Member Portrait #Issue 1

The first member portrait is out today - meet the Confetti Gardens member and forum blogger Bart from Belgium:

Bart grows all kinds of biodiverse plants in a 60 square metre space in his city garden which includes a balcony and seating area. He grows everywhere he can: in containers, raised beds and also directly into the soil. 🌱

The largest part of the plants he grows are edibles : vegetables, herbs, fruit and edible flowers. They are interplanted with flowers and plants that attract pollinators and wildlife:

„I’m Bart, a stay-at-home dad who loves gardening in all its' forms. I'm also a florist-in-training who dreams of an orchard one day. I've got a bit of a 'Dig for Victory'-mentality and love the idea of growing food for my household.

I love teaching children about nature, and especially where their food comes from. (I'm that dad who always is asked to bring a chicken to school). I try to grow just about anything I can cram into my small space. Vegetables and fruit are grown in containers and raised beds. I like to try different things each year, but things like leeks, lettuce and peas always return.

I have created a micro food forest of a few square metres that alternates fruit trees with edible annuals and perennials such as strawberries and raspberries, rhubarb, cabbage and squash. Herbs are grown in containers, since they tend to love some more sun and heat.

In my flower borders, I grow some more dwarf fruit trees, paired with all kinds of flowers; often edible as well (roses make a great jelly!) I'm currently turning the lawn into a wildflower meadow, with a single mown strip that acts as a path. In the front garden, I grow even more berries, as well as some flowering shrubs such as hibiscus.

My favourite plants to grow are definitely roses, I think, since they offer so much. First of all, blooms and scent. A garden filled with gorgeous flowers and a spectacular perfume is simply a joy. But it doesn't stop there. Roses are edible plants and I often use the flowers to make rose petal jelly or rose water. In the winter, the rosehips not only bring some color (and food for wildlife), but they make a great addition to a homemade Christmas wreath. We grow many cultivars in the flower borders and a huge climbing rose on top of the chicken run for shade as well.“

Thank you so, so much, Bart, for being part of Confetti Gardens and for giving us your time. Thank you for sharing your gardening story with us! We can’t wait to keep following what you do, to see what you plant, and be part of your biodiverse growing experience. Please stay in touch, keep us updated and posted, and share your future stories with us.

Follow Bart on his inspiring Instagram channel: @agentlemangardener

📸 all photos within this portrait post are being delivered to us by Bart and show him and his garden. The photos are used with permission.

If you are a gardener or Confetti Gardens member and would like your growing space to be featured on our Blog and our Instagram channel, please write to us: info@confettigardens.com

Stay in touch and sunny greetings 🌱