Vegetable and Herb Garden Design - Some Useful Tips

Before you settle down to start planting your garden, there are a few questions you should ask yourself while you plan your vegetable garden design or herb garden design. The first and most important question to ask is: How much time are you willing to spend on taking care of your garden?

Someone who doesn't work a full time job will have more time to spend maintaining a vegetable or herb garden than someone who works fifty plus hours a week. And a homemaker might be more likely to make use of the fresh herbs and vegetables since they will have the time to harvest them.

When it comes to size, herb garden design and vegetable garden design can be quite varied. It is easier to keep and maintain a sizable vegetable garden since, unlike a herb garden, vegetables allow for a simple routine of watering, fertilizing, and harvesting to keep them in top shape.

An herb garden requires more care per square inch due to the simple fact that different herbs have to be harvested at different times to get the best flavor and the best quality. If you want to harvest for essential oils as well as for cooking herbs, then you might end up cutting from some plants twice, or even twice as many plants. With vegetable garden design, you need to keep in mind that the plants tend to be larger with larger harvests.

And consider where you are going to put your garden. When considering herb garden design or vegetable garden design you have to know how much room you have. You might be lucky enough to have a lot of room, which means you can plant both herbs and vegetables.

Surprisingly, it's easier to take care of two gardens at once since they each have their own schedules. When considering herb garden design, plant the herbs close to the house or, if you are using containers, keep the pots nearby to make it easier to maintain and harvest.

Unlike vegetable gardens, where you harvest based on how large the vegetables have grown, herbs are collected when you need them. It's easier and more convenient when your herb garden is just outside the back door.

If you do decide to plant your herbs in containers and pots, you have the option of moving them inside or into a greenhouse when the weather gets bad, or even keeping choice herbs indoors if you use them often.

In your herb garden design and vegetable garden design, keep space in mind! Vegetable plants grow much taller than herbs. This means they can shade nearby, smaller plants, like herbs, and not allow them to get all the sunlight they need. This is also something to keep in mind with a garden that is only vegetables, as taller plants will always shade smaller plants.

And don't forget that, before planting any vegetables or putting any plant into a pot, you should keep an eye on spacing and sunlight, reading the directions on labels and seed packets to know what each plant needs. You want to be able to get to every plant well after its gown up, so make sure to keep enough room between the plants for you to get in there.

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Inspiring and Intricate Herb Garden Designs

The history of garden design dates back to 1500 BC. The earliest evidence of horticulture and landscaping is in the form of Egyptian tomb paintings depicting lotus ponds surrounded by symmetrical rows of acacias and palms. The famous Hanging gardens of Babylon were known as one of the wonders of the world. Temple gardens contained vegetables and herbs that were considered sacred. In the middle age, sophisticated herb garden designs and horticulture techniques were developed by monasteries. Monks grew medicinal herbs and treated the sick fellow monks and the community who were suffering from ailments with these healing herbs. The wealthy Romans built villas with water cascades, topiary, rose and shaded arcades. Much of the present modern herb garden design is influenced and inspired by the intricate, traditional Persian, Zen and Italian Renaissance gardens.

Your herb garden design should reflect the inspiration and theme. Herb garden may be one of the various design styles and techniques brought out below:

Knot Herb Garden Design

Knot gardens are symmetrically-designed gardens using geometric patterns with fantastic view obtained from trimming the plants in a knotted shape. It requires constant grooming and keeping the defined shapes by the precise pruning of edges. Herbs that work well in knot gardens are those that can be trimmed and designed into hedge. Varieties of dwarf herbs, such as Thyme, Chamomile and Lavender are good choices. Some possible patterns for a modern knot garden can be Diamonds, Oblongs, Diagonal crossings, Triangles and Wheels. These patterns can have divisions for different herbs that can be segregated according to hues, contrasts and fragrances.

English Cottage Herb Garden Design

There are two types of English herb gardens. The informal types are called Cottage gardens and are used for culinary and medicinal properties. The second are the formal gardens built for aesthetics and visual appeal. These gardens were structured and used knots and overlapped with row plants. Lavender and Thyme are ideal and widely used in English herb gardens. English cottage gardens are popular in American circles and widely emulated for their wild abundance of perennial flowers and herbs, vine-covered arbors, and plants tumbling over walkways.

Tuscan Herb garden Design

Tuscan herb gardens incorporate traditional elements in style and the design contains elements, that are characterized by both plants and the accessories. One of the important features in Tuscan garden design is the use of vases, urns, and terra cotta pots to grow your herbs in. Though you are expected to use a hoard of garden containers to create your Tuscan garden design, you don't really have to spend a fortune for buying vases and pots. The herb garden looks perfect in its rustic look even when it is cultivated in chipped and cracked pots. Use of Italian herbs is best for the Tuscan design with optional inclusion of poppies and flowers. Use of a trellis and grape vine or grape ivy to create a look of Italy's tradition of fine wines will give a stunning look to your Tuscan herb garden.

Topiary Herb Garden Design

Topiary is a formal garden design that uses the art of pruning and training plants and shrubs into decorative shapes. It goes as far back as the Romans, but many of the artistic forms or prunings were developed in Europe. Massive topiary shapes of animals, birds and sculptures can be created out of tight evergreen bushes or hedges. You are not expected to craft elaborate sculptures out of the herbs, use simple topiary design that will enhance your herb garden giving it an artistic view.

Landscaping the herb garden doesn't require high degree of professional skills. Using stones and rocks in home gardens provide a seat of tranquility for reflection and relaxation. Caring and tending for a garden can lower blood pressure, ease anxiety, divert stressful memories and help in conjuring good thoughts that have a lingering beneficial effect on the subconscious mind. Reserve a part of the garden to enjoy a few minutes of solitude, meditation and prayer. The mind can rest and the eyes can feast on diverse muddle of colorful herbs, blooms and flowering plants, distributed in a seemingly haphazard but pleasing style, apparently evoking thoughts of a "natural landscape." The symphony and aura of herbs with flowers in the overall composition, and the wildness of the arrangement gives rise to a closer communing with nature.

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Essentials Of Herb Garden Design

Herb garden designs vary depending on the needs and preferences of their designers. They also differ in regards to their overall purpose. For example, an informal herb garden can be designed alongside vegetables and other flowering plants as well as various shrubs and trees.

How to Design an Herb Garden
When designing an herb garden, you should consider how it will be used beforehand and plan accordingly. For instance, kitchen gardens should be located near the home for easy access to herbs as needed during harvesting.

The most basic herb garden needs to be located in an area receiving at least 4-6 hours of sunlight. All plants should be easily accessible, especially when used for cooking or dried arrangements.

Generally, herb gardens include an interesting focal point in the center such as a birdbath, fountain, sundial, etc. This also depends on its purpose and your personal taste.

Basic Herb Garden Design Themes
Themes are popular when designing an herb garden. Themes can include the use of specific colors, aromas, plants, etc. Herbs are typically chosen based on the theme. Various themes can be used to separate individual garden beds too.

For instance, herbs sharing a specific color can be grouped together in one area. In another, you may have a scented herb garden filled with aromatic herb plants such as various types of mint.

Themes are popular when designing an herb garden. Themes can include the use of specific colors, aromas, plants, etc. Herbs are typically chosen based on the theme. Various themes can be used to separate individual garden beds too.

For instance, herbs sharing a specific color can be grouped together in one area. In another, you may have a scented herb garden filled with aromatic herb plants such as various types of mint.

In addition, one might prefer different varieties of one herb plant. Another option might include a specific locale, such as an Italian herb garden filled with Italian herbs like basil, parsley, oregano, rosemary, etc.

Formal Design Herb Garden
Formal herb gardens are also popular. This symmetrical type of herb garden uses plants to create geometric designs and textures, such as a circle or square. Herbs are typically arranged by height, color, and use with walkways or paths separating beds that are of equal size.

Knot gardens are a commonly seen formal design herb garden. These gardens are often edged with low-growing hedges, like boxwood. They may also include some type of statuary or topiary focal point.

Spiral herb gardens take on a circular shape and are generally built up in tiers. While these are also popular, they are usually less formal in appearance.

Container Herb Garden Designs
Many herbs can be successfully grown in containers. Container-grown herbs can be designed to accommodate nearly any setting or need and are a great alternative to gardening in small areas. They can also be arranged into attractive groupings and changed around or moved as needed.

There are different ways to design an herb garden. The best design is one that works for you and meets all your expectations.

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Easy Guide to Herb Garden Designs

In the past herb garden designs were dictated by the herbs planted in them and classified as useful or ornamental. Truth of the matter is you can mix and match the following ideas to originate your very own special herb garden designs. It's your garden after all and like art these designs express your unique inner soul.

Yet, contrary to expectation, the first step in creating your herb garden designs is not to immediately draw your designs but to first list down the reasons for which you want to have your own herb garden.

Once you have your reasons listed down you can then match against those reasons, the herbs that will provide you with the solutions for your bespoke herb garden designs. Consider at this stage:

o their usefulness (for cooking, herbal remedies for ailments, for decoration in the house and so on)

o their looks, colours and fragrances and how you can group them together according to good herb gardening principles.

o their size and height - for deciding which to plant in front of which.

o the location and size (length and breadth) of the garden and how the plants can fit into that space aesthetically.

o how you would arrange the plants in the garden on the basis of their attributes and environmental requirements.

For your herb garden designs, you can decide on how your herb plants can be grown,

o in the ground in a formal structure or informal and casual, according to their purpose like the kitchen garden outside the kitchen door.

o in pots that are casually arranged on the patio

o in designer or specially constructed containers indoors or outdoors

o in single containers like:
o a windowsill box
o a ceramic or terracotta "strawberry" pot
o an herb garden kit.
o Even an old chimney pot can make an attractive display.
o You can use old tyres, cracked teapots, old pails, etc. Be selective though as the containers used will set the tone of the garden.

After jotting down all your requirements it is then time to put them together into the visualisation of the herb garden designs that will meet most if not all the needs you have written down.

Take your time and pleasure in creating your herb garden designs in your imagination. The more time, thought, colour and movement you visualise, the more real your vision becomes and the more useful and beautiful your garden will turn out to be for you.

The physical aspects of your herb garden designs can be:

o Large, formal and structured - utilitarian or ornamental. This is usually a walled garden that is rectangular in shape and divided into two parallel rows which are then subdivided into a number of beds that will each hold a specific group of herbs.

You can also divide the plot up into a number of squares or rectangles or even triangles laid out in a simple pattern to fit into the plot of available land. There could then be pathways cut out, normally in a symmetrical design that has the specific purpose of allowing easy access to each herb bed.

It would not be unthinkable to have a kitchen garden in a formal setting that incorporates a healing garden in the centre of it.

o In medieval times there were herb garden designs created purely for pleasure. The gardens may be smaller in size, probably a little structured and housed plants that had been chosen for their aroma and beauty, a place where one can sit down to enjoy the sights, sounds and scents.

o Formal herb garden designs later on took on the more complicated pattern made up of squares, rectangles and especially knots which were particularly popular in pleasure gardens.

o Unstructured herb garden designs include plants that had been selected for their particular use like culinary plants near the kitchen door.

o Herb garden designs for the indoors include potted herbs in containers for decorative purposes. It would be hard to avoid the usefulness of the herbal crops even though your intention was not focused on using the herbs.

o Outdoors in containers on the patio.

o On a purpose built rooftop garden

Just ensure that the three main rules for gardening are met if you expect success. They are sufficient lighting (natural or fluorescent), water and well drained soil.

By the way, there is no rule to say that you can have only one garden. You can have one indoors in addition to the one outdoors!

Whatever the purpose of your herb garden designs, take the opportunity to add an ornamental aspect to it. This will enhance and extend greatly your enjoyment of it.

If you need guidance on the exact steps to take to give you the assured outcome you desire then evaluate "Successful Herb Gardening ~ Step-by-Step" at 100% risk free. You can download it whenever you wish at the Herb Gardening Site.

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