On the slope above the house at 555, just below the beautiful tree we call the Ent, is the old kitchen garden. The Kawasakis haven’t used it in a while and they gave me permission to take it over.
So I’ve spent the past week tromping around taking measure of the space. I cut back a lot of bamboo that encroached into the plot, and turned the bamboo into a woven wattle fence. The fence divides the house from the garden, but it’s mainly decorative. Along the border, I marked out a path and at the end of the path, I laid in some stairs with off-cuts from the roof beams.
I feel like I’ve managed to create a structure for the garden to live in. Shaping spaces is so much fun. Spending time in the garden plot and getting to know it beyond a quick glance is the fun before the hard part.
I am not a great gardener. I have mixed results at best. And in Japan, I haven’t had a lot of space to garden until now. This plot is about 5 x 10 meters, sloped and sunny through the day. I am ready to make it work, but I have so many questions.
What to plant? I have been advised by Mrs Kawasaki that monkeys will eat many of the above ground plants like beans and tomatoes. Fortunately turmeric, ginger, and garlic all have a proven track record and will make it to harvest. Potatoes, carrots, and Jerusalem artichokes are also fine, but onions and peanuts are monkey favorites.
What would pair well with my life? I will plant kitchen herbs for cooking, lavender & scented herbs, comfrey, hops, and whatever medicinals I can scrounge up.
When do I start this stuff? I have a copy of The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner that uses soil temperature as a gauge for tilling, planting and even mowing, so I bought a soil tester today to take measurements. Supplementally, I found the chart below online and it lists planting times for many typical Japanese vegetables. Between these two, I should be able to figure out some sort of schedule.
What’s my goal? Eventually, I’d like to develop a perennial food and herb garden in a low-maintenance permaculture-ish style. But not yet. This year I’m just going to put seeds and seedlings into the ground, observe what happens, and hope for the best.
And next year, I’ll remake the space with a deeper understanding.
