Garden Tour: Lush, Foodie Abundance in a Small Urban Garden
This modest back garden now provides its owner with fruit and veg all year round, thanks to an innovative, low-maintenance approach
Jo Simmons
11 September 2015
Houzz UK Contributor. I have been an interiors journalist since 1995, writing several books on design and numerous features for glossy homes mags over the years. For Houzz, I cover decorating ideas and trends and interview designers and professionals for their insights. My favourite pieces to write, though, are Houzz Tours, as I love exploring and learning about real homes. Call me curious — or nosy!
Houzz UK Contributor. I have been an interiors journalist since 1995, writing several... More
‘I was spending a lot of money on organic food,’ says Esiah Levy, explaining how he came to create his super-productive garden in Croydon, south London. ‘So I set about finding alternative sources of organic food. There aren’t many farmers’ markets near where I live, so the next logical step was to learn how to grow it myself.’
While juggling his day job, Levy attended Capel Manor College in London’s Regent’s Park, learning how to cultivate fruit and vegetables without plant foods or fertilisers, using the innovative no-dig technique. ‘You don’t have to dig the soil to grow produce,’ says Levy. ‘All that does is expose it to more weeds. This method focuses on the soil and its ecosystem by layering the ground with organic materials, such as horse manure and coffee grounds.’
Levy’s approach has seen his small back garden transformed into a foodie paradise in just two years. It now feeds him and his son year round, and demands very little time and effort to maintain. Its success encouraged Levy to set up an edible gardening design and consultancy business to help others grow produce in the urban landscape. ‘The best thing is,’ says Levy, ‘anyone can do this!’
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While juggling his day job, Levy attended Capel Manor College in London’s Regent’s Park, learning how to cultivate fruit and vegetables without plant foods or fertilisers, using the innovative no-dig technique. ‘You don’t have to dig the soil to grow produce,’ says Levy. ‘All that does is expose it to more weeds. This method focuses on the soil and its ecosystem by layering the ground with organic materials, such as horse manure and coffee grounds.’
Levy’s approach has seen his small back garden transformed into a foodie paradise in just two years. It now feeds him and his son year round, and demands very little time and effort to maintain. Its success encouraged Levy to set up an edible gardening design and consultancy business to help others grow produce in the urban landscape. ‘The best thing is,’ says Levy, ‘anyone can do this!’
This article is from our Most Popular stories file
Garden at a Glance
Who lives here Esiah Levy of Urban Edible Garden Design and his two-year-old son, Mehki
Location Croydon, south London
That’s interesting The garden measures just 15ft by 9ft, yet includes 23 trees
Esiah Levy grows an astonishing array of fruit and vegetables in his garden, from the kale pictured here to turnips, beetroot, carrots, soft fruit, including raspberries and blackcurrants, and all kinds of apples, pears and more unusual orchard fruits.
Who lives here Esiah Levy of Urban Edible Garden Design and his two-year-old son, Mehki
Location Croydon, south London
That’s interesting The garden measures just 15ft by 9ft, yet includes 23 trees
Esiah Levy grows an astonishing array of fruit and vegetables in his garden, from the kale pictured here to turnips, beetroot, carrots, soft fruit, including raspberries and blackcurrants, and all kinds of apples, pears and more unusual orchard fruits.
‘I have 23 trees in this garden,’ says Levy. ‘It’s an orchard shape, with fruit trees along the walls and down the path, soft fruit growing beneath and a raised veg bed at the back.’
This Williams pear is just one of the varieties Levy grows. ‘My son, Mehki, just walks out into the garden and picks fruit off the trees to eat,’ he says. ‘His favourites are Granny Smith apples, rhubarb, spring onions and blueberries!’
Levy prepares another section of ground using the no-dig technique. Rather than dig into the lawn to create a bed, he covers the grass with a layer of horse manure, then cardboard, then coffee grounds, building up layers of organic material.
‘The whole point with no-dig is that there’s no extra labour and you’re not destroying the ecosystem in the ground,’ says Levy. ‘What you grow is just as good as if you were using plant feed and you get far fewer weeds, too.’
‘The whole point with no-dig is that there’s no extra labour and you’re not destroying the ecosystem in the ground,’ says Levy. ‘What you grow is just as good as if you were using plant feed and you get far fewer weeds, too.’
A handful of soil from Levy’s garden is wriggling with worms. ‘That’s what you should see when you dig into soil,’ he says. Worms are essential to the health of the soil, providing aeration and drainage, and their castings are packed with beneficial nutrients. ‘You can buy worms online if you are planting out a planter,’ he adds, ‘but if you are creating a veg patch on the ground, just add lots of horse manure and they will find their way in.’
Levy has added his own twist to the no-dig technique and likes to lay bricks on any newly prepared patch. ‘It’s good to put something heavy on top,’ he says. ‘The worms are happy under the bricks and there is no light getting to the grass and weeds. I only leave the bricks on for about three weeks, until a bamboo stick can be pushed in with no effort, like a knife through butter, which normally would be difficult, as grassed areas are very compacted.’
Levy’s method of gardening is also cost effective. ‘I’ve always said gardens shouldn’t cost money,’ he says. The organic materials Levy uses to layer up the soil and condition it are sourced locally and often free. ‘Call Starbucks and grab some coffee grounds. Go to your local riding stable and get some manure,’ he says. ‘They want to give this stuff away!’ Levy also uses cocoa husks, a by-product of the chocolate industry. ‘I go to the Mast Brothers, a chocolatier in Shoreditch [east London], for mine,’ he says.
The raised bed at the far end of the garden is bursting with vegetables, from kale and carrots, to celeriac and swede. ‘You might have to buy seeds and fruit trees initially, but after that you shouldn’t have to spend too much to start your garden,’ says Levy. You can gradually become more self-sufficient, too. ‘Once you have a crop of carrots, if you grow 50, leave 10 to go to seed,’ says Levy. ‘There are your seeds for next year.’
For Levy, the benefits of the no-dig technique stretch well beyond the quality of soil it creates and the abundance of fruit and veg that grows. ‘It’s also easy and quick,’ he says. ‘I’ve done hardly any work in the garden this year: all I’ve done is lay down some mulch. I did that last September and I’ll do it again around now as it takes about a year to break down and reduce.’
This is gardening for the time-pressed and space-poor urban dweller. ‘Anybody can do it!’ says Levy. ‘If you live in a flat with only a balcony, put a plant pot out on it. Add some worms, some coffee grounds or cocoa husks, and some mulch, and then feed the soil with your own fruit and veg scraps. Simple.’
This is gardening for the time-pressed and space-poor urban dweller. ‘Anybody can do it!’ says Levy. ‘If you live in a flat with only a balcony, put a plant pot out on it. Add some worms, some coffee grounds or cocoa husks, and some mulch, and then feed the soil with your own fruit and veg scraps. Simple.’
From the far end of the garden, you can appreciate the abundance of plants growing here. ‘As this garden is actually going to produce food for me, it has to reflect the natural ecosystem of a forest,’ says Levy, ‘with a combination of tall and low-growing plants layered up, rather than a single fruit tree.’ This layered approach cuts down on the need to water, too. ‘Some plants retain moisture and those plants that provide ground cover keep the soil moist, too,’ says Levy. ‘It saves you time and effort.’
Read more ways to make the most of a small garden
Read more ways to make the most of a small garden
Levy has planted lavender throughout his garden. ‘It’s for the bees,’ he says. ‘Lavender attracts them and they then help to pollinate the fruit trees. It keeps them going and means I always get fruit.’
Discover how to create a bee-friendly garden
Discover how to create a bee-friendly garden
‘What I love about gardening is the freedom,’ says Levy. ‘You can grow whatever you want! You discover very quickly that there isn’t just one type of apple, pear or carrot. Growing your own opens your mind to the fact that the food you are offered in a supermarket is only part of the story.’
In addition to familiar apple and pear varieties, such as Williams and Granny Smith, Levy enjoys growing more unusual fruits, including small, hardy kiwis, serviceberries and these pretty humbug pears. ‘This variety is from Ukraine, so it’s hardy and can handle the cold,’ he says. ‘It flowers twice a year, so you get a double yield of fruit.’
There’s a huge range of fruit trees growing in Levy’s garden, including unusual varieties such as medlar and this damson. ‘You don’t need giant trees,’ he says. ‘You can get dwarf trees measuring 2ft, so even if your garden is small, you can still have apples, peaches and plums.’
Three rhubarb plants are thriving at the back of the garden. ‘I can’t even explain how big they’ve grown this year!’ says Levy.
Tour a green oasis on the roof of a city shed
Tour a green oasis on the roof of a city shed
If you are just beginning to cultivate your garden, Levy recommends picking a small patch to convert to fruit or veg growing. ‘Do your research around your patch and how much sun it gets,’ says Levy, ‘then go online and get advice from other urban gardeners on what you can do there.’
Levy suggests a good way to start is by growing herbs. ‘They are easy to grow,’ he says, ‘and from there, in my opinion, you should try potatoes. Even if you only have space for a pot, you can get 25-30 potatoes growing in a 10 litre planter.’
Levy suggests a good way to start is by growing herbs. ‘They are easy to grow,’ he says, ‘and from there, in my opinion, you should try potatoes. Even if you only have space for a pot, you can get 25-30 potatoes growing in a 10 litre planter.’
A Russian quince tree is thriving in Levy’s garden. ‘This is an Aromatnaya and it’s a heavy bearer,’ he says. ‘My tree is only three years old and I have nine fruits on it. If left on the tree for a long time, the fruit becomes tender enough to eat raw.’
To feed the soil, Levy regularly puts back the fruit cores and vegetable leaves from his produce to nourish it. ‘If you dig up a turnip, chop off its leaves, then put them back in the soil,’ he says. ‘You take out, then you give back.’
Since this article was published we have learned of the sad passing of Esiah, in January 2019. A project close to Esiah’s heart, Lend and Tend, aims to continue his work “greening and feeding the world around us”. It runs a garden share scheme for those with space to lend and those with time to tend, but no garden of their own. Check it out.
Since this article was published we have learned of the sad passing of Esiah, in January 2019. A project close to Esiah’s heart, Lend and Tend, aims to continue his work “greening and feeding the world around us”. It runs a garden share scheme for those with space to lend and those with time to tend, but no garden of their own. Check it out.
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I’m so so sad to learn of Esiah’s passing. The work he has put into his garden is just awesome & inspiring. RIP good man 😔
I was so shocked to hear this very sad news! The love and energy he had to create such beauty in his own back yard was - and still is inspiring for me. This was one of the best articles on houzz
So sad to hear the news that this brilliant gardener has passed away. Such an inspiring and lovely guy. My all time favourite article on houzz. RIP Eshia 🕊