Everything is edible in Hannele’s tiny 37-square-meter garden—“Edible doesn’t mean it’s a vegetable patch”

When I swapped the large garden of my previous house for this new miniature garden, I decided to make edibility its theme. So, every plant can end up on my plate. Food is both my hobby and partly my work: I run the Kokit ja potit cooking blog and its social media channels. The best part of cooking in summer are the fresh herbs and vegetables from my own garden.

‘Edible’ doesn’t mean this is a vegetable patch. I also grow flowers like zinnias, pansies, and cranesbills, and the plants aren’t stiffly in rows but flourish potager-style in relaxed, mixed groups. In fact, even nettle thrives in my garden bed—I’ve intentionally planted it there.

I love combining different plants. For me, beauty isn’t just about flowers but also about the fascinating foliage. For example, Tuscan kale is a really beautiful plant—it has such a unique leaf shape. Another thing I can enjoy in the garden is the scent of basil as I walk by.

Moreover, the flowers of edible plants can be beautiful too, so I let my mint and oregano bloom in late summer. They are also great for the bees.

The balcony serves as Hannele’s gazebo, seedling nursery, and orangery. Climbing tomatoes and houseplants enjoy the summer inside. On the sun-drenched steps, there are large pots are filled with red-tipped Thai basil, mammoth basil, pelargoniums, sage, lavender, and rosemary.

A splendid little bush of nettle grows behind the oregano and chives.

Hannele lets the Thai basil bloom in late summer because the bees love it.

Beauty isn’t just about flowers but also about different leaves and shades of green. The grayish velvet of sage, the smoothness of victory onion, and the lacy look of signet marigold complement each other.

My garden, which is an extension of my apartment home, is only 37 square meters in size. But they are sun-drenched, warm square meters: the garden faces south, and the sun shines from early morning until around 4:30 in the afternoon.

Even though there isn’t much space, I still wanted to design different spaces for the garden. My balcony divides the space in two: the raised beds are on its eastern side, and the seating area is on the western side. These two areas are connected by a path between them.

The pergola brings rhythm and verticality to the space. So far, there’s only a string lights climbing on it, since I haven’t yet found a suitable edible vine. My garden is too hot and sunny for vines such as hops. But my charcoal grill has found its place under the pergola, and I use it weekly.

The construction company had installed grass block pavers as the floor of the seating area, but I replaced them with cozier and more practical flagstones.

Because my garden is partly over an underground parking garage, there’s only one spot with soil deep enough for a tree. There I have a standard-trained blackcurrant. That’s enough for me, because there are some birches, pines, and blue spruces growing on the side of the building.

Only a light metal fence separates the garden from the meadow on the common garden area.

Cornflower and marigold petal add color to salads and tea blends.

Cherry tomatoes thrive in the warmth of the glazed balcony.

A path bordered with flowers and herbs leads to the garden’s raised bed section.

Paki the Miniature Poodle also likes strawberries.

This area used to be home to the Toppila harbor. This is where tar barrels were shipped around the world by steamboat, having been brought down the Oulunjoki River from Kainuu first. Nowadays, the waterfront is a recreational area, and the city has built a wonderful meadow-like park there. This idea was also brought to our building’s shared garden, where we have daisies, tansies, and scentless mayweeds.

There’s only a low, light metal fence between my garden and the meadow, so at the height of midsummer blooms, my garden feels much larger than it is. I haven’t felt the need to set up any kind of visual barrier. If you want to live in the city near the center, you have to be ready to tolerate people around you. I think they create a sense of safety in the neighborhood.

Signet marigolds, chives, sage, and zinnias create a wonderful ensemble when placed together.

Zinnias are at their most magnificent at the end of July. Their petals are edible.

Tuscan kale is also known as palm tree kale—and for good reason!

Hannele thinks flagstones have more warmth than concrete slabs.

Although summer here in Oulu is shorter than in Southern Finland, my gardening season is eight months long. Seedling cultivation starts in March, and what also starts is the joy I get from gardening. In November, I pick the last Tuscan kales of the season from under the snow.

Annual plants bring variety to the garden because I can choose which ones I grow each year. Trying out zinnias has become almost a passion for me. I first spot interesting ones on Instagram, ask what varieties they are, and then try to get their seeds. Every seedling is an adventure!

Cornflower and marigold petals add color to salads and tea blends.

Hannele’s standard-trained blackcurrant serves the tree of the garden. The hardest part has been keeping it upright in Oulu’s winds.

The potattomat, or ‘Savitaipale’ tomato, is native to Finland and bears fruit even in open ground.

The sprawling softness of Hannele’s garden is a great contrast to the straight lines of the structures. The self-built pergola brings a vertical dimension to the otherwise low plantings. The grill has its own sheltered spot beneath it.

I’ve been growing herbs as a hobby for about twenty years. My favorite is basil. This summer, I’m growing five varieties. ‘Genovese’ is that most common basil—mild and aromatic. ‘Italiano Classico’ and ‘Gustoso’ have large leaves and a peppery, intense flavor. Mammoth basil ‘Mammoth’ is easy to dry. The flavor of Thai basil has notes of anise, licorice, cinnamon, and pepper in it. It also withstands heating better than the others.

I start pre-growing basils at the end of March. I don’t prick out the seedlings, but when I sow them, I sprinkle 10–14 seeds into a pot and fill it only halfway with soil. After thinning, I add the rest of the soil. This is the easiest way to get sturdy seedlings.

In April, on warm days, I take the seedlings to the balcony so that they get used to the increasing light and temperature fluctuations. In May, I plant the seedlings into 30–40 centimeter pots. I put only four or five seedlings in one pot because they should have plenty of space.

Just before midsummer, the pots finally get to go outside. As a Mediterranean plant, basil requires a lot of heat—and that I have plenty of here.