Sad to see it go

[AllInContainers]

Agreed! I'm not as experienced as Potty, but I achieved (and learned) a lot last year in this format - although there was A LOT more pots and planters towards the end of the year ...



... but even that was too much work for me with traditional produce, so I had to rethink and have moved more towards perennials and fruits for this year. The following pic was taken last month, so it doesn't show the full potential yet. I'll have chillis and dwarf pomegranate inside too



Don't spend time worrying about what you've lost, when you can spend time working with, and enjoying what you have. Your only limitated by your imagination. Go for it!

[raine]

Wow, those photos are brilliant! One of the things we were worrying about was the fruit.at the lot tie we have loads of raspberries and fruit trees.can we grow them in pots or in a small space?
Can I thank everybody as well for their comments - it is going to be hard for us and we will miss the cameraderie(and the peace!) but necessity is the mother of invention and all that!


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[AllInContainers]

Wow, those photos are brilliant! One of the things we were worrying about was the fruit.at the lot tie we have loads of raspberries and fruit trees.can we grow them in pots or in a small space?
Can I thank everybody as well for their comments - it is going to be hard for us and we will miss the cameraderie(and the peace!) but necessity is the mother of invention and all that!


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In the second photo of mine there's 7 blueberry bushes, 1 jostaberry, 2 apple, 1 cherry, 1 persimmon, 1 raspberry, 1 filbert, 1 elder, 1 medlar, 1 fig, 1 blackcurrant, 1 barberry, 1 blue sausage fruit and 3 checkerberry. In the two upright planters at the back of the table and chairs there's 36 strawberry plants going in which are currently on the shelves in the bottom left hand corner, and there'll be an extra 25-30 wild white alipne strawbs going in there too which are currently in the house.

Also in the house is three minnesota midget melon seedlings (hoping to find space for two vines) and an inca berry. I bailed out of kiwi fruit and passion fruit earlier in the year as they won't work in my garden, but only because it's north facing.

There's also herbs, leaf crops, root crops, peas, beans, edible flowers and stems, and an assortment of oramentals already out there and/or going out there soon. Don't lose hope, there's a huge amount you can still achieve

[Potstubsdustbins]

I had a miniature apple tree now owned by my son and that does well.

Here I have 2 blue berries in pots and 20 strawberries in troughs and hanging baskets.

I never run out of green salad, rarely buy vegetables and only buy spuds for about two months a year.

After 20 years plus of growing this way it's still a work in progress, this year I plan to plant my potato bins with curly kale after the potato harvest, that should help with the shortage of spring greens.

Potty

[raine]

I had a miniature apple tree now owned by my son and that does well.

Here I have 2 blue berries in pots and 20 strawberries in troughs and hanging baskets.

I never run out of green salad, rarely buy vegetables and only buy spuds for about two months a year.

After 20 years plus of growing this way it's still a work in progress, this year I plan to plant my potato bins with curly kale after the potato harvest, that should help with the shortage of spring greens.

Potty

Can I ask how big your garden is- ours is not that large.


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[Potstubsdustbins]

My rear space seems quite large until you realise you have to take out SWMBO's 14ft x 8ft pond, SWMBO's drying area, SWMBO's -BQ area, SWMBO's rockeries and my 12ft x 8ft shed.

Guess who rules this outfit?

I have to use even the smallest space, but I think the main thing is planning. I.E. when the spuds are harvested from their dustbins I have PSB & curly kale coming on in pots ready to take their place. My peas are followed by spring cabbage, just sweeten up the compost with some 7-7-7 fertiliser and away you go.

Potty

[Greenleaves]

Don't see it as disappointment Raine just opportunity!

[KarlB924]

I've just given up my allotment, took it on last autumn. Since then myself and my mum (who's a pensioner) have been pretty ill, and not having a car it's been difficult to get anything down there. We just couldn't keep on top of the weeds, so we made the difficult decision to give it up, too.

We brought back and planted out in the front garden most of the blackcurrants that I had at the allotment, as well as the raspberries that were waiting to go down there. We're putting in some raised beds at the back of the front garden, so I've got more space to grow, and it's easier to do it all as it's at home

[Feral007]

I agree with thinkiing opportunity!
While I do no dig - you have given up the plot to someone who will just be turning handstands with excitement, and at such a great space as well.

And now you can learn a whole lot more about smaller space gardening. Thing is, you don't need to do away with the camaraderie. Just find it elsewhere.
If you have a table and chairs in the backyard, invite people round for a cuppa on a regular basis.
You can do your gardening till they arrive, or start after they leave (or both) and they will have a great time watching how your home garden comes alive.

As for giving away a load of veg, you could look in another direction. Start cooking with your produce, and have them to go with the cuppa. You'll probably have to print out recipe's for everything you serve as people will love it.

[Potstubsdustbins]

I look to The Vine for my gardening friends. The camaraderie on here is fantastic OK so I have to stop work in the garden to be on here, but I would bet you stop work on the lottie when folks come to chat.

[Richard Eldritch]

I grow in a small London back yard. It's amasing what you can cram in! They also tend to be sheltered and warm which is good news. The only real issue I have is that as the quantity are small, losses due to weather and pest can be exptremely depressing! Ya just can't afford to lose anything, this makes one pretty militant towards slugs,cats,kids, aphids and other pest. On a lotty I imagine you can lose a little to pests and still have plenty? I'd also reccomend a Hotbin Composter. These gobble up cardboard and ALL food scraps cooked or not. Your rubbish bins will also be free of wet, smelly rotting food and it produces massive amounts of compost in extremly small times ( often a month for mulch and two months for good compost.
PS I don't own shares in Hotbin,Honest!

[raine]

Well,once again this forum has come up trumps! We are now well into the growing season and I am learning something new every day and experimenting all the time. There are definite advantages to growing in your back garden and I have to say it's looking better than it has in years as all our spare time was taken up with the lottie. OH is really enjoying it and frequent rests are just the ticket - It also means he has an excuse to nip in and watch his beloved Arsenal! It's actually been a good lesson to look at what was a disappointment and realise that it's also a good opportunity. Thanks again and oh- what about sweetcorn inpots?!


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[taff]

Anchor them well, grow them singly in pots, but keep the pots in a block.

Don't forget you can grow up as well as in pots on the floor if you know what I mean, have a google for using pallets standing upright and things like that...

[Raybon]

Try logging in to 'vertical gardening' and see all the great possibilities.....my friend grows salads in converted pallets hung on the wall! It really works!

[Knight of Albion]

How much space (in square feet) do you have to work with, Raine?

The BBC Dig In site has a great feature on vegetable gardening in small spaces. Worth a look.

You can get all manner of dwarf fruit trees and the like nowadays so most things remain possible.