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Well wasn’t that fun? What a kitchen gardening journey these past twelve months have been, as we’ve chased the seasons together…
It doesn’t feel possible that a whole year has passed, despite documenting the seasons through and through. From spring planting through summer growing for an autumn harvest; and autumn planting through winter growing for a spring harvest…with a trickle of produce coming in all year round, trying as best we could to avoid the hungry gap.
The garden has gone through myriad transformations as we’ve travelled through the seasons; built structures, prepared beds anew, made compost and tonics, saved and sown seed, tied-in, pinched out, nurtured and collected fine produce.
Back at square one, a year on, we’re basking in the soft and pretty once more, and as we hurtle towards the end of this seasonal cycle, it’s almost time to pull everything out and begin all over again.
Everything’s a little bit out of control, but we and everyone who turns up here, are eating well! The broad bean box and wire tunnel are simply packed to bursting with goodness to eat!
The guild beds are a froth of foliage and veg going to flower, which in turn will make them excellent companion plants, while eventually, I’ll collect seed and begin the process all over again.
There will be plenty of seed to begin another tossing bed, just like this one, that’s attracting myriad bees as it sways in the breeze…as are those brassicas that have run to flower and the rows of stock, wallflowers and broad beans on the traditional side of the garden (image two above).
Garlic bulbs slowly plump up nearby….
And the globe artichoke season has begun early!
I very much hope you’ve enjoyed and perhaps even learned something of this fine dance that is kitchen gardening: balancing eating with gardening, available space and the weather; striving for the vision….be it along traditional lines that wouldn’t look out of place in a Beatrix Potter illustration, or in the guild style I’ve explained, that allows you to garden in small pockets at a time, yielding a hazy romantic effect at the end of the season.
I hope that describing both in detail has given you food for thought, about the approach you may take in your own garden. Either way, I hope it’s given you some helpful insights into growing good, seasonal organic produce, and that you too, are enjoying a seed to seed, soil to plate life.
I hope you’ll return to the podcasts and their corresponding notes month by month. Combined, they’re a pretty comprehensive explanation of a year in the kitchen garden. Just rotate the traditional beds by one, in your mind’s eye.
And I’ll very much hope to see you here some time in real life too! Even at our Open Garden to celebrate 30 years on 23 & 24 November 2019….
In the meantime, remember that I believe it’s in the kitchen garden you can make your biggest gardening mistakes, as they will inevitably be short-lived – the kitchen garden in particular, is ephemeral: here today, gone tomorrow, either eaten or expired, and the time will soon be right to begin the entire process with your newfound wisdom all over again.
Thank you for joining me (and Hector!) on this kitchen gardening adventure.
With very best wishes for many happy gardening days ahead!
| Going, going…… | All the winter growing produce…kale and cabbage, broccoli, brussels, kohl rabi and cauli; peas and broad beans (fave) although they’ll last another month, as will the fennel. |
| Eating…. | fennel, peas, broad beans, parsnips, celeriac, beetroot leaves and roots, cima di rappa, pumpkin, lettuce, coloured chard, rhubarb, oranges, lemons, fennel fronds, sorrel, salad burnet, mint, parsley, calendula petals, nasturtium petals, rocket. Chive flowers are coming! |
| Sowing seed of…. | Bean, beetroot, zucchini, cucumber, pumpkin, corn, zinnias, sunflowers. |
| Planting seedlings of… | Lettuce, tomatoes, aubergines, capsicums and various herbs. |
