Gardening FAQs Answered

A kitchen garden is a garden that is specifically designed for growing vegetables, herbs, salads, and fruits for use in the kitchen.  Having your kitchen garden in a raised bed is the ideal design for optimal plant health and soil health.  It also includes trellises for vertical growth as well as intensive planting for a bountiful harvest.  Plus, a kitchen garden is a beautiful way to add interest and appeal to your outdoor space, while also providing you with fresh, healthy produce. 

Plan on 1-2 weeks for the design, 2-3 weeks to order and prepare all the materials, and 1-3 days for the actual building & planting. Depending on the season you may be harvesting within a few days. But typically plan to start harvesting about 3-4 weeks after the garden is complete. Of course more complex installs (stone beds, fencing, etc.) will lengthen the total time. As will weather conditions and labor availability.

Raised Beds. Kitchen garden success starts with raised beds. Why use raised beds:

* they warm up and drain quickly

* they have fewer pests and weeds

* they're more accessible

* they're easy to tend (ergonomic)

* they allow you to start with great soil

* they allow you to plant way more plants

* they are much cleaner than garden plots

* they are attractive

Arch Trellises, Obelisk Trellises, and Panel Trellises. Rather than limiting to horizontal growth, trellises and obelisks have many advantages:

* allow vines to grow vertically

* maximizes space especially in smaller gardens

* keeps plants healthier by ensuring each vine has

access to sunlight and air circulation

* leaves are prevented from touching the soil

where they might come into contact with pests

and disease

* the combination of a raised bed with a trellis or

obelisk is as beautiful as it is functional

* Create vertical interest

No, of course you can't 😉. Seriously, gardening is a skill just like any other, which means anyone can learn! Just get started and don't be afraid to try some trial and error. Plus, we'll help guide and support you. Our step-by-step processes make getting started easy. So just "romaine calm🥬" and prepare to be inspired & nourished by your surroundings everyday.

Let's turn to nature on this question. We've enjoyed exploring rainforests in Washington, Mexico and Peru. Maybe you've been to one as well. Did you noticed how tall the trees were as they reach and stretch for the sun? Then on the forest floor, where the sun rarely hits, there is lush green foliage. But it's small compared to its surroundings. The same happens in your yard. Plenty of plants grow where there is shade. But they are smaller. Though your tomatoes and pumpkins would be smaller, and maybe a bit angry at you for planting them in partial shade the lettuce, kale, arugula, beets, radishes, spinach, herbs and lots more will thrive and be your garden friends. Isn't nature amazing!

Come close while I whisper the secret to reducing the time it takes to care for your garden. It's three simple things. 1) Have the garden setup correctly from the outset. That includes raised beds, healthy soil, proximity to water, sun, paths & borders, and vertical growing. 2) Consistency tending the garden. 3) Consistency harvesting from the garden. That's the secret sauce my friend. Through the season you'll be in rinse & repeat mode for planting, tending and harvesting. As a rule-of-thumb plan on 2 minutes per week per sqft during planting and harvesting times. For tending, plan on 1 minute per week per sqft.

That all depends on what you want the garden to be. But a rule of thumb is the typical DFY (done-for-you) garden investment is $100-$150 per square foot of usable garden space. DIY (do-it-yourself) is less expensive but you still need to purchase all the materials and invest the time to find the right materials. A third cost model is the DWY (done-with-you) option.

When we send you your design, you’ll also receive a ballpark estimate for the total cost that includes all labor and materials. Once your design is approved and finalized, you’ll receive a full estimate. A 50% retainer will secure your spot on our calendar.

Small space is a relative term. It all depends on your goals. Because of our intensive planting method we are able to get a substantial amount planted in a small space. Additionally, Grow Pro Gardens typically "grows up" on trellises and arches. This greatly expands the growing area. With these concepts in mind you can see how a narrow border garden, a small 4x4 raised bed or even a porch or terrace garden can be very rewarding and productive.

Absolutely! Please reach out for a free discovery call. Click here to schedule one. It's important to know that we are a good fit for each other.

Grow Pro Gardens has a seasonal garden refresh service. To help with a successful start to each season. This is a great service for helping you with your succession planting plans from season to season. We highly recommend you consider this service. Click here to learn more. This is for raised bed garden only. Additionally, we have a coaching service where you can coach you and spend time with you in the garden. We do not offer a maintenance service at this time.

We avoid synthetic products in our raised kitchen gardens. We prefer organic practices for pest management, tending and harvesting practices. We minimize the use of fertilizers by using our high quality custom soil that is packed with nutrients. Our cedar beds are 100% non-treated. The preservative we use on some beds is "ECO Wood Treatment." It's non-toxic and VOC free. We plant using using organic plants and seeds.

Grow Pro Gardens uses locally sourced materials whenever possible. For this reason we typically do not use peat as peat is rarely sourced in southwest Idaho. Instead we prefer you use locally sourced soils to create our custom blend.

We are very blessed to have many great options for locally sourcing most of the materials, plants and seeds from local growers and small businesses in Southwest Idaho. 

Yes it is!

All it takes is a consultation. We’ll stop by for a brief visit to learn about your goals, evaluate your space, determine the best site and size for your garden, and answer any burning questions you have. Only the $150 consultation fee will apply at this stage, so if you decide now’s not the right time for your dream veggie garden, there’s no additional commitment.

If you decide you can't wait another minute for an amazing garden, and you contract with us to build it, we reimburse the consultation fee. How amazing is that! Let's get started!