My Productive Backyard
Turn your backyard into a productive food-growing paradise
Growing Spring Onions all year.
It can be a bit confusing when talking about spring onions (or are they shallots or are they scallions) as there are lots of small onions with lots of different names, but when I am talking about spring onions I am referring to the onion which produces a slender white...
How to keep a continual supply of Coriander and Rocket growing in your garden all year.
Coriander and rocket are both leaves I use constantly, and in great quantity, in the kitchen, therefore I need to keep a continual supply happening in my garden all year. This is not without its challenges, but over the years I have developed some strategies that...
Harvesting and using your Asparagus crop
Spring = Asparagus. I love spring for the fact that it is asparagus season. It is a luxury vegetable that I look forward to each year. It has a relatively short harvest time, but is one of the many products I do not buy as it never tastes the same as the spears...
HOW TO GROW FINGER LIMES
Finger limes are often referred to as citrus caviar due to the delicate “crystals” of pulp contained within the fruit. They are a small leafed, spiny native citrus with insignificant flowers, that do not have the usual beautiful citrus perfume. So why would you want...
HOW TO PRESERVE YOUR BROCCOLI AND CAULIFLOWER CROP
So today I have been out and picked the last of my cauliflowers and several heads of Broccoli. The rain and a couple of warm days and they want to go to flower so they needed to be picked. Trouble is there is much more than we can use this week. So today I have...
Mulching Your Garden
I have delayed mulching the ornamental garden and orchard over the last couple of months because it was so dry. Now we have had a good soaking I will be spending the weekend spreading as much mulch as I can around my entire garden. I do this for a number of...
Preparing for spring and summer planting-growing seedlings
So this week’s blog will wrap up my series on getting prepared for spring planting. We have our seeds in hand and our beds prepared, so with just a small amount of time each week we can now start getting our plants started. I like to spend just ½ an hour every...
Preparing your Garden Beds for Spring and Summer Plants.
Once I have chosen what I want to plant for my spring and summer crop, the next step is to think about what you are going to plant where. Most experts and books will talk about ridged adherence to crop rotation in the annual vegetable garden, and whilst...
Preparing Your Spring and Summer Vegetable Garden
Over the next few weeks I would like to share with you how I prepare for the busiest time of my gardening year- spring and summer vegetable production. If you have not grown your own veggies before check out my online module, "The Annual Vegetable Garden." This will...
HOW TO MAINTAIN YOUR POTTED CITRUS
Citrus are one of those plants that I think are a must in the garden. They have beautiful dark green foliage all year, sensuously perfumed flowers at various times of the year and then produce fabulously colourful edible fruit. They really are the most perfect...
HOW TO GROW CITRUS IN POTS
Citrus are one of those plants that I think are a must in the garden. They have beautiful dark green foliage all year, sensuously perfumed flowers at various times of the year and then produce fabulously colourful edible fruit. They really are the most...
WHY YOU SHOULD GROW CITRUS IN POTS
Why grow citrus in pots Learn how to grow citrus trees in pots: Citrus are one of those plants that I think are a must in the garden. They have beautiful dark green foliage all year, sensuously perfumed flowers at various times of the year and then produce...