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CAVE
GARDENING
"Green
fingers?"
As
with any garden a cave garden needs special attention in certain
areas, certainly out in the campo soil tends to be of poor quality
and doesn't suit every shrub, flower or vegetable. In some areas
you can see fields that almost look a dark maroon colour - this
is due the iron content, other areas appear a sandy colour and this
soil tends to turn to a mud like consistency after rain. When the
sun comes out it sets which can make life difficult for even the
hardiest of plants.
That
said there are plenty of fertilizers available from hardware stores
and garden centres. Horse owners are always willing to sell you
a bag of horse manure which we have found makes a significant difference
to plant growth. Compost is also available in sacks, again from
hardware stores but by far the most economical way to buy good quality
compost soil is to buy it from the garden centres, here it will
be bagged up in situ and the quality tends to be slightly better.
It
may well be worth the keen gardener investing or building a composter,
these can obviously vary in size and are ideal for the smaller garden
or campo garden, the latter can be built out of stone and can be
as large as you wish, either way a good compost heap serves a valuable
purpose and is a good way to recycle.
So
what grows? Well to answer that would take an age so we will stick
to what we have experimented with over the past few seasons. Potatoes
fair particularly well as do peppers and courgettes, each of these
can be grown from seed (collect them in the winter and dry them
out ready for early spring, with potatoes simply cut one in half
and leave it to root in a bright place before planting) Another
good vegetable to keep the seeds from are pumpkins, in the UK we
never bought pumpkin (it took us to move to Spain to try it…)
with a pumpkin you can monitor growth on a daily basis and they
are great for stews, soups or even baked. Tomatoes also grow well
with plenty of water and we have success with beetroot, swede, broad
and runner beans.
Herbs
do very well indeed and these can include, mint, peppermint, rosemary,
thyme, sage etc. Mint really can take over so it's best to plant
it in a medium size pot before putting the pot into the soil. A
good way to start mint is to clip a sprig from an existing plant
and put it into a jar of water; two weeks later it will have thin
white roots and can be planted directly into the soil.
As
for plants, trees and flowers stock in any garden centre will give
you an idea of what will work. Honey suckle is a fast grower as
is ivy both with do well in slightly shaded areas. Watering is best
done either early morning or late evening (or both) the midday sun
will scorch wet plants.
A bright
lively garden really does finish off a cave front. Terracotta pots
are amazingly cheap in Spain and come in a variety of sizes; you
can also buy wall brackets for around a euro to add a splash of
colour to the cave façade. Markets and hardware stores are
also a good place to buy pots, some are painted with blues, and
green's and white's being the most common.
Wildlife
There
is a comprehensive assortment of bugs, butterflies, bats, birds
and reptiles that will be attracted to your cave garden. Lizards
are common; geckos enjoy the light of cave windows after dark
when they come to catch moths. Snakes can be seen on occasion
and can vary in size…none are life threatening! Beetles tend
to be quite large and spiders come in varying colours and sizes,
again none are lethal.
Shade
Shade
is definatly a good idea and positioning will depend which direction
your cave faces. A place to get some welcome relief from the midday
sun is essential in the height of summer and can be created in
such a way to create a very pleasant seating area. Lanterns can
be hung underneath or garden candles dotted around, very pleasant
on a late summers evening… A common design is to use reclaimed
telegraph poles for the structure with either a bamboo or tied
grass top. Hammocks are also quite popular (in our village) and
a strong pergola is the ideal place to hang one - grab a good
book or just admire the view!
Barbeques
If
you plan to build your own BBQ the design is really up to your
own imagination. Stone can be used or simple rendered brick work.
Either way a BBQ can be and often id the centre piece of any garden.
Chimneys can be built, storage for logs underneath, shelving or
even a full outdoor kitchen can be incorporated. The possibilities
are limitless.
Patio
Area
Many
reformed caves will have the outside patio area laid with slabs;
these are very attractive and relatively inexpensive to create.
There are alternative options though such as simple lower maintenance
gravel or shingle. Natural stone (although not level) creates
a rustic "campo" feel and concrete can actually have
lines painted on it to create a mosaic effect. We regard our patio
as the "tenth room" albeit outside it really is an extra
room, open plan with Andalusia it is the place we spend the most
time in the summer months, many an evening is spent in front of
the glowing embers of the BBQ as well as it being a great area
to entertain.
In
summary the cave garden is an important feature of the cave itself.
Even with a small garden vegetables can be grown with relative ease,
flowers planted to add colour and trees planted for shade. Raised
beds can be built, pergolas, barbeques and even water features and
plunge pools. Once again the possibilities are limitless.
USEFUL
TERMINOLOGY
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Maple
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arce
de Montpellier
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Horse
chestnut
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: |
castaño
de indias
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Alder
tree
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: |
aliso
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Strawberry
tree
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: |
madroño
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Box
tree
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: |
boj
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Fig
tree
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: |
higuera
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Ash
tree
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: |
fresno
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Walnut
tree
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: |
nogal
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Juniper
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: |
enebro
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White
mulberry
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: |
morera
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cherry
tree
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: |
cerezo
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Pomegranate
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: |
granada
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Kermes
oak
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: |
coscoja
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Oak
tree
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: |
roble
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willow
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: |
sauce
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weeping
willow
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sauce
/ lloron
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Wild
olive
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: |
acebuche
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Pine
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: |
pino
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Black
poplar
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: |
chopo
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Almond
tree
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: |
almendro
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Olive
tree
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: |
olivo
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pear
tree
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: |
peral
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plum
tree
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: |
ciruelo
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peach
tree
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: |
melocotonero
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apple
tree
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: |
manzano
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lemon
tree
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: |
limonero
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orange
tree
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: |
naranjo
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Carob
tree
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: |
algarrobo
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Quince
tree
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: |
membrillero
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Apricot
tree
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: |
albaricoquero
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elm
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: |
olmo
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osier
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: |
mimbrera
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mimosa
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: |
mimosa
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European
palm tree
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: |
palmito
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Bay
tree
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: |
laurel
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Rosemary
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: |
romero
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sage
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: |
salvia
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thyme
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: |
tomillo
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mint
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: |
menta
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parsley
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: |
perejil
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oregano
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: |
orégano
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Daisy
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: |
margarita<
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Rock
rose / cistus
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: |
jara
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Clematis
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: |
clematide
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Broom
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: |
retama
negra
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Gorse
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: |
aulaga
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Immortelle
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: |
siempreviva
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Jasmine
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: |
jazmine
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Iris
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: |
lirio
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Sabine
/ dwarf juniper
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: |
Sabina
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Lavender
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: |
lavanda
/ espliego
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Honeysuckle
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: |
madreselva
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Myrtle
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: |
arrayan
/ mirto
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sarsaparilla
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: |
zarzaparrilla
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conifer
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: |
conifera
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fuchsia
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: |
fucsia
/ aljaba
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geranium
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: |
geranio
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petunia
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: |
petunia
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begonia
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: |
begonia
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busy
lizzies
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: |
alegria
de la casa
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carnation
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: |
clavel
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cyclamen
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: |
ciclamen
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lobelia
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: |
lobelia
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rose
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: |
rosal
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night
jasmine
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: |
dama
de noche
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gardenia
/ cape jasmine
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: |
jazmine
del cabo
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lilly
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: |
liliacea
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bougainvillea
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: |
buganvilla
/ santa rita
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grape
vine
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: |
parra
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passion
flower
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: |
pasionaria
/ granadilla / maracuya
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wisteria
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: |
glicina
/ flor de pluma
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oleander
|
: |
adelfa
/ laurel de jardin
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hibiscus
|
: |
hibisco
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aloe
vera
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: |
aloe
vera
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lilac
|
: |
lila
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Poppy
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: |
amapola
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Madonna
lilly
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: |
azucera
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Violet
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: |
violeta
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