Kitchen Garden Design Ideas

Grown right outside of the home, the convenience of having a kitchen garden in your backyard can be very time saving. In today's world of large supermarkets, most do not have kitchen gardens anymore and all sorts of foods are available year round without any direct effort of having grown them. Despite this allure, the convenience of having a kitchen garden is still very real, and until you've tried the deliciousness of a homegrown oregano in your pasta sauce that was picked right outside your back door, you may not realize what you are missing.

There is some initial work and investment involved in any garden, but be extremely simple and not a lot of work or investment. You can invest in designing a small area and have it landscaped to create a beautiful backyard garden, or you can purchase a few large pots and have them set right outside of your back door for easy access. What's more important about your kitchen garden is what you choose to grow.

Many people with kitchen gardens choose to grow herb plants that they would regularly purchase at the grocery store. This is especially popular with immigrants from other countries. They often bring or order seeds from their native homelands and grow them on here in their kitchen gardens so that they can continue to enjoy many of the same foods that they relied upon in their home countries. For example, Italian immigrants used to have gardens filled with spices and greens that they used in Italy in their everyday cooking and to help supplement what they purchased here. Asians brought over seeds of bitter melon and various cabbages for staples in their cooking. Many hybrid dishes have been made that way and are staples in American cooking today.

Starting with perennial herbs and perennial vegetables that are incredibly easy to grow crops is recommended. Rosemary, chives, oregano, thyme, sage, rhubarb and asparagus make a good base for adding annual herbs and vegetables. These base herbs will carry any cook throughout many dishes summer through winter. Supplemented annual herbs can be harvested and frozen or dried for off season use.

Seasonal vegetables that are popular with kitchen gardens are tomatoes. As the countries' most popular garden vegetable, the tomato makes the backbone of most kitchen gardens and for great reason. Ready right off of the vine in the summer, tomatoes are a real treat fresh from the back yard! They taste much sweeter and balanced than grocery store tomatoes, and with the heirloom revival tomatoes are also beautiful and varied in shape and textures.

Peppers are another backyard garden favorite. They too can be easily preserved and enjoyed fresh, and growing your own peppers will save you lots of money on grocery shopping. If you've never enjoyed the health benefits and ease of growing delicious fresh peppers before you should. Even kitchen gardens in the far north can enjoy a harvest of sweet peppers with the right varieties grown. Both tomatoes and peppers are as easily grown in containers as they are in the ground.

Lettuces and other greens are another great seasonal kitchen garden additions. There are many kinds of lettuce with many flavors, many of which you can normally only find in fancy expensive restaurants. Grow them yourself at home and enjoy gourmet right outside of your back door cheaply! Other seasonal greens such as Swiss chard, healthy spinach, cabbage, and micro greens are all expensive from the store too, and are so easy to grow at home. Save money on grocery shopping by growing your own greens.

Today, families are eating healthier and are more concerned about the quality and taste of their food. If you're still not sure about the convenience of a kitchen garden, try growing a few plants in containers and watch your family enjoy the ease of picking fresh herbs for adding to the family meal. Children love growing and harvesting these foods and the kitchen garden can become a project for the entire family!