Tuesday 1 May 2018

A Growing Garden


The sun has finally started to come out. For us, this just means one thing; sorting our garden out, get our fruits and vegetables growing and make the most of our small yard.
When we first moved in, over 3 years ago, the garden that came with the flat was a complete mess and every border was overgrown.





This became evident when we started clearing all the unwanted growth. We found that we had a raised bed, one long border, one medium but wide border and one smaller border.




Despite being disabled I have always enjoyed gardening. Yet, the real challenge for me is finding and utilising the space that I have.
My long term plan has always been to create a "growing garden"; a garden where we grow as much produce as we can in the little space that we have.

Due to the size of the garden, as well as my disability, it has always been just a long term plan. When we first moved in around July it was too late to do anything other than clearing the growth, see what we were working with and prepare it for winter.


The second year we regrouped and attacked all the new growth and started to create distinguishable sections in the garden. 





We made sure we had space to grow some potted plants, a couple of tomato plants and a batch of runner beans.



Last year was the first year that we started growing a better crop and used the garden better. We had another good batch of runner beans, a pot of strawberries, two different types of tomato plants, a bell pepper plant, chilli peppers and one cucumber plant.




This was also the year that my idea of utilising the garden better started happening.
I am a big fan of recycling and upcycling. If I really can't use it then I will dispose of it appropriately otherwise I will try and find a use for it.

One example of this was when I got a new bed. The old bed had a nice wooden frame but the sheer height of it made it difficult to get on and off. Yet, as always, I didn't want to get rid of it so decided to upcycle it.



I used the centre slats as a form of "decking" for our new BBQ area, the bottom and head boards as fencing and finally used the frame as a border decoration. The fact that I did this made a massive difference not only to the environment but to the garden. It was a simple action that made the garden look so much better.


We are now entering the fourth year and I am finally where I want to be.

We are planning to continue having more runner beans but with a simple construction we could get double the growth from previous years as well as using the pots for three times the amount of strawberries. Going forward we have sectioned off and area for cucumbers and courgettes, will use the raised bed for tomatoes and peppers and use the smallest bed for our herb garden. I have also collected 6 tyres with the hope to use 3 each and grow our own potatoes in them.



The final, medium but deep, bed is my final hurdle. 



The sheer depth of it makes it difficult for me to use it; even if I was sat on the floor or in my wheelchair I couldn’t reach the furthest section. I have thought long and hard and have come up with two options: create 3 or 4 raised beds with a small path between or  place some fake grass over it.

The raised beds would allow us to then plant parsnips, radishes, rhubarb and carrots. However, the fake grass could create a little space for the 4 children to sit and have lunch on. It would seem ideal regarding my muscular dystrophy as I wouldn’t need to cut it or upkeep it in anyway.
I will have to think about it a little longer but luckily I have some time before we start planting but I would love to know what you all think I should do with it.

One thing is for sure, this year will be the closest for me achieving my growing garden.
Are you green fingered? What plans do you have for the garden this year?

(This was a collaborative post. My opinions, my want for a nicer garden and photos of my garden are my own and I am under no obligations to give a positive review. Please see my full disclosure at the bottom of my blog)

5 comments:

Steve Rickelton | Big Stevie Cool said...

I love the idea of raised beds. I've tried to grow veg in the past but always fail! I feel like I need to make more of an effort. My grandad has a huge garden full of vegetable patches. I need some tips from him!

Plutoniumsox.com said...

Is this post basically a very public warning to Hannah about her responsibilities as a gardener when she moves in??

You've all done a great job with it, I hope everything grows well this year.

Nat.x

JOhn Adams said...

That really is a labour of love Martyn. I fear I don't get much further than growing some tomatoes and sunflowers with the kids each year, maybe potatoes. Your efforts put me to shame.

Hayley said...

I adore growing vegetables and have nearly got my garden to how I want it. I’m a wheelchair user so have had to make it accessible. I’ve actually just written a blog post about how I garden from a wheelchair x

Veronica Mitchell said...

I love your garden! I can't wait to make ours a little bigger and try to plant vines like cucumber and pumpkin. I have herbs now like rosemary, spearmint, chives, etc. Hoping to propagate more. Thanks for sharing!