Relax, It's Matt Rocco's Organic Garden

Matt Rocco has a career where long hours and high stress come standard, every day. But lately the effects of working in this boiler room type environment had become so acute that making the transition from work to home was proving more difficult. So to make it easier for Matt to unwind at home, his wife, Lindsay,  surprised him with an organic garden.  

We selected a sunny corner on the south-facing side of the family’s Eastover home, just behind a brick wall. The garden sits right beside a pathway with easy access to the front and back yards, and a water spigot is conveniently just a few feet away. The ornamental bench opposite the raised bed gives Matt a place to relax and enjoy the garden. 

We chose a 4’x8’ Kitchen Garden raised bed because it delivered the perfect balance between grow area, and adequate space to move around and access every part of the garden. The garden bed’s 4’ width allows a user to reach the center from either side, without having to step on the soil.

Our Kitchen Garden raised bed design is made with locally milled, eastern red cedar which is naturally resistant to decay and damage from insects. The rustic texture, aromatic scent, and color variety between boards, give this hand-cut lumber a special beauty that store-bought lumber just doesn’t have.

Of course it takes more than an organic garden to loosen up, and the Rocco family treasures their summer vacations. So to make sure Matt’s garden stays watered when it needs it the most, we installed a Netafim 1/2” drip irrigation system that’s controlled by a battery powered timer placed at the nearby spigot. Now he can simply program the timer, then hit the road for some much needed down time with the family.

One of the best advantages of the The Kitchen Garden design is the 18” height which makes gardening much more comfortable than bending over to reach plants in the ground, or in shallow raised beds. Plus it helps keep out rabbits, too.  And with a sturdy seating cap placed around the top edge, you can actually sit and garden at the same time. Now that’s relaxing!

We always fill our raised beds  with an OMRI listed blend of pine bark fines, expanded slate pebbles, and mushroom compost, which will never harden or become compacted over time. This ‘soilless’ growing medium strikes the perfect balance of drainage, aeration, and nutrient retention for healthy roots, and vigorous plants. And a generous helping of Espoma’s iconic Plant-Tone organic nutrient blend adds the essential nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium and trace minerals that will ensure Matt’s garden thrives all season long.

You’re probably thinking, “Well, that all sounds great, but has the garden actually helped Matt leave the stress back at the office, and get more enjoyment out of time at home?” 

“Absolutely”, says Lindsay. “He’s outside tending the garden all the time now, and he’s waaay more relaxed.”