Posts by Melissa Woodard
Shade is the only way.
It has become undeniable now that your garden needs shade through the december-february period. We are noticing that gardens with shade are thriving while shadeless gardens are roasting and wilting. We advise all of our customers to get shade sails for their gardens. We are working on finding a suitable company with a modest price…
Read MoreScorching summer sunshine
Coming into summer (finally) once again, we are advising people to be very aware of their soil moisture levels. Two or three 35 degree plus days in a row can have a devastating affect on your crop if you do not handwater. While our reticulation usually provides good water flow most of the year, our…
Read MoreBeans are the Party Animals of the Garden
Beans go with so many wonderful flavours its hard to know where to start. They sizzle so well with butter or olive oil and garlic. They party with nuts like almonds, peanuts, cashews, pine nuts and walnuts. Beans are happy to be seen with herbs like parsley, chives and mint. Our family got hooked on…
Read MoreLettuce Give Thanks
November is a wonderful time for lettuce. It’s warmer but still not too hot. I think it is worth having an organic vegetable patch just for the bliss of being able to pick lettuce fresh for your salad each evening. If you take a few leaves from the outside the lettuce keeps producing. Having several…
Read MoreThe Benefits of Organic Food
There are many benefits to eating organic food, but often it is only after growing your own that you being to really appreciate them. Barry Green, who runs the Tourist Radio network here in Western Australia, runs Boronia Farm using Permaculture principles. He has a point of view about organic farming worth hearing, and a…
Read MoreStrawberries for the Picking
What can be more fun than finding a big fat ripe strawberry ready for the picking? The colour and flavour of your home grown organic strawberries will remind you why organic produce is just so popular these days. When I was a child my grandmother stewed strawberries and then set them into a jelly –…
Read MorePass the Homegrown Peas Please
I have vivid memories of my grandmother shelling peas for dinner. It is unlikely that many children today would have ever seen such a thing. It is lovely to shell peas with children. They enjoy the smell and the sweetness of fresh garden peas. It is so much fun to pop open the pod and…
Read MoreTime to Enjoy your Organic Carrots
It is hard not to be impressed with carrots as you pull them up. Like everything grown in your own garden there is something remarkable in harvesting a beautiful vegetable grown from seed. Before organic produce really took off great numbers of people had already worked out that supermarket carrots tasted like soap. The carrots…
Read MoreGrowing Pumpkins in Small Gardens
Some YourPatch gardeners are keen to get organic pumpkin growing. But unless you have a large enough area, it just doesn’t work. Pumpkins are born to travel. They love to roam over fences into neighbours gardens and given half the chance they will take over the neighbourhood. Every one loves the idea of growing…
Read MoreHow To Tell When Onions Are Ready To Pick
The time to harvest onions is when the tops go yellow and fold over. Onions are best grown in sandy soils as too much organic matter can make them go soft. If this happens they won’t keep or store well. Be careful when you pull them up that you don’t damage them. They won’t store…
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