A Year in the Garden

Since I moved back to Leuven a couple of years ago, I've been trying to get our garden in shape and grow some veggies and herbs for the kitchen. I'm still learning, but things are improving. Here's some photos from the garden throughout the year.

I have three large trees at the bottom of the garden that had gotten out of control. After cutting and seasoning the wood last year, we had enough fuel for a patio fire-pit on several chilly nights.

A Fire Pit on Chilly Spring Nights

Herbs grow pretty well in our garden, we have parsley, rosemary and thyme all year round as well as chives, mint and coriander in the warmer months.

 Parsley, Mint Coriander and Chives

I planted a little red cabbage and broccoli in late summer, which has provided a few meals through the winter. Unfortunately, I didn't plant enough, trying to squeeze in an extra crop of potatoes that were eventually killed by blight.

Young Cabbage and Broccoli in the Summer

Winter Veggies in December

I tried a bunch of new veggies this year, some of which were very successful and some of which were disappointing. My chilli peppers did very well in boxes on the back of the shed and we had plenty of very hot peppers from August all the way to December. This year, I'm trying some earlier and more exotic varieties.

Chilli Peppers on the Back of the Shed

My cherry tomatoes did well, producing from July until mid-October when they were killed by blight along with two crops of potatoes. This year I am trying a very early variety that should bear fruit long before blight is a problem. Unfortunately only one courgette plant survived long enough to bear fruit but when it did it was prolific, providing all of the courgettes we needed for at least a couple of months.

Summer Vegies: Sweet Peppers, Chilli Peppers, Courgette and Tomatoes

My bell peppers (above) and watermelons (below) were both disappointing. The peppers were edible, but small and bitter.  The watermelons on the other hand were delicious, but never grew larger than a tennis ball. I think that both really needed the warmth of a greenhouse. This year I will try "Minnesota Midget", which produce many small fruit in a short growing season.

 A Tiny Watermelon

 Perhaps the strangest thing I started growing this year was mushrooms, which I think will be a good way of making the most of the darker parts of the garden. I tried grey oyster, yellow oyster and beech mushrooms, all of which grew OK at small scale on sterilized straw. This spring, I will try a giant batch of oysters and see what happens.

Yellow Oyster Mushrooms (top left)

It will be interesting to see how the new veggies do this year. I'm adding everything from Peruvian Oca to Root Parsley.