Vegies + Herbs Preparing New Vegie Beds There are two parts to this: first up I'll show you how to work out the most efficient shape for your bed (fyi not necessarily a rectangle and defo not a square!), and then we get down to the business of getting it ready for cropping. In my
Vegies + Herbs How to Finish Asparagus + Prep it for Spring Asparagus ferns will likely be tall and green and ferny, and getting in the way of everything - corral them behind a string-line so as they can finish in peace. Letting the stalks wither and go full cycle is a nourishing and important step in the process towards an abundant
Greenhouse Revitalise The Greenhouse! The greenhouse soil has worked hard all summer - revitalise it before planting the next round of crops to keep health steady. That's our goal - no dips and dives, just brilliant steady health. Seize the day, my friends!, and get it done before soil cools off. These preps will
Pests + diseases Dear Kath, my tomatoes have blight... Dear Kath, the tomatoes in my greenhouse are suffering from blight. What can you advise to treat them? Is it a deficiency in the soil or a pest? thanks A deficiency, in this case, of soil microbes, and the solution is simple as. Read through my very simple, tomato growing
Compost + Wormfarms Easy peasy compost #1: Reduce your compost needs Homemade compost is the ultimate soil food - safe from herbicide/ pesticide/ fungicide residue and full of life! It may seem daunting to make all your own, but with a good setup you totally can. The trick is to incorporate fertility into your garden design. Team that with a good compost
Compost + Wormfarms Easy peasy compost #2: A good setup The trick to easily made composts is to have all the ingredients on hand, the bins close by the vegie patch and a hose near by. Easy peasy! 2 types of compost bin * A simple, 3 sided bin A couple of pallets slid over stakes do the job perfectly, or
Compost + Wormfarms Easy Peasy Compost #3: Lets make compost! Homemade compost is the very best fertility for your vegie garden because its alive, minerally rich and stable. Your plants reflect this by growing steadily + strongly, and the reduction in pests and disease is quite something. Homemade looks and smells nothing like bought - it really is far superior. And though
Soil health How To Revive Soil: 3 Simple Ways In an ideal world, our soils don't end up hungry and tired. We take care of them in a little and often way so they stay juicy + wormy in order to sustain the demands of production. But - hey, it happens.... life happens! And when it does, here'
Compost + Wormfarms The Ins and Outs of Choosing Bought Compost Compost is the heart and soul of your garden. Does it matter which compost you buy? Damn straight it does! Well made compost is all our soil needs to grow abundant crops with minimal disease. But rubbish in, rubbish out - compost made with toxic, sub-standard ingredients will wreck your
Vegies + Herbs How to Grow Basil Basil is a queen, and needs to be treated just so - her tolerance for anything other than perfect is low and if you dish it out she'll let you know with fungus-y foliage, black streaks, pale leaves, tough leaves, poor growth or by rushing off to seed.
Start a garden My 3 Fav Ways to Start a Vegie Patch Here are my three favourite ways to begin a vegie patch. All are variations of no-dig, and all grow brilliant vegies with no bought fertiliser. The only buy ins are greencrop seeds and perhaps compost, if need be. The first method, and my all time favourite is - "No
Compost + Wormfarms Recycle Foodscraps: Make a Bucket Worm-farm A home-made bucket worm-farm costs next to nothing to set-up, takes next to no time to run and yet it turns your food-scraps into gold, aka worm-castings. Worm-castings are good-for-everything! For sick plants, for strong seedlings, for tired soil - it’s no
Garden Care How to Water When you water brilliantly, your garden performs brilliantly. The right amount of water, delivered at the right time makes for way less disease, less pests and improves cropping no end. This is no empty promise, my friends! Watering has as big of an impact on your gardens wellness as soil
Chickens Natural Remedies for Worms in Chickens Sweetie (chook on the left) has a dirty behind - a possible sign of worms. If I get in quick, I can save the day with herbs! Chickens go downhill fast, so it pays to be aware. Since spring is worm o'clock, lets be prepared with some natural solutions.
Compost + Wormfarms Turn Your Plastic Compost Bin into a Wormfarm Worm-castings (worm poops), are the good-for-everything, by-product of your worm farm. It's no exaggeration to say that they have super powers. Team them with your homemade compost (your gardening dynamic duo), and your vegie garden will never look better. There are plenty of ways
Pests + diseases Help! Our Garden is Full of Grass Grubs Grass grubs are bronze beetle babies, and as far as pests go, a relatively easy one to balance in the home garden with natural practises such as I champion below. Mostly they reside in lawn - these are grass grubs after all!, but they can also make their way into your
Vegies + Herbs How to Grow Celery Homegrown celery is so efficient (and delicious!), gifting a lot of crop, in a small space. By regularly harvesting the big, outside stalks you inspire fresh, new ones to come. In this way, a happy celery plant can perpetuate for years, and that's the trick - to keep them
Greencrops How to Sow a Greencrop Greencrops (also called greenmanures) are awesome! Diversity, homegrown fertility + living mulch all in one. * Use them to prepare soil for OR restore soils after, a heavy feeder – you use less compost this way * Sow them beneath/ beside bigger crops like broccoli, pumpkin or beans, as a life giving, living mulch
Chickens Winter Chook Care Calling all chook mums and dads! During this wet, low light, cold time of year - are you managing to provide your chooks with sunlight, dry outside space and fresh, healthy? Here are some missions to ensure your girls are getting the best of care. Top up the sawdust in the
