Goodbye herb bed, hello herb towers

Today I finally got around to digging out my herb bed. It's a pity as it was so vibrant with the onset of spring but it had to be done, I need this space for bigger crops, my capsicums this season

I've taken my greenhouses down, I'm growing some Kohlrabi and turnips under netting, should hopefully be ready by late spring when this bed will become my cucumber and zucchini bed. I'll probably keep the net up while they are young to give them the best start (protection from extreme sun and pests).

These are all the "spares" - I'll dry these or give them away.

Most of my herbs will now be in these two pot towers. This one gets all day sun.

This one is shaded in the late afternoon. So will suit things that like a bit of shade. These square pots are about 6L each which is a good size for herbs.

I will be planting biennials and annuals around the beds, like parsley, chervil, dill, basil, based on companion planting principles. This frees up my two barrels, where I was originally going to plant all my herbs into, for something larger - I think it's where I'll put my eggplants this year.

I've also taken the first steps in converting my in ground sprinkler system into a drip irrigation system. I added a filter/pressure reducer to my tap which feeds this whole system, which will eventually water all my large pots, whiskey barrels and garden beds. I should be able to add a timer at some point.

These will eventually be chilli pots in November but why waste the space, growing a few varieties of radish in the meantime.

I've added this sifted fine mulch to the pots, otherwise they dry out too quickly even with the coir and water reservoir. I've started a new pot of rocket because the original one is bolting.

Phew - made good use of my days off. Unfortunately back to work tomorrow.