Modest front garden allotment

[Oscar's dad]

This year was my wife's 40th birthday and as part of the celebrations we decided to have a BBQ in our back garden.  This necessitated giving said garden a fairly significant makeover.  We got a local gardener to sort the lawn out and log roll edge all the flower beds which we covered in stone chips and filled with interesting pots and plants.  The result was excellent and I surprised myself by really enjoying the gardening I did, which wasn't all the work involved.

Anyhow, this got me thinking about our south facing front garden which currently looks like this ...





I have always fancied growing stuff to eat and wondered if the front garden could be used.  At the moment it contributes nothing and just gets walked through to and from the front door.

Initial thoughts are:
1. Start with modest plans, clear back the existing bushes to expose the beds they are in.  No idea what to plant in them
2. Grow other stuff in pots that are relatively cheap and hard to pinch i.e. heavy!
3. I could do some  prep work now if needs be with a view to starting in earnest next spring
4. If I enjoy it and it goes well scale up plans each year
5. Remember its a front garden so it mustn't look like a traditional allotment.  Perhaps plant some flowers and shrubs to soften the allotment look

As you might be able to discern from the photos the garden is completely open to the footpath and the public that frequently walk along it 24/7; there is no way of making the garden secure.  Therefore, I should expect thefts, some git nicked our doorbell once, and need to be careful what gets put in the garden.  I can easily get a tap out there but can't leave any tools or hose reels outside.  We do have a security light but that's it.

So, any thoughts or advice?  Anyone done something similar?

Thanks in advance.

[Oscar's dad]

I realised another photo might be useful.  This is from the front door looking down the garden towards the footpath ...

[Regulator]

Don't forget to build somewhere for people to hide things when you're not in... 

[Oscar's dad]

Don't forget to build somewhere for people to hide things when you're not in... 

Funnily enough, I have a note to return what you hid in our bushes!  Are you likely to be down this way again soon?  Failing that I will get a parcel away to you.

[LEE]

Buy some sleepers, some big coach bolts, some builder bags of soil/compost and bob is your uncle.

[Oscar's dad]

Yes, I was thinking about raised beds like in your photo.  Perhaps we'll see how Season 1 goes first.

[Oscar's dad]

I think the cane wig-wam things are good as well.

[Bledlow]

Herbs are good for somewhere like that. Since it's south facing you could easily grow tomatoes, & there are other things which would thrive in the sun.

Many edible plants are also decorative. Some have pretty flowers, like runner beans, & some are pretty when they fruit, such as yellow courgettes.

I can see the logic of raised beds, though my frugal soul rebels against the cost of loads of sleepers. I patched the raised beds on the allotment with skip timber - but I appreciate that may be inappropriate for a front garden. However you do it & whatever you do with the gravel (keeping it for the paths between where you plant is probably easiest), I expect you'll need to add a lot of compost or manure (get it well-rotted & it shouldn't upset the neighbours).

[Oscar's dad]

Some good plant suggestions Bledlow, thanks.

Whatever we do needs to be neat and tidy so that probably rules out skip timber although, like you, I would prefer not to spend too much money.

I think some of the gravel will have to go but we will keep some for paths.  I have no idea what the quality of the spoil is like but  expect we will have to add lots of stuff, be it manure or compost.  We don't have any compost of our own so will need to buy it in.  Suggestions would be appreciated.

[Bledlow]

Could you fit in a small compost bin, like the plastic one I have in my very small terraced house garden? If so, & you put in kitchen waste such as vegetable trimmings, & any weeds & other stuff you get from the garden, you should have something usable by next year. I put everything in mine, including ivy, orange peel. dead roses, etc. & it all breaks down to  good stuff within a year. Leave out the woody stuff & you could get compost fit for most purposes (not seed beds) much earlier. You'd still need to get some stuff in, though, if you want to get started soon.

Stables can be a good source of manure, but not usually well-rotted. There's a risk of a stink. Another possibility is a local gardening society. My local one (East Reading Horticultural Society) is about the cheapest source of bagged-up, well-rotted manure I know round here. One has to be a member, but that's a mere £3 a year. I recovered it in seeds, canes, fertiliser, etc.  in no time. Like many others, it has a trading shed (theirs is a breeze-block garage-sized structure) on an allotment site. Web presence may be limited.

[Oscar's dad]

Yes, we possibly could hide away a compost bin.  I can't imagine anyone stealing it. 

[Tail End Charlie]

Tomatoes, veg etc are likely to get pinched. I'd recommend herbs. South facing is good and depending on what is under the gravel you could simply plant through that. Remember to plant rampant ones (eg mint) in pots or buckets which then plant into the soil. An added advantage is the waft of scent every time you go to your door. And when you're cooking, simply pop outside to gather. And little, if any, watering needed.
Rosemary, chives, fennel, thyme and some of the annual types basil, coriander etc are all good. Most herbs are quite decorative too, bonus.

[Wowbagger]

My beekeeping mentor had her gooseberry bushes in the front garden.

I reckon gooseberries might ba able to be trained into a hedge. If that were possible, they are thorny buggers and would keep the riff-raff out.

[longers]

I think the cane wig-wam things are good as well.

Our plot neighbour has made an arch this year over one of her paths for beans to grow up. It's an excellent use of space as it only uses the very end of the beds and looks so good we're going to copy it next year.

[Oscar's dad]

I like both ideas, thanks Wow and longers.

Keep 'em coming folks!

[ferret]

try regular sowing of salad crops, lettuce, chard ect but don't wait for them to grow fully, pull a few leaves off as required = instant mixed salad & you won't need a large space. Definitely grow some flowers this will attract pollinators plus distract some pests from your veg, try nasturtium's they look good plus you can eat the flowers and keep the gravel paths they are easy to maintain and very practical, they could look really good winding their way around the beds. Although raised beds are the way to go maybe they won't look right in the front garden depends what you can get hold of to make them, rhubarb is another good one but does need plenty of muck and water,       

[Bledlow]

Chard comes in varieties with red, yellow, or white stems, which can add a bit of colour.

[Oscar's dad]

Great stuff - thanks.

In the next few weeks I might have a word with our local gardener chap, the same one that helped with our back garden, and see what he thinks about hacking back the front garden beds to make some room.  In the bed by the front window there is the stump of an old yukka (sp?) tree that will need to come out and I don't fancy tackling that on my own.  He charges a very reasonable hourly rate and saves me the effort and the very real risk I'll bodge things up (or hurt myself  )

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

My beekeeping mentor had her gooseberry bushes in the front garden.

I reckon gooseberries might ba able to be trained into a hedge. If that were possible, they are thorny buggers and would keep the riff-raff out.

I've seen gooseberry hedges.

[Oscar's dad]

If we do go down the raised bed made with sleepers route I quite like this idea seen on my walk to the station:



I also rode past a garden centre the other day that was offering 12 sleepers for £99.  I don't know what they are like or whether that represents good value for money.

[Regulator]

You need to make sure the sleepers are pressure treated (otherwise they'll rot fairly quickly)  - but be careful what they've been treated with (you don't want really nasty stuff leeching into what you're growing for consumption).

12 sleepers for £99 sounds like a bargain - but I'd be wary.

[Trull]

Can I second the gooseberry bush suggestion - and add a blackcurrant, a redcurrant, a loganberry, and a dwarf cherry with a nice short variety apple planted against the wall for extra heat.

These are all productive things - and if you left them alone the local wildlife will love any fruit.

[Oscar's dad]

Update:

The front garden has been cleared of the overgrowth, I will post some pictures shortly.

And I got a couple of allotment books for Christmas 

[Oscar's dad]

Progress ...!

The garden has been mostly cleared, the tree stump will be going soon:



I got a Golden Hop plant for my birthday:



And I have planted some courgette, basil and broccoli seeds that came free with a magazine:



Next steps are to plant some more seeds and dig some manure into the bed by the front door as the soil doesn't seem very good.