I posted the photos in the "Gallery" part of this forum, otherwise it would clog up the loading time on this post. They are listed under "Potager ideas." I love this style of garden but pretty much had to give it up in my small urban yard as the local vermin trash almost anything I plant. The bunnies even decimated my small blueberry bush. I am relegated to pots around the house that I can keep an eye on. Herbs are ok though, they don't mess with those. The squirrels bury nuts in the far away pots and throw dirt all over the paths, so I have even given up those! I envy you with the awesome fence! Check out information on companion planting, that will give you some ideas of what herbs and flowers and vegetables go together. There is lots about it on the Web and in books. There's little scientific evidence behind it, but it is the result of lots of people sharing some tried and true combinations that have worked for them. I have two books that I like on the garden design subject, one is "The Edible Garden" which is a Sunset book. The other is "Theme Gardens" by Barbara Damrosch. It has a layout for a children's garden in it that looks similar to what you have. But I am sure there are gads of cool picture books you could check out at the library or bookstore to give you ideas. In zone 6 you have a LOT of options!

Hello all:) Memo, Look south, I'm waving at you:) ( I live somewhere south of memo in Nebraska.) I love the plans that you are making, they sound great. Don't forget to go to the nursery in O'Neill, they start all the plants there, call them and ask for a tour, we went with the school kids in May and got to see all the pointsetta's that they start each year. Nicki, Your pics are making me drool. Believe it or not I went out and dug some carrots that I forgot last summer, I even added to a garden bed, digging down deeper. But now I see we are getting snow tomorrow, glad I left all the leaves in place. So I am jelous about growing veggies right now:( I think that I have the start of a potager in my front yard. I have a space that is bordered by the sidewalk and driveway on all 4 sides. I dug out all the grass and have strawberries, dill, fennel, will have lettuce and radishes come spring. I hope to figure out more to add, but it is kinda shady. Stacie potager-wannabe

ditto to the 2 raised beds, but not wider than 4'. The easiest beds to work for me by hand are 3'. It's handy to reach across & use fingers. Think about how you'll be balancing yourself to work the garden... Leaning over, standing up using a tool, on knees using hands? Fill the path with mulch material. (can be whatever you gather up & something different on top for looks -- cardboard, burlap, are good top layers if that's all you have) When you fill the path up, so it's no longer a ditch -- you can plant more closely to the edges of your garden & the mulch materials holds moisture. Plan how you'll water the plot before you plant. By hand with a bucket is manageable for your size plot, but plan on spending 1/2 hour doing it 2x a week or more depending on your summer climate/weather. A great watering tip for larger plants is to drill 2-3 small holes in the bottom of 2 liter soda bottles & bury them leaving the neck exposed so you have room to mulch, too. Then when you water also fill the bottle to slowly drip more water in your absence. It barely shows up once you're done with planting around it and once the plants grow will nearly be invisible. Plan ahead how you'll reach it. I like them at least 12" away from the stem of cucumber, tomato or squash. The roots will get what they need that way & I won't be disturbing them with bumping the bottle. Maybe even have that be your child's job to fill the jugs. My kids loved doing that when young. Another idea is to divide up the duties between the adults & child in your family. If you select some plants or an area to be yours to tend it encourages more participation because they own the area. Worked rather well when my children were young. Now hubby is helping more in the garden and selects some things to be his to tend. Makes it more fun for me, too! Someone is always -- in charge-- of the garden, so dividing up ahead of time can avoid some disappointment and arguments about how to -- work it--. Ask others at the community garden what they do -- should give you the local tips. Follow square foot gardening spacing & it will be easier for all of you to plant the garden together. OR just make short rows across your divided plot. Install the supports for your climbers (peas & beans) before you plant. Much easier that way. The simple supports work without breaking the bank. Scrap wood or tree prunings + brown twine can make beautiful supports once covered with beans no one will know you didn't buy the expensive obelisks. We don't bother to paint them because we don't want paint residues though our wood won't last as long. Even a wooden ladder can be put to use as a support. I use them and always get comments from other gardeners. The non-gardeners don't really like my repurposed materials and think of the rows instead of how I garden, so if you go that route be prepared for some comments from the other community gardeners. You don't list your zone. In my area we can grow a 2nd crop of cool season vegetables for fall - early spring harvesting. Very productive & less insect damage in the fall, plus the rain waters the garden for me. I wish your family the best in the gardening adventure. Remember that you will try some things this year, but you have next year, too. It takes years to develop your style & figure it all out to grow a lot of food for your family. When my kids were young we learned together. Then became teens & the garden was no longer an interest. Now my married daughter is growing a good amount of vegetables and fruits for their family. I would not have guessed she'd return to gardening when a teen. We had a lot of fun together as a family or just the kids and I playing games while we worked out there. Be creative with your child and they will work hard with you. I miss my little helpers now. Have fun together in the garden~ Corrine

Sounds like you have some great ideas. I am admitedly new to the potager idea. I have a huge row garden that I share with the neighbors, but I am not going to do that forever and I really enjoy the little bed I have right up against the house and plan on expanding that into a potager. My own personal rule of thumb is to stick with edible flowers. Of course there are the herbs which flower, but also annuals such as my favorites nasturtium and pansies and of course marigolds and sunflowers. Perennials include Bee Balm, Crysanthemums, Cornflower, Day Lillies. Just google edible flowers for more ideas. Can't think of an appropriate vine. I use annual Sweat Peas or runner beans for color and interest on my fence. Let us know how it turns out!