A Tasteful Place, a newly-opened garden area at the Dallas Arboretum, showcases edibles—vegetables, fruits, and herbs—in support of the growing trend of home gardening and fresh-food eating that has taken root in American lifestyles. The southern section, adding 3.5 acres for visitor enjoyment, surrounds productive plants with plenty of pollinator-friendly posies, creating a great buzz of colorful excitement for the garden goodness of grow-your-own, garden-to-table, you-can-do-this delicious delight.
The potager provides practical opportunities for gardeners and garden-hopefuls to see for themselves how edible plants can be incorporated into the landscape, or foodscape, the emerging term for including food-bearing plants seamlessly alongside ornamentals.
Vegetable Love
Perhaps you are in a situation not unlike Daniel’s, desiring to keep your diet pure, simple, and unpolluted?
But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way…“Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days…
Daniel 1:8, 12-14 NIV
While traditionally, productive gardens take their form from agriculture, in a row-by-row approach, A Tasteful Place plants everything from artichokes to zucchini along sweeping paths and graceful walkways, a gently terraced stepping from the Arboretum’s entrance toward the expansive view of neighboring White Rock Lake.
Formal and meandering, wide-open yet continuing to reveal and unfold, this new garden venture imparts a sense of adventure, offering a vegetable medley of joy, rest, and a let’s-get-started charge to keep.
Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred.
Proverbs 15:17 NIV
Feel the love! That is, the affection and devotion of the garden’s creators demonstrated in this place of wholehearted embrace for cultivating vegetables in an attractive, inviting way. 
Find beauty in every detail and encouragement to join in growing goodness and a personal connection to the land. Whether your vegetables garnish a meat or seafood meal, or your vegetables are becoming the meal, A Tasteful Place offers much to inspire.
Vegetable Beauty
Captivating color combinations, the hallmark of the Dallas Arboretum in my opinion, create a sense of joyful energy. Count on the staff horticulturists to continually dazzle with complimentary and contrasting hues, playing off foliage, flowers, and fruit.
He has made everything beautiful in its time.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV
Meanwhile, water features such as the new lagoon bordering the area, its fountain, and the expansive view of the lake all impart a sense of rest and refreshment. Isn’t that the essence of a garden? Yielding nourishing, lively, loving activity…
Come, dear lover— let’s tramp through the countryside. Let’s sleep at some wayside inn, then rise early and listen to bird-song. Let’s look for wildflowers in bloom, blackberry bushes blossoming white, Fruit trees festooned with cascading flowers. And there I’ll give myself to you, my love to your love!
Song of Songs 7:11-12 The Message
…and a peaceful refuge to recover perspective.
The king got up in a rage, left his wine and went out into the palace garden.
Esther 7:7 NIV
Gardens are the intersection of these two ideals, bringing together in one place fulfillment of work, play, and rest.
Vegetable Delicious
But wait, there’s more! Set alongside fruit trees, herb borders, and vegetables beds is a handsome pavilion, housing a demonstration kitchen with garden-to-table seating, indoor and patio, making A Tasteful Place a literal description—my first visit included the spicy delight of chilled red pepper soup!
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
Psalm 34:8 NIV
Demonstrations and samplings are regularly scheduled events for the new garden, check the schedule for daily offerings.
Vegetable Success
And how did things end for Daniel’s vegetable diet?
…At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.
Daniel 1:15-16 NIV
Daniel and his friends were faithful to seek the Lord, knowing He was the ultimate source of strength and nourishment. They made their diet a matter of trusting God and His ability to bless them.
The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Psalm 34:10 NIV
Vegetable Grace
A huge thank you to Dallas Arboretum’s visionary leaders and the faithful donors who gave generously to see the vision completed. And a huge prayer for staff horticulturists to be strong and do the work! Though the north Texas climate is usually cooperative for year-round growing; still, it is an ambitious undertaking to keep a productive garden looking top-notch at all times. Garden blessings!
And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV
To learn more about A Tasteful Place at the Dallas Arboretum, visit www.dallasarboretum.org
Photo Credits:
©2017 Shelley S. Cramm
Butternut squash ‘Waltham,’ Cucurbita moschata, tucked under leaves and blossoms. ‘Waltham’ is an All-American Selection winner, developed and tested for superior garden performance.
Sweeping paths and graceful walkways lead down a gently terraced stepping from the Arboretum’s entrance toward the expansive view of neighboring White Rock Lake.
Captivating color combinations are the hallmark of the Dallas Arboretum in my opinion—see bold, orange marigolds and vivid purple-leaved hibiscus punctuated with oversized pumpkin squash
Variegated abelia with yellow-toned leaves, complimented with marigolds, contrasted by deep pink autumn sage give visual wow! and pollinator plethora to patches of pepper plants
Pomegranate trees speckle the garden-to-table patio for a sheltered spot to pause in garden goodness
Artichoke array in the heart of A Tasteful Place vegetable beds
Visitors and volunteers enjoy the vegetables and fruits of A Tasteful Place’s laborers’ love—bless the designers, horticulturists, and staff in this “vegetables with love” endeavor!
