I was wondering if some of you would share your opinions on this.

I'm trying to decide on a spot for a vegetable garden - at the front of my
house there is a small area of useless lawn in front of my kitchen window,
next to the driveway. It is about 3m x 3m so would be a good size for a
vegetable/herb garden. It is surrounded by the house on one side, a hedge &
low stone wall on two sides & the driveway on the 4th (where I could put up
a small fence & gate to enclose it.) It would be safe from my boistrous dog
& children there!
It is more or less west facing & gets plenty of light, but not direct
sunlight all day.
I'm in the south-west of England.

Would this work as a vegetable garden?

Thanks!
Jayne

Of course it would, good luck

Jayne wrote:
: I was wondering if some of you would share your opinions on this.
:
: I'm trying to decide on a spot for a vegetable garden - at the front
: of my house there is a small area of useless lawn in front of my
: kitchen window, next to the driveway. It is about 3m x 3m so would be
: a good size for a vegetable/herb garden. It is surrounded by the
: house on one side, a hedge & low stone wall on two sides & the
: driveway on the 4th (where I could put up a small fence & gate to
: enclose it.) It would be safe from my boistrous dog & children there!
: It is more or less west facing & gets plenty of light, but not direct
: sunlight all day.
: I'm in the south-west of England.
:
: Would this work as a vegetable garden?
:
: Thanks!
: Jayne

In article ,
Jayne wrote:

I'm trying to decide on a spot for a vegetable garden - at the front of my
house there is a small area of useless lawn in front of my kitchen window,
next to the driveway. It is about 3m x 3m so would be a good size for a
vegetable/herb garden. It is surrounded by the house on one side, a hedge &
low stone wall on two sides & the driveway on the 4th (where I could put up
a small fence & gate to enclose it.) It would be safe from my boistrous dog
& children there!
It is more or less west facing & gets plenty of light, but not direct
sunlight all day.
I'm in the south-west of England.

Would this work as a vegetable garden?

For many vegetables, yes, but would not be adequate for those that
need a lot of sun. Mine isn't all that different :-(

You should avoid the subtropicals that need a lot of light, though
you don't have enough space for many of them. Sweetcorn is iffy,
winter squashes and pumpkins are worse, and so on. Of the things
that you are more likely to try, basil, chillies and tomatoes may
not do all that well. But the first two make reasonable pot plants
for a sunny windowsill.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Jayne wrote:

I'm trying to decide on a spot for a vegetable garden - at the front of
my
house there is a small area of useless lawn in front of my kitchen
window,
next to the driveway.

Just one word of caution Jayne, wireworms! They live under grass and are a
menace in newly cultivated veg gardens. They tend to head straight for root
crops potatoes and carrotts being their speciality although they will also
eat through seedlings etc. We dug up our place last Autumn and left it for
the winter, put the chucks on it for a few weeks in late winter/early spring
and take the worms out as we find them. They have a five year (according to
research but I can be corrected on this) cycle and are a major pain! They
are reddish orange about an inch long and although a grub of the click
beetle look more like a worm. You can try baiting ie. placing skewered
potatoe pieces or carrott pieces about two inches down and taking them up
daily and removing the worms or just leave out the carrott and potatoe crops
for a year or two. We've gone ahead with everything despite the infestation
and will probably lose some of our crop to them but we reckon it'll help
clear them out sooner.

Shan

Thanks for the responses - I may sound a bit dense, but as I've only been
living in England for 4 years I'm not too sure about the wheres & whats of
gardening here, so all help & advice is appreciated.

Thanks for the tip about the worms Shan. We recently dug a new flower bed &
had to dig deep as there were lots of stones to remove & I only saw
earthworms so *maybe* we don't have them? But I will certainly be on the
lookout for little red worms in the future.

Nick - I'd like to try sweetcorn - would I be better off digging a sunny
patch just for them? And I've read that you can grow pumpkins on a compost
heap? Our compost heap is in a corner of the garden which faces south - any
thoughts on that?
I tried tomatoes in pots on the patio last summer & although they did get
fruit most of them didn't ripen so I think they'd be better in a greenhouse
(which I don't have) - I'm used to being able to grow them in the garden
along with peppers, aubergine, lemon trees etc.

All the best,
Jayne

In article ,
Jayne wrote:
Thanks for the responses - I may sound a bit dense, but as I've only been
living in England for 4 years I'm not too sure about the wheres & whats of
gardening here, so all help & advice is appreciated.

Where were you before?

Thanks for the tip about the worms Shan. We recently dug a new flower bed &
had to dig deep as there were lots of stones to remove & I only saw
earthworms so *maybe* we don't have them? But I will certainly be on the
lookout for little red worms in the future.

Some places have them; others don't. They aren't a problem with me.

Nick - I'd like to try sweetcorn - would I be better off digging a sunny
patch just for them? And I've read that you can grow pumpkins on a compost
heap? Our compost heap is in a corner of the garden which faces south - any
thoughts on that?

Both of those need to grow in a warm summer, and need a sunny autumn
to ripen. That is not likely this far north, so they are very tricky.
Yes, your compost heap is a reasonable location to try.

Note that courgettes and summer squashes (eaten unripe) are much
easier than winter ones (which need to ripen).

I tried tomatoes in pots on the patio last summer & although they did get
fruit most of them didn't ripen so I think they'd be better in a greenhouse
(which I don't have) - I'm used to being able to grow them in the garden
along with peppers, aubergine, lemon trees etc.

You clearly came from points south! They do reasonably well outside
in the warmer parts, but need every bit of sun they can get.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer ^W^W^W^W uk.rec.gardening, I
heard Jayne say...
I tried tomatoes in pots on the patio last summer & although they did get
fruit most of them didn't ripen so I think they'd be better in a greenhouse
(which I don't have)

I often have a load of tomatoes which don't ripen, but I don't mind.
I'm not actually keen on tomatoes, so use them in cooking and the green
ones make wonderful chutney.
--
Fenny
If anyone ever tries to tell you nothing rhymes with orange, don't
believe them. It doesn't.

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...
Where were you before?

I lived in South Africa

Both of those need to grow in a warm summer, and need a sunny autumn
to ripen. That is not likely this far north, so they are very tricky.
Yes, your compost heap is a reasonable location to try.

Note that courgettes and summer squashes (eaten unripe) are much
easier than winter ones (which need to ripen).

I'll give that a go - thanks!

:-)
Jayne

In article ,
"Jayne" writes:
| "Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
| ...
| Where were you before?
|
| I lived in South Africa

A much better climate, in most places! Was that the Cape, or
somewhere with a very different climate type to the UK? If you
were up on the veldt, things will be strange indeed.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Cape Town, so we are used to lots of wind & rain & frost in the winter!

:-)
Jayne

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...

A much better climate, in most places! Was that the Cape, or
somewhere with a very different climate type to the UK? If you
were up on the veldt, things will be strange indeed.

(Nick Maclaren) wrote in
:

In article ,
Jayne wrote:

Nick - I'd like to try sweetcorn - would I be better off digging a
sunny patch just for them? And I've read that you can grow pumpkins on
a compost heap? Our compost heap is in a corner of the garden which
faces south - any thoughts on that?

Both of those need to grow in a warm summer, and need a sunny autumn
to ripen. That is not likely this far north, so they are very tricky.
Yes, your compost heap is a reasonable location to try.

I grew pumpkins and squashes a few times as a teenager in our North Devon
garden so I don't think they can be that hard!

I hope not, anyway, because I have some pumpkin seedlings I will be
planting out soon. Jayne is in the Southwest too, so may well get the few
extra degrees of warmth needed - specially on a southfacing compost heap.

I used to grow mine under an old window as a cloche to get them started: as
I have just demolished a very wormy shed and have nothing left but the
glass, I'm going to do that again this year.

(The only problems I had were what to do with the vast surplus of products:
I must be unusual in having set off to university equipped with a box of
monstrous fruit and vegetables. )

Victoria Clare
--
On a hill in Cornwall

I think it's worth a try!

LOL! I can see you in my mind's eye off to university with boxes of huge
pumpkins!

"Victoria Clare" wrote in message I grew
pumpkins and squashes a few times as a teenager in our North Devon
garden so I don't think they can be that hard!

I hope not, anyway, because I have some pumpkin seedlings I will be
planting out soon. Jayne is in the Southwest too, so may well get the
few
extra degrees of warmth needed - specially on a southfacing compost heap.


(The only problems I had were what to do with the vast surplus of
products:
I must be unusual in having set off to university equipped with a box of
monstrous fruit and vegetables. )

Victoria Clare
--
On a hill in Cornwall