Custom Garden Design: Oglesby Gardens

Client Projects

Mar 11

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The Beginning of Oglesby Gardens

When my garden journey started back in 2010, I had ZERO experience. I just knew I wanted to garden big and share my bounty with my community at farmers markets. And that was the start of Oglesby Gardens.

Fast forward 12 years, and my tiny interest in gardening bloomed into my true passion in life. This journey has expanded my horizons. The garden has allowed me to experiment and problem solve. Ultimately, my garden journey led me back to my roots. The path hasn’t always been easy, but believe me, it's worth it.

Client: The very first custom garden design client - ME!, in Lake Geneva Wisconsin

Custom Garden Design:

1950 sq. ft. raised kitchen garden, including 384 sq. ft. of veggies, herbs, and flowers; 120 sq. ft. row of raspberries & 3 elderberry bushes; 200 sq. ft. of asparagus
3776 sq. ft. in-ground vegetable patch, including 200 sq. ft. of strawberries and a 75 ft. row of black raspberries

Garden Installation Process:

Stage One:

Our current property was overgrown and neglected when we found it in 2015. Because in-ground gardening was all we had experience with, we went to work clearing the space. In addition to general renovations, we had to remove many Black Walnut trees. Black Walnut trees can be deadly for gardens because they leach the chemical juglone into the soil, sometimes even years after removal.

Our soil was a blend of clay and rocks and had extremely poor drainage. After heavy rains, our root crops rotted in the ground and our red raspberries drowned.

Stage Two:

We have spent the last seven years working to amend the soil, but we still deal with drainage issues. In Spring 2020, after another rainy season, we were desperate for a quick solution to overcome the areas that were not draining, so we created some basic pine raised beds and relocated the red raspberries.

We’ve also experimented with diversifying our crops; depending on the weather we sometimes had varieties both in-ground and in the raised beds. Through years of experience, we have learned what crops grow better in certain environments.

After a successful season in 2021, we expanded our kitchen garden by designing a new space with a different feel and style than the traditional in-ground vegetable patch that we started with. We are looking forward to bountiful seasons in the future.

Oglesby Gardens Highlights:

I’m all about going big with your spaces and experimenting as you go. It’s how I learn best.

Right now I have a successful kitchen garden, but I also have endless ideas for expanding my garden. If I hadn't worked through the tough times and figured out ways around my setbacks, I don't think I'd be here today. I still love to experiment in the garden. I get energized when Mother Nature teaches me a lesson and I learn new tricks for the future.

My goal this year is to plan out an acre of fruit trees, blueberries, and Aronia berries. I'm also going to research and experiment with mushroom spores. A greenhouse is in the back of my mind, too (don't tell Matt!). In reality, a greenhouse is probably a couple of years away, but I'm thinking about it now because a structure of that size requires a lot of long-term planning! At least, that's what I'm telling myself. ;)