Sweet Peas really are to me one of the sweetest to look at and deliciously fragrant annuals you can grow in the garden. And it’s getting close to planting time! In Australia, the traditional day for sowing Sweet Peas is on St Patrick’s Day, March 17th , but of course in our dramatically different climate [...]
Posted in Organic Gardening | Tags: flowers | No Comments
The extremes of weather are being felt all over Australia at present – bushfires and relentless high temperatures, floods and torrential rain. And it’s not just us humans being affected. Animals are having a hard time of it with their habitats destroyed and native animals dying in their thousands. You may find in the garden [...]
Posted in Sustainability | Tags: bats, wildlife | No Comments
We have just had our first delivery of lovely organic garlic at Green Harvest this afternoon and we haven’t stopped talking about how to grow it! How to eat it! Best way to peel it! Garlic in olive oil, garlic in baked camembert! How to plant it! Is it really an allium or really a [...]
Posted in Kitchen, Organic Gardening | Tags: garlic, roots, vegetables, vegetarian | 4 Comments
I was fortunate to get a good harvest from my citrus this year. I had so many lemons I was able to preserve them, add them to barley water to make refreshing drinks and of course, the odd slice or two added to a Bombay Sapphire never went astray. So to ensure the same success [...]
Posted in Organic Gardening | Tags: fruit, lemons, maintenance | No Comments
It’s very rewarding keeping chickens – they help recycle nutrients, keep pests down and provide us with food and amusement. We, in turn have a responsibility to keep them healthy, safe and happy. In a warm climate, making sure your flock doesn’t get heat-stressed is crucial. I don’t think many creatures would survive summer days [...]
Posted in Sustainability | Tags: animal care, chickens, livestock, poultry | 2 Comments
One of my colleagues brought into the office the other day the pumpkin ‘Galeux D’Eysines’. Bringing in veges to the office is something we often do – sharing in the bounty – but this pumpkin, instead of being shared to eat has now been adopted and adored by all! It is considered way too beautiful [...]
Posted in Organic Gardening | Tags: vegetables | 2 Comments
I recently returned from a lovely holiday in New Zealand. I stayed with my Aunt for some of the time and travelled the glorious East and West coast of the North Island – I was really overcome at times at the amazing beauty of the place. What I wanted to share from my journey was, [...]
Posted in Organic Gardening | Tags: container gardening, flowers, herbs, vegetables | 2 Comments
I’ve got several pre-fabricated raised beds in my garden – the ‘tank’ type – and having used them for a few years, have got an idea of the good and bad points of this type of gardening. Here they are! Pros Saves your back: A 70 cm high raised bed brings the growing medium’s surface [...]
Posted in Organic Gardening | Tags: container gardening, herbs, organic, pest control, vegetables | 6 Comments
I can’t remember where my first plant of Warrigal Greens. It spread wide in a mat, self-sowed, was unfazed by the hottest summer and always seemed to be available. Moving north to the subtropics I discovered it really disliked humidity and even though it self-sows, the niche it occupies is much smaller. It tends to [...]
Posted in Kitchen, Organic Gardening | Tags: recipe, vegetables, vegetarian | 10 Comments
There’s a popular garden myth that states that native plants don’t like fertiliser. That’s really not true – most plants will benefit from fertiliser, there are just a few types of natives that don’t like being hit with a large amount of some nutrients, phosphorous in particular. These plants – including Grevillea, Banksia, Casuarina, Protea [...]
Posted in Organic Gardening | Tags: fertiliser, natives, roots | No Comments
