Spring Has Sprung

It could be a great moment to start growing your own food. Even if you don’t have an allotment, any experience or access to gardening equipment, all is not lost. No matter how little space you have available, there are almost always options to grow food.

A typical UK garden supports a whole variety of insects, birds and even small mammals. But many people don’t know it can also feed them, with a nice variety of crops growing alongside the ornamental plants.

What to plant and how to care for it depends very much on your own garden and circumstances. There are a lot of online sources of ideas and instructions.

Here are our top tips:

1. Start simple. If this is your first attempt at growing crops, start with the simple accessible ones – rocket, lettuce and other greens, rhubarb, courgette, and beans.  You can also try raspberries with an added bonus since these can be expensive and hard to get without packaging, Onions and root crops are also fairly easy and satisfying. But whatever you plant, make sure it’s something you actually like eating! 
2. Mix up the edible plants in the garden. You don’t need traditional straight lines of vegetables. Most crops will happily grow among your flowers or at the edges borders.
3. Try going up. Vertical planting or teepees can be an exciting addition to your garden and let you make the most of the space you have without giving up what you’ve already planted.

Recommended sources of information and guidance

• https://www.gardenersworld.com/
• https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/grow-your-own/vegetables
• https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/apr/04/alys-fowler-fresh-greens-hard-to-come-by-grow-your-own

Local independent seller of seeds and plants that offer delivery services

• https://www.thegardenoxford.co.uk/category-36/vegetable-seeds.htm
• https://bunkershillgardenshop.co.uk/
• https://www.yarntonhomegarden.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Vegatable-plants-March-20-1.pdf