What I’m Planting in My Kitchen Garden This Summer

I just finished planting my kitchen garden for the summer. Honestly, we’ve had such warm weather that I probably should have done this weeks ago, but you know… life happens. So I’m definitely a few weeks behind.

The good news is, here in Georgia, we usually have great growing weather all the way until probably November, so I’m still in good shape no matter what.

This year I upgraded to a much larger raised garden bed. I went with a Vego U-shaped bed that is around eight and a half feet wide and maybe five and a half feet deep. It’s this super cute olive green color that completely matches the aesthetic around our house — it even matches the shutters. So naturally, I love it already.

Now the real question is whether I can keep the deer, squirrels, rabbits, and everything else out of the garden long enough to keep everything alive and thriving. Fingers crossed.

I’ve done a lot of research on gardening this year. Probably more than I should have, honestly. Last year I followed all the spacing instructions exactly the way the plant tags and seed packets recommended. Everything was very properly spaced out, but I noticed there was still a lot of empty space where weeds would pop up in between plants.

A few months ago, I stumbled across a popular Instagram account called Gardenary, and I absolutely love her whole philosophy for gardening. The best way I can describe it is basically: how much stuff can you pack into one garden bed?

So instead of following the spacing rules on the seed packets, the idea is to plant things much closer together. I’ve watched a ton of her videos, and that’s the route I’m going this year.

As for what I’m planting this summer, I’m keeping things pretty simple and realistic.

I’m doing cherry tomatoes because I’ve struggled with larger tomatoes in the past. They always seem to split on me, and I just haven’t had much luck with them. Cherry tomatoes feel much more doable.

I’m also planting pole beans, okra, cucumbers, and jalapeños.

One lesson I definitely learned from last year is that cucumbers need a trellis. I am absolutely not letting them take over the entire garden bed again, which is exactly what they’ll do if you don’t contain them somehow.

I also love cooking with fresh herbs, so herbs are going to be a huge part of the garden too. I’m planting basil, oregano, rosemary, chives, and thyme. The oregano can get a little wild, so that definitely needs to go toward the edge of the bed.

On the cooler, shadier side of the garden bed, I’m going to try carrots, arugula, and a heat-tolerant lettuce variety. I know lettuce is usually more of a fall crop here, but I’m hoping this variety will hold up a little better through the warmer weather. My arugula was germinating in just a few days, so fingers crossed.

I also have extra chive seeds that I’ll be sprinkling throughout the garden because I’m hoping they help keep some of the critters away- both the little ones and the big ones.

And of course, I’m adding flowers too. I’ll be planting marigolds around the edges and nasturtiums from seed. The flowers are edible, beautiful, and from what I’ve read, they’re also helpful for bugs and pollinators.

So that’s the current state of the kitchen garden over here. In a few hours, I had everything planted. Hopefully, before too long, we’ll be enjoying the rewards of all this hard work because there is nothing better than cooking with food you’ve grown yourself.