"Of Vegetables and Art - Part 3 - the Finale!"

We are harvesting daily rewards from the vegetable garden as spring becomes summer. Each night now we seem to be having at least five things from the garden. Tonight we ate our zuchinis, carrots, potatoes and chives in a 'zuchini slice' followed by youngberries for desert and cups of peppermint tea. Can there be anything more rewarding than evening harvest time?

So, tonight its the final in the series on potagers (French Ornamental Vegetable gardens) - I had aimed to write but two in this series until my web site had problems, so after describing potagers and delving into their history we're now up to.......

Getting the Balance Right

So from London and France to the backyards of Australia. How to create a potager, a vegetable garden of beauty without losing its essential purpose of producing food. Whether you are starting from scratch or already have an established vegetable garden you might like to add any of the following potager design suggestions. You can decide on the balance you want to achieve between productivity and romance, between order and charm.

Firstly you'll need an orderly pattern of beds. My potager (affectionately known as 'Petit Villandry') contains four beds of around two metres by three metres. A width of two metres will allow you to work from either side without having to trample the soil, four beds also allows for a simple four bed crop rotation.

In the most formal style each bed is edged with a low hedge of box, usually Buxus sempervirans, although other plants that do just as well include lavender, rosemary or even parsley. In my garden I haven't followed this rule as it would limit the amount that I can produce so I just rely on my rustic paths to define the edges and improve the aesthetics.

Your potager design could also include a central feature. It could be as grand as a fountain a la Versailles or quite simple. In the centre of the paved cross in our garden we have a central pot planted with a riot of tumbling nasturtiums.

If you have any vertical surfaces around your garden such as fences or walls, have some fun with the age-old technique of espalier (see an earlier blog on espaliers). Espalier makes harvesting easy, encourages fruit production and looks great! This craft was perfected by Jean de La Quintinye, the vegetable gardener to Louis XIV. La Quintinye had to be able to deliver four thousand figs and one hundred and thirty varieties of pears to his plump majesties table each day, no matter the time of year. Espalier helped him to be able to 'force' plants out of season.

A potager also needs colour. I use dahlias, cosmos, honesty, marigolds, penstemons and roses, although the floral possibilities are delightfully endless. To me, no vegetable garden seems complete without a few tall stems of the iconic sun-worshippers, the sunflowers.

Some striking structural plants will also help to unify the whole garden such as standard bay trees or tall artichokes. In our 'patch' we have a columnar 'Ballerina' apple tree in the centre of each of our four beds.

Louis XIV was so proud of his vegetable garden at Versailles he would promenade with visiting dignitaries along the avenue above the garden admiring all the gloire of his toiling gardeners below. Interestingly, visitors to our place seem to make a bee line (pun intended) for the vegetable garden. Louis was obviously on to something, productive gardens are vibrant, ever-changing places full of treasure. They require viewpoints and paths for strolling, not plots hiding behind the old shed out back. Add a seat or, if you have room, even a pergola resplendent with a whole outdoor setting. A place from where you'll be able to enjoy the work of your hands, your own little oasis of bounty, beauty and order in a chaotic world.

Bon appetit!

The extreme (potager) gardener, Paul.

Further Reading;

1. The Art of French Vegetable Gardening by Louisa Jones; Artisan, 1995
2. Kitchen Gardens of France by Louisa Jones; Thames and Hudson, 1997
3. The New Kitchen Garden by Anna Pavord; Dorling Kindersley, 1996
4. The Ornamental Vegetable Garden by Diana Anthony; UNSW Press, 1997
5. The Sun King's Garden by Ian Thompson; Bloomsburyt, 2006
6. Gardens through the Ages by Roy Strong; Conran Octopus, 1992
7. The Gardens of Villandry by Robert and Henri Carvallo; Editions Plume, 1998
8. Web; www.chateauvillandry.com

Comments

[alison]

Love the passionate gardener! You tell 'em! Not sure if I will make it to Lanyon but if I do, will see you there, need some new gloves...I chopped the finger off with my secateurs (oops, the glove not my finger...). Alison

[Estate Gardening]

Thanks, Alison
Are you sure just the glove? Get Nick to do a "finger count" - can always post you a new pair.
Paul "the passionate retailer"