Now that we’ve been in our house for almost a year, we have most of the major landscaping done…so this spring, it’s been fun to turn our attention to filling in empty beds around the back patio with the herbs and edibles that I’ve always dreamed of having in my own kitchen garden. Thought I’d share a peek at some of the newest plants that have made their way into our beds. Since I use so many herbs in my cooking, the first items to go in were basil, spearmint, flat-leaf parsley, thyme and lavender. I’ve been cooking up a storm, making recipes like this that are chock-full of fresh herbs straight from the garden. And guess what? The more you use them, the faster they grow! I started out with cilantro, but it went to seed and got bitter so fast that it had to go. Next we filled in with a few more veggies, like kale and swiss chard. Yum. But most exciting of all is the fact that I finally realized my dream of having olive and meyer lemon trees in my backyard! The olives are already thriving and added so much lushness around the grill area; the lemon just went in, and is already starting to fill out with a few baby lemons starting to sprout. Can’t wait until it’s dripping with sweet meyers for the best batch of homemade lemonade this summer!
What are all of you guys planting in your gardens this spring? Any fab gardening tips you’d like to share with a newbie like me?
Camille,
We make Moroccan-style preserved lemons (using only Kosher salt – takes about a month) and have successfully cured our own olives (and added a few preserved lemon slices, fresh rosemary and black peppercorns to the brine). Email me if you want the directions for both plus photos. I think I put the preserved lemons directions on my blog but can’t remember if I’ve shared the olive information.
I’m working on starting a small collective in our neighborhood for when we make jam out of our ollalieberries this June. I would be happy to send you a small care package representative of our efforts!
Great photos of your garden; thanks for sharing!
Kathy
What a beautiful garden, Camille! x
Kate {Something Fabulous}
http://thesomethingfabulous.blogspot.com
{BESO HANDBAGS GIVEAWAY ON MY BLOG!}
That looks like a garden straight out of Napa Valley. Beautiful!
Hi Camille,
I don’t have a backyeard currently. B-U-T……last weekend I had to plant, so I gathered up all my pots (repaint all a glossy white), purchased some new ones and went plant shopping. My goal, FRAGRANCE! I chose heather, many herbs and some florals such as jasmine and gardenia (my fav!) I couldn’t resist a hydrangea either. It’s a work in progress.
I always remember going through my grandmother’s garden every visit to pick oodles of bouquets to take home. From amazing blossoming branches such as guavas or pine, to amazing camillias or magnolias, roses, always lilly of the valley and proteas.
California born and raised….btw.
We have been in our house over a year now and I really need to get moving with the herb garden…thanks so much for the inspiration!
xoxo
I love seeing your garden photos! I hope you’ll share more as things continue to grow.
I’m following the “All New Square Foot Gardening” method by Mel Bartholomew and filled my beds earlier this week with his recommended soil mix. When we get back from vacay, I’ll plant a variety of herbs and veggies. The boys love to play in the flower gardens so a veggie garden was certainly in order to help foster their curiosity and entice them to eat more veggies
My favorite tomatos are “Cherokee Purple” and I recently planted some “Chocolate Mint” that smells so so yummy! I can’t wait to try it in a cocktail or some homemade ice cream.
Your garden looks lovely and healthy.
Do you have any tips with your Meyer lemon tree? I put one in about a month or two ago and don’t see much progression. Any tips since you planted?