As someone (very subtly ) asked me, “So, where is this secret garden?”

Thought it was time for a progress report…

I wish we’d taken some “before” photos, but we didn’t.  You’ll just have to imagine the “before” stage.  The steps were already there, as was the box hedging and the tree in the centre.  The rest was lawn. 

For us (un-handiman types) boxing in two vege patches was a major mission.  If the area had been flat our task would have been fairly easy.  But unfortunately it slopes in two directions: sideways from where our house is up towards the fenceline, and lengthways in the direction of the steps.  So deciding on how flat we wanted our vege patches to be, then having to dig in the railway sleepers, shovel out piles of dirt, trying to make the raised gardens square (when little else was) and trying to figure out how to nail the sleepers in place, was all a steep learning curve.  In fact it wasn’t that enjoyable – and we had to keep the end result in our minds as we sweated it out in the early summer sun.

 

It was really rewarding to be able to fill the raised beds with  garden mix, then begin the process of planting out seedlings.

 Our first harvest was radishes – yes, I know, ANYONE can grow radishes.  (That’s why I grew them – I wanted some guaranteed success ).  It’s quite funny really – I realised that that was the ONLY reason I was growing them – I don’t really like radishes that much.  So have since stopped growing them as I figure it’s a bit of a waste of space.

The beetroot went crazy – they were HUGE.  Another success story.  At first I wondered why I was growing them, as I didn’t really want to preserve them in huge jars for a small family like us.  But then I discovered a recipe that involved roasting beetroot – very yummy.  I also discovered that beetroot keep for ages (unpeeled) in the fridge.  So a good crop to grow.

 

 

We have also been growing: beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, apple cucumber, capsicum, zucchini, sweet corn, and spring onions.

 

It’s been a learning curve, with mixed success.  There’s been some fungal disease happening which has been a bit of a disappointment, and the zucchini took up more space than I had anticipated, and I’ve realised that some veges like more water and food than others.

 It’s nice having flowers in and around the vege patch.  The Zinnia (the bright orange/red flowers) apparently attract bees (good for vege pollination) – although to be honest I didn’t know that when I planted them!!  The marigolds are meant to be a good insect repellant – not sure if it’s true or not – the white butterflies didn’t seem to be deterred!!

The herb part of the potager is just beginning to happen.  The hedge on the house side of the garden is rosemary.  I have also just planted some basil.  Here’s a confession though: I have had some punnets of herbs waiting to be planted out sitting in the hot summer sun, shrivelling away now for weeks!!!  Couldn’t decide exactly where I was going to plant them – talk about a procrastinator!!!

We were given a cape cod chair for a christmas present and I have just finished painting it and it now sits in the garden.  Hoping it will be a relaxing place to contemplate.

The compost bin is there but not actually happening yet – haven’t made the final decision as to where it will be positioned, so it remains empty at the mo.

So, that’s where things are at.  We have found the whole project to be exciting and energising, and we look forward to discovering more about gardening in the year ahead.

Plans for the coming months?  To do a couple of mosaic pictures to be hung either side of the steps on the bare looking wall, to do some mosaic pavers to go at top of steps (landing), to persevere and have a better success rate with seed planting (would like to use seeds instead of buying seedlings), and to be consistent with garden maintainence – feeding, spraying, etc.