I'm sorry Joel Salatin, but I've gotta disagree with you on one very, important point. That is, that the aesthetics of the farm DO MATTER.
At least, they matter to me. I can't help myself. It all began with Project Feminize that reared it's head a few years back in an effort to rescue my butch decorating style (rooted in my poor and tasteless college days).
Since then, I've been growing and changing (as we all do) and thanks in part to my dear friend Angela, The Parisienne Farmgirl, I've been inspired once again to continually up the visual-awesomeness of the farm.
You see, here, we're more than just creating a farm. We're creating a hub. A place. A community. Something magical.
When people come to visit the farm for fermenting or butchering classes (hey, let a girl dream here!), I want them to be transported to Narnia. Or the French countryside. Or somewhere radical like that.
And so, on top of the functional-chores of the farm, such as mending fences, digging holes, irrigating pasture, and hauling manure, I've set my eye on something aesthetic as well.
Planning a potager garden.
Which is a fancy word for ornamental french kitchen garden.
Which is a fancy way to say a purposefully beautiful garden.
Though my gardens are fenced and well maintained, they're not designed to be aesthetically pleasing per se. They're beautiful, sure, but not in the traditional potager way. Potagers are magical. Incorporating both edible and non-edible plants and flowers, they're the creme de la creme of gardens, as far as I'm concerned.
Lucky for me, Stu's a bit of a lover of magic. If he could live in The Shire, he would. So he's been totally behind the transformation of a small bit of our land into our own little version of such.
Planning A Potager
1. Establish The Space
When we first arrived on our farm two years ago, this lower section was weeds, scrap metal, and sage brush. Since then, we've revamped and expanded the chicken coop, put in a chicken run, built a greenhouse, and sectioned off a large portion of it for a vegetable garden. We've built two retaining walls, planted raspberries and lavender (ahem, twice), removed a cinder block fire pit, took a load of scrap metal to the dump, cleared brush, and layed down wood chip mulch to deter the weeds. What we were left with was a blank, and slightly beautiful, canvas.
This was the space. This was the area I wanted to turn into The Potager. It's the piece of the property where we spent hours each day… gathering eggs, weeding the garden, tending to the greenhouse. It's the piece of the property that we look out over from out kitchen window, the deck, and dining room table. It's an important showcase piece on the property. And it's time to celebrate it's awesomeness.
2. Let The Creative Juices Flow
Dreaming is one of my most favorite things to do. I like to think… visualize… daydream about the possibilities. After watching yet another episode of River Cottage in which Hugh transforms an old dairy farm into the dreamy River Cottage HQ, I couldn't sleep. My mind was raising! Ideas started shooting from my eyes like laser beams.
My husband hates it when that happens because it usually means work for him. Ding ding ding! Sorry honey, you were right about that.
I began to doodle and sketch possible layouts and ideas. Angela recommends having a focal point in the garden. What would our potager's be?
I don't know yet, lest you think I had some great plan to share with you. I don't. Because I'm still dreaming! Well… dreaming while beginning the manual labor portion of the project.
All that to say, let the creative juices flow, baby! Pinterest. Magazines. Blogs. Friend's gardens. Gathering inspiration has got to be my favorite part of this entire process. If every day of my life could be spent sipping London Fogs and peacefully walking through gardens, I'd be a happy farmer.
Angela, watch out. I'm coming to Chicago to photograph and covet your garden.
3. Where Beauty Meets Function
The Function
Our entire farm is a functional place. Things serve a purpose. Even the flowers that will be planted in the potager will be of assistance to our bees. Herbs and vegetables will be grown alongside climbing roses and bachelor buttons. What a beautiful, and yet functional, place to create!
Thinking about how the space will (and needs to be!) utilized will help determine how the beauty needs to be tempered into the space. Because I use my EZ Go golfcart for all my hauling around the farm, I had to design the paths large enough for it to get in and out of the garden easily. I'm attempting to keep the space functional to the work centered in the area, chickens and vegetables primarily, while still creating a natural, free-form layout for the gardens.
Utilizing free rock gathered from my sister's property, Georgia helped me “draw” out a rough layout of the potager and the shape of the different beds. While many traditional potagers are based on geometric shaped beds, I tend to prefer a slightly more natural free-form feel. We incorporated a few small waves and turns in the path to acquire that.
Of course, some of that was just from Georgia putting rocks where I told her not to. But let's not focus on the details of that.
I let the rocks sit for a day or two as I moved around the space, trying to be conscience of where and how I moved around the area. Were the paths in the right spot? Did the width of the beds work with my maneuvering around the space?
Mama's only hauling the dirt in once man. Once it's there, I ain't moving it again. So let's make sure that the function portion of the potager is attended to.
The Beauty
What's great about a potager garden is that even the beauty is still functional in many ways. Yes, I'm planning and planting a variety of flowers, but even some of those are edible! It's a lovely marriage between perennial herbs, annual vegetables, and even edible flowers.
For example, I'm including a pear tree. Functional in the fact that it provides shade for many shade loving plants and vegetables (hello, lettuce!) and provides us with fruit, while at the same time looking pretty dang beautiful.
Even the pure beauty of hydrangeas and peonies serve a purpose: providing us with fresh flowers and providing food for our bees!
Thyme, sage, potted rosemary, black eyed susans, clematis, honeysuckle, roses, peonies, lambs ear, strawberries, the list goes on! Some of the them were chosen for their function, others for their beauty.
Isn't it a wonderful relationship between the two?
We've got the space. We've got the creative juices flowing. We've got the function and the beauty intertwined.
While there's certainly no one way to build or plan a potager, focusing on these few points has helped give shape to mine.
Now, we've got to get to work.
Good thing we don't have anything else going on around here…
*cough* Calving soon.
*cough* Meat chickens and new laying hens to care for.
*cough* Finishing up Stu's school year at the school…
*cough* That little thing called ‘parenting'…
Still, today, I'm inviting my family into The Potager to plant, to dig, to shovel, to dream. And Amen.
More Potager posts:
Christi {Jealous Hands}
Angela was the inspiration behind our postager as well. And I love it! Cannot wait to see your ideas come to life!
Laurie
I love Joel Salatin’s wisdom and knowledge. Buuut with that said I too want my place to look beautiful. Function then beauty, winning combination. I like it when I can look over my property, and see beauty…it does a persons soul some good, it recharges the batteries of our internal peace. Why have clutter and hibbily-jibbily buildings when you can have something that pleases our eyes and heart.
Christi {Jealous Hands}
And also, would love to hear more about what you’re planting! 🙂
Mary
ummmm I’m sorry but I couldn’t take my eyes off of that view! Wow its magnificent! What a beautiful piece of land you have, and I’m sure any garden you plant will just enhance the beauty. Can’t wait to see how it all turns out!
Rachel
…and Polyface is absolutely gorgeous. I mean it. It’s stunning.
Clare
Shaye, I tell you what, this summer I’ll come visit you. you can teach me all about fermenting & butchering, and I will gladly help you with all the things involved in farm duty. — I can ditch my own. but really, I dream of it.
Loren
i love the idea of a potager! Also, where do you watch river cottages? That sounds like a cool show and I’ve never heard of it.
Becky
This post has inspired me to add more beauty to my garden. Just because its for growing food doesn’t mean it can’t be pretty!!
When I get some changes done, I will take pictures.
Camille
I am officially addicted to your blog, Dear One. I actually clap my hands and do a little chair dance when I see your email in my box. Silly, huh? Well, I don’t care. I LOVE your writing style. I LOVE what you’re doing. I LOVE your “vibe”. Lastly (but not least!), you inspire ME to keep my own dream alive. That is, to move back to Washington (soon, soon?!) and have my own little slice of heaven. Mine will be filled with wild horses (yes, I’m talking about a LOT of land) and assorted other critters I will rescue. But there will also be gardens galore and laying hens and a few goats and a place where I can teach Humans about our divine relationship with Critters. It’s MY calling. You have children; I have Critters. THEY are my children. And I know, without a doubt, that I am here, on this lovely Planet, to attend to them. So, thank you. Again. For taking the time to write and share and BE. You are SPLENDID!
Candi
I guess I’ve had a potager for years but had no idea what to call it!
I love a Garden that is as beautiful as it is fruitful!
fiona
Your garden looks amazing and you have beautiful views !!! ps i loooooooovvvvveee river cottage and i own the whole collections plus some of his cook books.
Mary
We have just begun our Homesteading adventures. Since moving here March of this year I have been ripping up, ripping out and carrying off anything and everything I can get my hands on with one goal in mind…Homestead Bliss! I want our little slice of heaven to have a feel as well as a purpose. Thank you for confirming my thoughts ! I am not crazy as my husband would lead you to believe. There is beauty in function and function in beauty!
BTW..on “The Ronderosa” we have limited internet…I dearly miss my daily Pinterest addiction…I mean visits! Guess that leaves more time for the chickens, goats, donkey, rabbit, dogs, veggies, herbs, family AND laundry! WOW! Just saying….
Barbara
Oh what a neat and beautiful blog you have. I am not a homesteaderer not do we own enough land to farm but I love reading about others who do. It gives me ideas to incorporate into our small area of paradise. I love the way you express yourself and the photos you share. I love what you are doing on your land and especially the potager garden. I am going to see if I can incorporate your idea into my strawberry patch. I am a lover of esthetics and feel a kindred spirit in you. Thanks for the neat blog.