My Gardening Essentials Kit Wish List

Although we’ve been experiencing some truly uninspiring weather lately, I’ve been trying to keep up the momentum and get busy in the garden. Now May is upon us, the growing has kicked up a gear and the risk of frost is slowly decreasing. Showtime!

It’s evident everywhere – from the sudden growth in the greenhouse to the abundance of blooms and blossom in the garden.

I’ve still got a little time before I have to delve back into the world of work, so it’s a case of “now or never” when it comes to getting those essential tasks done. And the busier I get (and with a baby in tow, the more efficient I’ve had to become in getting jobs done), the more I’ve realised how severely lacking my gardening kit has become. It’s not making my life easy. Broken and blunt tools, a bag that’s literally hanging on by a thread, faulty watering cans and even a lack of gardening clothing have been holding me back a bit.

Vegetable Trug Gardening

So it’s time to start planning a revamp of my gardening kit. Although I’m having to watch the pennies whilst on maternity pay, I can still plan (and dream).

Here’s a little wish-list to update my gardening essentials kit:

A Sharp Hoe
My old hoe broke at some point over the winter (either that or it’s simply vanished into thin air), and as an advocate of no-dig gardening, a hoe is an essential gardening tool. I’ve already got a WOLF Garten rake (it’s brilliant), and as the multi-use handle accommodates a number of tools, a dutch hoe will be perfect… and a space saver too. Great for small sheds stuffed to the brim with gardening tools!

A Durable Garden Bag
Right now, I’m using an old free cloth spa bag as my gardening bag… yes, really! Last year, both handles broke, and with no pockets, I often have to stir my bag for a few minutes before being able to select the right tool. I’ve been researching affordable gardening bags for a while and wanted something that was both functional and a little bit pretty. So far my search has proved a little futile (too small, too pricey, not waterproof, too frilly), but I haven’t given up yet. Any suggestions will be happily received!

Gardening Trousers – with pockets!
I don’t like losing things, but unfortunately it’s something I’m very good at. Plant labels, packets of seeds, twine, secateurs, pencils, a pocket pruning knife and phone are just a few things that I tend to carry about with me in the garden. So weatherproof trousers with pockets, as far as I’m concerned, are a must-have piece of gardening clothing, Whether I’m sowing seeds, up a ladder pruning and trimming, or battling with a knee-high nettle patch, a good pair of gardening trousers with pockets are essential. I prefer a slimmer fit, but comfort has to be my main priority. No squeezed knees or cutting in at the waist, thank you. These durable ladies gardening trousers from Englebert Strauss are just the ticket.

A Galvanised Watering Can
Simply because they’re durable and a classic piece of gardening kit! Much better than plastic, anyhow.

A Potting Shed
Yep, it’s a big one on the wish list, and maybe technically it doesn’t qualify as gardening kit, but nevertheless, here it is. I live in hope of one day being the proud owner of a potting shed. Not just because I’d like somewhere to sow, grow and pot on my homegrown delights, but because sometimes I’m really happy in my own company. Just for a while. So a quiet space to potter and ponder would be a little slice of heaven. In timber form.

Long Handled Lawn Edging Shears
My grandfather, Pappa, always said that edges make a lawn. Whilst I’m more interested in borders than lawns, it’s true that a clean-cut edge can make even the scrappiest bit of garden look smarter. In fact, it’s a trick I’ve been using to great effect this year. So far I’ve made do with painstakingly cutting my edges and veg plot borders with a half-moon and tidying up with kitchen scissors, but really I need to invest in a good pair of lawn edging shears to get the job finished quickly and efficiently.

Got any suggestions for your must-have piece of gardening kit? Let me know in the comments!

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Cherry blossom

New no-dig plot

Lawn is, essentially, a pain. It’s more work, it needs to be fed and watered regularly in summer to look half decent (ie unsustainable, bad for the environment), and needs mowing on a regular basis too. To me, that’s just unnecessary extra work with no real benefits for me or for wildlife.

While I’m happy for Rich to take care of the lawn on the “flower” side of our Smallest Smallholding, on the veg side the super-poor soil under the lawn means that weeds rather than grass tend to thrive. There are ants nest aplenty, and mowing it regularly is arduous. It’s essentially unproductive land that could be doing so much more.

(Its only saving grace is the fact that we have a LOT of clover, and the bees love clover flowers. So we let big patches grow and do a sort of mowing rotation system so that there’s always an abundance of fresh clover available for them.)

How to make no-dig plot

Laying out the no-dig plot

Given that I am always struggling for space, it seemed such a simple solution to just reduce the amount of lawn and increase the amount of available veg bed space. In the past we’ve opted for traditional wooden boards to line our veg plots, but with my new-found fondness for no-dig vegetable growing, it’s just a case of compost/manure dump and go.

I’ve outlined where the new plot will go and put down some compost I had to start to suppress the grass. We’re off to a local stable to collect some fresh horse poo and hopefully by late Autumn we can start winter planting. I’ll keep you posted with some “how to advice” if  you’d like to give no-dig beds a go. In the meantime, check out Charles Dowding’s No Dig approach on YouTube.

Top 5 All-Purpose Edible Plants

Herbs and alliums are two of my favourite types of plants. I love to grow them, eat some of them (in large quantities), admire their amazing flowers and watch the bees and pollinators feast on them too.

I’m currently in the throes of planting lots of alliums – mostly onion and shallot sets – but I’m also looking to boost my wildlife-friendly flower borders with a few ornamental and “dual purpose” herbs, legumes, and alliums too. Here are some of my favourites that you might want to grow in your flower garden, veg patch or allotment:

chive-flowers

1. Chives

Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) might seem like an obvious choice, but they really are an all-purpose allium. These little beauties can be harvested throughout the year for extra onion-flavoured zing in your culinary endeavours. Cheap to buy, easy to grow and fantastic for pollinators, they can feature in container gardens, veg patches, herb gardens and flower borders alike. There are an abundance of varieties available, from mild to strong flavoured, compact 6inch plants or broader and taller 2ft specimens (A. var. sibiricum), as well as a selection of (edible) chive flowers, with white (withs silvery-green foliage), pink and mauve varieties readily available. Try garlic chives (Allium tuberosum) for a garlicky twist to the traditional light onion flavour.

2. Rosemary

Another obvious choice, but no garden or veg patch should be with some rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Whether you’ve got acres of space or just a patio to play with, you can enjoy this unique, fragrant herb and your local pollinators will thrive on the abundance of delicate, blue flowers. Here at the Smallest Smallholding I’m growing Mrs Jessop’s Upright, a tall and narrow variety that fits perfectly in between the flowers in my long borders, but if you’ve got slopes or need ground cover try Prostratus, a cascading variety.

3. Welsh Onions

I first saw welsh onions (Allium fistulosum) being grown in my mum’s garden amongst the verbena bonariensis, and it’s flowers were like a magnet for the bees. I’ve since found a few pots of welsh onions in the poorly department of my local garden centre, and they’re now going in my flower borders. Welsh onions can be eaten from bottom to top, and produce fluffy globular pale green/yellow flowers in summer. They’re great for compact gardens, growing tall from smaller clusters.

lavender-3

4. Lavender

Scent, flavour, texture, colour, lavender has it all. A staple in many English country gardens, allotments and veg patches, lavender might be a common feature, but its place in our growing spaces is well deserved. Bees, butterflies and other pollinators will flock to any variety (though English is preferred to French), and there’s a plant for every growing space from compact Hidcote through to the long, tall spires of Lavandula angustifolia. Bake with it, smell it, look at it… just enjoy it.

5. Peas (and Beans… legumes in general)

I’m a bit of a pea-growing novice, and have little experience. I’m growing some this year, because these vertical-growing legumes are not only a welcome culinary treat, but the sheer number of varieties of peas and beans available means that there’s not only a variety for every taste, but also a huge array of flowers that are so beneficial to pollinators. Peas and beans look great in any vegetable garden but can also add height, texture and colour to ornamental borders too. And with nitrogen fixing qualities, they’re fab for crop rotation and healthy soil.

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