Ginnel/Back alley garden

In 2023 Debbie and I started thinking about extending into the ginnel at the back of our terrace which was basically a bin storage area, too narrow for traffic. We'd seen some posts about them and it seemed like a great way to get to know our neighbours better if we could get them involved.
A trip to Tatton park flower show where Jason Williams (aka "The cloud gardener") had a ginnel display garden convinced us to give it a try. 
We spoke to our neighbours Alex and Bianca on the other side of the ginnel and they were up for the challenge. 



We decided to make it primarily an edible space as we were already heavily involved with incredible edible and this gave us access to some funding and insurance. Having said that we've tried to make it as cheaply as possible by making our own planters with donated wood and pallets and growing plants from seed. 
We started building at the back end of 2023 and by the time winter arrived had the first of our bin covers/ planters in place
We were excited for the next season!
We resumed our building in the spring of 2024 and the garden soon started to take shape.
We've now covered all the bins, made a variety of planters and added lots of arty bits and pieces. More neighbours have started helping and it's now becoming a beautiful space where we can socialize and pick produce fo our kitchens. 
Although it's a container garden (we can't really dig up the cobbles) I'm carrying on with the forest garden feel from my own garden by incorporating forest garden "layers".
 The canopy layer consists of apple, plum, pear, fig and sweet chestnut trees (we're going to need some sizeable pots going forward).
The shrub layer is black currants, gooseberry, rosemary fuchsias with more to follow.
Herb layer, chives, sorrels, good king Henry, alliums, parsley, ladies mantle, geraniums, poppy.
Ground cover: strawberry, plantain, chickweed, 
Climbers: clematis, nasturtium, grapes, wisteria.
Annuals: tomatoes, potatoes, sunflower, lettuce, rocket, 
And lots more to follow!

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