Located just outside Gaborone Kennedy Thal birthed his magnificent 9 by 11 meter garden. Thal’s life goal is to one day retire to a farm and live a self-sustaining life. “This dream consumes me so I decided to create a miniature version of it here at home,” he said. His dream is quite evident especially on his Facebook page as pictures clearly show his house is consumed in abundant greenry.
Thal’s garden structure consists of gumpoles and a net shade. The net shade is cut into pieces and stitched together with a plastic twine. It stretches out over the gum poles and it is fastened to the ground with metal pegs. “We left a slit on one side of the garden for entry, which I later made a flap door that can be closed by simply tying it closed with the same plastic twine that holds the garden net together,” he added. The garden consists of 16 garden beds on the ground, 20 hanging baskets and a number of garden pots and grower bags. There is an abundant variety of fruits and vegetables and they are not your everyday backyard garden produce and that’s what makes it even more interesting. He has even captivated his large following on his Facebook page with the different vibrant coloured produce. “In my opinion and through my experience, the easiest things to grow are leafy greens; things like Swiss Chard spinach, Chinese cabbage and Chomoulier. I also find herbs like coriander and mint are very easy to grow. You’ll find it’s quite difficult to kill mint and it is very invasive.
Radishes are not only easy to grow, but they only need 25-35 days until harvest making them one of the fastest growing vegetables,” he said One would wonder what type of soil and fertilizers are used for all these varieties of produce considering each plant has individual specifications.
Thal has gotten the formula right without any complications. “Everything on the ground is planted in the original soil I found there. The plants in pots and baskets are planted in a combination of organic compost, potting mix and peat moss depending on the specific needs of each plant,” he said.
He also has a fertilization calendar for every plant in the garden. “I have a fertilisation calender for everything in the garden and I fertilise according to that. The schedule on the calender depends on various factors like the season, the type of plant and the stage of growth. For example, when the strawberries start flowering and are fruiting, I fertilise them every 2 weeks so they are well fed and able to produce healthy, sweet berries. I use various types of fertiliser, mainly fish emulsion extract, organic granular fertiliser and organic liquid fertiliser,” he explained.
The various plants need soil amendments (materials added to improve soil structure, enhance drainage or moisture retention, adjust soil pH or add nutrients) in order to improve the soil texture which is essential to allow roots to absorb moisture and air. “I use a mulching lawn mower and use the cuttings from the lawn as mulch for my garden beds and around the fruit trees in the yard. Mulching helps retain soil moisture, it stops weeds from growing, it regulates the temperature of the soil and improves the microbial life in the soil,” he said. He stated that the blueberries for instance, that require a lower soil PH so he uses acidic compost, acidic fertiliser and peat moss as well as coffee grounds. The soil in his garden varies quite a lot, therefore he also plants vegetables in beds with soil that is specific to their needs. A good example of that is one of the garden beds which has sandy and rocky soil due that is residual from the house renovations. He uses that garden bed for things like lavender and sage, because it is the perfect soil-type for them.
Believe it or not, this is Thal’s 9th month since he started his garden. The world wide web has provided him with such vast knowledge of all the plants in his garden. He intends on making additions to his garden by adding a chicken coup and installing a beehive gifted to him by his father when he was younger and wants to make his own honey. Also, a solar system and installation of a grey-water system to recycle the water used.
FMB
