It's summertime, and if you live in a hot, dry climate, gardening can be a challenge in the heat.
There is a garden that will save you from excessive watering and which works as an all-in-one system for your composting, too.
The KEYHOLE Garden is a circular raised bed garden with a notch or keyhole in the center. This makes for easy access to put compost in the center. You dump your compost contents right into the garden and the soil slopes downward toward the circular edge, feeding your garden plants.
Photo Credit: DIY Selfy, Blogspot
A diameter of about 6 feet is a good sized keyhole garden. Use natural materials to build the walls of the garden with stone, bricks, or any such materials. These are good for radiant heat when temperatures do drop at night and in the fall and early spring.
Line the bottom of the keyhole garden bed with wood, much like you would for a hugelkultur bed. Soak the wood good and the moisture released will water your garden from the bottom up. The wood also helps with drainage. You can add layers of cardboard along the sides to help hold the soil in. Add your soil and plant your seeds or seedlings.
There's no set height for a keyhole garden, but do make it accessible to how you like to garden. The handy compost center means you don't need a separate compost bin from your garden unless you want one. If you use a lot of compost, you may need to build your sides up as the soil level rises. Keep this in mind when making your initial design.
Cover these gardens in late autumn with a high tunnel or hoop house to extend your gardening season. If your climate allows, keep your garden going all year. Otherwise, just mix your compost into the bed the next spring and start a new garden.
You can plant anything in a keyhole garden. Vegetables, fruits (like watermelon), greens, herbs. They are a great solution to a dry, hot climate where growing a garden can be a challenge in the summer heat. They can be used in a temperate climate also, but they are especially well-suited where it is hot and there is little rainfall.
Hope you find the keyhole garden useful where you live this summer. Happy gardening!
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