Hackney start-up encourages green-fingered residents to experiment with gardening

A start-up company is encouraging residents in and around Hackney to get growing – regardless of their previous gardening experience.

Founder of Pot Gang, Sam Smith, started growing his own produce during lockdown and realised there was a market to get others involved.

READ MORE: Dalston community garden needs to raise £100,000 to survive the year aheadSam explained that he wanted to make growing your own food “much more accessible for young, urban people in cities”.

Its subscription box includes three types of seasonally appropriate seeds, plus everything you need to grow them.

This month’s delivery includes Sutton broad beans, Greek cress and mung bean sprouts.

Pot Gang encourages subscribers to grow produce that they may never have heard of before, such as mibuna and verte de cambrai.

Sam said: “If you live your life shopping in a supermarket, you have a pretty limited palette without even realising it.”

Pot Gang has attracted people from all age groups, from young people in their 20s to parents looking for a lockdown activity for their children.

“The audience (in Hackney) is much more varied in terms of who I intended it for at the beginning – but that has been great,” Sam added.