IN THE GARDEN
Tea Gardens A personal sanctuary for edibles and tonics By Lisa Cullen
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pring is officially here and with it comes warmer weather, welcome sunshine, and an opportunity to spend more time outdoors in our gardens. I love to sit in my garden with a nice cup of tea, and best of all tea made from freshly picked herbs and flowers. My tea obsession led me to a new type of edible landscape I call a “tea garden.” This tea garden is one of my favorites. A tea garden or if you are so inclined, a “cocktail garden,” is a version of an edible or sensory garden through which you can stroll, picking flowers, leaves, and even berries and bark, all
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of which can be used to make herbal teas, tinctures, simple syrups, herbal salts and sugars, bitters, vinegars, and cocktails. Recently I had a client whose baby liked to go out into the garden and chew on plants, rocks, dirt, and just about anything within reach. She and her partner also loved to create “craft cocktails” and were excellent cooks. This inspired a garden that was not only non-toxic but fully edible. And I’m not talking just fruit trees. Lemon balm, lemon verbena, marjoram, oregano, thyme, mint, and even strawber-
ries were planted atop a wall that surrounded a flagstone patio, so to cascade down making for easy access. Above the patio a meandering pathway leads through a fruit orchard with mulberry, peach, apricot, kaffir lime, pomegranate, persimmon, and every variety of citrus imaginable. Passion fruit vine grows on the fence and of course there’s a vegetable garden with raised beds for the “usual stuff ” like tomatoes, kale and whatever else fancy and the seasons dictate. The result is a garden that’s safe for babies, animals, and adults alike and is an inspiration w w w. f o o d – h o m e . c o m
