A keyhole garden is the ultimate sustainable method of growing your food. A keyhole garden should reduce the need for watering and feeding your plants.
It’s called a keyhole garden because from above it looks like the shape of a keyhole with the channel in the circular bed left to provide access to the permeable compost heap.
There are lots of variations of a Keyhole Bed, but this is how I do it.
Keyhole gardening originated in Lesotho, in Southern Africa for growing food crops. In regions where the soil was too impoverished to grow food, they created raised beds with a central, permeable compost.
The theory is that the compost leaches out into the soil, feeding plants and reducing the need for watering. It is called a keyhole garden because the raised bed is shaped like a keyhole, with a central walkway (cleft) which enables you to reach the compost heap in the centre.
Keyhole gardening is great for dry arid conditions and droughts and can be used to combat climate change. It is also useful for improving food security.