I've always had tiny postage-stamp gardens or collections of pots; last year we moved and now have a garden. Pros: it's large; the soil is lovely sandy rich stuff; there's a good amount of shelter on all sides; it's sunny, and (because it's almost boggy in winter!) it doesn't dry out too much in summer. Cons: it's full of huge boulders, no one has done anything with it, and random parts of it have been paved/concreted at some time in the distant past, so you end up heaving up paving slabs from under inches of accumulated soil. It's also rented, so anything that would take a long time to establish is a calculated risk, and we're on a budget anyway.
Last year, when we'd just moved in, I carved out some veg beds. We grew:
- artichokes (pretty, not deeply practical)
- herbs
- courgettes (brilliant)
- beans (not brilliant, but got them in late so will re-try - any recommendations what?)
- spring onions (fine)
- cherries (weirdly, despite buying the tree in blossom, very good crop for a 4ft fan!)
We also discovered there were semi-wild raspberries in the back field, which did well, and this year I've moved a few of them to the veg patch to make them a bit more accessible.
I'm fancying trying squash, more beans, maybe some mange-tout peas, maybe tomatoes, and my DP fancies trying corn.
I would love to know what you'd do, both in terms of things that you've found easy and reliable, and in terms of specific varieties you really rate.
FWIW, my DD is nearly 2, and loves to be out in the garden, so I partly want to do things she enjoys. She loved the raspberries last year.
