Hello again,

After learning about no dig gardening and deciding you might like to try it you’ll be super excited about what you can actually put in your new garden. 

Last year we had our seeds bought and started before we even had a garden to put them in. I had planned the approximate size I wanted but it took several drawings to finalize the shape and structure. 

We had spent the winter watching Monty Don’s French and Italian Gardens and the beauty and structure definitely appealed to both of us. We wanted more of a potager than a standard farmer’s garden. Something with form and function. We also had a bit of a strange shape for perfect symmetry because our driveway is on an angle. So this is what we came up with. 

Potager

At its most basic, potager is the French word for vegetable garden.

Were we completely keeping with the Scottish theme we would have used the word ‘kailyaird’. But, as Josh has some French back in his Jersey Island side, and we love the concept, we chose potager.  The word encompasses more than just vegetables. 

A potager usually has a central focal point - we chose the gazebo frame that we already had. It also looks to create an area which is not only productive, but ornamental too.

We tried to keep our hardscaping very formal and geometric and then the plants could be freer and more organic. We grew flowers throughout in a riot of colours to add joy and beauty. It was a lovely space to go and sip a cup of coffee in the morning, or wine in the evening. We’re looking forward to making it even better each year based on the lessons we glean from the years previous.

We had a gazebo frame, sans cover, that I thought would work well in the center as a trellis for our beans, cucumbers and some morning glories. So we roughed in that central shape and built around it based on the space available. The amount of wood also had me change up just how many paths and cuts we'd have to make. We made do with what we had. 

Seed choices were a mix of this sounds delicious and seems to be easy to grow, or I just want to try it. 

I did a lot of research on companion planting, who likes who, who shouldn't be put next to each other and what can be planted in succession. We don't have the longest growing season so watching Charles Dowding’s succession planting in England made me a bit sad. Oh well, no point focusing on what we can’t do. Let’s focus on the possibilities of Zone 5. And my many hash ups. 

I ordered my seeds last year from Hawthorn Farm Organic Seeds. I wanted local(Ontario), organic seeds and they fit the bill. I did a lot of research and here is the compilation of my efforts. 

Let’s begin with the seeds started in order for 2020 …

First up: Wild Bergamot