Topic: Growing vegetables in one's back garden

[shambasarfi]

We've got so fed up with the continued nagging by the Council regarding our allotment:-

"You've got too much plastic on your plot!"

"There are too many weeds on your plot!"

"You haven't developed your plot completely!"

Ya di ya di ya!

So with both of us working and not always being able to work our allotment over a weekend because of the weather, we decided enough was enough and we've given up our allotment with a view that we will grow our vegetables in our small back garden where no one can nag us.  However, with a fence on either side, a shed at one end and the house at the other end, will there be enough sun to be successful?  I ask this because our broccoli and cauliflower were grown in full sun on the allotment this year and we got a bumper crop of each.  Our butternut squash, however, was grown in the shadow of our next door allotment holder's shed and they didn't do as well as they had the year before when they were in full sun.

So what I am asking is, has anybody successfully grown vegetables in a back garden as described above?

Shamba

[ancellsfarmer]

Poost with 254 reads and no replies? Is it because you give no dimensions? The sun moves from east to west through south. you can tell which bits get the best light. Are the surrounding fences so high as to permanently shade(in summer)  If not, you will have some hope. A raised bed(s) will offset the shadow foot for foot. ie a 2ft lift effectively reduces a 6ft fence to 3ft. Read up about squarefoot gardening, walk around a centralised plot, moderate your planting to the most important crops for you (Mine would be salads, leaf(chard etc0 anything you cant easily find in supermarkets. Its a start.
Why not plant up the front as well. There a quite a few vegs that can be "slipped in" without being untidy
After thatt, seek out an underused neighbours soace on a crop-share basis. I commend the independent streak.

[Digeroo]

I started out vegetable growing in a very small plot bounded by a garage a fence and a tall hedge.  The other side was a small lawn before there was yes you guessed another fence.  Actually I did very well.  Though certainly did not compare with what I grow now.

I grew mostly runner beans, courgettes and carrots, and strawberries. 

I think you will find that the fences etc provide a micro climate which will protect from the wind and partly make up for the lack of sun shine. 

I suggest you use the sunniest wall/fence and grow upwards on it.  Plan well and put the sun lovers in the best position.  I have a friend who literally uses one side (the sunny side) of a tiny yard and manages to grow an amazing amount.  Think plastic drain pipes. 

I came across a reference to vegetables needing at least 4-6 hours of sunshine.

[Idris]

I had a go this year on a previously bare patch of gravel. I'm in North Wales and the hedge is on the south side of the garden. It went well

[galina]

I have a very long but narrow garden with fences, buildings and high hedges either side.  There is a sweet spot where sunlovers do succeed best in the centre, but cabbage, potatoes, peas (tall varieties) and lettuce thrive well next to the hedge.  i do make sure that hedge roots are chopped back and there is a gap between hedge and veg of about 2-3ft.  I tried garlic and shallots and they did not do so well next to the hedge, surprisingly tomatoes are not too bad but of course later than other outdoor tomatoes.  Squashes and courgettes hate the conditions next to fences/hedge.  Tall beans produce a lot less next to the hedge, they are best in the centre as well. 

Which direction is your garden facing?  A south facing garden gets more sun than a north facing.  We talked about aspect recently.  If you get a decent amount of sun now when the days are short, you should be fine, but it is a consideration and the position of the sun changes through the growing year and high obstacles cause shading more or less.  Maximum sunlight is always at the summer solstice, unfortunately a lot of our veg needs sun most later on when they are maturing. 

Basically I have never given it a thought, because with a garden you have to make work what you've got.  But it will be a different growing experience from the allotment.  I thoroughly recommend getting a greenhouse, but my 3 small ones are within feet of fences and hedges and that does work, the warmer temperature does make up to an extent for missed sunshine hours. 

Good luck 

[shambasarfi]

Thank you very much for all your replies and encouragement. 

I have a compass on my phone and it looks like our garden faces south-east.  My partner took it over with weedy grass and this is another reason why I want to dig it all up and plant a mixture of vegetables and flowers - he's had it like this for 20+ years!  The plot is roughly about 20' X 15', not counting the small patio and shed.  I tried posting a photograph but it doesn't do that format.

The only snag with getting planters is that they are all you'll see from your lounge window but I can see your point about using raised beds to get more sun.

There is another snag in that we have one of those clothes lines that slot into a pipe and have three sides of line.  We might have to rethink how we dry our clothes because that takes up too much ground because of where you need to walk to hang the clothes (roughly a 6 foot diameter circle), unless we placed small paving slabs in certain places.

The front of our house is taken up by the car so chance of planting there.

Shamba