Hands in the Dirt: Potager Herb Garden

Article and photo by Donna Iverson

There’s a new historic herb garden in downtown Muskegon. A Herbal Potager garden has recently been planted in front of a depression-era house at 500 Clay Avenue.
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The house is located next to the Scolnik House near the historic fire barn museum.  It is also a few steps away from both the Monet Garden and the Heritage Memorial Garden. All are Muskegon historic landmarks, open to the public. 

The historic house and herb garden is owned by Koryn and Troy Wyman of Grand Rapids.They enlisted Lynn Bryant of Lovage Garden to install a garden that was low maintenance, drought resistant, and in keeping with the neighborhood’s rich history. She chose to plant a potager.

The word potager comes from Medieval French and literally means, "a garden that provides vegetables for the pot,” according to Bryant. “You may have heard the word "potager" at some point in gardening circles,” Bryant said. A potager garden is a French kitchen garden that traditionally combines vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs for culinary purposes. Medieval gardeners sited their potagers close to the kitchen so the harvest could be brought in and used in that day's meals.

For the modern version, Bryant chose a combination of culinary herbs like savory, marjoram, oregano, thyme, lemon thyme, chives, sage, sorrel, dock, fennel, parsley, tarragon, lemon balm, lavender and basils. She also planted echinacea, bee balm, rose, yarrow, anise hyssop, and various grasses, sedges and shrubs. This herbal potager will include salad greens in the fall and spring.

Currently the owners are renovating the inside of the house, which will be divided into four apartments, Bryant continued. One unit will be kept for the owners, while the other 3 will be monthly rentals. The family hopes to rent to visiting nurses. 

Bryant has been a gardener since she was a child. “I grew up on a farm in mid-Michigan, and graduated from Saginaw Arthur Hill High. I've always been growing something in anything that would hold soil. I am always learning, the world of plants is just fascinating.”

 Bryant lives in North Muskegon where she grows native Michigan flowers in addition to herbs and vegetables. “I guess I have my own potager garden! My favorite herb is...Lovage! Lovage grows deep and tall, is a favorite of pollinators and its leaves taste very strongly of celery. Every time someone tastes it, they always exclaim, "Oh Wow!,” she said. You can check out Lovage Garden at lovagegarden.com, which specializes in herb gardens and native landscapes. 

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