Any Other Keen Gardeners On Here?

[Elonii]

Just wondering if there's any other gardening enthusiasts on here?

I've got a block with rock hard clay soil that I've been conditioning with my trusty mattock (great for stress) and lots of manure and compost.

I've finally got some produce going in some small areas and am growing pineapples, tomatoes, capsicum, chilis, ginger, galangal, lemongrass, turmeric, and all the usual herbs.

I've put out my back in a serious way twice doing all this and still love it. :p
I'd never gardened before coming here to Australia - and I still have loads to learn but the sub tropics make growing so interesting.

[One of THOSE mums!]

I feel your pain with the rock hard clay. I'm in melbourne though so completely different climate.
I am on a bush block so have pretty much given up trying to get any grass to grow with all the gum trees. But have some great roses and bulbs.
My new years resolution is to build some raised beds to grow veggies in.
Means I get to spend time at my all time favorite store.
Bunnings!!!

[Elonii]

Heheheh, we were in there this morning - we never seem to get out without spending silly dollars. Today it was some chicken manure for the herb garden, potting compost, a new hose and hose stand, and some anti fungal spray.

Ahhh, the joy of Bunnings. We're lucky to have some great markets around here so I've been able to buy some really interesting veggies and herbs such as clumping onions and things like that.

I love spending time outside watching things grow, it really seems to make me feel good!

[AM]

Yep I'm a mad gardener, I found it tough going while in Oz, such a tough climate, but since coming home to NZ, my garden is growing amazingly, this is such a great climate, you pretty much only have to look at your garden and things grow at the drop of a hat :)

I have veges and fruit coming out my ears.... Loving it!!

I'm reading everything I can get my hands on about gardening/permaculture etc at the moment, as i'm looking to buy some land soon, and want to try to be as self sufficient as possible on it, including chickens, a milking goat, orchard, vege patch and using the local environment to source wild foods...

So exciting :)

[AM]

Yep I'm a mad gardener, I found it tough going while in Oz, such a tough climate, but since coming home to NZ, my garden is growing amazingly, this is such a great climate, you pretty much only have to look at your garden and things grow at the drop of a hat :)

I have veges and fruit coming out my ears.... Loving it!!

I'm reading everything I can get my hands on about gardening/permaculture etc at the moment, as i'm looking to buy some land soon, and want to try to be as self sufficient as possible on it, including chickens, a milking goat, orchard, vege patch and using the local environment to source wild foods...

So exciting :)

[Elonii]

Sounds wonderful - I'd love to have a crack at being more self sufficient one day.

I see you're in KeriKeri? DH has family there (his uncle owns an orchard) I've been there a few times and its such a beautiful place!!

[Atlantic Puffin]

OH i love gardening!!!!!!

I live in a humid area, its good for growing some things, but having some things are out of the question because of the heat!

I would love to chat to everyone in here about what their latest projects are!

We moved to our new place a year ago, and we've just started seeding the back yard to grass it!
Its been a long road, originally we wanted to turf it, but its just too expensive!... We also planted a jacaranda, and two other trees in there, hopefully they grow quickly to make more shade for the dogs!

Also, i have ordered some roses from an online retailer, they will be shipped to me in winter for planting, so im working on getting a rose garden happening!

Whats everyone else up too?!!

[Elonii]

Hey Laa... my main project right now is growing edible gingers. I've planted some cheap rhizomes I got at a market and have ginger, galangal, turmeric, and cardamom on the go and flourishing.

Would love to grow some passionfruit next year but my block is right in under the trees so hard to get enough ground with sunny positions to grow everything I'd like. That's why I'm trying out a bit of ginger!

Got some hard work to do improving our soil so I'm composting, getting manure where I can, and also using mushroom compost and digging it all through with a mattock. Hard work but very rewarding!

[Atlantic Puffin]

Elonii - I have a MASSIVE compost bin!... I sometimes wonder if its actually too big for my needs.. haha.. I think im going to have to start using it alot more before i put in a vege garden. I have read its excellent fertaliser.

Thats interesting about your ginger growing venture!... Some types of ginger have a beautiful flower... But im not sure if thats the edible type. :) I just know my mum has this pretty red flower she calls ginger.. Not sure though.

Passionfruit is great to grow... My oma used to grow it on the side of her fence.. She grew it under an orange tree! I say, just give it a go... You never know!

My roses i have growing at the moment, the label says "full sun"... but they are growing excellently in mid-day shade, and only morning/afternoon sun! :)

[Elonii]

Ooh I think I have compost envy - although I just found someone who owns about 15 horses so hoping for a nice trailerload off poo to top off my bins and garden with!

The edible ginger doesn't have much of a flower, although apparently the turmeric flowers beautifully. There's thousands of flowering gingers which I also love but I'm trying to make my garden look nice and be useful at the same time.

Roses don't seem to do well on this block. There were some here when I arrived but I've pulled them out, they were in a terrible state. Don't think the soil is at all right for them.

I'll take your advice with the passionfruit and grow them anyway - nothing ventured etc eh?

How big is your garden? You been doing it for long??

[Atlantic Puffin]

My garden......... is............. well we live on a property. We are semi-rural.. we are on 4.5 acres only about 15 minutes out of town!.. So we are close to everything, but have enough room to run around on! :)

We basically started with a house, on a dirt block. and that was it. We have come a long long way since then and its so exciting to look at the progress pictures i often take! :)

So, i have a front garden, that pretty much looks like *mostly* a normal street front, we have a back fenced area like a normal house, then we have the rest of our property... Haha.. We have a few fruit trees on the property but they are failing miserably! I think the soil isnt right, its not "free draining".....

So i've been doing this garden for a year, thats how long we have been there, but i have been into gardening/landscaping since i was younger... :) Theres nothing better then wanting to be outside all the time because you have made it beautiful. :)

I have been looking for some "pet friendly" trees/shrubs to plant inside our back fence... and i say pet friendly because i want something that they wont jump on and kill haha. 2 big huskies... But then again, i change my mind so often with future plans that i cant commit to planting much in there... Do i want a pool? A spa? a big pergola? a house extension?... My elaborate plans just seem to get more expensive as they go along haha..

How big is your garden? Have you got outdoor pets that you have to think about?

I love the idea of making a garden beautiful as well as useful... There is nothing better! If only DP would let me plant passion fruit on our backyard fence... he would KILL me... Haha..

[MummyDaddy]

ME ME ME !!! I love my garden ... now i'll go and read the actual content of your post!

[MummyDaddy]

Ok ... so I have an inner city garden which means i've had to be very creative with what i grow and how.

I have lawn at the front and have planted petunia's in my picture box windows, then I have a Tiger Lilly, shrubs and am wanting to plant a new Cherry Tree to replace the one that has died. As I am 50m from the beach the dirt is very salty and I have to be careful what I put in. I have just tried to plant Hydrangia but in the naughty way - where you actually try to do a graft - so we'll see how they go.

Then down my driveway I have planted all white things, petunias, hydrangia, carnations and roses. It looks soooo pretty. My DDs picture box window is full of white petunia's and they look divine.

In the backyard it's all cement so have created a potted oasis! Lots of Bamboo in pots for shade, and then flowers, herbs and a city garden vegie patch. I love picking my fresh herbs, I love watering the garden in the evening and I love looking at my Iris, Snappies and all the other gorgeous flowers that are currently blooming.

[Atlantic Puffin]

Ohh MummyDaddy, that sounds so nice!! I really like Cherry Tree;s, but its too hot to grow them here. I think they are so romantic looking! Tiger lillys are also lovely!!
Do you rent? Or do you own your place? If you rent, thats so good that your donig that! I wish our tennants would help out with maintaining the gardens!

I love bamboo! DP is a bit scared of it though, he knows its illegal for nurseries to sell travelling Bamboo, and we would never have that problem, but he is still wary haha.. I might try and convince him to let me get a big pot or something, i think they are great for shade when they get bigger, they are such a relaxing plant to look at!


& I agree, watering the garden is so relaxing. I love it. :) Even though i dont have much to water at the moment i still get out there .. haha.. Not that i've needed to lately with all this bloody rain!!!

[Lateralus]

Hi girls - another avid (but fairly new) gardener here.

About 12 months ago we decided to remove our rather manky above ground pool and use the space for some vegie beds instead. DH constructed 4 large beds using reclaimed timber and off we went. I am trying out a 4 bed rotation system - supposed to be easier to keep the soil conditioned that way... So far we have...
bed 1 - broccoli, cauliflower & butterbeans
bed 2 - silverbeet, garlic, leeks, carrots
bed 3 - corn, zucchini, lettuce
bed 4 - tomatoes (4 different heirloom varieties), chilli, basil and tansy

we also have a herb garden with oregano, more basil, chives, thyme and aloe vera

I have had a few hits and misses - the zucchini looks like it's about to die so I think it will be getting pulled soon, the caulis never seemed to thrive, but will give them a little while longer. The corn and tomatoes are going great guns and look to take over the world!

I have also cleared the area up the side of the fence and want a combination of edibles and insect attracting plants... Haven't done too much there yet - a curry tree and some rose geraniums I propagated from cuttings. I have also planted some red and yellow passionfruit vines to train up the side of the shed.

We also have terribly hard clay soil - I have a dodgy back so decided to do a no-dig bed rather than break my back trying to break it up. I sprinkled gypsum (helps to break down the clay), pellitised chook poo, newspaper, and then layers of moo poo, compost and cane mulch. Will take a while to build up some good soil, but have already started planting by making pockets of potting mix in my garden lasagne.

Elonii - one thing to be mindful of when using horse poo - they don't digest grass/ weed seeds very well so you might find you get more weeds/ grass than usual popping up in your garden beds. Also be mindful of when the horses have last been wormed to you don't kill off all your little wormy workers in your own garden!
Happy gardening everyone - looking forwards to more tips and stories! :smiliedance: