Hi All,

We sort of look after / use next doors 30' x 10' back 'garden'.

The last time it was actually tended prior our interests there was a
border (down just one side) with flowers and a lawn.

For the last 3 years the border has been my runners plot (and they
have done quite well), this year we fancied trying to do extra stuff.

Daughter and I have just strimmed the 'lawn' (~1m high) back to the
ground and much of it is either dead or very lumpy. It is also a bit
high so we would be happy to take the whole top off and start again
(but how?).

For where the lawn was (is) *I* fancied black membrane and bark
chippings / gravel but daughter would like to retain some grass. We
agree half of the existing lawn could be lost to produce.

But: the garden runs N/S with our house to the South (by about 30'), a
6' panel fence along the entire Eastern border and for 20' of the
Western side at the North end of the plot, is my garage (8' high at
the eaves).

So, the most logical use of the space would be to re lawn (turf /
seed) the Southern end and use the Northern end for produce but would
much grow with such restricted light (although the weeds seem to be
happy enough) :-(

Alternatively, we could split the plot lengthways giving a long thin
lawn to the East and widening the produce plot to the West but the
lawn would then be less useful for putting up the odd tent to dry out
or a rotary clothes line etc?

The sort of produce we might like to grow (that we would all
potentially eat) could include spuds, carrots, broccoli, brussels, and
some cabbage of some sort.

Toms seem a bit fussy (tried, not worth it), same with cucumbers etc.
We also did some fancy smaller beans and whist they worked ok didn't
produce the volume of 'food' runners seem to do. In fact, as a non
gardener / engineering / utilitarian sort, runners seem to be my sorta
vegetable (and at least they don't taste bitter (to me) like most
other green stuff does).

But Man cannot live by runners alone .. :-(

We are in Nth London / Herts soil wise.

All the best ..

T i m

p.s. I have just given Mum a seed tray of last years spring onions
(that I'd sorta forgotten about) that are now each about 1" in
diameter and it's packed solid with them!