Any advice into getting into gardening?

-taff

I would visit a few gardens first, see what you like, see if you can see anything you can change in your own garden to make it like that. Have a walk around a garden centre and see what it's like, what they sell, what displays they have [ if it's a posh one]. If you do find you like it, try and find a mom and pop gc whch will be cheaper and have better prices and who will also help you more

Start with summer colour in pots, like pelargoniums [ wot people normally call geraniums], they come in loads of colours, won't die if you forget to water them and last all summer if you deadhead.

See if there are any local gardening clubs [ we have several] in your area that you can join, or if they're having any talks [ usually once a month] about a subject you think might interest you. It's usually tea and coffee and a few quid to get in if you're not a member.

Remember, you can do whatever you like, grow whatever you like, conditions permitting, and everyone was an absolute novice once, so there are no stupid questions. You don't have to spend a lot of money, a bag of compost, some pots and a few bedding plants will cost you about twenty quid, so don't go spending stupid money on anything major just yet.

Also be warned, if you find you like it, you will become obsessed

Sapindus

Join your local library if you're not already a member, and you will find there are lots of books on gardening for almost any situation, different types of garden, different levels of expertise, small gardens, container gardening etc.   There are also magazines which often focus on vegetable growing.  Herbs are a good compromise between ornamental and productive as they don't require a lot of work, look nice and give you a reason to pop out in the garden and pick something to go with dinner.

Dustyevsky

Rather than focus on the 'how to' aspects, already well-covered, I'll address the payoffs. The main benefit of gardening in a smaller space is having something interesting and attractive to look out upon, all year round. Unlike a space that's simply grass or paving, there will be interesting things going on, especially if you incorporate features for wildlife, like a bird feeding station or, later on perhaps, a small pond.

Forty-five years ago, I built our first garden in a space similar to yours. It was quite a challenge, catering for a whirly washing line, giving a toddler somewhere dry to play, while also fitting-in some planting, a rockery, and a little pond. Some ideas worked, and some didn't, but I still remember, in detail, the view created. Instead of looking out at bare walls and feeling hemmed-in, there were cheerful sights, and changes defining the seasons, so important in an urban environment that can feel dull and samey.

And yes, apart from the mental health advantages, gardening does involve some gentle physical exercise, which is maybe why your doctor recommended it. Frankly, without that I'd probably be pushing-up the daisies in an entirely different manner by now! 

Silvertabby

Have you considered a greenhouse?  You could start simple, with easy grow seeds, tomatoes, etc.  Include a potting bench and a chair, then you can sit out of the rain and have a brew whenever the fancy takes you.  Then, if the bug bites, dig out some borders for dwarf fruit trees and shrubs/flowers.  No point in going straight for the borders if physical gardening isn't for you.

If you need a greenhouse recommendation then, imho, Rhino are the best - just not the cheapest!  

Emmia

Silvertabby said:

Have you considered a greenhouse?  You could start simple, with easy grow seeds, tomatoes, etc.  Include a potting bench and a chair, then you can sit out of the rain and have a brew whenever the fancy takes you.  Then, if the bug bites, dig out some borders for dwarf fruit trees and shrubs/flowers.  No point in going straight for the borders if physical gardening isn't for you.

If you need a greenhouse recommendation then, imho, Rhino are the best - just not the cheapest!  

Alternatively indoor pot plants could be an option.

twopenny

Somehow I missed your reply about veg.

You can make it easy as this is about enjoying being out in the fresh air and some exercise.
Buy small plants already to go in the ground or in pots. Something you like to eat.

The first to grow are purple sprouting broccoli which will prefer soil. You can cut what you need and leave the rest for later. And it will produce more branches as you cut.
Then there's Kale where you cut the small tender leaves in the middle and they re grow so you have more 
Completely different taste and tender if you grow at home.
They pretty much grow themselves.

Later when it warms up there's tomatoes. Big and small.
Neighbour puts them in big cheap pots with compost from a tomato grow bag. 
Need watering. Occasionally tomato liquid feed which you put in the water.

Delicious.

Raspberry canes grow themselves.
So do strawberries.
So do gooseberry

Only one thing to consider. Does the plant like full sun or partial shade.

silverwhistle

wort said:

When you’ve decided what you want ,keep it simple for now. As Farway says raised beds or pots if you have issues bending getting up from the ground if kneeling. Most of us do as we age.

Indeed! But if you can squat try and do so as long as possible; it's great for mobility and the hips. 

As a cook I'd go for herbs, tomatoes and chillies which can all be grown in pots as well some flowers. Picking a fresh tomato of the vine or being generous with the rosemary in a recipe has more than monetary value.

Have you any personal contacts who might help. Generally gardeners are generous with spare seedlings, cuttings and so forth, and of course if they are local are likely to have suitable plants/varieties.

-taff

Briansteen50 said:

I hadn't thought about planting Veg to be honest. Would that be okay for beginners though? Sorry to sound silly. 

To be honest, I found veg much easier than flowers to start with. 

Is there anything you think you might like to grow? 

Farway

-taff said:

Briansteen50 said:

I hadn't thought about planting Veg to be honest. Would that be okay for beginners though? Sorry to sound silly. 

To be honest, I found veg much easier than flowers to start with. 

Is there anything you think you might like to grow? 

If you do fancy trying veg start with something 

1/ You like

2/ Easy and fairly fool proof

3/ Costs a bomb to buy fresh in shops

Something easy, can be grown up a wigwam, in large pots, so no need to dig up garden

Runner Beans and climbing French beans

Sapindus

Farway said:

If you do fancy trying veg start with something 

1/ You like

2/ Easy and fairly fool proof

3/ Costs a bomb to buy fresh in shops

It takes a while to get established, but Rhubarb.

Fancy salad mixes.