By Skye Lovelady
Gardening over the years has evolved immensely due to the increase of technology and demand of resources. Ranging from agricultural fields to rooftop raised-bed gardens, gardens continue to change to ensure efficiency and quality products. One garden rising in popularity is the keyhole garden.
Bob Knight, a retired Texas A&M University professor for the health and physical department, now called the department of health & kinesiology, is re-shaping gardening as we know it. Knight has always been interested in gardening, but discovered the keyhole garden idea from an article he read by Deb Tolman. He liked it so much he decided to bring the popular African gardening technique to the Brazos Valley. He started his own keyhole garden six years ago, and developed Bob’s Home Grown Tomatoes four years ago.
A keyhole garden is an above-ground, three-foot brick or stone garden with a small inlet leading to the middle of the garden, hence the keyhole part of its name. This unique design allows the gardener to access every part of the garden without straining to bend over or reach across. The appeal of the keyhole garden is that anyone can do it, particularly senior citizens who can’t bend over or squat down as easily, Knight says.
Knight started his own garden because he wanted to provide for his family. “You can develop successful crops much more easily with [the keyhole garden] without being an expert, and that’s what excited me or prompted me to continue in that,” Knight explains.
After two years of successful gardening, Knight decided to venture out and start selling his produce, specifically his tomatoes. His tomatoes became a big hit and he is currently selling to restaurants in the Brazos Valley area.
One appealing factor of Knight’s tomatoes is that they are organic. “Everybody is keying in on that [growing organically]. My stuff is organic but it’s not because I’m thinking, ‘This has to be organic.’ It’s just that I use natural materials,” Knight says. Not only is the produce organic, but the fertilizer is as well. The earthworms that make their home inside the soil leave their waste, or “black gold” as Knight calls it, to work as a natural fertilizer for the garden.
Knight says with possible food commodities decreasing and vegetables becoming costly, starting a keyhole garden is resourceful and self-sufficient. “It is a unique way for a small family to grow enough food to nourish their family, and they can do that without spending a lot a money because when you salvage your materials, that doesn’t cost you anything.”
Make Your Own Keyhole Garden
Gather Materials Knight says to use recycled materials for your keyhole garden. He suggests getting your brick/stone from construction sites by talking to the builders ahead of time. Then collect newspapers, phone books, cardboard, leaves, and grass clippings, for these decompose easily and attract earthworms. Next, he says to gather other natural fertilizers to mix with the soil.
Build When building your garden, start with a small circle with an inlet in it. Your circle should be six feet in circumference. Next, lay all your cardboard and other decomposable materials at the bottom. At the bottom of the inlet, place a basket that can be used as a compost deposit. Then fill the rest of the garden with your soil and fertilizer.
Grow Use normal watering procedures for the type of plants you want, and maintain the garden from bugs, birds, and weeds. Follow these steps and you will have a successful keyhole garden in no time!
