Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
What is there to eat in your front garden this month?
Last Sunday, a few of us met up in Passion Cafe over coffee to talk about growing edibles in our front gardens. As ever, when a bunch of gardeners get together, the gathering went on far longer than we expected and we chatted about how we can help new growers to get going in their front gardens.
During the meet up, we discussed what we had already grown and decided to have a regular slot on HOL about what there is to eat in our gardens, month by month.
We hope to inspire people to have a go and if you have questions about where to begin, we'll do our best to crowdsource the answers. Also let us know what the blocks are to growing in your front garden and maybe we can make some suggestions.
The key thing when you start is to keep it cheap and easy.
So...here goes with some things to eat in my (south facing) front garden in July
Vegetables
As I bid goodbye to the last of the broad beans (more on that in September), I'm now awaiting my first tomato crop. My plants went in late so they are only just beginning to flower and fruit. I'm growing these in a trough container and the main thing they need is water and some feed. I'm pretty bad at all the maintenance stuff but I still manage to get them to crop.
Last week, Suhith gave me some tiny kale plants. If the snails don't get them, I'm looking forward to growing these.
I've also rather optimistically planted out some mange tout seeds and sowed some radishes. Again, all in an old trough container under the window.
Fruit
I live in hopes that one day I'll get to the strawberries in the window box before my son. These had some pretty rough treatment during my building works but the plants survived and are fruiting. Here's one that's nearly ready, nestling amongst the chives that I also grow in the window box.
In the small raised bed in the front, which isn't very deep, I've got a raspberry cane. Hoping for some fruit next year. If it's successful, I'm thinking of more soft fruits in that space.
Herbs
Even if your space is small, you can still grow herbs. As well as chives in the window box, I've got thyme and oregano clinging to the edge of one of my growing troughs.
In the raised bed, a rosemary bush twists and turns itself, and a mighty sage bush bullies everything else.
Meanwhile in an old nappy bucket, I've sown some red basil. Now just a question of wait and see.
Here's just a few ideas for what could be growing in your front gardens this month. Please share pictures of your front yard edibles, tips and comments about things to grow (with or without pics) and questions in the comments below.
Tags for Forum Posts: eat your front garden, edible front gardens, front gardens
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Mavic Starfish on
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Lots of Apricots, anyday soon, need to get them of the tree before the squirrels do, but no point in harvesting till they're ripe. It's a waiting game
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Permalink Reply by Martin (Woodside) on
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I got one box of KFC with a few chips and chicken bones, plus half a can of Polish beer left on the wall.
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Permalink Reply by Liz on
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Empty the box, put soil in and start some seedlings off. Cut the bottom of the can(empty) and fill with soil. Pop a herb of your choice into it. Keep on a sunny windowsill
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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The lady's not for turning!
....and with those chicken bones, Martin - ideal for making bonemeal to fertislise your new container garden!
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Or pop them in your food recycling bin along with the chips, all of which goes to make that lovely free compost given out at Ally Pally.
One thing we discussed was getting a compost drop in Harringay. Thoughts, suggestions on where appreciated, bearing in mind they do 15t at a time!
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Permalink Reply by Peter on
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I have tomatoes growing in my front garden... they grew by themselves along with celery and marathon (the herb).
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I had some 'rogue' celery grow in my garden and four carrots that I have no recollection of planting. Must have been mixed in with one of those cheap "salad mix" packets I bought for a window box. Tomatoes are good at growing where they like rather than where you like, as is rocket.
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Permalink Reply by Mike C on
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Nasturtiums make great rambling summer greenery; the flowers are really nice in salads and the whole plant is edible.
Strangely, ours haven't come up in the garden yet this year, so I don't have any pictures :(
I never knew there was a herb called Marathon..
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Well the herb is actually called Fennel, I called it marathon because of my great grandmother who would call it marathon and used it in the olives she would make in her harringay garden.
- the ancient Greeks named the herb "marathon" - derived from the Greek "maraino" (eg: to grow thin). They believed fennel increased one's longevity, strength, and courage.
- the ancient Greeks named the herb to commemorate a battle at Marathon (490 BCE) against the Persians that was fought in a field of fennel.
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Have you rung Veolia FPR? I'm sure they will deal with that for you. I wouldn't recommend eating either of those things.
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I'd love to continue your waste disposal discussion since it is another 'interest' of mine and the issue of bins and rubbish as an impediment to growing is pertinent but it's not clear to me whether you are actually interested in talking about that or whether your issue is the two week waste collection. If the latter, that really belongs on another thread. So, if you don't mind, we'll get back to the topic in hand which is growing edibles in front gardens.
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