Think Beyond Pots: Design A Landscape With Herbs

Think Beyond Pots: Design A Landscape With Herbs

Author: Maria Failla- Happy Plant Lady and Author of Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness June 30, 2026 Duration: 49:38
Growing Joy with Plants - Wellness Rooted in Nature, Houseplants, Gardening and Plant Care
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What if herbs go beyond the small, contained, and kitchen-window plants we use them for? Herbs could do so, so much more! In this episode, I sit down with Sue Goetz, a garden designer, author, and herb obsessive, to explore the many different ways we can use our favorite herbs in our garden landscape. She has a five-foot rosemary hedge in her backyard and uses chamomile between her stepping stones. She also grows lavender, sage, and catmint as full-on landscape plants that feed her, scent her garden, attract pollinators, and keep deer out. So not only do herbs have flavor, fragrance, and medicinal properties, they’re also low-maintenance once established. Let's dive in!

 

In this episode, we learn:

  • [01:38] Meet garden designer and author Sue Goetz!
  • [02:09] How Sue developed a passion for plants
  • [05:07] Why herbs are the most "generous" plants
  • [06:28] Why scent is the most underutilized sense in our gardens
  • [08:57] How to start treating herbs as large landscape shrubs, trees, and hedges
  • [10:45] Which herbs are best for replacing large plants/hedges?
  • [12:23] How to get large creeping and upright rosemary hedges
  • [15:09] Invest in quality soil and compost to build your garden’s foundation with Espoma Organic!
  • [16:33] What are some deer-resistant herbs that we can use as protectors?
  • [19:02] Which smaller herbs work best for edging borders and invisible fences
  • [20:24] Is Alyssum an herb?
  • [20:48] Landscape herb sun needs and chamomile ground cover
  • [24:37] How chives double as a sturdy pollinator magnet and an easy DIY gift
  • [26:25] How can we use herbs as landscape plants to attract more pollinators?
  • [29:04] Why you might be killing your lavender and how it actually wants to be treated
  • [32:10] How to pair landscape herbs together (and which aggressive spreaders belong in pots)
  • [34:34] Why you should grow what you love and then try one "crazy" experiment
  • [38:55] How to use colored basil for landscape pop and cut flower arrangements
  • [41:21] Simple ratio for mixing your own herbal bath salts from the garden
  • [44:26] Where to find Sue, her blog, and her themed container herb gardening book!

 

Mentioned in our conversation:

 

For Sue's recommended herbs for garden landscaping,

check out the full show notes and blog here!

 

Follow Sue:

Website
The Herb Lover's Garden
Instagram
Facebook

 

Thank you to our episode sponsors:

Espoma Organic

Visit espoma.com to find your local Espoma dealer or check my Amazon storefront.

ZenAI

Visit zen.ai to start your first vibecast for free.

 

Follow Maria and Growing Joy:

Order my book: Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness (and Plants)by Maria Failla, Illustrated by Samantha Leung

Take the Plant Parent Personality Quiz (Get the perfect plants, projects and educational resources for YOUR Lifestyle)

Support Growing Joy with Maria by becoming a Plant Friend on Patreon!

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There’s a quiet, accessible kind of wellness waiting for you on a windowsill or in a patch of soil. Growing Joy with Plants explores that very idea, moving beyond basic tips to examine how our relationship with the natural world directly nurtures our mental and emotional health. Hosted by Maria Failla, a self-proclaimed Happy Plant Lady and author of "Growing Joy: The Plant Lover's Guide to Cultivating Happiness," this podcast feels like a warm conversation with a knowledgeable friend. Maria guides you through the practicalities of keeping your houseplants alive and thriving, but the discussion always circles back to the deeper connection-how the simple acts of watering, repotting, or simply observing growth can become anchors of calm in a hectic day. Each episode digs into how gardening and engaging with nature, even in small urban spaces, offer tangible tools to manage feelings of anxiety and overwhelm. This isn't about achieving a perfect indoor jungle; it's about finding moments of peace and genuine happiness through the process of care. The underlying message throughout the podcast is a powerful and gentle reminder: tending to your plants is fundamentally an act of tending to yourself. You’ll come away with not just better plant care knowledge, but a refreshed perspective on cultivating joy in your daily routine, learning that the serenity you might seek on vacation can be rooted right in your own home.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

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Growing Joy with Plants - Wellness Rooted in Nature, Houseplants, Gardening and Plant Care
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