Those are grape tomato plants growing gracefully up the twine. Down in front are peppers, basil, and nasturtiums. There are logs as edging.
It's a full-contact sport to get in there and get the tomatoes.
I wondered if people take the tomatoes as they walk by? She doesn't think so. People would totally take the tomatoes on my street. If it's not heavy or visibly locked up, people steal it off our porch. I don't like this aspect of my street, but I know the drill. I bet if I planted things like herbs and greens without such obvious fruit, I could be the sole harvester instead of the passersby.
Here she looks through the sweet potato vine to see if the sweet potatoes are ready yet. Sweet potatoes in the front yard! No grass to mow, just a pretty green groundcover that yields food.
I was inspired by my friends' garden-yard, the blend of unfussy practicality and beauty. It's making me dream of new things for our yard.
And look, her husband made a neat ladder from fallen sticks. It reminds me of Swiss Family Robinson, which I adore.
Yes, many things to consider, even as our yard sighs gently into a cold sleep.
I love this idea. My flowers in the front yard are pretty but they sure use a lot of water and time.
ReplyDeleteI am thinking tomatoes and sweet potatoes would be great.
My neighbors, with their yards tended by lawn services, might think I've gone off the deep in though :)
Isn't it funny? I'm feeling more inspired by next year's garden then I ever thought I'd be and I'm in the process of cleaning up THIS year's. Which I'm very glad to be seeing the back side of, let me tell you.
ReplyDeleteThat's a shame you don't think you could do the same at your house. We did this at our rental (out of necessity as the only "garden" space was the front flower beds). I know we had some pilfered, but never much. Only a couple tomatoes here and there.
ReplyDeleteWe've expanded a bit into the front yard, though it is still mostly grass. Strawberries, eggplants, kale, and herbs. My neighbor smiled when she saw us planting vegetables alongside the flowers in front and said "Well, you kids sure aren't going to starve!"
I bet you are right in that no one would notice your herb garden, so perhaps that would be an agreeable middle ground.
This is incredibly popular and common in the small town nearest us. I LOVE it (sometimes it even makes me feel wistful for a "town" house). If you planted chard and cabbage and other harder-to-harvest things I wonder if they'd stay put until you got out there with your kitchen knife. Your friend's garden is lovely and I hope you can have one too.
ReplyDeleteI have a vegetable garden, but I still put some in amongst the perennials that border the house too : ) Sweet Peppers look nice that way, and lettuce or ornimental cabbage look great along the border.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the deer that eat our rhododendrons every fall would find the vegetables too, if they were hidden amongst the flowers? I might try it next year. I hope you find a way to have what you're dreaming of.
ReplyDeleteSweet potatoes on vines? You mean sprawling around in the open? What??
ReplyDeleteHow pretty.. And you just go out the front door to harvest.. fantastic.
ReplyDeleteShirley, I don't know much about growing sweet potatoes. These looked just like a pretty groundcover in the front lawn and my friend C would just poke aside the leaves to see if the potatoes were ready. I don't know how she could tell, as I was too busy eating tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteMargo, you are so kind. I'm glad my front garden bed could be inspiring!
ReplyDeleteShirley, the sweet potatoes were growing underground; the vines were sprawling on top. Sometimes as they mature, the potatoes start pushing up through the ground. They didn't get enough light to produce well, but it was a nice ground cover.
I've enjoyed the mixed vegetable and flower bed. I'm not sure what I'll try next year maybe pole beans with butternut as a ground cover.
As far as I know people didn't help themselves as they walked by. I'm sure it helped that the edibles were close to the porch and not an easy reach from the sidewalk. Although once the tomatoes started producing, I would have been happy to share.