A kitchen garden, or potager, is close to the house, and helps fill the kitchen table with food. Both my front and back yards are formal kitchen gardens, where I grow fruits, vegetables, and herbs. I have 31 fruit trees and several grape vines.

You can see more pictures of my backyard garden on my Edible Landscaping page. You can see pictures of my White Garden, which is in my front yard, and is also filled with edibles, here.

I live in the desert in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the United States. I garden in a zone 9. My garden calendar can be found here.

Summer Fruits

 

“An almost forgotten means of economic self-reliance is the home production of food. We are too accustomed to going to stores and purchasing what we need. By producing some of our food we reduce, to a great extent, the impact of inflation on our money. More importantly, we learn how to produce our own food and involve all family members in a beneficial project. No more timely counsel, I feel, has been given by President Kimball than his repeated emphasis to grow our own gardens. . . .

“We encourage you to grow all the food that you feasibly can on your own property. Berry bushes, grapevines, fruit trees—plant them if your climate is right for their growth. Grow vegetables and eat them from your own yard.”

(Ensign, May 1976, p. 124).

Ezra Taft Benson, Former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, “Prepare for the Days of Tribulation,” Ensign, Nov 1980, 32

February Rain in the Garden The Prudent Homemaker

Grapes The Prudent Homemaker

Pomegranates on Scale The Prudent Homemaker

Apricots in Wire Basket The Prudent Homemaker

 

What I Grow in My Garden

 
 
Herb Garden
 
 
Borage
Cilantro
Chives

Chocolate Mint

English Thyme
French Tarragon
Garlic Chives
Genovese Basil
German Chamomile
Greek Oregano
Italian Parsley

Lemon Verbena

Peppermint
Rosemary
Sage
Spearmint
Sweet Lavender
 
 
 
Vegetable Garden
 
 
Armenian Cucumbers

Artichokes

Asparagus

Acorn Squash

Beets

Butternut Squash

Green Onions
Lettuce

Leeks

Radishes

Red Noodle Beans

Spinach
Snow Peas
Swiss Chard
Early Girl Tomatoes

Sun Gold Tomatoes

Yellow Pear Tomatoes
Turnips
Zucchini
 
 
 
Fruits
 
 
Early Elberta Peach 
Desert Gold Peach (2)
Katy Apricot (2)
Royal Apricot

Almond (2)

Pistachio (1 male Peters and  1 female Kermann)

Mission Fig
Bartlett Pears (2)
Pomegranate (4)
Meyer Lemons (6)
Dancy Mandarin (2)

Concord Grapes

Thompson’s Seedless Green Grapes
Blackberries
 
Flowers
 

Daffodils

Hibiscus

Johnny Jump-ups

Nasturiums

Lilacs

Lilies

Pansies

Paperwhites

Poppies
Rocket Larkspur

David Austin Roses: Graham Thomas, The Shepherdess, The Alnwick, Claire Austin, Queen of Sweeden

Floribunda Roses: Earth Angel, French Lace, Iceberg, Julia Child

Stock
Sunflowers

Tulips

Vincas
Violets
Zinnias
 
Garden Tours
 
I have a garden tour once a year in the early spring. An announcement will be made on my blog.
  
Sources
 
 
This is a wonderful source for flowering bulbs in large quantities:
 
I buy most of my seeds from the following companies:
 

Outside Pride 

 

For fruit trees, bushes, etc., I like to buy from our local nursery:

Star Nursery

 
 
Garden Links
 
 
 
Growing an edible garden in the city: Garden Girl
She makes the most of the space she has. If you have a small garden, check out her site for ideas.

 

Planting, pruning, fertilizing, and plant choices for the desert:
 
How to take cuttings of plants to make new plants:
 
How to determine your gardening zone (In the U.S.):
 
 
 
 
 
Donate extra garden produce to a participating food pantry near you: