Jun 27, 2019 - What is a keyhole garden? Explore. The standard size of a keyhole garden is six feet in diameter, or a three-foot radius from the edge to the compost basket. Keyhole Garden Compost Basket In addition to the biodegradable material inside the bed itself, the compost within the central basket will help to keep the plants fed and watered. A keyhole garden is a two-meter-wide circular raised garden with a keyhole-shaped indentation on one side. A central compost basket is used in the Keyhole Garden to conveniently place your daily kitchen scraps. Check our, DIY: How to Maximize Your Growing Space with Keyhole Gardens. They were first made popular in Africa, but are rapidly catching on here in Texas. The Keyhole Garden concept is brilliantly simple. They can host dense plant vegetable and herb arrangements. Mar 15, 2019 - This sustainable gardening method uses kitchen and garden waste and gray water (or wash water) as food for your vegetables. The benefit of using this method is that it will help to create a garden high in fertility. To build, you place a wire mesh basket in the center of a circle and fill with your greens (kitchen scraps). She has long had an interest in ecology, gardening and sustainability and is fascinated by how thought can generate action, and ideas can generate positive change. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. She didn’t add kitchen scraps because at the time she built it, bears in her area were just coming out of hibernation! It can be built in the shape of a circle or wedge, normally measuring about 6 feet in diameter that stands waist-high and is notched to access the center. A keyhole garden is a two-meter-wide circular raised garden with a keyhole-shaped indentation on one side. Over time this will decay down, and nutrients from it will leach into the garden as you water it or it rains. Build a keyhole garden: Compost and reclaimed water go into the basket, keeping surrounding vegetables fed and watered. She has made many strides in attracting local wildlife and increasing biodiversity on the site. In stock. You can plant up your keyhole garden right away. It is a planting method which originated in Africa and became popular in areas with dry and hot climate as it proved quite This circle will mark the outer edge of your garden. Any keyhole garden can maximise yield by minimising pathway, and maximising the amount of usable growing space. I can withdraw my consent at anytime by unsubscribing. The width is the distance that the nutrients can travel, the height is perfect for not bending over. As the materials compost in place, the level of the bed will drop. https://kaufarmer.blogspot.com/2013/09/african-keyhole-garden-step-1.html Garden Types. Inspired by the African keyhole gardening Inspired by the African keyhole gardening technique, the Classic 4x4 Keyhole Composting Garden with Garden Rack and Greenhouse lets you compost household waste and grow vegetables in the same garden. Although most helpful in hot and dry locations, a keyhole garden will improve growing conditions in just about any climate. Add sticks and twigs to the bottom. CLASSIC Cascading Keyhole Composting Garden. It maximises the yield that can be obtained from a given amount of space. You will be surprised how easy it is to organically turn common waste into a rich growing environment for your fruits and $349.99. If you decide to keep or sow grass, around your garden, remember that the layout may make this difficult to mow and weeds may become a problem. And then further layers of other organic matter from the surrounding area. Apr 10, 2016 - nice keyhole hugelkultur bed. The area I wanted to build mine was the old kitchen garden, a 10 ft x 10 ft south-facing patch right outside the door. There are plenty of different materials that can be used to make the edging for any keyhole garden. In addition to designing gardens, Elizabeth also works in a consultancy capacity, offering ongoing support and training for gardeners and growers around the globe. Properly maintained keyhole gardens are very moist and nutrient-dense. Outer edges of a keyhole garden can be accessed from around the perimeter, while the pathway that leads to the centre gives access to the inner portions of the bed. For example, a keyhole garden can accommodate 70 tomato plants in a space with only a six-foot diameter. And a good way to create a beautiful and productive garden. If you've never heard of a keyhole garden before, you might find the concept rather fascinating. One of these raised beds can be used to grow a substantial amount of food. The garden uses a number of layers to retain moisture and nourish the soil, making it more productive than a conventional garden. While there are some general guidelines when it comes to their creation, there are few hard and fast rules. Compost fed soil better holds moisture and nutrients, while using up to 70% less water. It is best to create some cover for the bed, even if you cannot sow crops right away. Add kitchen and garden waste to the compost basket and the nutrients are distributed to the surrounding garden bed. The term "keyhole garden" is also used in permaculture to describe a raised bed garden with a longer keyhole shaped path cut into it. Prepare your garden bed around the compost basket just like you usually would. Visit her website here and follow along on her Facebook page here. In compost basket, she put decomposing leaves. She has created booklets and aided in the design of Food Kits to help gardeners to cool and warm climates to grow their own food, for example. to easily pass through. It is has a circular shape usually about 6 ft in diameter with a wedge shaped section removed to allow access to the center of the garden. Small aisles are built to access the compost baskets. The area I wanted to build mine was the old kitchen garden, a 10 ft x 10 ft south-facing patch right outside the door. Keyhole gardens get their name from the bird’s eye view of these features. Keyhole Gardens are a type of kitchen garden that allow food to be grown into the dry season (in African countries). A keyhole garden is a raised, circular garden bed with a keyhole-shaped indentation on one side. One format is to construct a shade cover over the compost basket to protect it from intense heat so that the compost won’t over dry and from rain to prevent the nutrients of the compost from washing away. The soil for keyhole gardens is specially layered to boost its ability to maintain moisture and nourishment. It is a six-foot wide raised bed about waist-high. It also brings the gardener closer to the center of the bed to reach plants more easily. First made popular in Africa, the keyhole garden is catching on in Texas and other hot, dry places. Elizabeth Waddington is a writer, permaculture designer and green living consultant. But you can also mark the boundary using chalk or flour, to leave lines on the ground. Each keyhole garden has a composting basket built into its center. A typical, circular keyhole bed layout that works well involves making a circle around 2m in diameter. They were intended to empower individuals to feed themselves. Add already composted material, or compostable food waste, to the compost basket in the center of the keyhole garden. $269.99. This depth of bed is ideal if you plan to create a central composting bin at the heart of your keyhole garden. 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