Ecological Gardening

There's an interesting article in the current G Magazine entitled "Gardens that Grow Themselves".

The basic idea is that you plant your garden beds densely with a diverse range of plants. Some of these are then left to go to seed, so that the soil in your garden bed builds up a "seed store", some of which will germinate when the conditions are right and a space opens up within the bed for them (ie. when other plants come to the end of their life cycle). Thus in theory creating a self-renewing produce garden.

The part of the article that most appealed to me was the idea that this densely planted area creates a highly protected micro-climate. As you can see from the photo above, my "vegie plot" is in a dire condition with all the hot weather and lack of rain we've been experiencing lately. Hmm... I probably should have mulched... And now is not the ideal time to be growing spinach in Brisbane, but I thought it was coriander. Oops

So I'm going to give this "ecological gardening" lark a go. Starting with allowing any "volunteer" vegies that show up in my garden beds to go for it.

There are already a couple of volunteers in my lettuce patch, below. Let the experiment begin!

Beelarong Community Garden

On Wednesday afternoon we visited Beelarong Community Garden in Brisbane's east. It was really inspiring to see all hard work that the community gardeners had put into their plots. There were so many vegies growing! Even some that I had never actually seen being grown before (like zucchini hmm...)

Plots are available to members of the community for an annual fee. I would so love to have a plot there to tend, as our yard at home is on the small side. However being in the midst of raising small children I have been forced to admit to myself that now is just not the right time for me to realise my vegie growing dreams. One day...

Just down the road from the Community Garden is a paddock where horses are agisted. I am always delighted to find little "rural" pockets within the heart of suburbia!

Sugar Snaps and Sunrises

Sometimes it's a real struggle on these cold winter mornings to hop out of bed when I hear bubby crying out in the darkness.

But then slowly the light seeps into the world outside and I am rewarded with a spectacle like this:

I think he wakes me up early some mornings just so I don't miss such a wonderful sunrise.

In the vegie garden the sugar snap vines have finally got their first flower!

I had almost given up on them, after all the vine was already this big

They were planted at the same time as the butter beans next to them, and the beans have all but finished their harvest.

Baby Beans

Can you see it there? OMG how cute.

Recycled Jack-o-Lantern

Yummm

Pumpkin pie recipe here.

I planted a couple of Potimarron pumpkin seeds this morning. Hopefully I will have a little harvest like this later in the year. I have never attempted to grow this variety before but I love the vivid orange of the potimarrons, they look how I imagine a pumpkin should look. They are supposed to be fabulous in a soup too, with a real chestnutty taste. I love pumpkins, they are just so generous, don't you think?

Potimarron image from: http://www.windward.org/notes/notes67/walt6719.htm

This Morning

The sky was covered in unusual wispy clouds this morning. Like little tufts of curly fur. There is a new chill in the air. It has been so hot lately I was wondering what happened to Autumn, but it's back. Looking forward to my bowl of steaming creamy porridge this morning!

The bean seedlings are also shooting up. I can't believe how fast they grow! I suspect we will be able to climb up them, a la Jack and the Beanstalk, any day now.

Garden Update

The seeds I planted last week are beginning to sprout.

So far there has been a 100% strike rate with the snow peas and beans, but only some of the shallots have come up yet.

I have never grown beans before, but they are fascinating looking.

In our vegie box a couple of weeks ago there were some shelling peas. That was a great novelty, I am 29 years old and had never shelled a pea before! Some of the peas were beginnin to sprout, so I planted them to see if they'd grow, and wonderfully they seem to be.

I better get busy and get the pea bed ready! Apologies for all the flash photography today, it is gloooooomy here in Brisbane today after the days of rain we've been having.

March Planting

I know, it's April already, but somehow March just slipped by.

So let's do some gardening...

Got the seeds?

Check.

Got the toilet rolls?

Ummm... Check.

Toilet roll cores are the perfect thing to use as seedling punnets. You pop one seed in each one (or a couple for of the finer seeds like shallots). Once the seedling's roots reach the bottom of the toilet roll, it's time to transplant them into their intended garden beds. To do this, just plant them in position without even removing them from the toilet roll. I like this because it's easy and it minimises "transplant shock". By the time you've finished harvesting from your plant the cardboard toilet rolls will have disintegrated into the soil.

Today I planted:

4x sugar snap peas

4x dwarf yellow beans

heaps of shallots.

I have built a new little garden bed for the peas and beans, and the shallots will go in the garden bed where the tomatoes presently are.

Now to plan April's planting and order some seeds before this month gets away from me too...