A Design+Install Project from Start to Finish

Learn how we meet client needs from beginning to end of a kitchen garden and native landscaping project. A deep look at our design+install process will get you excited about your own garden transformation!

In this article:

• Garden Dreams & Aspirations  

• Garden Consultation 

• Design 

• Hardscape Installation: Raised Beds, Trellises, Pathways, and Garden Beds 

• Planting + Installation 

• Garden Coaching  

Garden Dreams & Aspirations 

Do you dream of stepping outside your back door to a lush outdoor space where you can pick organic, nutritious and delicious meals fresh from the garden? Do you want to look out your window and see songbirds bathing in your backyard, and hummingbirds sipping nectar from extended seasonal blooms? Do you aspire to transform your yard into a vibrant habitat, full of plants with purpose, that nourish people, pollinators, and wildlife? 

Do you also feel intimidated and overwhelmed with how to get there? 

Noble Root can help! The foundation of every kitchen garden or landscape design+install project is understanding our clients’ goals, lifestyles, levels of gardening experience, desire for involvement, and budget. In this blog we will discuss how we meet client needs from idea to planting. We hope this will inspire you to do your own garden transformation too! 

Garden Consultation 

We begin all new clients with a Garden Consultation and questionnaire where we discuss garden goals and aspirations in the context of the physical space. For this design+install, the clients lived in the suburbs for much of their lives and decided to move to the country with an interest in doing more to live off the land.  

Our clients outlined growing more food as being their primary goal. They also highly valued beauty and aesthetics, creating natural habitat for pollinators and wildlife, and contributing to the health and wellness of their family. One shared a tradition of canning tomatoes with her mom and described their family as a “berry family” – they love to eat LOTS of berries! Space is not a constraint here, so they wanted an abundance of fruit by planting an orchard in addition to a large berry batch. They were eager to begin the project design and finish everything before winter arrived!  

Design 

Landscape designs are communication tools that include texts, symbols, and images to guide a work crew or DIY clients in installation. The designs that we create are both technical and beautiful.  

We are ready to begin the design once we have a clear understanding of client goals, the physical environment of the growing space, and have determined the outdoor “rooms” that will be included. Examples of outdoor rooms might include a reading nook, a dining area, or an orchard. In this case, the primary room was a raised bed kitchen garden accessible from the front door. Our clients’ goals become actualized in a full color, computer aided design (CAD) that is drawn to scale and includes all elements: paths, patios, planting beds, plants, etc.  

Based on our clients’ aspirations and goals, as well as the layout of their space, we met edible and aesthetic goals by designing and installing a custom raised bed kitchen garden in the sunniest, flattest, and most accessible location to the kitchen. We strive to build kitchen gardens near the kitchen to entice frequent garden harvests for meal prep. Raised beds made from cedar tie into existing architecture, and steel trellises made by Oregon artisans invite you into the space at each entrance and complement the home’s archway. All the materials were chosen to match the colors and textures of existing structural elements like the house and outbuildings. 

The raised beds are predominantly used for planting annual vegetable crops and flowers – plants in frequent and seasonal rotation. Perennial berries like marionberries, blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries were designed on the borders. Perennial culinary herbs like rosemary, sage, thyme, and chives were also included in the mix! We pay close attention to personal client details and included a Southern Magnolia, a small evergreen tree that reminded one of the clients of their childhood.  

In the back yard or “lower garden”, we designed three main elements: the orchard, the native corridor, and the dry slope planting located along the perimeter of the socializing areas including the patio, pool and firepit.  

The orchard includes eight different types of fruit trees, including a fig, cherries, apples, pears, and plums. We chose varieties based on whether they needed a second type for pollination and client taste preferences. 

The native corridor includes different canopy layers to provide habitat for pollinators and wildlife along with the understory and overstory layers of the existing adjacent forest. We recommend aiming for five canopy layers: overstory (large trees), understory (small trees), large shrubs, small shrubs, and perennials/groundcovers. Each canopy layer provides habitat for pollinators and wildlife, as well as their food! While an owl may need trees to nest in, they also need the groundcover layer for their prey to nest in, for example. We added shrubs like early blooming red flowering currant and winter-blooming manzanita to extend forage for birds and pollinators. Showy milkweed was included to provide food for Monarch caterpillars, who solely feed on milkweed. California poppy and yarrow are pollinator powerhouses, beloved by native bees, butterflies, and beetles. We also designed a path and some flagstone steps to increase access to different sections of the orchard and allow you to walk through the native plant corridor.  

For the steep, dry slope planting next to the back patio, we decided to go with the gray tones of the house and install several plants with glaucous foliage, meaning the leaves are grayish and powdery or hairy looking. A few native examples are manzanita and Oregon sunshine, along with non-native ornamental lamb’s ear, bush daisy, and lavender. This type of foliage usually refers to plants that are drought tolerant because the plants have adapted to grow a waxy layer over the leaves that retains water and reduces air flow over the leaf surface. Our clients were on board – they know their house will look great with the foliage colors and the functionality it would provide for a low maintenance landscape. 

Hardscape Installation: Raised Beds, Trellises, Pathways, and Garden Beds 

We are often asked, “what is a hardscape?” This is the infrastructure of many garden spaces or outdoor living areas. They can include patios, paths, planting beds, borders, trellises, and more. For this project, the front yard predominantly incorporated hardscape elements by installing a raised bed kitchen garden. The sloped backyard called for the addition of sizeable boulders to border the base of the beds and stabilize the slope, plus the addition of stone steps. Depending on the project and desired outcomes, we team up with a few select landscape partners who have the equipment and expertise for massive undertakings like this. 

We love designing, building, and installing custom raised bed kitchen gardens! Raised bed gardens provide a long growing season, up to 9 months in the Pacific Northwest. Because garden boxes are above ground, as long as they are sizable, they will not be as vulnerable to hard freezes. The soil warms up quickly and helps grow longer into the cool season, especially if you add hoops and row cover, which is easier to do in a raised bed than in-ground.  

Raised beds also tend to have fewer issues with weeds, snails, and slugs. Gardeners have more influence on the environment, from the soil blend that is added, to pathways, to irrigation and drainage, to weed control. A well-balanced soil mix provides good drainage and supports the development of strong root systems below ground which results in lush and abundant plant structures above ground! This all adds up to larger yields and more food to eat! 

Trellis structures are another vital element in the kitchen garden. We always encourage growing “up” to increase yields and provide year-round beauty. Functionally they provide a climbing structure for plants which allow for increased airflow, pollinators to access the blooms, abundant sunlight to flow in, and reduced exposure to fungal diseases. Aesthetically, they welcome you to a space if used in an entryway and add year-round interest when using steel or other metal materials. They come in a variety of types, including obelisks, arches, A-frames, and panels.  

There are so many choices when it comes to hardscape elements, and you could have multiple choices between raised beds, pathways, and trellises. We will recommend trellises appropriate for your space, so your garden looks natural and beautiful with all the elements together.  

Plant Installation 

We purchase, deliver, and place plants according to the design. Planting and soil amendments follow ground prep, which can include grass removal, adding compost to existing soil in preparation for planting, or filling raised beds with a premium kitchen garden soil blend.  

We finished the project the first week in October and some are surprised to learn that we planted all the raised beds with starts still available at the local nursery! This is a great time to plant garlic, onion, and many greens like kale and salad greens in raised bed gardens. Early October is the last opportunity of the year to plant annual crops.  

A kitchen garden here in the Pacific Northwest has three seasons: a cool spring season, a warm summer season, and a second cool season. Learning what to plant when can take some getting used to - from seeds to starts to varieties and life cycles! We are here to support our clients in growing and harvesting most of the year from planting to harvest. 

So what’s next for our clients’ garden oasis?  

Garden Coaching 

Just like plants, we too grow faster and stronger with a supportive structure! Next year, our clients will receive our support with planning, planting, and harvesting their garden through monthly Garden Coaching. During these sessions, we teach clients how to grow and harvest yard-to-table meals 9 to 10 months out of the year!  

This incredible family has demonstrated dedication to sustainability, strengthening local food resilience, and improving native habitat in a rural area of Oregon. We celebrate their actions and wish them tremendous success in growing and harvesting abundant yard-to-table meals for family and friends to enjoy, while nurturing the bees, butterflies, and birds in their outdoor oasis at the same time.. 

Here's to People. Pollinators, and Plants with Purpose.  

Happy Gardening! 

Are you ready to reimagine your outdoor space with professional support? Booking a consultation is the first step! Visit our services page to learn more about our services and to book your personalized garden consult.

About: 

Noble Root empowers homeowners to confidently grow food, flowers, and herbs with personalized support. We offer garden coaching, landscape design, DIY plans, and full-service garden installations in Portland-metro, Oregon, and Vancouver, Washington areas.