The newest addition to The Backyard Farm is the extended, self contained vegetable plot that sits happily in the middle of what was once our family cricket pitch. I have been frustrated by a lack of space in the side fence vegetable patch – particularly since I have commandeered most of the space for nectarine and peach trees. The new large vegetable plot existed in my mind for at least 12 months before the ground was broken.

The ideal version of the plot was a vegetable parterre, formal in design with a circular bed, gravel pathways and, of course, a bird bath in the centre. I must admit that this may have been influenced by my most recent visit to the Luxembourg Gardens, but hey if you are going to dream, dream big right? In any case the first, formal design was impractical for my space for several reasons:

• It needed to be a semi-permanent design that could be returned to lawn if I moved house
• It needed to maximise planting space for vegetables
• I wanted to be able to easily reach all parts of the garden for planting and weeding without walking on the beds
• I needed to be able to fence it off to keep the lovely Buster (our dog) from “helping” with digging up the plot

And chicken wire just doesn’t seem to match formal garden design… so, the end design is more of an “English” kitchen garden style, with turf paths rather than gravel, and regularly spaced, practical beds to work with.

Aesthetics is another element of design that concerned me, as you can see the vegetable plot from the back deck and kitchen window. This is half the reason for the 30cm flower border around the plot. The other half is, of course, to do with encouraging plant biodiversity and attracting bees and other friendly insects. The screening flower of choice for the view from the house is Cosmos Psyche White, which can get quite tall and will, hopefully, somehow make the chicken wire appear more attractive!