When you grow your own garden, you're living a cheaper, healthier and greener life.
Naturally, the more space you have the better, but fruit and vegetables can still be harvested in small plots. If you're willing to plan ahead, master the basics and get your hands dirty, you can one day look forward to having a mini-green grocery in your backyard, on your terrace or on your roof.
To begin with, choose an area that receives at least six hours of sunlight per day. It should be fertile, drain well and near your water supply. You should avoid windy sites in order to prevent your plants getting parched or blown away, while you should also steer clear of buildings and fences, which contain contaminants like metals and chemicals.
Now that you know where you garden is going to be, remove all the debris, including rocks. Secondly, add organic matter like leaves and dried grass, before thinly covering it with compost. Thirdly, use a shovel to mix these supplements with the top five centimetres of soil.
Next, plant your fruit and vegetables in the ground. Water the roots, fill in the hole and cover it with organic material. From here on, take care to keep the patch damp (rather than soggy) and not to walk on it. Above all, don't use pesticides – if weeds appear, remove them by hand.
Finally, pluck, eat and enjoy.
For more information on becoming an organic gardener, watch
this short video and read
this guide.