GROWING YOUR OWN A KITCHEN GARDEN IN A SMALL SPACE.

Byline: Jennifer Errico Staff Writer

You're in the kitchen making spaghetti and the sauce needs a little something. Oregano? Basil? You walk out the kitchen door into your own garden and snip some fresh herbs.

A dream? Maybe not. The great thing about the kitchen garden at the Pasadena Showcase House of Design is that with a little space and time, you can have one, too.

``Anyone can do this,'' said garden designer John Roberts of John R. Roberts Floriculturalist Inc. in La Canada Flintridge.

This year, the Pasadena Showcase House of Design is a 60-year-old Italianate-style home. Since every space in the house has been made beautiful, the patio off the kitchen was no exception. But the task wasn't easy. When Roberts first saw the space where he would create his kitchen garden, he knew it would be a challenge.

The space is L-shaped and technically is a service porch for many of the other rooms in the house - including the kitchen, breakfast room and courtyard. And since the area is a patio, all the plants had to be in containers.

The first thing that catches your eye in the kitchen garden are the tomatoes - they appear to be growing up the side of the wall like vines.

To get the look, which is practical because it saves space, the tomatoes' longer, lower branches were trimmed, promoting the plants to grow up, not out. As the plants got taller, they were hooked up with a strong string using plastic supports. The strings are hooked to the wall with beautiful braces and copper poles.

In the kitchen garden, old metal baskets are hooked to the wall and filled with herbs and old farm instruments. Using creative pots and planters make the garden interesting without taking up much space, Roberts said.

On a ledge, beautiful pots are filled with gold, scarlet and orange nasturtiums surrounding herbs and lettuce. The flowers are edible - they taste peppery and look great in salads. As the plants mature, the nasturtiums will cascade over the side of the pot while the herbs, including chives and basil, grow in the center.

The best thing about herbs is that they are not difficult to grow; they thrive happily with water and sunshine.

To supply the water, Roberts has a creative system using hydroponics. Pots have water in the bottom and then are filled with clay stones. On top of the clay stones is rock wool, a mixture that looks like moss and has the consistency of insulation. The plants are planted directly into the rock wool. The water stored in the bottom of the pot is pumped directly into the rock wool using a small pump.

``The water used is really minimal, which helps with conservation,'' said Roberts. ``And if you went on vacation, you wouldn't have to worry about watering the plants.''

Roberts said the pump, along with all the materials needed can be purchased for about $60 at select garden centers. But you don't need a fancy watering system for a kitchen garden - a hose will do just fine.

The plants in the kitchen garden are beautiful, but Roberts also wanted the space to be somewhere to relax.

``This is the place where you would come and have a glass of wine, not necessarily have guests but just relax and enjoy,'' said Roberts. ``And it's beautiful at sunset.''

In the widest area of the patio, Roberts has placed a grill, table and chairs. The table is made from a stone fountain. The tall fountain acts as a base and Roberts has placed a glass top on it. Where the water in the fountain would normally go, Roberts has placed broken pots and moss. The chairs are covered in a striped fabric that includes colors like ``tomato'' red.

``I wanted to echo the colors in the garden,'' Roberts said. ``And I think the colors are very Pasadena, very California.''

The Pasadena Showcase House of Design 2001 is open through May 20 (except Mondays). Tickets are $17 to $25 and are available through Ticketmaster at [phone] or [phone], online at www.ticketmaster.org, or cash only at Ticketmaster outlets. For more information, call [phone] or visit the Pasadena Showcase House Web Site at www.pasadenashowcase.org.

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Cook's garden

Planting herbs and vegetables in small spaces can yield big results

Walt Mancini/Staff Photographer

(2 -- 3) This service porch becomes a dining area with a kitchen garden in container pots.

(4) These tomato plants grow tall and slim in relatively small pots.