How long have you been growing your own and what sparked your interest?
I’ve been helping out with gardening for as long as I remember. I only ever did little jobs though like weeding and carrying the garden waste away (I wish I still had the enthusiasm for these tasks that I did back then). However, last year when the pandemic hit the world and we were put into lockdown, I was left at home with nothing to do. We had some beautiful sunny weather, so I decided to get outside and clean the greenhouse. My love for gardening developed when we were given some seed packets free with our food shopping; watching the seeds germinate and grow sparked my interest to learn more.
What prompted you to share your experiences on Instagram? Have you found it useful?
Growing up around social media, it was natural to share my new-found love of growing veg on Instagram. I’ve had a photography account for years, but I wanted to start fresh and follow like-minded people. Immediately I was followed by some lovely gardeners who shared their knowledge and my account grew from there. The gardening community on Instagram is so helpful and supportive. For example, when first planting out my precious seedlings, they were savaged by the slugs and snails, so I had to start all over again. The community offered really useful tips to help keep them away. For any new gardeners wondering, I’ve tried pretty much every method and the only one that has worked for me is natural and organic slug pellets (of course checking they’re safe for other wildlife).
Do you grow veg in your Derbyshire garden or do you have an allotment?
Denne historien er fra July 2021-utgaven av Kitchen Garden.
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Denne historien er fra July 2021-utgaven av Kitchen Garden.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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SEPTEMBER SPECIALS
This month, with sweetcorn, figs and blackberries on the menu, Anna Cairns Pettigrew is not only serving up something sweet and something savoury, but all things scrumptious
FLAVOURSOME FRUIT AUTUMN RASPBERRIES
September - is it late summer or the start of autumn? David Patch ponders the question and says whatever the season, it's time to harvest autumn raspberries
SOW GREEN THIS AUTUMN
Covering the soil with a green manure in winter offers many benefits and this is a good time to sow hardy types, says KG editor Steve Ott
A HISTORICAL HAVEN OF FRUIT AND FLOWERS
KG's Martin Fish takes time out from his own plot to visit a walled garden in Lincolnshire which has been home to the same family for more than 400 years
RESTORING THE BALANCE
The phrase regenerative gardening is often heard in gardening circles, but what is it? Can it help you to grow better veg? Ecologist Becky Searle thinks so, and tells us why
WASTE NOT, WANT NOT
Garden Organic's Anton Rosenfeld shares his expertise on using compost made from green bin collections with handy tips on getting the right consistency and quality
Celebrating Organic September!
In this special section we bring you four great features aimed at improving your crops and allowing nature to thrive
SEEING RED
Do your tomatoes have a habit of remaining stubbornly green? Or perhaps you're lucky to enjoy lots of lovely fruits - just all at once. Either way, Benedict Vanheems is here with some top tips to ripen and process the nation's favourite summer staple
NEW KIDS ON THE BROCCOLI!
Rob Smith is talking broccoli this month with a review of the different types available and suggestions for some exciting new varieties to try
A NEW kitchen garden
Martin Fish is getting down to plenty of picking and planting on the garden veg plot, while Jill is rustling up something pepper-licking good!
