatic plants that might deter the critters. I hope to get that part dug before the weather turns hot, but it may end up being part of version 2.0. Or it may turn out that I really need a fence instead.
But in the back of my mind, I still can't shake the suspicion that somewhere in France, people are laughing at what Americans call potagers. :-)
Lisa: I was thinking exactly the same thing about choosing the ornamentals for either repelling pests or attracting beneficial insects. I'm hoping to camouflage the vegetables from the bigger pests too - deer and rabbits, especially. I guess it's going to depend on how hungry they are.
My first garden on my own was a potager. I grew marigolds around the border and nasturtium in the center with all the vegetables arranged in patterns. It was very beautiful and quite tasty!
Entangled, I've been to France and have seen a few potagers and can say that they are both very pretty and functional. These potagers, together with Geoff Hamilton (wellknown British gardener)inspired me to create my own ornamental kitchen garden or potager at Bliss. :-)
Sylvana: I'm hoping for tasty, at least. And if the design doesn't quite work out then ripe tomatoes would be beautiful enough. ;-)
Yolanda Elizabet: If my garden is half as nice as yours, I'll be happy. ;-)
'Potager' is related to the word 'potage' - soup; and I think that a garden that includes flowers and vegetables has the amazing effect of nourishing the gardener, physically and spiritually. And isn't dinner nice when it's accompanied by a lovely bouquet?
I sometimes wander through my fellow gardener's gardens and wonder why no vegetables? There are lovely ornamentals, but nothing to nibble on, nor herbs to refresh one's state of mind. It seems funny to me that the deer and the rabbits would be the only ones to find something to eat there.
C.C., Maybe I should call it a saucier instead of a potager? I doubt if we'll get much soup out of it, but I'm planning a lot of pasta sauces and Mexican salsas. But seriously, my reasons for gardening are tangled. Emotionally, I like to be outside, puttering with plants. Visually, I want flowers and foliage and interesting shapes. Gustatorily, I think fresh food is always best, and the fresher the better. If the deer and rabbits will share.
See, what I learn if I just keep reading! Lol! I really have no choice but to mix my veggies in with everything else. No luxury of a separate space, at least at this time. I have this little book on French Potagers that I picked up at a bookstore in Annapolis...I'm reading it (a bit here and a bit there)...maybe it will give me ideas for the future. Good luck with everything and may the deer and rabbits dine elsewhere!
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