Hi! My name is Bob and I’ve got something that I’d like to share with you all.
I’ve always had green fingers and I love to be out in the garden, in the fresh air and the sunshine. I like all types of gardening but, this year, I really wanted to get stuck into a particular project that would have a clearly defined outcome. I’m good at doing lots of different things in the garden so there would be quite a few projects that I could choose from. My next step was to catch up with my support team to talk over a few ideas.
I talk with my support team a lot and we will talk about what I would like to achieve each year. Keen to make gardening my focus, I also really wanted to do something that would help others in my local community. When talking with my support team, they wondered if I would like to understand if there was a particular part of the garden that I could make a difference to. We viewed the different parts of the garden and thought about what outcomes my work would generate. Together, we concluded that we could set aside a part of the garden that I would be able to grow luscious summer vegetables in.
We looked at the physical spaces on offer and found a part of the garden that had easy access for me. Although it was level, we also thought that laying some artificial turf in the area would help with the look and feel of my green space. It would also stop the ground from getting muddy while enabling me to access my project from my manual wheelchair. The next part of the project was to bring my growing plants up to meet me and so we were able to acquire raised planters that let me garden in comfort. As well as the raised planters, I was also supported in the purchase of other gardening essentials that include a wheeled trolley for my gardening tools and a large watering can.
I’ve been hard at work, with a little help from my support team who have enabled me to choose, shop for, plant and take care of my seedlings. I was supported to visit my local garden centre so that I could see the wide range of vegetable on offer and choose the ones that I wanted to grow.
At the minute, I have quite a few vegetables making good progress. I have a large sack of potatoes growing, a sack of onions, some tomatoes, lettuce and turnips coming up nicely. While my focus was vegetables, I couldn’t miss out on some strawberries which are looking good just in time for Wimbledon. Every day, I tend and water my vegetables, with support from my team. This is especially important during the nice weather.
A mixture of wet Spring weather and recent heat has meant that my plants are growing well. With the help and support of my team, you can see from the pictures taken by my team that I’m making real progress.
While the focus is still firmly on growing my vegetables – and strawberries – I’ve been chatting with my support team as to what I will do with them when harvest comes around. Deciding to donate some of my grown vegetables to a local homeless shelter, I am taking extra care, love and attention to make sure that my vegetables will be tasty and plentiful.
I’ll keep you updated with my progress.
Happy gardening, everyone!
