Though we have a farm, our current growing spaces are quite small. Currently, we have two seperate patches and a couple of small raised beds. It is surprising how many plants you can fit in a small space, and just how much food you can get from them. It's easy to dismiss a small space as useless or not worth the effort, but if you want a garden you'll make it work. Sometimes we need to work with what we have, rather than what we want.
This is the small space we call Elsie's garden. It's about the same size as a courtyard at around 10m2. Though it's small there are a lot of plants there, and an example of what can be done in a small space. It is pretty with flowers and decorative trees as well as lots of edibles.
We attempted a big veggie garden two years ago but Elsie was tiny, I was home-educating three children and we had broken pasture that kept trying to take the freshly exposed ground back. Then Grant got a different job taking him away from home more. In the end, we let it go knowing there would be another season, and that all good things take time.
This area at the front of the yurt is what we call 'Elsies garden' It's home to her little cubby and sandpit while being a safe and secure place for her to play. It isn't a big area at about 10m2, but I think a good example of what can be done with a small yard or courtyard. The cubby could easily be the footprint of a small garden shed and the sandpit area is enough space for a small paved area with a cafe-style table and chairs. If you have a small space and children be encouraged, you can still create a lovely, interesting and natural play space for them. It doesn't need to be big.
If you have a small garden, don't be afraid to use medium-sized deciduous trees. In this little space, I have a crepe myrtle, elderberry which I am pruning up, and frangipani, which didn't make it through winter. I'll be pulling it out and replacing it with a pink magnolia which I have seen a lot of around here. It's always good to have a sticky beak about what others are growing nearby. I also have a beautiful gardenia in one corner. You could easily plant a couple of deciduous fruit trees like a peach, plum or apricot to maximise your productivity if that's what you wanted. By using small-medium trees you add interest upwards and create a microclimate under them which can support a wider diversity of plants. Celery, coriander and lettuce for example don't mind some shade in the middle of a hot summer's day. The good thing about deciduous trees is they let in the sunshine over colder months.
Along with the decorative shrubs and trees, in this small garden there is kale, chard, spinach, celery, spring onions, lettuce, edible violets, cherry tomato, snow peas, perennial basil, horseradish, parsley, oregano, lavender, echinacea, sage, thyme, pyrethrum and citronella geranium. Along with seaside daisies, diosmas, salvia, African daisy, native orchid, petunias and foxgloves just because they are pretty as well as helping with diversity.
Freshly planted seedlings. Spring onions and silverbeet.
This small space is constantly changing and evolving as things come to the end of their cycle and other plants are brought in to fill the gaps. As one area is cleared out, I top it up with fresh compost and aged manure before planting it out again with a couple of punnets of seedlings. If you have a small area, it's easy to buy compost and manure by the bag from your local garden centre. Just check your prices as it can differ wildly.
In the photo above I had just pulled out parsley that had died off and some lettuces which had gone to seed. In their place, I planted silverbeet and spring onion. I also moved the horseradish to the back, brought in compost and moved some heirloom volunteer cherry tomatoes. Then I potted up a couple of cherry tomatoes to give to a friend over the weekend.
We are growing closer to a time when we can either buy more raised beds or put in animal-proof fencing for a veggie plot. It has now about the third job on the list. Woo hoo! We are not sure which option we will take. Raised beds look lovely, have great drainage which is helpful given the predicted soggy summer ahead, and are excellent for growing smaller things like Asian greens, spinach, herbs, chillies and smaller plants. I really enjoy working with them as they are a clearly defined space. But putting in an animal-proof fence around what will be the big patch would allow us to plant bush tomatoes, corn, cucumber, pumpkins, sweet potato, zucchini, berries, watermelon etc. It would however require more, heavier work, but has the potential to supply us with a larger volume of food. We are undecided about which option we will pursue first.
I'll share what is happening in my round garden which is about the same size over the coming weeks. I'm currently planting it out with cherry tomatoes, capsicum, eggplant, and chillis as well as lots of greens.
What's growing at your place? Do you have a big yard or a little one?
I hope this finds you well, and that the flowers in bloom bring you a smile.
Much love,
Emma
xx
Weekend links
Every time we go to the community garden, all the children gorge themselves on these native raspberries. They are utterly delicious and I'm looking for some bushes to plant on the farm. If you are in the tropics or subtropics I highly recommend planting them!
YouTube - Heidi
I loved the book and the movie Heidi when I was a child, then I found it on YouTube and it was delightful watching on a rainy afternoon.
Shannon Hayes is one of my favourite authors, especially her book Radical Homemakers. I stumbled upon this talk and really enjoyed it.
Sophie Thompson, one of my favourite presenters on Gardening Australia makes DIY wicking beds. These are perfect if you are a bit hap-hazard with watering, growing in a backyard situation or want to grow in raised beds for mobility reasons.
This family lives a wonderfully sustainable life.
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That small garden reminds me of the garden I had in the Netherlands. It was small, but I grew so much there. Here on Curaçao I have a lot of space. I'm currently working on a part of our lot next to the house. I think it's about 90 m2. Because of the climate (tropical and windy island, so very hot and usually dry) I'm growing a lot of trees to provide a bit of shadow and hold a bit of humidity. I haven't been able to grow "normal" veggies (lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, peppers - the things I used to grow) yet, but most of the plants I have are edible or medicinal. It's such fun to get to know them and this climate.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds so great! It can be a challenge to learn about what you can grow in a new climate. This climate is very different from where we used to live. We have a subtropic summer which is hot and wet and temperate over winter.
DeleteTrees can be so helpful, I think a food forest style garden can work really well in the heat. Good luck with your gardening! xx
I love Elsie's Garden, so pretty, practical and welcoming. I put 2 raised beds up when I first moved here, as I knew it would take me ages to clear grass and weeds to make bigger beds for those sprawling-type vegetables, but wanted a quick solution and greens growing near the house. It's only me, so 2 was enough. They've been marvellous and although I'm now starting to collect seeds, I'm still cutting greens every day. There was also the added time and cost of building up good soil in the cleared beds. I've had a couple of crops of pumpkins and broadbeans now, so have been able to dig a lot of material back in, worms have moved in and I'm ready to think about summer crops.
ReplyDeleteIt's a really sweet space, and easy to supervise too, whilst giving her freedom.
DeleteI really like raised beds, its surprising how much you can grow in just a couple of them, especially if you choose what you plant wisely. Herbs are always good to grow in a small space. One they are expensive, they are often highly nutritious and they add such a variety of flavours to nay home cooked meal. So much goodness.
My main problem with increasing my growing space now is animal proofing it. between the goats and the cows there is always someone looking to have a munch!
Pumpkins are such generous plants. It feels so great to be able to grow them doesn't it? Wonderful the worms are moving into your soil. Such a good sign. xx
Tiny certainly is our way to go, also because we are just with the two of us. I have found the challenge of optimally designing a veggie garden that provides for us year round (in a not so easy climate in the centre of France) to be very inspirational!
ReplyDeleteYour garden sounds wonderful Frank! It's amazing what you can grown in a small space. You sound like you are very organised. :)
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