For some people, there are few sights more satisfying than a well-maintained, manicured lawn. And for those same people, there are few scents better than freshly-mowed grass and good earth. If you are a lawn-nerd, you can still maintain a neat lawn whilst keeping an edible garden!
Here are a few tips for helping maintain your lawn with a Vegepod.
Location, location, location.
Where you’ll be placing the Vegepod is one of the most important factors in owning one. One of the best parts of Vegepods is their accessibility — they make gardening easier for everyone by combining the benefits of both a raised bed and a container garden. This also means you can keep your lawn organised: you’ll have all your edible plants in one space, leaving the rest of your lawn free!
Some places you can erect your Vegepod include:
● Near your kitchen window for easy veggie access
● In a corner of your lawn (that still gets plenty of sun!)
● In the centre of the yard or on a paved area — see next section!
Just make sure to check with your local council if necessary — there may be placement
restrictions.
Lawn plan(t)s.
Consider building the Vegepod into your lawn! You’re less likely to weigh down the ground underneath a raised garden bed if it stands on sleepers or pavers.
You can designate a section and layer it with pavers to create a “floor” for your Vegepod to stand on. Or even try going all-out and build it into a central lawn feature by placing it on a foundation (pavers, wood, concrete, take your pick!) and surrounding it with ornamental plants.This way, you’ll have function and aesthetic — the best of both worlds.
Grass care.
If you place your Vegepod directly on the ground, then you’ll only need to maintain the grass around it, or add some aesthetic and support by shoring it up with rocks. But if you set it on its designated stand, then you’ll have to maintain the grass around it and underneath.
Using whipper snippers around a Vegepod isn’t recommended due to the metal legs, which could pose a hazard. It’s better to be safe and trim the grass by hand with shears — or take it easy and stick to gardening, and leave the lawn mowing to the professionals.
Now that your Vegepod is set up on a stand, though, the grass underneath might not grow as well in the shade. If you want to keep the area flourishing, consider growing groundcover that thrives in the shade — ajuga, lilyturf, and mondo grass are good options.
Vegepod com-plant-nions.
If you’re building your Vegepod into your lawn ornamentals, here’s an option — companion plants. You can add ornamental flowers (aka additional pollinators!) in between your edibles to add colour and aesthetic to the Vegepod contents — that way, it can even be a central feature! Lavender is also a great option, and a useful one too.
You can also sow companion plants outside and around your Vegepod to help blend it into your lawn design. Try shade-loving plants that will thrive even underneath your Vegepod, such as:
● Ferns (bird’s nest and soft tree ferns are excellent choices)
● Native plants like stream lilies or native violets
● Flowering plants like grass flag or star jasmine
Water recycling.
The Vegepod is Smart WaterMark Approved! Your Vegepod has a self-watering system, with an in-built mist sprayer for the plants above and a wicking reservoir underneath. This also means that if you accidentally leave the hose on, or if it rains heavily, the reservoir has an overflow of nutrient-rich water — something you can recycle for your lawn.
Try setting up a collection system so that you can use the water on your lawn and ornamental plants. Or you can even use it to water the area underneath the Vegepod to return nutrients to the soil!
This guest post is by Lauren Schwartz (Lawn.com.au) – we hope you’ve enjoyed reading our tips on lawn maintenance with Vegepods! We’re a national family-owned gardening and lawn mowing company and we’re proudly NDIS-registered, just like Vegepod. Our professional lawn care teams can help maintain your backyards, even around your Vegepods — don’t be shy about asking us to assist with assembling them for you too!
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