How I started gardening
My interest in gardening began at an early age when my dad allowed me to have a small patch of ground behind the shed in his garden. I mainly grew nasturtiums and marigolds that caterpillars would devour every summer. When we moved house and didn’t have enough room in the new garden, I lost interest in gardening.
Around 2012, my interest was reignited when I moved into my own flat. I started researching allotments and put my name down on a couple of waiting lists. Within a couple of months, I received a phone call from a privately run site in the next town, and I secured my first allotment.
Initially, my first allotment was very small, measuring 12 metres by 5 metres. I started with the basics: potatoes, sweetcorn, runner beans, beetroot, and a few salad crops. I remember my first potato harvest, and I couldn’t believe I had actually grown something that I could eat.
A couple of years later, the council contacted me; a plot had become available. It was in the perfect location, less than a 5-minute walk from my flat. I immediately accepted the offer. I began moving my equipment and plants from the smaller allotment and eventually gave it up to focus on the new plot.
Nowadays, I grow a wide variety of fruit and veg; I even keep a flock of chickens on the plot. Each year, I like to experiment with different crops or growing techniques. Some years, crops fail, while in others, I have a bumper harvest, but that’s the nature of growing your own food.
I started this website to share my knowledge and passion for growing your own food and I hope you find the information on here useful.
Get in touch
You can either drop me an email, hello@growharvesteat.com or fill in the form below: