Kitchen Garden Revival: A modern guide to creating a stylish small-scale, low-maintenance edible garden

by Nicole Johnsey Burke, Eric Kelley (Photographer)

Overview

Elevate your backyard veggie patch into a work of sophisticated and stylish art. Kitchen Garden Revival guides you through every aspect of kitchen gardening, from design to harvesting.

Author Nicole Johnsey Burke, founder of Rooted Garden, one of the leading US culinary landscape companies, and Gardenary, an online kitchen gardening education and resource company, leads the way with expert advice.

Participating in the grow-your-own movement is important to both reduce your food miles and control what makes it onto your family’s table. If you’ve hesitated to take part because installing and caring for a traditional vegetable garden doesn’t seem to suit your life or your sense of style, Kitchen Garden Revival is here to show you there’s a better, more beautiful way to grow food.

Instead of row after row of cabbage and pepper plants plunked into a patch of dirt in the middle of the yard, kitchen gardens are attractive, highly tailored food gardens consisting of easy-to-maintain raised planting beds laid out in an organized geometric pattern. Offering both four seasons of ornamental interest and plenty of fresh, homegrown fruits, vegetables, and herbs, kitchen gardens are the way to grow your own food in a fashionable, modern, and practical way.

Kitchen gardens were once popular features of the European and early American landscape, but they fell out of favor when our agrarian roots were displaced by industrialization. With this accessible and inspirational guide, Nicole aims to return the kitchen garden to its rightful place just outside of every backdoor.

Learn the art of kitchen gardening as you discover: 

• What characteristics all kitchen gardens have in common
• How to design and install gorgeous kitchen garden beds using metal, wood, or stone
• Why raised beds mean reduced maintenance
• What crops are best for your kitchen garden 
• A planting, tending, and harvesting plan developed by a pro
• Season-by-season growing guides 

It’s time to join the Kitchen Garden Revival and start growing your own delicious, organic food. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780760366868
Publisher:	Cool Springs Press
Publication date:	05/05/2020
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	121,171
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Nicole Johnsey Burke is the founder of Rooted Garden, one of the leading culinary landscape companies in the US. They’ve worked with clients to design and build hundreds of kitchen gardens and provide the knowledge and resources their clients need to grow their own beautiful and delicious kitchen garden. Based in both Houston, Texas, and Chicago, Illinois, Nicole conducts dozens of personal on-site workshops each year to share her knowledge of kitchen gardening. She’s also the force behind the website Gardenary, an online kitchen garden education and resource company that makes learning how to kitchen garden easy through digital courses and online garden coaching. Nicole’s mission is to see every family growing some of their own food and for kitchen gardens to become an ordinary part of everyday life once again. 

Eric Kelley was named one of the top photographers in the country by Harper's Bazaar and Martha Stewart Weddings. He travels internationally to photograph weddings and events and is known for his authentic and delightful imagery. His work has been featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, The Knot, Southern Living Weddings, Style Me Pretty, and many other publications. Eric received a BA in Fine Art from the University of Virginia. His goal is to create imagery that stands the test of time in a flawless and personable way. Eric lives in Charlottesville, Virginia. Learn more at erickelley.com. 

Table of Contents

Preface 8

Introduction: What's a Kitchen Garden and Why It's Time for a Revival 11

Part 1 Creating the Kitchen Garden 15

Chapter 1 Site: Find the Perfect Kitchen Garden Spot 17

Chapter 2 Gather: Select Your Kitchen Garden Elements 45

Chapter 3 Frame: Install the Kitchen Garden Structures 65

Chapter 4 Fill: Add Soil and Water 85

Part 2 Growing the Kitchen Garden 103

Chapter 5 Plan: Create Your Kitchen Garden Calendar 105

Chapter 6 Plant: Begin to Grow In Your Kitchen Garden 131

Chapter 7 Tend: How to Care for Your Kitchen Garden 161

Chapter 8 Harvest: Ways to Enjoy Kitchen Garden Growth 177

Appendix 1 How to Take the Next Step in the Kitchen Garden Revival 196

Appendix 2 Garden Listing 197

Appendix 3 Celebrate Local 198

Resources 199

About the Author 200

About the Photographer 201

Acknowledgments 202

Index 203

Editorial Reviews

One of the other things I really loved about Kitchen Garden Revival is Nicole’s new takes on established garden ideas.”—The Kitchen Garten

“Whether the reader is a novice or experienced gardener, Kitchen Garden Revival offers information that is practical and helpful. Eric Kelley’s 230 color photos add clarity and beauty to the written word.”—OregonLive.com

“Burke’s book is filled with witty, easily-read information. The facts are intermixed with humorous stories of her mistakes while attaining her self-taught expertise.”—Triangle Garden

Not only will you learn about what crops to grow and when, but the book also guides readers through the process of building a garden and its benefits.—LifeSavvy.com

From the Publisher