GARDEN CROPS

Wild plants are products of their environment, and the ones that are less hardy and opportunistic don’t survive to pass on their genes. That’s why any old scrap of soil seems good enough for native plants to grow in. Garden veg is much different—your carrots, beans, squash, and lettuce are bred to produce big crops, at the expense of their survival skills. If wild plants are wolves, then garden crops are lapdogs. It’s a harsh world out there where there’s no friendly gardener to tend to you.

SITING YOUR GARDEN

Start by choosing the best place for your garden. Most vegetables and fruits need at least six hours of sun a day, so make sure that your plot gets enough light. If it gets sun all day, you’re spot-on, but if buildings or trees overshadow it, you may be limited in what you can grow.

NUTRIENT-RICH SOIL

Plants don’t grow in dirt; they grow in a complex mixture of crushed rock, minerals, organic matter, water, fungi, and other soil organisms. Plant roots even form relationships with living networks in the soil and draw nutrients from them. That’s why feeding the soil is more important than feeding plants.

FLORAL ICE CUBES

Simple, beautiful, and practical, edible flower ice cubes tick all the boxes. In essence, they are ordinary ice cubes with flowers frozen inside, which you can use to cool clear or light-colored drinks or to chill bottles of champagne. Imagine summer cocktails and parties—or, better yet, save them for winter drinks. There’s no better way to remember last year’s garden than with delicate flowers preserved as perfectly as they were on the day you picked them.

EDIBLE FLOWER FRITTATA

This is one way to have your flower garden and eat it too. Frittatas are a firmer-than-quiche egg dish that you start on the stove and finish in the oven. They’re simple to make, perfect for using up leftovers and eggs, and a delicious dish to serve up for breakfast, brunch, or anytime. What makes this frittata recipe unique is nasturtiums.

LAVENDER SHORTBREAD

Crumbly, buttery, and infused with sweet floral deliciousness. You won’t believe how easy it is to make homemade shortbread and how incredible it tastes with lavender. Though it’s a simple recipe, it’s essential to use the best-quality butter and flower buds. The latter can be dried or freshly plucked from the garden.

Gallery of Skin Care Plants

Here are some of the skin care plants that I grow in my garden and ways to use them.

Top Left Add gentle calendula flower essence to creams, balms, and handmade soap.

Bottom Left Chamomile is a skin-soothing plant and is useful for sensitive and inflamed skin.

Top Right Aloe vera gel not only soothes sunburns but is a mild astringent, helping to tighten the skin.

Bottom Right Lavender oil can help calm irritated skin and speed up healing.

Gallery of Medicinal Plants

Grow medicinal plants to support immunity, ease common ailments, and to support female health. Here are some that you could add to your garden.

Top Left Lemon balm has antiviral properties that make it useful for topical creams and salves.

Bottom Left Over time, taking feverfew could help reduce the frequency and severity

of migraines.

Top Right Valerian root has a similar effect on cats as does catnip and is used as a natural sleep aid.

Bottom Right Raspberry-leaf tea can help ease menstrual cramps.

Gallery of Plants for the Home

Growing a garden close to home makes using plants in the kitchen, laundry, and cleaning all the more convenient.

Top Left Rosemary has antimicrobial properties, useful in home cleaning products.

Bottom Left The leaves from shrubby southernwood retain their camphor scent after drying and are useful in moth-deterring sachets.

Top Right Lavender varieties high in camphor, such as Lavandula × intermedia ‘Edelweiss’, are best for repelling clothes moths.

Bottom Right Dry sweet woodruff to release its fresh scent and insect-repelling properties.