Vegie, Fruit tree & Chook design by Natasha van Velzen, May2011

Vegie Garden Design for Wales St Primary, Natasha van Velzen

3 May 2011

Natasha van Velzen has set up many Kitchen Gardens and Edible Classrooms at primary schools in Victoria, working for Cultivating Community.  Tash lives locally and first gave advice to Wales Street P S in 2007. In May 2011 she conveyed the following garden design ideas for the garden area proposed for the new location at the Western edge of the school, behind the oval.



Location and size of garden area

The allocated garden area at Wales St could be a productive and beautiful food garden, but is too small for a formal school garden program. Natasha commented that the disused area on Speight St would be ideal for a formal school garden program, as it isn’t shaded in winter and has good street access; and if the OHSC were to be refurbished with multiple kitchen workstations, then Wales St P S would be eligible for a funded kitchen garden program.

Garden shaded on winter mornings

The allocated garden area is ideal for the months of September, October & November, but in May, June, July and August it is mostly shaded by the large peppercorn tree until midday, so plant growth will be somewhat reduced during those months, but still well suited to winter vegetables. Most of the garden area is in full shade until 10am, because the sun is so low in the sky. The south west corner is an ideal outdoor space for sunny winter mornings, well suited to a row of bench seats running North – South.

Brick wall creates a micro-climate

The brick wall behind the beds creates a warm micro-climate, so it will allow us to grow plants that would otherwise not be suitable for a Melbourne climate. But the warmed brick wall will dry the soil significantly, requiring a “wicking garden” or an automatic daily irrigation system. The drying effect of the brick wall will be most severe in February and March, and no horticultural plant could grow there during those months without a suitable system in place. The brick wall should also have a small shade eve attached, otherwise the garden beds below could be too hot for most summer plants during November, December and January. The eve would be ineffective in February and March, but established summer vegetables could do well in the extreme heat

Image caption: Sketch plan of a possible layout of the vegie garden area at the new location at Wales St Primary School, drawn by Natasha van Velzen

From Wales St Primary Sustainability album on Picasa

Espaliered fruits trees

A row of espaliered fruits trees along the North-South fence line is an ideal way to create a buffer with the neighbour whilst maximising the use of this space. Apple and pear trees are the easiest, but figs, cherries, apricots, plums, almonds and citrus can be espaliered

Image caption: Vegie garden and chook run at new location; plan to scale; Design proposed by Natasha van Velzen

From Wales St Primary Sustainability album on Picasa

Chook run along the fence

A chook run under the fruit trees could accommodate 3 to 6 chooks.  The neighbour keeps pigeons on the other side of the fence, so they might have a positive attitude to the chooks.

Image caption: Chook run & Espaliered fruit tree sketch

From Wales St Primary Sustainability album on Picasa

Thornbury Primary School garden visit

The above garden elements can be seen at Thornbury Primary School. The Garden Educator works at Thornbury PS on Thursdays, and Natasha can arrange for Wales St PS parents to visit there then, or on other days.  There is also a working bee at Thornbury PS on Saturday 21st May, when Natasha has offered to show interested Wales St parents around.

Adam Tiller
May 2010

Viewing the sketch plans on the web

I have uploaded sketches and plans of Natasha’s design ideas to Picasa, and you can also view them a web page at http://wsps-env.blogspot.com/2011/05/vegie-design-by-natasha-van-velzen.html.  If you click on an image on this page, it will open a window in Picasa. When viewing the images in Picasa, to see them best, click on the “Full screen” menu item in the top left corner.