I took a solo vacation in southern France a few years ago. I stayed in an old country-estate-turned-inn that packaged a cozy room, meals and touring bicycle with GPS to guide guests through the spectacular Provence countryside. The innkeeper Nick, was both cycling fanatic and chef. On arrival, he showed me to my room with its view of Mont Ventoux (stage 15 of the 2013 Tour de France) and promised me a culinary experience each evening at the end of each day of cycling.
My first ride was to Menerbes, a mountain top, walled village made famous by British author Peter Mayle in his book A Year in Provence. I returned to the inn with rubbery legs and my appetite piqued for the evening meal. I sat on the inn’s terrasse, indulged in the lavender and herb scented air and sipped wine from nearby Avignon.
That evening meal represented the bounty of the region. I leaned close to my plate and breathed in bold, fresh fragrance before taking my first bite. I learned that Nick’s secret to preparing meals that were so seductive was his potager garden near the kitchen door.
Tennis ball courgette, sungold tomatoes, purple and green beans harvested from my garden…colorful in the ground and on the kitchen table.
A potager garden contains edible plants selected for their ornamental qualities to create a garden that is both functional and beautiful. Pronounced puh ta zhay, the fashionable French love formal and symmetrically designed potager gardens, but they can be as complicated or easy going as you want. In my case, it’s the latter.
The memory of Nick’s meals and garden inspired me to rethink my edible garden…starting with growing essentials for Herbes de Provence. This classic blend of dried thyme, savory, oregano, rosemary, marjoram and lavender is a staple in kitchens across France and around the world.
While some recipes for this herbal blend refer to lavender as optional, for me it is essential. I love its taste and fragrance in quinoa salad, fennel butter rubbed roasted leg of lamb and even buttery shortbread cookies. Perennial herb transplants are available in a surprisingly large variety and will come back every year making transplants a smart, one time investment.
A few years earlier I had excavated a 5x7 garden bed in a sunny area of my small urban backyard. I grew tennis ball courgette, bite-sized peppers, scarlet runner beans and pretty (and edible) nasturtiums that I enjoyed looking at from my kitchen window. Surrounded by dry stacked stone walls, this bed was perfect for perennial herbs like mint that like to run amok.
Generally, perennial herbs are fairly easy to grow. They need rich, well-drained soil, regular watering, minimal pruning to keep them looking their best and a bit of fertilizing during the growing season. Some, like lavender, can tolerate full sun and drought while others prefer a bit of shade...but for the most part most people with a spot of soil can grow herbs.
Scarlet runner beans climb high on bamboo tuteurs.
I created a list of my favorite perennial herbs and went shopping. I found variegated lemon thyme and a tri-colour sage that is green, gold and purple. I selected perennial herbs too…winter savory, sweet marjoram and Moroccan mint for use in my favorite Thai spring roll recipe. Woody rosemary plants offer year round structural interest in the garden and is available in a range of flavors…allowed to grow, its cut stems can be soaked in water to use as flavorful skewer for meat or veggies on the grill.
French lavender offers both ornamental and edible qualities making it the perfect potager plant. It's fragrant upright purple blooms and silver fine leaves are so beautiful…and like rosemary, it is a woody plant offering year round interest.
Annual nasturtiums are pretty and edible too…they are a hardy and fast growing plant that will tumble over and soften the rock walls while adding brilliant shades of orange, yellow and red. I love their freshness along side classic green Dolce Fresca basil. The green variety of basil is used in pesto while the purple variety can be chopped up in sungold tomato salad.
Placement of plants is important to consider. Quick growing mesclun greens and flowering chives will be planted at the perimeter for easy reach while scarlet runner beans will climb tuteurs bringing food for pollinators, create shade for tender herbs like basil and increase production from a small space.
Orange nasturtium, yellow tennis ball courgette and shiny green peppers provide beautiful color in the potager.
I'll eat herbs fresh all summer and in the fall I'll let the sun dry off the morning dew before cutting and tieing leaves and stems into small bundles. They'll be hung (flowers facing down) in a dry, warm spot inside paper bags that have been punctured with a few holes. After harvesting, the plants will be cut back based on their unique needs. Woody rosemary and lavender branches, however, keep branches and leaves intact so they can rejuvenate themselves the following spring.
With a bit of planning and research, a potager garden can be created without a lot of skill or land. Growing herbs will be my pleasure...and each meal will remind me of the scent and taste of Provence without leaving home.