The first season, 2022. A micro forest garden at home




 Debbie and I moved here at the end of 2021 and started working on the garden around February 2022. It's a small space (3.7mx11m at the back, 4.3x2m at the front, total about 45sq m) and I wanted food including trees, ornamentals, water, a wood store and shed, composting and somewhere to sit. 

It was a blank canvas and blessed with a SW facing sloping plot with decent soil. But small and narrow, every square meter had to earn it's keep.

First, somewhere to sit.

Next I laid out the paths and put the shed in. I begrudged the space taken but really needed somewhere for my bike and tools.

To the left of the path was a small lawn which I took up and composted. The gravel was laid over the existing ugly concrete path which was too thick to take up.



Due to the small space I decided to add some height for climbing plants.
Lighting was added and a small pond using a flexible builders bucket. I'm a retired electrician so I could do this cheaply.


Next was a wood store at the bottom of the garden for the wood burner. I made it from old pallet wood and leftover bits from the pergola. I put a pond liner on top and added a green roof using sedums.




I brought most of the plants from my previous garden. Trees are a fig, elder "black lace" and a crab apple. Also perennial kale, grape vine, hops, honey berry, strawberry, herbs and perennial flowering plants. (The hop may prove too vigorous for the space!)



Not mine but he likes it here!




I've added this patio planter/composter from Subpod in an effort to reduce what I send to landfill. It's basically a planter with a worm farm/compost box within. You put your kitchen waste in, add composting worms and they will hopefully turn it into free compost. It will also feed the surrounding soil as it composts. I've filled it with leaves for now as the compost worms will be largely dormant over winter and I'll start properly in spring. I've planted garlic, babbington leeks and some chard to start the planting off.
The compost box can also be buried in the ground but I didn't want to take away any more planting space.  More on this to follow.





It's been a stressful year for us, my dad became sick and passed away in October but the garden is a place of calm and has taken my mind off things to some extent. 
I'm now working on the small front garden to get the most out of my limited space, I'm planning to grow mainly herbs here.




My apprentice, Elodie.


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