When I put the veggie patch in the corner of my garden, I didn't figure for such a pronounced shadow cast by the fence in the middle of winter when the sun is at its lowest. I could have calculated it (but didn't) and if you are starting a veggie patch, it may be worth observing where the sun falls in your garden for a season to ensure enough sunlight (at least 6 hours on a sunny day) unless it's in the middle of your yard!
Not only does this mean I've had to move some plants around in winter but the other tricky thing is doing crop rotation with four beds when only two are in full sun during autumn/winter!
Crop rotation also means that some beds or areas may lie fallow for a period of time:
... which may be fine if compost or manure is decomposting into the soil, or you can use green manure as below (barley grass, broad beans here on the left) to prepare a bed for the next season planting:
The area on the right is being used for brassicas as the actual brassica bed is in shade this winter!
Originally the bed design was four square beds (numbered 1 to 4) with paths in between and around for access, but as I got keen to plant more and discovered some of the patch was in shade in winter (blue area), I altered the design to add more planting area (red areas) so it's more like a squarish small "keyhole" design (green) that is often used in permaculture gardens:
So plants that might be in the blue areas are moved to the sunny red areas in winter. Makes things a little more complex!
2 comments:
Yep! Know exactly what you are saying. Neighbouring humongous pine trees are blocking our winter bed so things are pretty stunted. We're ready to move the chooks but there's nothing to move them too - next year we'll be sewing green manure crops in the Domes and not just outside them. You live and learn! Guess that's one good thing about not having any hard landscaping so you can be a bit more flexible. You've still got a terrific patch though!
Aw thanks :)
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