The Ornamental Border at Bradner Gardens Park: Edible Garden

Saturday, April 9, 2016

Edible Garden

The first plantings in the Edible Garden were made in March 2016. The Edible Garden is new to the Ornamental Border. Work preparing this garden started in 2015. It is located in an area that extends into the lawn at the edge of the Shade Garden.

Edible Garden Plant List

Trees
Ficus carica (Common Fig) 2016
Prunus domestica (Plum) 2016
Prunus persica (Peach) 2016

Shrubs
Camellia sinensis (Tea Camellia) 2016
Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Chandler’ (Northern Highbush Blueberry) 2016
Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Duke’ (Northern Highbush Blueberry) 2016
Vaccinium corymbosum ‘Earliblue’ (Northern Highbush Blueberry) 2016

Perennials

Fragaria × ananassa (Garden Strawberry) 2016

Fragaria vesca 'Alba' (White Alpine Strawberry) 2016

Matricaria chamomilla (German Chamomile) 2016

Monarda bradburiana (Eastern Bee Balm) 2016

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Ornamental Border History

Planting of the ornamental border began in 1998. Before the first planting, native soil was amended with Cedar Grove compost and Smith Dairy manure.

King County Master Gardeners designed 7 theme gardens. Each garden was scaled to fit into smaller urban residential yards & featured a selection of trees, shrubs & perennials to demonstrate the right plant for the right place, low maintenance & a variety of irrigation systems. The gardens provided living examples for Master Gardener lectures, demonstrations & workshops.

From north to south, then west, the 7 gardens are the Winter Garden, Sensory Garden, Native Garden, Dry Garden, Butterfly & Hummingbird Garden, Shade Garden & Fragrance Garden.

Over time, the irrigation system was converted entirely to drip because it worked the best on the sloping beds. It was decided to use no irrigation starting in 2012.

King County Master Gardeners left Bradner Gardens in 2008. Presentations & demonstration mostly ceased after that point. But in more recent years, the border had only been used for workshops on drip irrigation. Plant Amnesty conducted a pruning class in 2012, when several overgrown trees & shrubs were pruned. General maintenance was transferred to volunteers from the Bradner Gardens P-Patch.

Bradner Gardens has the first arboretum of small trees that fit along streets under utility lines & in smaller urban yards. The collection features both deciduous & evergreen trees. Many were anticipated to grow to a mature height of 20 to 30 feet.

Planted as part of the Seattle Millennium/Woods Legacy celebration in 2000, these trees are located throughout the park, including the ornamental border. Tree Stewards worked with Seattle City Light & the City Arborist to select more than 40 appropriate trees for display.

For the original installation, lists were submitted to King County Master Gardener clinics to get donations from gardeners. Plants were also donated by the Washington Park Arboretum Foundation from the Pat Calvert Nursery & from Seattle Parks and Recreation. Most of the trees were obtained through the Seattle Millennium Tree Project and Seattle City Light. Some plants were also purchased with grant money.