Thursday, September 23, 2010

Raised Herb Garden on the Boulevard

A big thank you to Buddy and his owner (SG) who walks him for spotting this lovely raised bed in a block right off Dunbar Street and pointing it out to me. The front yard is shady, but this raised bed on the boulevard is very sunny and quite productive. The height is about 16 inches, so it is easy to maintain.





I love how the thyme hangs over the south edge, and I couldn't resist taking a photo of the flowering rosemary. And for the herbally challenged, here alongside basil is a tangle of rosemary, lavender, and tarragon:

For those who want the details, here is what I saw growing: leeks, Swiss chard, sunflowers, lavender, basil, fennel, dill, a strawberry, bay laurel, tarragon, and several varieties each of sage, rosemary, and thyme. If this isn't remarkable enough for such a small plot, there may have been more earlier in the season, plus I may have missed something! Think about how good the food must be at that house, with all these fresh herbs available, most of which are perennials.

2 comments:

J. Evan Kreider said...

I see this box is more sturdy than some, using 4x4s (?) for inside supports for the outer 2xs. I can see that even if those additional supports are not pounded into the ground, they can add significant support to the structure.

Mark Kreider said...

So much joy and flavor in such a small space! I really like the "hanging garden" feature adding to the square footage of the garden without changing it's footprint. While I'm musing, this could go one step further by drilling 1" holes in the side of the planter and pushing seedlings into them. Hmmm. I may be building something new soon. Thanks for the great idea!