Thursday, April 08, 2010

Gardening

When we moved in here the landlord said that we could do whatever we wanted with the garden.

We've got a lovely sunny patio, and the middle section of the garden was just a lawn (an old leaky shed is on the very top bit). We put our trampoline at the end of the garden and just left the grass.

Four weeks ago we decided to dig up the lawn to make room for vegetable and flower beds. I've left a one metre grass pathway that leads from the steps of the patio to the trampoline. The rest is mine!I'm really happy with how it is looking. The soil has been turned over regularly, and raked to a reasonably fine tilth.


I found a number of bulbs when I dug up the lawn and turned everything over, and so I planted them around the edges of the new vegetable patch.

Happily, these have turned out to be white campanulata, miniature daffodils and the others are yet to show me what they are!

This has given a little colour to the garden, along with twelve mixed coloured primula that I got from the garden centre opposite us.

I've also salvaged some sedum and one hebe (as well as two rose bushes) from the ragedy stuff that was here when we moved in.

The strawberries we inherited have been successfully split and are now coming away lovely.




Also, as well as garlic and early potatoes, the garden now has cabbage, broccoli, leeks, two types of beetroot and LOTS of carrots growing.

I've also got rocket and coriander in tubs.

The two sets of potatoes planted by our gardening group as part of the Potatoes for Schools initiative are both through.

3 comments:

Cottage Smallholder said...

Brilliant!

We are digging up our lawns too.

Love the pictures of the seedlings - so hopeful and full of promise.

Well done on the home schooling front. I admire your dedication :)

Tracy said...

I just found your blog via Butcher,Baker and wanted to let you know I have enjoyed visiting. I am in NSW,Australia and home school two of my three children and enjoy time in the garden too.

thenewstead6 said...

Thanks Fiona! Your blog is a real inspiration to me, both in terms of the self sufficiency and the cooking, and I'm loving following you :-)

Welcome Tracy! I've found most of my favourite blogs via links on other blogs, especially all the food or gardening ones!