New Potager ’21

A New Approach for 2021

The New Potager was created in 2011, with 2012 its first year of production. Its position, halfway up our hillside, has full southern exposure, and so it is ideal for Mediterranean vegetables, where these are actually the fruits of the plants.

The garden has been renovated over its eight years of existence. The sloping terrace made the four rectangular planting beds difficult to work, and to rectify this four metal edged raised beds were constructed in their place. This had the added benefit of new soil being introduced, without the rocks and stones of the previous earth. Finally, a large tree that had overshadowed the garden was removed.

For our ‘New Approach’, we have decided that an interesting way of showing the variety and scope of vegetables we can grow would be to create a colour themed plantation. Each rectangle would have its own plan. The first rectangle was already full of half-grown onions and garlic, so we have left these to mature and followed on by a ‘traditional’ plantation rows of fennel, tomatoes and aubergines.

The remaining three approximately 8m x 2m beds are each devoted to a colour in the leaf, root or fruit of the selected vegetables.

By the first week of April, the onions in the ‘traditional’ bed were almost ready for cropping and the three colour themed beds had the first plants growing well.
The peas will soon start climbing their iron supports.
In the bed dedicated to yellow and orange vegetables, two carrot varieties have made a good start, and it won’t be long before the lettuces give way to the next plantation.
Purple podded Mangetout ‘Shiraz’.
Radish Lutea has a bright orange peppery flesh.

Plant List

Purple with edible seeds (First plantation)

  • Edged with mauve flowered chives
  • Borago officinalis 
  • Carrot ‘Purple Sun’
  • Chard ‘Pink Passion’
  • Climbing French bean ‘Cosse Violette’
  • Lettuce ‘ Devil’s Tongue’
  • Mangetout ‘Shiraz’
  • Nigella damascene
  • Papaver somniferum 
  • Potato ‘Violetta’
  • Radish ‘Rat tail’
  • Runner bean ‘Czar’
  • Salad mustard ‘Moutarde Rouge Metis’
  • Salvia hispanica (Chia seeds)
  • Tomatillo
  • Tomato ‘Blue Dawg’
  • Tomato ‘Clackamas Blueberry’

Purple with edible seeds (Follow-on plantation)

  • Perilla frutescens 
  • Aubergines
  • Purple chillies
  • Kohlrabi ‘Azur’

Green (First plantation)

  • Agretti
  • Cucamelon
  • Cucumber ‘Marketmore’
  • Lettuce ‘Reine des Glaces’
  • Pea ‘Douce Provence’
  • Peas
  • Wild Rocket

Green (Follow-on plantation)

  • Buckthorn plantain
  • Corn Salad ‘Coquilles des Louviers’
  • Leeks
  • Sculpit

White and Brown (First plantation)

  • Cucumber ‘Miniature White’
  • Florence Fennel ‘Perfektion’
  • Parsnip ‘Tender and True’
  • Root Chicory ‘Chiavari’
  • Root Parsley ‘Atika’
  • Salsify ‘Sandwich Island Giant’
  • Scorzonera ‘Maxima’
  • Spring onion ‘Kyoto Market’
  • Yacon

Orange & Yellow (First plantation)

  • Edged with Tagetes ‘Golden Gem’
  • Beetroot ‘Touchstone Gold’
  • Carrot ‘Jaune Obtuse du Doubs’
  • Carrot ‘Nantes’
  • Chard ‘Golden Chard’
  • Climbing bean ‘Neckargold’
  • Mangetout ‘Golden Sweet’
  • Nasturtium ‘Empress of India’
  • Oca ‘Dylan Thomas’
  • Physalis peruviana
  • Radish ‘Lutea’

Orange & Yellow (Follow-on plantation)

  • Yellow chillies
  • Yellow tomatoes
  • Yellow and orange squash

Red (First plantation)

  • Edged with Tagetes ‘Paprika’
  • Amaranth ‘Kerala Red’
  • Beetroot ‘Bolthardy’
  • Beetroot ‘Cheltenham Greentop’
  • Beetroot ‘Cylindra’
  • Climbing French Bean ‘Stokkesvitsboon’
  • Lettuce ‘Dragon’s Tongue’
  • Mexican Tree Spinach
  • Spring onion ‘Red Beard’

Red (Follow-on plantation)

  • Oca ‘New Zealand Red’
  • Red chillies
  • Tomatoes