How does your garden grow, Lisa and Larry?

Walking into Lisa Burnett and Larry Cofer’s front yard vegetable garden, one is first accosted by what they call the “purple people.”

“Years ago, I bought a six pack of seedling Campanulas, and they’ve just taken over,” explains Lisa. “They’re at their tallest now. I’ll whack them down and they’ll be back next summer.”

Given that Larry’s father grew up on a potato farm in Idaho, it would be a fair assumption that he was the driving force of the new garden. But rather it’s Lisa in collaboration with friend Janet Bell, who just happens to be a landscape professional.

“Janet showed me a number of designs for the planter boxes and this one really stood out,” she said, pointing to the panels on the boxe’s side and the wide rims. “She also suggested the cascading placement of the boxes.”

The current abundance of pole and bush beans, cherry and Beefsteak tomatoes and Persian cucumbers hide the trellises that are lifting them upward. At the bottom of each box is chicken wire to keep the varmints out.

Two chairs propped at the gardens edge provide a nice place for Lisa and Larry to enjoy an afternoon beverage and view the fruits of their efforts.

They both agree: “It’s just so, so satisfying.”

Note: If the you have a special garden this year be it flowers or vegetable, we’d welcome hearing about. Email tips[at]InMenlo.com.

Photos by Linda Hubbard (c) 2020