When growing plants in pots, it’s sometimes necessary to increase drainage because some plants are sensitive to excessive moisture around their root zone, and stagnant water at the bottom of the pot can lead to root rot. The old garden myth of putting a layer […]
Many gardeners are familiar with the experience of lifting the lid off a compost bin and seeing a cloud of small flies rise into the air in front of them. These little flies are vinegar flies or drosophila, and the reason why they’re found in […]
Healthy plants only grow in healthy soils, and if you know what type of soil you’re working with, you’re better able to improve it to get the best results from your garden. In this article, we’ll discuss what soil is composed of, and show you […]
Can you use rabbit manure as a fertiliser in the garden? Rabbit manure is an excellent manure to use in the garden. It can be used fresh, has higher nutrient levels than other manures, and does not burn plant roots. It’s an ideal soil conditioner […]
Most plants prefer a neutral soil around pH 6.5 to 7.5, but many will grow favourably in the broader pH range of 5.5 to 8. When soils become too acidic or too alkaline, some essential plant nutrient will become unavailable to plants, negatively impacting plant […]
What is soil pH? How does it affect soil microorganisms and nutrient availability to plants? What is the optimum soil pH for plants? In this article we’ll answer all those questions and more, explaining soil chemistry in a practical way that is useful to gardeners. […]
Composting is Mother Nature’s ultimate recycling process which converts everything that was once living back into soil. We can compost a lot of organic matter in our homes and gardens, and use it to improve the quality of our soil, rather than toss it out […]
Preparing the Soil for Growing Food The secret to successful food gardening is rich, healthy soil. What goes into the soil goes into the food coming out of it! Plants take mineral nutrients and water from the soil, along with carbon dioxide from the air […]
There’s an old gardening myth that it’s best to put a layer of gravel or rocks at the bottom of a plant pot to improve drainage, but how true is it? Can the practice actually harm plants more than help them? The main reason for […]
Permaculture is all about working efficiently and in harmony with Nature. We can garden far more efficiently, with far less effort, and improve the soil at the same time by emulating Nature’s soil building processes through practising Chop and Drop gardening. How do most sustainable […]
Hard woody mulches or soft non-woody straw-like mulches, what’s the difference? They both work equally well as garden mulches to moderate soil temperature, reduce water loss from the soil through evaporation, conserve soil moisture to reduce the need for watering, inhibit weed seed germination and […]
Want to sow seeds in pots? What do you need? Seed raising mix? Guess again! Working part-time in the garden nursery industry, I meet many gardeners who have had problems sowing seeds in seed raising mix – they find that their seeds sprout but their […]
Remember Bisphenol A, also known as BPA, the toxic endocrine-disrupting chemical which leached out of plastic drink bottles that has now been banned worldwide? Well, the bad news is that it’s still around and you have more contact with it than you imagine! Thermal paper […]
As gardeners, we often told that we shouldn’t use office photocopying paper or glossy magazines in our worm farms, compost or the garden in general. Many gardeners ask why not? There are very good reasons not to, which we’ll explore in this article! By understanding […]
The plants in your garden need food just like you do! That might seem obvious but you’ll be surprised how many people never bother to feed their plants and then wonder why they aren’t flowering, fruiting, or growing all that well. Even if you do […]
What do you do with your bokashi bin contents if you don’t have a large garden to dig them into? As discussed in the previous Bokashi Composting article, you can always put the processed bokashi food waste into your compost bin or into your worm […]
Are you into recycling but are still throwing away some food scraps because you can’t put them in your compost bin or worm farm? Large amounts of citrus and onions, or any food that contains fish and meat should not be put in your worm […]
Composting allows us to recycle plant materials so they can be re-used in the garden, but the materials need to be broken up into small pieces for the composting process to work efficiently. Traditional composting works fine for for soft green plant matter, twigs and […]
How could composting be made easier? By not ever having to turn the compost and not having to move the compost into your garden, that’s how! You can get Nature to do even more of the work with a Worm Tunnel, an in-ground worm farm […]
Worm Farms are a great way to recycle kitchen waste and food scraps into one of the best garden fertilizers available! It’s very easy to maintain a worm farm, it takes very little time and effort, and you can set up worm farms in the […]
