25 “Illegal” British Garden Tricks to Grow a Year’s Worth of Food in a Tiny Space
Tue 8:09 pm +00:00, 7 Apr 2026 3This video was produced exclusively for Once Upon A British Time. This channel is a storytelling journey through the heart of British domestic life, focusing on the flavors, memories, and clever resourcefulness of generations past. From “illegal” kitchen secrets that slash the weekly bill to the quiet wisdom of the local allotment, we celebrate the traditions that turned simple houses into homes.
An excellent post Gordon. Thank you. I personally make comfrey tea for my tomatoes, but admit to using F1 hybrids by preference especially for tomatoes. Thumbs up to Gregor Mendel who pioneered the idea. Charles Dowding has a channel on youtube using no dig methods, a real eye opener, “easy to find, no link needed. My personal worst problems are cats and birds. I have the only veg garden in the housing area where I live, and it’s a magnet for both. I’m currently winning keeping cats out, but the birds are a pain. Now I’ll admit, I’m a soft old bugger, and talk to the birds as if they were people, but they just give me cheek and pull out my shallot bulbs. I made paths with bark, which they must think looks better on the beds, but we survive together. I use beer in yogurt pots set flush in the ground for slug bait, very effective it is too. One hen blackie will come down and drink the beer, then sit on my shed roof singing, I can empathise with that. But once again Thanks Gordon.
Thank you, Ian. I use nettle feed for my tomatoes and crush rhubarb leaves on the greenhouse floor to release oxalic acid, which keeps the area free of aphids. I also soak rhubarb leaves to create a pesticide for vegetables and other plants.
A friend in a neighboring village once mentioned that his goat had an upset stomach and that comfrey leaves were an effective remedy. As comfrey is scarce in East Berwickshire due to the prevalence of arable farming, I was fortunate to find some growing in a nearby field that had lain fallow for several years. I gathered the leaves for my friend, and after consuming them, his goat recovered quickly, passing significant amounts of gas.
Possibly someone is putting comfrey in my food without me knowing.