Out of the archives - all the pockets of our backyard wonderland for eat play stay.
#urbanmarketgarden #freshisbest #playoutside #cuttlefishcottage #popesproduce #woonona #illawarra #homegrown #handmade
It’s been a hot minute since the last harvest ….
Thought it time to review all the happy snaps of the September - May season.
It’s been another exceptional one, with some exceptional volunteers, exceptional humidity, exceptional celebrations, exceptional weather, exceptional community with crop swapping and Food Talking and exceptional cucumbers - just off the top of my head.
We’ve basically kept the block as the permaculture trifecta of;
Earth Care (1/3 block bush)
Fair Share (1/3 block market garden, neighbours play)
People Care (1/3 block home, accommodation & storage)
People Care (1/3 block)
…to create the space for this to come to fruition in our world.
Enjoy the view of what’s possible.
(I’ll do another one on the built structures another day;)
#permaculture #earthcare #peoplecare #fairshare #csa #communitysupportedagriculture #urbanmarketgarden #community #cropswap #foodtalks #helpx #illawarra
Small farms count !!! There’s more of us than you may first think building soil, community and robust ecosystems. The knowledge out there is next level- but often difficult to access as growers and producers are so flat out doing the do.
🍃Young Farmers Connect have a national survey running to generate a baseline for the diversity in our regions & to see what is required to keep these systems humming.
#smallfarmscount #youngfarmersconnect #marketgardening #growfood #freshisbest #illawarra
All tucked in.
Just about time for this little glade to rest up for winter, cover crops in, a little more tidy & feeding to go.
#urbanmarketgarden #communitysupportedagriculture #feshisbest #feedthesoil
Battle royale as I weeded & planted yesterday.
Wasp v’s huntsman…
Wasp stings & paralyses said spider - lays their eggs inside, they hatch inside the spider then voracious babies their way out. Or so I’ve been told. Trying to keep my distance on this one.
Nature is wild.
#waspvspider #lifecycle #backyardwonderland #observenature #huntsmanspider #urbanmarketgarden
What a year !
Abundance from the backyard market garden (an initiative very rare in these parts - small scale production, operating a Community Supported Agriculture model ). A greenhouse constructed! And as the sun slid low pausing production….off to Chelsea Flower Show and beyond - such a trip ! OMG - Kew Gardens - think I could just about have moved in.
Finally celebrated & hung out in person with small scale producers from across the country at Deep Winter Agrarians for the 1st time in years.
Then there’s seeing the neighbourhood kids weaving through the playground of rainbow chard, wanting to take some home.
Oh yeah, and I finally stepped up to level 5.
50 laps around the sun celebrated with all of the above.
Thanks 2023, it’s been an adventure.
#marketgarden #csa #backyardwonderland #edibleeducation #observeandinteract #smallandslowsolutions
Okay lovely bee folks ….
What’s this crew up to & what type are they?
Noticed they’re all partying together on a parsley flowerbed going to seed this morning just as the drizzly day sets in.
#beesofaustralia #backyardbees #diversityatplay
Just for your listening pleasure.
Basically fast food for the local magpie family anytime I’m working in the market garden.
#wildlife #magpie #biodiversity #marketgardening
First day spring CSA !! Abundance of the leafy variety & eureka lemons that need to be seen to be believed.
Did you know - the pith (minus zest & fruit) has the texture of dried apple & tastes kinda sweet. I’ve been told it’s even tastier the second day.
Local veg for local households. Some have even been pre sampled by certain bug life proving their digestability ;)
#eatfresh #spring #homegrown #eatyourveg #wastefree #producesubscription #marketgarden #backyardwonderland
Pretty sure this translates to….
‘Thanks for the worms - I’ll help protect the freshly planted book Chou’
…or so so would like to think.
You’re welcome. Happy Monday.
#backyardwonderland #magpie #wildlifepatrol #marketgarden #spring
Preparing for spring !!
Packing out the greenhouse impatiently waiting for full sun in the garden, planting on the little ones.
A bit of liquid crop protection with help from our friends.
Cool damp soil has been a haven for slugs - time to break that cycle, with some lovely refreshing (waste ale) to let the crops grow on.
Dreaming of the harvest season ahead & subscription service for local produce.
Floral assortments and edible garnishes for wildlife & humans alike with plans to get cut arrangements out the door this season….
So once you’ve got local leaves for lunch, hot tip-
storing the washed dry leaves in a big fat glass jar keeps them fresh for ages! (We’ve been told up to 2 weeks)
#eatfresh #spring #marketgarden #beprepared #backyardwonderland #seasonalproduce #growfood
Just a glimpse of what’s outside the garden….
#goexplore #getoutside #batterseagardencentre #gardenmuseum #barbicancentre
A snippet of a slightly surreal day yesterday….
Park wildlife, Barbara Hepworth sculpture for all to appreciate (Battersea Park), local area vining off the Chelsea Flower Show.
A mere fragment of 8 hours in the largest constructed flower show on earth.
Incredible (& must say, very civilised if not indeed expensive) immersive experience. ‘Mature’ gardens installed just for the show & them rehomed post event to worthwhile organisations from schools, spinal hospitals, communities and beyond.
Remarkable to find out to mystery organisation @project.giving.back sponsored the installation of 12 (?) gardens to highlight & more next year.
Almost impossible to focus on the details, especially in a different plant dialect.
A fragment of nights for me …
Horatio’s Garden - The Royal Entomological Society Garden - A Letter From a Million Years Past - The Biophilic Garden Otsu- Hanare, Sparsholt College; Rustic Recipes Reimagined (turf roof, preserves, revisiting centuries old techniques)…..
The logistics to transform a field into this is just mind melting.
The finger lime - citrus australasica - gifted to us around 6 years ago, keeps dropping the goods.
It’s an understory thorny shrub (to tree) happiest in subtropical rainforest (think Queensland - northern NSW, but if conditions are right, will be happy where you pop it).
A valuable source of Food & medicine for the OG Australians for longer than any of our imaginations can stretch.
So thankful finger limes weren’t totally annihilated when Euro settlers cleared the bush for farming.
#fingerlime #bushtucker #indigenousfood #understoryplanting
Harvesting diversity for local subscribers. So much colour and so many flavour pops!
Imagine more of these hubs spread throughout communities…
Anything like this going on in your neighbourhood? Or a swap meet or a co op or other alternatives to fresh foods?
#veggiebox #producesubscription #locallygrownfood #freshisbest #growfood #valuethemargins #earthcare
