Whiteflies are small white flying insects around 1mm long that prefer to hide on the undersides of young plant leaves, and when disturbed fly up in the air around the plant in a cloud of white flying insects, often in large numbers. They belong to the order Hemiptera (true bugs), family Aleyrodidae (Whiteflies), and areContinue reading “How to Control Whitefly Without Harmful Pesticides”
March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Arid Climate Australia
March heralds the beginning of autumn, so there’s lots of tidying up in the garden. The weather remains warm and humid in areas as far south of the country as Sydney and Perth. With the cooler conditions and moist soils, it’s also an ideal time to plant new trees, as the weather is milder andContinue reading “March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Arid Climate Australia”
March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia
March heralds the beginning of autumn, so there’s lots of tidying up in the garden. The first frosts may appear in Canberra and high inland areas. With the cooler conditions and moist soils, it’s also an ideal time to plant new trees, as the weather is milder and there is some time for the treesContinue reading “March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia”
March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Tropical Climate Australia
March heralds the beginning of autumn, so there’s lots of tidying up in the garden. The weather remains warm and humid in areas as far south of the country as Sydney and Perth. With the cooler conditions and moist soils, it’s also an ideal time to plant new trees, as the weather is milder andContinue reading “March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Tropical Climate Australia”
March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Subtropical Climate Australia
March heralds the beginning of autumn, so there’s lots of tidying up in the garden. The weather remains warm and humid in areas as far south of the country as Sydney and Perth. With the cooler conditions and moist soils, it’s also an ideal time to plant new trees, as the weather is milder andContinue reading “March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Subtropical Climate Australia”
March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Temperate Climate Australia
March heralds the beginning of autumn, so there’s lots of tidying up in the garden. The weather remains warm and humid in areas as far south of the country as Sydney and Perth. With the cooler conditions and moist soils, it’s also an ideal time to plant new trees, as the weather is milder, andContinue reading “March Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Temperate Climate Australia”
Lead Contamination in Soils and How to Treat It
Lead is a toxic heavy metal that poses a significant risk to humans, wildlife and natural habitats, as heavy metals are not degraded in the environment and consequently accumulate in soils. The lead-contamination of soil and its circulation in the soil–plant–animal–human biological food chain can cause chronic disease in humans and other living organisms. LeadContinue reading “Lead Contamination in Soils and How to Treat It”
How to Grow a Choko Vine from a Fruit
The choko or chayote (Sechium edule) is a vigorous, herbaceous perennial vine from the Cucurbitaceae (gourd or cucumber) family, that is native to Central America, but is now cultivated in many parts of the world. Choko fruit are light green in colour and are variable in shape and size, resembling a mango-shaped or pear-shaped squashContinue reading “How to Grow a Choko Vine from a Fruit”
February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Arid Climate Australia
February is the last month of summer, with hot days and strong winds, along with the occasional cyclone up north. During this month there are also cool changes with rain and thunderstorms. It’s still a fairly dry time of the year in Victoria, quite hot and dry in South Australia. Weather is hot and humidContinue reading “February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Arid Climate Australia”
February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia
February is the last month of summer, and it’s still a fairly dry time of the year in Victoria. Weather is hot and humid in NSW, and rain falls for around half the month. There can be strong winds along with the heat, so water deeply and less often during dry periods to encourage rootsContinue reading “February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia”
February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Tropical Climate Australia
February is the last month of summer, with hot days and strong winds, along with the occasional cyclone up north. During this month there are also cool changes with rain and thunderstorms. In Darwin it’s the wet season. During dry periods, water deeply and less often to encourage roots to grow down, making plants lessContinue reading “February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Tropical Climate Australia”
February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Subtropical Climate Australia
February is the last month of summer, with hot days and strong winds, along with the occasional cyclone up north. During this month there are also cool changes with rain and thunderstorms. During dry periods, water deeply and less often to encourage roots to grow down, making plants less vulnerable to heat and drought. TakeContinue reading “February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Subtropical Climate Australia”
February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Temperate Climate Australia
February is the last month of summer, and it’s still a fairly dry time of the year in Melbourne, quite hot and dry in South Australia, and the hottest month in Perth. It’s hot and humid in Sydney and Brisbane, and rain falls for around half the month. There can be strong winds along withContinue reading “February Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Temperate Climate Australia”
Why Herbicide Use is Not Compatible with Healthy Soils
Herbicide use is very common in mainstream agriculture. Despite the documented environmental harm caused by herbicides, and the findings by the World Health Organisation (WHO) International Agency on Research on Cancer (IARC) that glyphosate (Roundup) causes cancer, herbicide use remains rampant and unabated! In 2020 the global use of herbicides reached nearly 1.4 million metricContinue reading “Why Herbicide Use is Not Compatible with Healthy Soils”
How to Stop Mint from Spreading in the Garden
Mint plants are perennial aromatic herbs from the Mentha genus, that are widely grown in temperate areas around the world, and have spread worldwide, due to their culinary, medicinal and aromatic value. These are amongst the easiest plants for beginner herb gardeners to grow, as mint plants can be grown outdoors in pots and inContinue reading “How to Stop Mint from Spreading in the Garden”
The Best Ways to Harvest and Dry Fresh Herbs
Herbs are plants that are used for culinary and medicinal purposes, for making teas and also for their aromatic qualities. The leaves, flowers, seeds and roots of many herbs can be harvested for these purposes. For best flavour, aroma or potency, herbs are usually harvested and used fresh as required. They can also be driedContinue reading “The Best Ways to Harvest and Dry Fresh Herbs”
5 Ecologically Sustainable Uses for Willow Trees
Willows are fast growing, deciduous trees of the genus Salix, that are mostly native to the temperate areas of the Northern hemisphere, growing in regions with moist soils, but are adaptable to almost any soil conditions. The Weeping Willow (Salix babylonica) pictured above is one of the most recognisable willow trees worldwide. It’s quite unmistakableContinue reading “5 Ecologically Sustainable Uses for Willow Trees”
January Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Arid Climate Australia
It’s January, and we find ourselves right in the middle of the summer season. It’s in this month and the next that we experience the hottest daytime and night temperatures of the year. With the weather so hot and dry at this time, and with hot winds blowing, it’s important to keep up with theContinue reading “January Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Arid Climate Australia”
January Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia
It’s January, and we find ourselves right in the middle of the summer season. It’s in this month and the next that we experience the hottest daytime and night temperatures of the year. With the weather so hot and dry at this time, and with hot winds blowing, it’s important to keep up with theContinue reading “January Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Cool & Alpine Climate Australia”
January Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Tropical Climate Australia
It’s January, and we find ourselves right in the middle of the summer season. It’s in this month and the next that we experience the hottest daytime and night temperatures of the year. With the weather so hot at this time, it’s important to keep up with the watering, especially for plants in containers. TheContinue reading “January Vegetable and Herb Gardening Calendar for Tropical Climate Australia”