Ina Garten is famous for a lot of things, from her beloved roast chicken recipes to her epic 4th of July flag cake to her signature chambray shirts. Now, there’s yet another reason to fangirl over the Barefoot Contessa: her jaw-droppingly beautiful backyard garden.
The legend herself guided her followers on a tour of the verdant East Hampton, New York oasis via Instagram last week. “It’s a beautiful day in East Hampton, and I thought it’d be really fun to take a tour of the garden. So, come with me,” she began.
She starts by walking us through the shade garden, which is packed with ferns and crepe myrtle trees. The path leads to a fairytale-like stone doorway that opens into what Ina calls her “secret garden.”
To no one’s surprise, Ina grows a ton of her own herbs and produce—like tomatoes, sage, thyme, chives and lavender—to use in the kitchen. Tall tomato stakes are among the first plants to greet you upon entering. She’s particularly proud of her impressively sized fig trees (she cooks with the figs and uses the leaves to decorate food platters, so none of the plant goes to waste) and gorgeous white and peach-colored roses.
Flocks of fans raved about the garden’s beauty in the comments, including her celebrity friends Katie Couric and Julianna Margulies.
If you’re like us (and um, most people), creating a garden as divine as this may seem like a tall order. But not to worry: In the words of the Barefoot Contessa, “even if you don’t have room for a garden, you can always put pots of herbs on the windowsill, like basil and tarragon, and have delicious herbs for your cooking.”
We’re on it, Ina.
