HOW TO CONSTRUCT A MULTISTORY GARDEN- URBAN FARMING

How to construct a multi-story garden

Kales growing on a story-garden

Multi-story gardening is a farming technology aimed to produce more vegetables and utilise space.

The suitable vegetables to grow are Coriander (dania), kales (sukuma wiki), capsicum, eggplants, spinach, tomatoes, okra and amaranths (terere).

It is a cost-effective farming technology as it discourages pests, weed and conserves water through minimal evaporation.

Here are a few guidelines for constructing the garden.

Preparation

You will need the following tools and equipment; a jembe, fork jembe, spade, knives, tin punch, wheelbarrow, perforated tins, sacks, gravel, clay soil, manure seeds and water.

Cut the top part of the tin with a knife and punch holes on the tin surfaces and bottom using a tin punch.

Constructing the gardens

Six layer story-garden

Dig the soil using the jembe and use a fork jembe to dig hard ground components.

Mix the three soils components with the spade.

Put two spades of soil in the sack and level them.

Place the bottom perforated tins at the sides filled with gravel in the sack.

Fill soil at the sides to level with other tins.

Fill the soil at the sides to the level of the second layer of the tins, repeat the same process till the last tin.

You can also use dam liner materials with a thickness of 0.5millimetre to 1millimettre which are cut into different sizes and fastened using bolts and nuts at the ends to form circular rings with a diameter of four square feet.

The rings should reduce in size by two inches upwards to make layers of stakes with a wider base and a narrow top forming a pyramid-shaped structure with terraces.

The storey garden has six layers, each with terraces filled with soil while the top ring holds the topsoil.

The soil used should be mixed with the less acidic fine goats’ manure on a 50:50 ratio.