Sustainable kitchen garden ideas
With lots of sustainable kitchen garden ideas, you may be wondering where to start and what is best for your garden. First of all, it is great news that you want to think about gardening sustainably and secondly we think it is all the more fun to do so! To garden more sustainably we just need to take the time to think about what we do in our gardens and how it may have an impact on our environment. For example, using peat free compost for your kitchen garden as opposed to compost with peat included. By doing so we are minimising the impact on the environment. it takes a whole year for just 1mm of peat to form, so it really is a medium we can't afford to be using these days.
- Everything is organic
- Reuse, recycle and upcycle
- Choose the right plants
- Look after your soil
- Collect rainwater
1. Sustainable kitchen garden ideas means everything is organic
One of the best ways to ensure your garden is happy and healthy is to use organic products and practices. This means soil, wildlife and plants all grow naturally without the use of harmful chemicals. Non organic products can deplete the soil of nutrients and wipe out pollinators. Try organic feeds such as Comfrey or Nettle, and biological pest controls.
2. Reuse, recycle and upcycle sustainable kitchen garden ideas
This is the fun part! When you garden sustainably, you will look at everything you use and wonder what you can reuse it for, if it can be recycled in the garden or put in the compost or up cycled in some way. Cardboard tubes from toilet rolls become seed pots, drawers become quirky planters and even baths and beds can be used in the kitchen garden to grow vegetables in.
3. Sustainable kitchen garden ideas start with choosing the right plants
One of the most important aspects of gardening sustainably is to ensure your planting suits your environment. If it is very hot and dry, make sure your plants are drought tolerant. If it is shady and moist plant according to that. This will help your garden thrive long into the future.
4. Looking after your soil is the best way to garden sustainably
Everything starts in the soil. Without good soil, not much will grow. Your soil is home to millions of organisms that are beneficial to the garden and will help your vegetables to grow. Collect fallen leaves to create leaf mould, use grass clippings, put garden waste in the compost bin and use that when it is ready, mulch to retain moisture and provide nutrients and always ensure it is organic.
5. Sustainable kitchen garden ideas including collecting rainwater
Minimising water usage in the garden, especially during hot and dry weather is really important. Water butts in the kitchen garden are a great way to collect rainwater, which is what plants prefer, to reuse when your plants need it. They can be connected to your shed or greenhouse or freestanding and will soon fill up over winter.
Ensure your garden is sustainable by choosing from our range in store.
