I have a home made planter for my rosemary, thyme, sage and basil. It sits in the mulch behind my deck, so that we can grab it when we need them to cook with those items. The rosemary gets really bushy when you keep clipping off the tinder tops! The last two years the rosemary and sage have survived the winter. I keep losing my thyme and it is supposed to be tough. In my little victory garden I will have chives (I tilled the old under this year as it was invaded by grass), onions, egg plant, tomatoes, sweet peppers, green beans and what ever hits us at the moment.
Last year my peppers did little until late (probably too wet), the egg plants did wonderfully, tomatoes not much (probably too wet) and my garlic actually died mid summer (probably too wet). Also my garden is not in the right place. It is partially shaded by a hackberry tree and its roots compete with part of the garden.
A garden was always a big part of my life. I really enjoy it and I think a home grown tomato can't be matched. My egg plants are a pain in the butt, but I love to slice one, rub with olive oil and back it at 350° for about 7 minutes on each side, pull it out of the oven, salt and eat it. My wife will not even try it but I can easily eat a relatively large eggplant. I take the surplus the surplus eggplant, roast it as described above, freeze it on a cookie tray and then put it in food saver bags, evacuate the air and freeze them for winter egg plant dishes.