Gardening in Small Spaces

Gardening in small spaces is possible. It just takes a little extra thought and planning.

Our cottage sits on a small lot, about a third of an acre. Much of it is composed of trees, woods, and a marshy wetland area. Not ideal for vegetable gardening. Not to mention that the deer and rabbits come from the wooded side of our yard on a daily (and nightly) basis.

However, there is one side of the cottage, alongside our neighbors' house, that gets plenty of sunlight. It also is an area where the deer do not travel. I decided to use this small, narrow space for some herb and vegetable gardens. I had to remove two scraggly holly bushes from this space before I planted the vegetables. I also amended the soil, which seemed a little dry, with some good quality garden soil.

I found these bright green tomato cages at Aldo for $3. I liked the fun color!

We found these garden fences in the marsh when we were doing some cleaning. They were pretty dirty and my husband wanted to throw them out. Instead, I washed them and gave them a fun coat of turquoise paint. Transformed! They do a good job of keeping curious Jemma out of the garden beds.

In small space gardening, you have to consider ways to grow things vertically. These two bird obalisk structures were also from Aldi...$8 for the pair. I used the same bright turquoise paint to tie them in with the fencing.

I planted rows of marigolds around everything to detract the bunnies from nibbling in the garden. I also love how the bright orange color plays off the green and turquoise colors.

It's amazing how much I've been able to fit into this small space! Five tomato plants, five pepper plants, two cucumbers, one yellow squash, one zucchini, and one eggplant. I also filled the space with cooking herbs I use frequently: rosemary, cilantro, curly parsley, flat leaf Italian parsley, three basil, two chives, French tarragon, sweet mint, thyme, lavender, fennel, and dill.

Things are growing by leaps and bounds every day! My peppers and tomatoes now have tiny starts, my cucumbers are starting to climb their structures, and I'm already harvesting herbs to use in my cooking.

And look at the lettuce bowls! I think they are ready for their first harvest!

Working in the garden makes me so happy. I feel as if we are finally putting down roots, both literally and figuratively, in this cottage. I putter in my gardens every day, and I'm looking forward to sharing some of this bounty with friends, family, and neighbors.

What's growing in your garden this season?