When it comes to eating healthy, many of us know the right restaurants and have some favorite recipes, but not everyone goes as far as to grow their own ingredients. Whether you’re thinking about getting into gardening for the first time or you consider yourself a veteran, Trish Mazure probably has a thing or two to teach you. Known as The Ranch at Live Oack/Malibu’s own personal “garden fairy,” Mazure has mastered the craft of gardening and uses her expertise to maintain the property’s .5-acre grove. Under her care are 30 garden beds that are seasonally changed and over 150 fruit trees, which are sourced for The Ranch’s kitchens—a fitness and wellness “bootcamp” has to serve guests only the best ingredients, after all.
For those new to gardening (or who have very limited space), Mazure suggests growing only a few things. “You’ll want to stick to a few key, seasonal plants like cherry tomatoes, squash, and zucchini.” If you want to dabble in herbs since they grow all year, she suggests starting with the basics, like basil, parsley, chives and thyme, which are “easy to grow and […] always useful.” She also suggests that beginners (and everyone, actually) should try composting, since it is the best way to repurpose scraps and feed your little seedlings.
Gardening for fun and gardening for cooking purposes are different only in the sense of what you grow. “Key staples for a cook’s garden are herbs, herbs and herbs, and of course a few tomatoes. Fresh herbs make all the difference, especially the hard to find ones like chervil.” Others that should be in your repertoire are:
- basil
- chives and garlic chives
- cilantro (“this plant is also beautiful once it flowers which also happens to bring in beneficial insects to the garden”)
- curry
- French sorrel
- Italian flat-leaf parsley and curly parsley
- lemon verbena
- mint
- oregano
- rosemary
- tarragon
- thyme (English, French and lemon)
- sage
If you make some mistakes, that’s okay, but be careful not to take on more than you’re ready for. “Start out with just a few things and grow from there. It's also important to properly compost and fertilize your garden before planting and don't over water,” Mazure advises. Lastly, remember that gardening takes patience and a little struggle is par for the course. “The biggest tip is to not get discouraged. Many people think gardening is very easy until they actually try it. The first thing gardening teaches you is patience.”
