by The Hidden Gardens team

No matter what announcements are made in the coming weeks, it seems likely that we may be spending more time at home than we might have planned this summer. But the sun is out and it’s time to embrace what we have. The Hidden Gardens team have shared their tips on how to make your tenement back court into an enjoyable green space in the coming months.

What you’ll need

You don’t need many supplies to get growing. There are already plenty of things in your kitchen that you can use. Fruit punnets, egg boxes, toilet paper rolls, and milk cartons cut in half make great seed trays. You can make holes in the lid of a water bottle or milk carton for a make-shift watering can and cut up milk cartons for plant labels. You can also use old washing up gloves, scissors, spoons, forks, and permanent marker pens.

How to get started

Begin by sowing some flower and veg seeds at home. For small children, choose large seeds; colourful flowers like nasturtium and sunflower and vegetable seeds such as courgette, peas and runner beans all work. These can all be grown in a shady backcourt and courgettes actually grow well on top of bin sheds.

You can buy seeds and compost from local shops like Inex Home Hardware on Victoria Road or online. If possible, use environmentally-friendly multipurpose peat-free compost.

To sow seeds, fill your seed tray two thirds full of compost and firm down. Read the back of the seed packet and space seeds out as per instructions. You don’t need to use the whole packet – put any remaining seeds away to use next year. Sprinkle compost on top of seeds and water well.

Make seed labels by cutting up milk cartons. Write the plant name and decorate with permanent pens. Leave sowed seeds on a bright sunny window ledge with a cloth under the seed tray and water daily. Be careful not to drown your seeds! After a few days to a few weeks, the seedlings will start to appear.

Preparing your back court

**Read about how one group of Govanhill residents came together to transform their communal back court space.**

While you’re waiting for the seeds to sprout, get your back court ready for planting. You’ll need old washing up gloves, black bin bags, an old broom and an old pair of scissors.

Pick up the litter and dispose of it in black bags. Put plastic bottles, cardboard, and tins in your blue recycling bin. Sweep the paving slabs, pull up weeds, and remove dead plant parts. Clean your clothesline with a damp cloth.

Repotting

When the seedlings get too big for their seed tray, put them on into a larger space so they can grow bigger. Use a larger pot with holes at the bottom for drainage. Fill the pot with new compost and make a hole in the soil for the seedling. Hold the seedling by its leaf and loosen the soil around the roots using an old fork. Put the seedling in the hole and firm the soil around its roots. Water carefully.

To remove a bigger plant, such as courgette, water the plant beforehand. Put your fingers across the pot on either side of stalk gently gripping the plant, and turn upside down. Tap the pot to remove.

Planting Out

Soon the seedlings will be big enough to go outside. They'll need to go through a process of ‘hardening off’, to help them get used to surviving outdoors. Begin by leaving them in your back court for a few hours and bringing them inside at night. Increase the amount of time you leave it outside. During this time, shelter your seedlings from extremely hot, cold or windy weather. Once there is no forecast of cold temperatures overnight you can plant them in the ground or leave them in pots.