Growing food

[lizlea]

Ok, lets share what we are growing to eat. We are very proud of our garden atm and I really love that the kids know where food comes from and can go outside and pick something to eat. At the moment we have growing:

- a few varieties of salad leaves
- a few varieties of tomatoes
- kipfler potatoes
- lemon
- lime
- mandarine
- mulberries
- celery
- radish
- capsicum
- passionfruit
- strawberries
- rhubarb
- two varieties of parsley
- rosemary
- mint
- chives

ummm, thats all I can think of atm. What are you growing???

[michelle_j_r]

ooohh, nice, Liz!

thanks to the previous owners i have
mardarin
bush lemon
regular lemon
lime
2 different oranges
pawpaw
peach
passionfruit
strawberries
mulberries

silverbeet
cabbage
chilli
capsicum
broad bean
lettuce (several kinds)
leek
sweet potato
jeruselum artichoke

rosemary
oregano
thyme
lemon thyme
vietnamese corriander
parsely
italian parsely

not all cropping at the moment though...

and here is my seed order that is waiting at the post office for me to pick up-
1 x Asparagus - Mary Washington
1 x Bean, Bush - Cherokee Wax
1 x Broccoli - Green Sprouting Calabrese (organic)
1 x Carrot - All Seasons
1 x Certified Seed Potato - Kipfler
1 x Cape Gooseberry
1 x Eggplant - Rosa Bianca
1 x Tomato, Cherry - Broad Ripple Yellow Currant
1 x Basil - Sweet
1 x Parsnip - Hollow Crown
1 x Pigeon Pea
1 x Radish - Cherry Belle (organic)
1 x Zucchini - Black (organic)
1 x Watermelon - Crimson Sweet
1 x Tomato, Indeterminate - Cherokee Purple (organic) On Back Order
1 x Leek - Bulgarian Giant
1 x Lettuce, Crisphead - Great Lakes
1 x Rosella (organic)
1 x Corn, Popcorn - Blue Mini Popcorn
1 x Nettle
1 x Sage - Grandfather
1 x Chia
1 x Cabbage - Chinese, Wong Bok
2 x Lawtonberry
1 x Comfrey, Root Cuttings
1 x Tomato, Indeterminate - San Marzano (organic)
1 x Sunflower - Sunfola
1 x Pumpkin - Australian Butter (organic)
1 x Corn, Sweet - Jolly Roger

wow! that will keep me busy

[mama_bel]

OMG, this will be a good exercise in my memory skills... I'll be back!

[lizlea]

awesome Michelle - you will have a very yummy garden!

[Stardust]

Wow, you guys have awesome gardens!
We have going crazy..parsley, rosemary, spring onions, chives.
And have just planted beetroot, carrots, cabbage, potatoes and about to do celery.
I have three HUGE apple trees full of blossom. Is there anything specific I need to do to encourage them to fruit? They probably need pruning, but they're so beautiful I can't bring myself to do it.

[Ethereal]

OMG, you guys are amazing! :worship2 I get excited over a successful cherry tomatoes crop :laugh.

[JAK]

We haven't got much this year and I won't do too much this year.
We have lettuce, tomatoes, strawberries, a few herbs, carrots and spinach.

[Lee]

We've got, in tree form:

green plum
olive
mulberry
orange

In the veggie garden:

silverbeet (I have a newfound love for silverbeet... it still tastes like grass but it is so easy to grow!!)
bok choy
lettuce
broccoli (nearly ready to pick.... ooh the suspense....)
cauliflower
strawberries
snowpeas
sugarsnap peas
telephone peas
a lonely potato plant
leeks
garlic
onions
carrots
radishes

Just got given yesterday by a COOL bloke in Dwellingup:

a GIANT globe artichoke plant
and a bunch of small artichoke plants
a coriander/cilantro plant (bleurk.... this is for my menfolk, not me...)
a bunch of those... elephant garlic? anyway the giant garlic that look like leeks.

and stuff that has been sitting on my verandah that I need to plant:

a blueberry plant
six zillion sprouty potatoes
a possibly-apple tree



It's a hearty contribution to our meals, but I've still got a ways to go before we're growing the bulk of our food ourselves. What we don't grow though, we usually get from another local grower (like my mother) or from the local dumpster. So. Pretty non-consumer-y still.

[Lee]

Ooh I forgot my herbs!

Rosemary
Parsley
Garlic chives
Sage
Thyme
Oregano
Mint

[Rinelle]

Fruit trees: (mostly about 2 years old, some just starting to crop in a very small way this year)
* Mulberry
* orange (4 trees, valencia and navel)
* Lemon
* Mandarin (about 4 different types)
* Peach (2 varieties)
* nectarine
* Apricot
* Peachcot
* Plum
* Apple (3 different types)
* Macadamia
* Mango
* Persimmon
* Fig

We also have:
* grapes
* passionfruit
* Blueberries
* Raspberries
* Strawberries

The vegie garden is rather bare due to the lack of rain, but hopefully after yesterday's short shower, things will pick up a bit. Right now we have:
* Tomatoes
* Silverbeat
* broccoli
* Potatoes
* beetroot
* Watermelon (Just planted)
* corn (just planted)

There are a few other bits and pieces here and there, but that's most of it I think.

[Savannah]

Fruit trees -
apples (2 x red, 1 x green)
pear
3 x plum
3 x fig
mulberry
apricot
bananas
peach
2 x nectarine
3 x mandarin
2 x orange
lemon
blueberries

Vines -
2 x passionfruit
2 x grapes
youngberries

Vegetables -
celery
cabbage
broccoli
cauliflower
beetroot
silverbeet
kale
spinach
potatoes
kumara
peas
beans
tomatoes (just in)
a couple of different types of lettuce

ready to plant -
corn
melons
sunflowers
carrots
lettuce

Herbs -
Chamomile
lavender
rosemary
marigolds
oregano
parsley
thyme
marjoram

and lots more that I can't remember at the moment...

We're working on a food forest. :)

[Stardust]

Michelle, where do you get your seeds from?

[Merlion]

we have tomatoes, broccoli, spinach, lettuce, chinese cabbage, orange tree, curry leaf tree. would love to grow more but not enough garden space

[Nyree]

Oregano (going absolutely wild)
Marjoram
Rosemary
Thyme (poor little thing - about to re-pot it)
Garlic

4 types of lettuce have just sprouted
Strawberries potted a few days ago

Lemon
Plum (var Frontier - need more to polinate)
Cherry (var Lapin - really wanting some Vans - yummiest type IMO)
Hazelnuts (American White & Barcelona)
Apple (patio-type, but will plant other varieties eventually)

Lots of other things planned, but the garden is only just starting to develop. Lots of blackberries, too - most of which need to come out before the place is over-run - but it is kinda sad to see them go.

[SeaStar]

So inspiring, We are just clearing some space in our garden now amd I need to make a list of what to plant. My girls have requested an entire strawberry and bluberry patch!

[Rinelle]

LOL Seastar. We have an entire strawberry patch, and it still isn't enough! (is there any such thing as enough strawberries, especially once you start making jam?) However, strawberry plants do start to multiply rather fast once you get them started.

[mama_bel]

Okay, deeeeep breath...

Bushfoods and Wild Foods:
Davidson's Plum
Lemon Aspen
Lemon Myrtle
Native Raspberry
Black Wattle
Yellow Guava (not native)
Red Cherry Guava (not native)
Bush Lemon
Loquat (not native)
Macadamia
Woolly Pear
Millaa Vine
Passionfruit (not native)
Avocado (not native)
Blue Quandong
Atherton Oak
Banana Fig
Cluster Fig
Lillipillies
Fish

That's what we've found so far - there's heaps of other things out there you can eat, apparently, but I'm not so keen on the flavour and texture.

In the Orchard areas and Food Forest:
Abiu
Apple (tropical, dwarf)
Avocado (a few varieties)
Bamboo (some edible, all useful, all clumping)
Bananas
Bay Tree
Black Sapote
Blackberry Jam Fruit
Boysenberries
Brazillian Cherry
Calamondin
Carambola
Carob
Cedar Bay Cherry
Chilean Guava
Choko
Citron
Coconut
Coffee
Cumquat (a few)
Custard Apple
Dragonfruit (3 varieties)
Davidson's Plum (2 varieties)
Elderberry
Fig - White Genoa
Green Sapote
Grapefruit - Red
Grumichama
Guava
Hog Plum
Icecream Bean (2 varieties)
Jaboticaba
Jackfruit
Kaffir Lime
Lemon (4 varieties)
Lemonade
Lemon Myrtle
Lillypillies
Longan
Loquat
Macadamia (40+ trees, mostly 20+ yrs old)
Mandarins (3 varieties)
Mulberry (3 varieties)
Native Olive
Nectarine (tropical 2 each of 2 varieties)
Neem
Orange (3 varieties)
Passionfruit (many vines of different varieties)
Paw Paw
Peach (7 total, 4 varieties)
Peachcot
Peanut Butter Tree
Persimmon
Pigeon Pea (lots and lots)
Pineapple Guava (feijoa)
Pineapples
Pomegranate (2 varieties)
Plum (tropical 2 each of 2 varieties)
Pummelo
Raspberry
Rollinia Deliciosa
Rose Apple
Sea Grape
Star Apple
Sweet Leaf
Tamarillo
Tangello
Tahitian Lime
White Sapote
Yellow Sapote
Youngberries

Animal Products:
eggs from chickens of all shapes and sizes
eggs from muscovy ducks
roosters excess to our needs
milk from our house cow
honey from bee hives someone keeps here
fish (as mentioned above in wild food list) in the creek

and that's outside the garden...

[mama_bel]

I have 3 large garden areas - 2 greenhouses under mostly shadecloth and 1 fenced with chicken wire. We have lots of pets and wildlife and farm animals, so a lot of vegies are locked away!

In the Gardens:

Aerial Potatoes
Aloe Vera
Arrowroot (2 types)
Asian Greens - mixture
Asparagus
Basil
Beans - several varieties
Broad Beans
Broccoli
Cabbage - 2 varieties
Cape Gooseberries
Capsicums
Carrots (only a few, but they're sweet)
Cassava
Cauliflower
Celery - 2 varieties
Ceylon Spinach
Chinese Artichoke
Chilli
Choko - 2 varieties
Comfrey
Coriander - Mexican
Eggplant - 2 varieties
Garlic Chives
Garlic - 3 varieties
Ginger - 3 varieties
Land Cress
Leeks - 2 varieties
Lemongrass - 2 varieties
Lettuce - many varieties
Mint - 2 varieties
Mizuna
Mushroom plant
Nasturtiums
Oka
Onions
Parsley - 2 varieties
Peas (almost done)
Pepinos
Pineapples - smooth and rough
Potatoes - few varieties
Pumpkins - couple of varieties
Rhubarb
Rice
Rocket
Shallots - lots
Silverbeet
Spinach - several types
Strawberries
Sweet Potato - 2 varieties
Tatsoi
Tahitian Spinach
Tomatoes - mostly cherry right now
Warrigal Greens
Water Chestnuts
Water Cress
Winged Beans
Yacon
Yam - 2 varieties
Zucchini - yellow

There's probably more!

And I have a heap of seedlings to plant out, another 30+ trees waiting for the rainy season and oodles of seeds to plant into the newest bed especially...

Obsessed much? ;)

[Ethereal]

:wub What a list!!!

*adds Bel's place to top 5 places to see in Australia list*

[mrs fox]

I feel so lazy:shame
I have:
Lemon Thyme
Parsley
DH Chilli's - Black prince, banana x2. rainbow(ornamental I know but still yummo)
Onions
eastern lemongrass
garlic chives
did have snow peas but the rooster(rusty) flew into the patch and helped himself to a snack
Dill - gone to seed and have collected ready for next year
Coriander same as dill
basil
thai basil
Roma tomatoes.
DS2 strawbs, he has gone off them atm.
I did start 2 new patches but I have to fence them off from the chooks/ducks.

But I have not been in the patch for a few days...but I am today going to... I promise!I promise!I promise!I promise!

[Hailstorm]

Last week when Veg picked me up from work he infromed that Hailey has requested a vegie patch so this weekend it is his job to get things going as I'll be working the whole weekend so I think seeings how I am a plant murderer we will start small maybe a lettuce? or a bean of some sort? :2lol I will keep you informed

[SeaStar]

O Bel, I would love to see that!

[Kathryn]

I am so far beyond jealous. Really need to get to grips with my garden!!! You are all so inspiring! :heart

[Stardust]

OMG Bel. That's awesome!! I'd love to find out about bush foods for this area. Not sure how many are failsafe though!

[Stardust]

Oh, for you seasoned gardeners, do you sew seed directly into the vegie patch?Or do you grow the seedlings elsewhere first? And which herbs go best with what vegies? And how do you look after your fruit trees? We have three massivly tall apple trees covered in blossoms. I wondered whether they need feed/compost etc?

[mama_bel]

Oh, for you seasoned gardeners, do you sew seed directly into the vegie patch?Or do you grow the seedlings elsewhere first? And which herbs go best with what vegies? And how do you look after your fruit trees? We have three massivly tall apple trees covered in blossoms. I wondered whether they need feed/compost etc?

Yes and no with the seed - depends what it is and how much seed and time I have, what I do with it! Just put lots of herbs amongst your vegies - you'll do more good than harm! Otherwise, there are companion planting charts online and in some seed catalogues and gardening books.

Different fruit trees have different needs. I don't have regular apples and don't know their needs. I'd google "care of apple trees Australia" or something to see what it says to do. There are certain months for pruning, certain months for feeding and different treatment for trees in blossom, depending on what they are. But once you know it, you're set.

You'd all be welcome for a garden tour. It sucks right now though - half dead looking things everywhere. SIGH. C'mon summer rain!

[Nyree]

I'm moving to Bel's place!!!

I'm seriously considering some wicking worm beds when we get the vegie garden happening - just heard about them last night:

http://www.wickingbed.com/
http://www.maireid.com/wickingbeds.html (I want my veggie beds looking just like these!!!)
http://www.waterright.com.au/wicking%20beds.html

Anyone tried this system?

[mama_bel]

No, but I think I read about it on ALS?

You can't move here, Ny, you'd melt! :p

We've been here 2.5 years. The wild food was already here, but 95% of the rest, we planted. It can be done, and with not too much effort. Just keep planting!

[Nyree]

Yeah, I read about it on JB & the person who posted saw them on ALS - but I haven't been to ALS for aaaaaaages. Should go & check it out :)

Yes - I was worried about the melt factor. Just sounds so appealing! Lots more planned here - will be planting for a while yet :)

[michelle_j_r]

Stardust, i ordered my seeds from Cornucopia Seeds. I have used Green Harvest in the past, and i also like the look of Eden Seeds. Depends on what you are after.

For those with raspberries (or anything similar, blackberries etc etc) how would you go getting a bare rooted cane for me to plant!!!! :) Happy to swap other seeds for them.

I really want to get some ginger and garlic into the ground but have had bugger-all luck finding anything i want to plant that has not come imported from china or something. Have to find time to get to another local market (nothing at the one two weekends ago....)

Bel, how big is the dragonfruit tree? And how long did it take you to get as established as your garden is? Do you find you make use of all the stuff you grow? I have wondered about some of the more exotic stuff (for down the track! not now!) but wonder if i would make use or if i am better off planting more apples and apricots and 'regular' stuff.

[Sam]

I'm a bit excited about all the blossoms we have on our trees, they were only planted a couple of years ago, so I think this will be our first real harvest.

Fruit we have:
Apples x 10, all different heirloom varieties so should have fruit from Dec- June
Pears x 4
Apricots x 3
Peach x 2
Nectarine x 2
Fig
Cherries x 2
Nashi x 2
Plum x 4
Lemon
Orange
Lemonade
Mandarin x 2
Avocado
Almond
Blueberries
Blackcurrant
Red currant
White currant
Tamarillo x 2, red and orange
Babaco
White sapote ( huge experiment down here)
Raspberries x 4 different varieties
Rhubarb
Strawberries
Kiwi fruit
Mulberry, black and white
Grapes x 3
Pepino

Veges/herbs
Leafy greens
Silverbeet
Snowpeas
Asparagus
Garlic
Leeks
Spring onions
Potatoes
Tomato seedlings waiting for it to warm up a bit more to go out
Jerusalem artichoke
Yacon
Rosemary
Thyme
sage
Parsley
Mint x 4 varieties
Oregano
Curry plant
Waiting for it to warm up a bit more for basil and coriander

Lots of seeds waiting for me to plant

[Rinelle]

I plant most seeds directly into the garden. I have absolutely no luck with flowers though. Most other things grow OK (when we get rain that is).

I've just been reading up on wicking beds too, and am definately going to give it a try once I get out into the garden. Who knows when that will be though!

[Savannah]

We plant into seed trays because otherwise the ants or the rats eat most of the seeds. We do have things that just come up from seed though, like lettuce and bok choi that I have let go to seed and then shaken around.

[mama_bel]

For those with raspberries (or anything similar, blackberries etc etc) how would you go getting a bare rooted cane for me to plant!!!! :) Happy to swap other seeds for them.

I really want to get some ginger and garlic into the ground but have had bugger-all luck finding anything i want to plant that has not come imported from china or something. Have to find time to get to another local market (nothing at the one two weekends ago....)

Bel, how big is the dragonfruit tree? And how long did it take you to get as established as your garden is? Do you find you make use of all the stuff you grow? I have wondered about some of the more exotic stuff (for down the track! not now!) but wonder if i would make use or if i am better off planting more apples and apricots and 'regular' stuff.

I can probably send you some raspberry cuttings. And some ginger. I usually have garlic to spare as I buy in bulk from a NSW organic grower, but we're out right now.

Dragonfruit grow on a cactus which climbs a trellis or tree. I've seen it 20m up a tree, but usually it just goes along with the height of what it climbs upon.

We've been here 2.5 years and I started some gardening as soon as we moved in. The trees I started the following wet season with a goal of 100 food trees and 100 natives within the first year here! By the 10 year mark I hope to have planted about 1000 trees, and have established food forest areas.

The exotic stuff is good for kids, animals and novelty. I have the space, it's usually cheaper (like $5 or $7 a tree instead of $20, $30 or $40 a tree!) and so I grow it. Plus, most of the 'exotic' stuff does better here for me than you're typical fruit and veg seen in the supermarket. Sure, grow what you eat - that's a very important 'rule' of gardening, but it's good for us to grow stuff that we don't need to fuss over for pests and diseases (tropics), that's just there, yk? And kids love things like jaboticaba fruit and the like. Well, my kids do. Probably 'cos they grew up foraging wild, tropical gardens! :)

[Natenimiri]

HELP! How do i start my garden?!!! We have just had the yard completely guttered and rebuilding (due to flooding) and have drainage put in, retaining wall, grass, rocks and pavers and just a few natives and will put in a hedge but I have left a long strip at the back fence for a vegie patch BUT i have never done it before and am nervous! Any tips for a VIRGIN GREEN THUMB??!!!!

[Blossomtime]

In our garden...

Apricot
Plums
Cherry
Apples (2 types)
Dwarf Peach
Walnut
Lemon
Orange
Persimmon
Strawberries
Passionfruit

Cackleberries ;)

Rhubarb
Rocket
Parsley (2 types)
Tarragon
Sage
Mint (2 types)
Purple dandelion
marjoram
lemon thyme
bay laurel
calendula
nasturtiums

garlic
spring onions
potatoes
snow peas
broad beans
beetroot
beans
rainbow chard

and more to go in tomorrow....

[mama_bel]

HELP! How do i start my garden?!!! We have just had the yard completely guttered and rebuilding (due to flooding) and have drainage put in, retaining wall, grass, rocks and pavers and just a few natives and will put in a hedge but I have left a long strip at the back fence for a vegie patch BUT i have never done it before and am nervous! Any tips for a VIRGIN GREEN THUMB??!!!!

Have you read about no-dig gardening? I recommend that you get a book from the library or browse articles online and try this method for your first vegie garden. I say take the easiest route there is, and get tricky later - build a no-dig bed, plant a mix of seeds and seedlings (of food you usually eat) following the gardenate.com guide for what to plant when. Make sure irrigating is easy. Feed the plants well. If they need shade, think about it before the hot summer afternoon when the plants are frying in the sun...

But enjoy it! Growing food should be a joy, not a chore! xx

[Rinelle]

I'd start off with one bed, and once you have that under control, move onto the next one. If you do no-dig gardening like Bel suggested, then it's easy to move the gardens later if you find the position doesn't work. I'm constantly re-arranging my beds.

[Stardust]

No dig gardens are great.Lay down newspaper over grass. Then layer with compost, manure, newspaper, straw etc. Let it rot down then plant stuff into it.
I went out yesterday and got some seedlings of
curry plant
mint
chocolate mint (hey, If I can't eat choc I can at least have something with the name growing!)
basil
garlic
corriander
thyme
sage
chilli
leeks
cabbage
and a few others that I can't remember
I want to get some more fruit trees, raspberries, blueberries and a passionfruit for when we are (hopefully) not failsafe anymore, but have to save up for those.
Bel, what is dragonfruit? You northerners have such cool exotic stuff!!

[mama_bel]

This (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pitaya) is dragonfruit. It's YUM! Ours haven't fruited yet. Lots of our stuff hasn't of course, being so young. But one day...

[Rinelle]

They are yum. I'm pretty sure we have one growing up a tree in the backyard, but I've never seen it flower, much less fruit. And even if it did, we couldn't reach the fruit, since it's 20+ metres up in the air...

[Stardust]

AHA! I do know now.I had one when we were in queensland a few years back. They are yum too. You guys have all the good stuff!! :P

[SeaStar]

We spent the afternoon putting in blueberries, strawberries, mixed lettuce, capsicum, tomato, snowpeas, beetroot, roly carrots and coriander. The girls have already checked for fruit several times!

[Natenimiri]

Thanks Mama_Bel, Rinelle and Stardust! I will get reading! I am a little worried as I am a bit like Hailstorm and not much of a green thumb - BUT i will be positive and perservere! Be prepared for more Q's ;-)

[ali_celt]

In my garden, I have

Kikuyu
Grass
Bindii
Three=corner Jacks
Grass
Wild Rocket
Grass
Milk Thistle
Grass
Mallow
Nettles
Grass


OH!!! WE are talking about edible stuff! (although I do beleive mallow and nettle are edibles!)

Um I have 3 pots. One with strawberries, one with parsley, one with Lemon Balm.

I have an old raised vege patch which is the source of the wild rocket, and some self-sown spinach/silverbeet.

And I have a dead Tamarillo tree and a dead Peach tree.

LOL Anyone wanna come to my house?? *grin*

[SeaStar]

LMAO AC, have you posted a pic?

[Karena]

Because we are renting I'm limited in how big my gardens can be. But so far I've got growing:
Rosemary
Silverbeat
Capsicums
Strawberries x 2
Peas
Beans
Snow peas
Chives
Eggplant (which we are very proud of that it actually has 5 eggplants growing)
Basil
Rocket
Lettuces x 2
Beetroot
cucumbers
tomatos

Wow Bel, I want to come eat in your garden :2lol

[michelle_j_r]

i discovered that i also have potatoes! Had a little ferret under the soil where the plant is starting to die off (meaning ready to harvest) and yay! potatoes!! they look big too... now just hoping all this rain will not make them go goopy and rot under there... do they do that???