Sure, we’ve all heard of beer gardens. But as you can probably tell from my cocktail recipes, I love concocting new adult beverages for pizza night. Why not grow a garden for bartenders? Wine is great throughout the winter, but come the warming days of spring, I love a good, refreshing cocktail. Who doesn’t! So I put together a list of all the fresh ingredients I like to use when crafting new cocktails. See below for some of my favorite ingredients to grow in a cocktail garden.
And don’t forget to add a few fun chairs and a table so that you can sit and enjoy your cocktails while admiring your garden!
Mint
Mint is the quintessential herb for so many cocktails – Mojitos, Mint Juleps, the Southside, and pretty much any fruity smash cocktail. It easily tops my list of what should be included in a bartender’s cocktail garden. Plus mint makes a great garnish! Use it as a garnish for MaiTais, Daiquiris, Moscow Mules, Cubans, and specialty martinis. It is unparalleled in its versatility at the bar.
Mint is incredibly easy to grow. So easy, in fact, that it can be invasive and take over your garden! I always suggest that mint is planted in a pot and placed well away from your vegetables. Mint is even known to “Jump” the sides of a pot when that pot is near soil, so patio planting is even better.
Dwarf Fruit Trees
Fruit gives your cocktails the flavor and the structure you are looking for. Without the fruit, your cocktails can be on the boring side. It is smart to have both citrus fruit and stone fruit, if possible. Berries are also great to have, but since they grow differently, I’ll cover those separately.
Citrus
If you live in Zone 9 or higher, I definitely recommend you get a citrus tree or two. Whoever has heard of a Margarita without a lime? And lemons are critical for so many cocktails too. My Ginger Grant is all lemony goodness. One of my newest favorite drinks is a lemony gin White Linen. Grapefruit, on the other hand is key for a Bay Breeze.
I tend to think citrus mixes brilliantly with the clear alcohol such as tequila, vodka and gin. You’ll get a light, refreshing drink that you can have more than one of. But don’t let that stop you from creating a lemon-bourbon concoction, such as a Gold Rush.
Dwarf citrus can be tucked into small corners of your property and not take up too much space. But if you are in a colder area, or can’t spare your yard, you can still grow citrus – just grow it in a pot which you can move indoors through the winter. Meyer lemons are especially good for growing in pots. I’ve had good success with limes and grapefruit, too. Head on over to my post about growing citrus for more info.
Stone Fruit
Stone fruit is another important ingredient for home mixologists. The sugar in fresh fruit blends beautifully with alcohol. Most alcohol contains very little sugar. Bourbon, for example, because it is distilled, has 0 grams of sugar per shot. And the fruit can stand up to a heavier, darker alcohol, too. That’s why using bourbon in a smash cocktail with a stone fruit such as a peach or a plum works so well.
Don’t get me wrong – we all love a peach martini or a plum margarita, too. Use these suggestions as guidelines and go with what you love.
Berries
Berries are wonderful to have on hand for the bartender. Try an Old Fashioned with some blackberries instead of the boring maraschino cherry and bitters! Or whip up yourself a raspberry margarita (or two).
Berries, like the mint, will probably need to be planted separately from your other herbs and vegetables. Strawberries are the easiest to grow, and they are generally the best behaved, too. You can try them in a hanging basket so that they can trail over the edges. I really like using a wire basket with a coco liner.
Raspberries and blackberries, on the other hand, throw out thorny canes so they can be more work. They also need a bit more space, so a hanging basket is probably not going to be big enough. However they will grow nicely in a pot and will spread and are more easily contained. A half whiskey barrel would be another good option.
Basil
Basil is a versatile herb which we Italians love, and would be a great addition to any cocktail garden. It adds a more subtle flavor to martinis and gimlets. It also goes well with fruity drinks like strawberry or watermelon. I also love it alongside cucumber with vodka, with or without some sparkle. Or try a lemon basil combo with gin. But be warned. too much can be a bit overwhelming for some people.
Basil is relatively easy to grow, too. It doesn’t need too rich of soil or too much water. It likes sun but does even better when protected from full sun. I tuck some in behind my tomato plants where it is protected from the hottest sun of the afternoon.
Cucumber
I mentioned above that I love a cucumber and basil martini, but you can also hold the basil to really savor the clean fresh flavor of the cucumber. But uses for the cucumber at the bar don’t stop there. Try a cucumber mojito, a cucumber Collins, or a cucumber gimlet. And for a real treat, try a Cucumber bourbon smash or a White Linen.
One of my favorite cucumbers for eating is an Armenian cucumber, and they tend to be more mild. American or English cucumbers work especially well for cocktails.
Unless you have a greenhouse, cucumbers like to be planted when it’s warm out and they taste so great in midsummer. You can start them from seed once the overnight temps warm up, or plant starts from a nursery. Make sure to provide a good trellis for them to grow on.
Lavender
Lavender is another of the more subtle flavors which you can add to your bag of bartender tricks. And it adds a touch of beauty and whimsy to your cocktail garden. It goes very well with rum and tequila, and I’ve often seen Lavender Tom Collins or Caipirinhas. Lavender can be made ahead of time as a flavor enhancer to simple syrup or in a floral homemade bitters.
Lavender is also wonderful as a garnish to your drinks, to add a touch of color. And best of all, lavender grows easily in most gardens. You can add them to your flower beds or as a border plant.
Rosemary
Rosemary is a wonderful garnish, especially for Bloody Marys. but you’ll be thrilled to know that there are also a lot of excellent recipes which add rosemary, too. Many of them are citrusy, too. Grapefruit rosemary cocktails abound, but I think my favorites are the pineapple rosemary cocktail and the blood orange rosemary cocktails. And don’t forget your vodka, rosemary and pink lemonade.
Follow this link for tips to grow rosemary: Guide to Growing Rosemary
Peppers
Peppers are great to grow, especially if you like spicy drinks such as a bloody mary. Frankly, if you like the heat, there are so many cocktails being made now with peppers. One of our favorite Mexican restaurants serves up a spicy habanero margaritas, and another serves a Jalapeno Paloma.
Pair your pepper with an alcohol that can stand up to the heat, yet doesn’t compete with it. Tequila, Gin, Rum, Vodka, and pretty much anything with some fruit in it. (Think – Bourbon Smash with some mint and jalapeno!)
Here are some links for growing hot peppers: Tips on growing hot peppers and tips to increase your pepper harvest yields.
Edible flowers
Flowers such as the calendula above, nasturtium, marigolds, chamomile, echinacea or violas make a lovely garnish for drinks, especially “up” drinks such as a flavored martini or a cosmopolitan. And they are so pretty to add to a cocktail garden – or any garden for that matter. Calendula, marigolds and chamomile like full sun and don’t need very much water at all. Nasturtiums and violas, on the other hand, do best in light shade and can get along with very little water too. However if planted in full sun, they will burn unless they get a skooch more water.
Best part about adding these to your cocktail garden? They are also wonderful herbs to use when brewing your own tea!
Once you get your cocktail garden in full swing I can guarantee you will be the most popular person in your neighborhood!
