'eyup

[grumpyoldgit]

Many years ago I read John Seymour's book 'The Fat of the Land' and ever since then I've wanted to grow some veg
and now 50 + years later I've made a start.My garden is tiny and very exposed to the elements but last year I grew Desiree potatoes in ten 3 gallon builders buckets bought from a well known DIY retailer. I got about 4lbs of spuds from each one which to my mind was brilliant. This year I've increased my bucket collection slightly in that I now have 40 of them. The reason being that I have acute back problems and so I don't have to bend as much. This year I have 22 buckets of potatoes, 2 of broad beans, 3 of dwarf french beans,5 of peas,3 of onions 1 of leeks, 3 of carrots and 1 of dwarf turnips. I know, it's barmy isn't it but I'm a Yorkshireman after all and I'm having the time of my life. I found this forum quite by accident today and It's just what I've been hoping for.

Best wishes to all,
Michael

[BernardSmith]

Growing vegetables enables you to feel much more connected to the land and the planet. I am growing potatoes in 5 gallon bags and have been experimenting using seeds cut from heirloom tomatoes (you slice the tomato and sow the slice with the seeds).. If you have back problems you might also consider creating raised beds. I am no expert but I believe that for most crops you will need perhaps 6 inches of soil but the beds can be built high enough so that you don't need to bend. And if you are using buckets then the "bed" can be solid tables or even a brick wall. Of course, the secret is that you really need to find some way of allowing the buckets to drain (without rotting the surface of any wooden table) so that roots are not sitting in pools of water but are also not drying out...

[ina]

Hi Michael - it's never too late to make a start - great you've discovered the joys of container gardening, and welcome to the forum!

[Green Aura]

Hi Michael, welcome to Ish. Like ina said, it's never too late to start and discover the joys of picking and cooking your own veg (or often just picking and eating - peas rarely see the kitchen here ). Container gardening is a great way to produce fruit and veg.

My garden is very exposed too and have we've found having dwarf fruit trees in big pots allows us to move them out of the worst winter weather. So you can use your buckets for more than just annual veg.

Have a look round the site - there's tons of info.

BTW, you may need to change your name to grumpyoldgittoo (oo intended). Odsox has first place in that league

[Odsox]

Odsox has first place in that league

ME ?? Grumpy ?? and OLD??
Not me, I'm so even tempered you could use me as a spirit level.

Welcome to Ish, Michael. You are among like minded people here.

[Green Aura]

Must be me then.