Warm winters can disturb the hibernation of slugs and snails.They will eat and breed throughout the winter months, creating an extra generation of molluscs that will continue your infestation.Slugs are very beneficial in the compost heap but unfortunately they may not stay there and the… Read More »Snails and Slugs
A civilised twist on the term ‘Home Brew’….It’s really not as hard as you might believe.Coffee trees, or shrubs to be accurate, are really quite efficient survivors and will generally tolerate a reasonable amount of abuse or neglect.They require much less work to grow than… Read More »Coffee 1 . Grow from seed.
It’s hard not to love this cactus. Like all cacti it has some needles but treated carefully and handled rarely, it is never a problem.If you grow these from seed then you will have the whole experience but it will take a little longer than… Read More »Grow your Own Dragonfruit
As with other crops, each tomato variety is either a variety bred in modern times (often a hybrid is the offspring of several very different varieties) or a traditional, open-pollinated variety unchanged since WW2 (We call that an “heirloom”). Within each of these two large groups, there are several… Read More »Which Tomato to grow?
Pumpkins are not particularly recommended for small gardens because of the plants’ size but they are not difficult to grow and are fun for children.Pumpkins are closely related to winter squash and to other vine crops like cucumbers. They are also grown very much like… Read More »Pumpkins and Squash
Tomato seed is probably the easiest seed for a gardener to germinate and it is not unusual for gardeners to base their gardening confidence on success with this fruit.Some insist that the seeds need to be soaked before planting but this is unnecessary and it… Read More »Grow Tomatoes from Seed
Good food like the humble peanut is often overlooked when planing the vegetable garden but it is without a doubt, the most ‘giving’ of plants that you will ever include in your garden. After you receive your peanuts (in their shells) there is no rush… Read More »Grow some Peanuts
Ya gotta love Winter in the garden! After the onslaught of the Australian summer and it’s ever changing gifts of unbearable heat, stifling humidity, unpredictable storms, and drying winds we are greeted in late Autumn by a slight chill in the air and the promise… Read More »Winter can be Green too!
Although there are many coffee species, most coffee is made from the seed or bean of either Coffea arabica (Arabica coffee) or Coffea canephora (Robusta coffee).Arabica trees produce berries 8 to 15 mm in diameter, and Robusta produces berries approximately 10mm in diameter.Pick the berries… Read More »Coffee 2. Processing your harvest.
We are very fortunate, living in Australia, especially all the way down the east coast, to have what is generally regarded as a ‘mild’ climate.I say this seriously as, when compared to many European or American climates, it’s just lovely here if you are a… Read More »Grow Your Own Spice