No plot? No problem
Not every garden has room for a veg patch, but that needn’t stop you. Look online for easy-toassemble raised bed kits – ideal to turn a corner of your patio into a growing space. Or if that’s not an option, find a sunny, sheltered spot for a few large grow bags, which will keep your crops well fed for up to eight weeks. (Make sure they are deep enough so they won’t dry out too quickly.) You can grow potatoes successfully in a strong bag (an old compost sack is ideal), while herbs and salads thrive in pots or window boxes, or try one of the new modular vertical growing systems you can fix to a wall. There are types of cherry tomato and strawberry bred specially for growing in hanging baskets – try ‘Tumbling Tom’ tomatoes or ‘Strawberry Elan F1’ strawberries. Indeed, many seed companies have embraced the challenge of growing veg in small spaces – look for ‘patio varieties’.
Alternatively, you can grow veg among your flowers. ‘Painted Lady’ runner beans look lovely growing on hazel poles (runners were introduced as ornamentals in the 17th century), and the red and white flowers are edible as well as the beans. White-flowered ‘Blue Lake’ French beans are equally decorative, and there are many types of small squash you can train over an arch or arbour. Rainbow chard, curly black kale, ‘Lollo Rossa’ lettuce and chives all make attractive bed edgings, while perennial vegetables such as cardoons and globe artichokes offer handsome architectural additions to borders. And many gardeners swear courgettes do best on top of the compost heap.