common ground and an ever evolving garden

I have been deeply touched and encouraged by the number of people who have taken the time to comment, message, share, and like my last post. You have shared with me a snippet of your own lives, struggles, and journeys, and that means a lot. The response has taken me by surprise. It made me wonder why what I wrote touched something in you that compelled you to reach out. I suspect together, we found a kind of common ground in our struggles, hopes, and dreams. We are each trying to find our own unique path to create a life that resonates in our souls. Perhaps we discovered a kind of solidarity. And that for me, is something worth continuing to write for. So let's keep meeting here, shall we? 

I didn't grow up with much of a garden. I remember as a very small child there was a veggie patch at one house we lived at, but generally, we had a lawn, a few hardy shrubs, and a few roses—pleasant and low-maintenance. 

As an adult, I have found myself drawn to pretty gardens, abundant with blooms, trickling water and shade, which is especially appealing in our hot Australian summers. But gardening in the subtropics has been a steep learning curve for me, and it is one I have far from mastered. My garden has a tendency to escape me, before requiring a big clear out. Then, I'll track along nicely for a while before the cycle repeats itself. I suspect this is because I am drawn to cottage gardens, with a large number of perennials and annuals, which are often not low maintenance. I have discovered many of the perennials I am drawn to act more like annuals here; I am unsure why. Time-wise, I need a garden that can handle a bit of neglect without it turning its toes up on me. I also need the plantings to be dense enough that they inhibit some of the crazy weed growth we have over the summer. 

The two garden beds my MIL helped to plan and plant out. 

The end of the semester led to one of those times, and my garden had become an overgrown, wild, weedy, ugly mess. The goats took advantage of my absence by learning to break in and demolish anything that took their fancy. No agapanthus flowers for me this year! Apparently, they are particularly tasty to goats. 

It was disheartening. 

Thankfully, Grant got in there and did the bulk of the heavy clearing out to encourage me to feel inspired again. But knowing I have work and study to juggle for the foreseeable future, I need to adapt the way I garden. My in-laws came down recently, and my MIL is an avid gardener who understands the tension of maintaining a large garden with time constraints. With her help, we chose hardy, pretty flowering shrubs, trying to use height to create layers and different-coloured blooms to get the cottage look I love. She was a huge help in laying them out, and together, we tackled two big beds, which will look lovely once established. There are purple bundaleas against the yurt, pink geraniums, roses, gardenias, native bush basil, some strappy flowering things and a few other bits and bobs. It's all had a good mulch, the paths raked and now I feel inspired to continue to freshen up the other beds. 

There is still a veggie garden, though there is not much in it at the moment. I will replant that once the harshest part of summer is past. We are past the summer solstice, so it won't be long. It is not uncommon in various parts of Australia that people will give veggie gardening a rest in the middle of summer when the insect/fungal load is at its highest. Our sun can get extremely harsh, and it can be hard to get out there and spend the time it takes to keep a productive veggie garden going. Due to the heat, it can require a lot of water, and if it's rainy, we then struggle with mildew and fungal issues. Our creeks here have dropped to a trickle, though we still have one sound water hole. 

A shady little garden Elsie likes to play in. There is her cubby, a big tub for water play,  a sand pit, and a fairy garden here. Her clever grandmother runs a pottery classes in SA, and whipped her up some pottery fairy houses. 

For me, gardening is evolving into more of a contemplative practice to help maintain good mental and spiritual health rather than trying to provide an abundance of food.  I have a level of guilt over this, as a "good homesteader" would have a wonderfully productive garden. But the truth is, I feel a much deeper sense of joy from seeing the colourful blooms, with bees and butterflies hovering amongst them, watching tiny wrens darting in and out, and the old kookaburra sitting on the fence in the evening.  This, along with the sound of the trickling fountain and the chorus of frogs, fills my heart with a peace like no other. It is in the garden I feel deeply connected to God, and where God's peace fills my heart and sustains me. And perhaps seeking such peace in challenging global and economic times is not such a bad thing. Perhaps those of us who have the privilege of doing so should seek peace wherever we can, so we can help others discover peace in their lives through whatever means resonates with them. For, we are all created differently, and it is a tremendous blessing whenever we can find alignment with what we are doing to who we are in our souls. 

Much love and blessings, 

Emma xx

17

Feeding a family on a budget

Feeding a family on a budget is a challenge that many people are currently facing. With the cost of living and the rate of inflation going up before our eyes,  I thought I would share some ways we as a family of six work to keep our grocery bills down. 

Firstly going to the shops is a two-hour return trip for me, so I tend to minimise the number of shops I go to. If you are in town, you might find that sourcing specials at various supermarkets each week can save money further. Generally though, minimising the trips to the supermarket is significantly better for your budget, as it reduces the temptation to buy unnecessary or extra items. 

I do a fortnightly shop at Aldi and then the next fortnight I go to Coles. I shop online and click-and-collect when I can. For a top-up mid-week shop (milk etc) Grant nips into our local IGA. Overall I find Aldi a big cost-saver, though they do not have everything we like to buy. 

seasonal veggies picked from the garden

Shopping online allows me to; 

• Take my time in planning the shop and not feel rushed or under pressure by having a toddler with me, reducing impulse buys. 

• Saves time and reduces temptation.

• Look closely at specials and plan meals to maximise these. 

• Double-check what's in my pantry and fridge to ensure nothing goes to waste.

The first thing I do is look for meat on special. Meat is one of the most expensive items we buy so rather than plan meals and then buy ingredients, I buy the ingredients I can get which are the best value for money and then plan meals to suit.

When buying meat, I buy it in the biggest portions I can afford. Buying larger portions and cutting it up yourself to suit your needs can save a lot of money. I can buy nice a cryovac piece of pork for $13-$15/kg depending on the cut compared to pork steaks at $20/kg. Alternatively, you can often get cryovac blade roast on sale for $15/kg compared to blade steak for $18-$20/kg at Coles. As a one-off occurrence, this might not seem like a big saving but over the weeks, months and years these savings add up considerably. I then cut the meat as I need it. 

Many people are daunted by the idea of cooking a large piece of meat but they needn't be. It's not difficult nor time-consuming to quickly section up a large piece of meat, especially if you have a good sharp knife. I also find that cryovac meat is more tender, as the cryovac process allows the meat to age well for longer. 

Shopping locally

In an ideal world, I would shop at all the independently owned places and buy directly from the farmer. Realistically we are a large single-income family without the freezer space at the moment to store half a cow. If you can manage it, it's an excellent way to go. 

However, I do go to an independent fruit and vegetable shop for all of our veggie needs. I find the veggies better quality and significantly cheaper. It is also easier to see what is in season and grown locally. If you are on the Mid-North Coast check out The Growers Market. They are excellent value for money, super friendly and offer old-fashioned service, even taking your veggies to your car for you. 

Depending on where you are you might have access to bulk whole food outlets or CSA's. Do your research and work out what suits you and your budget best, there are all kinds of options. 

Buying or growing seasonal fruit and vegetables means you it can be worth preserving some to put away. Here I am making oven-baked semi-dried tomatoes. I can make them much cheaper then I can buy in the store. 

Bartering

If you have some friends who raise chickens but you don't/can't for whatever reason can you barter for some eggs? Are you able to fix machinery? Service a car? Can you sew or bake? Most of us have all kinds of skills that someone else needs. It's just a matter of investing in a reciprocal relationship. 

• Picking fruit from an elderly neighbour's tree in exchange for homemade jam/preserves.

• Do a day's work in exchange for produce

• Trading baked bread/homemade goodies (farmers are often incredibly busy and tired at the end of the day!)

• Doing bookwork

• Managing online/social media accounts

• Babysitting

• Trading mechanical skills

• Trading mending/sewing/knitting skills.

• Feeding farm animals to allow farmers a much-needed night or two away

The key to bartering is that it is a relationship built on mutual exchange and trust. I have a friend who I do a little social media/computer work for in exchange for some meat. They give their roosters to a work friend who pays them back with curries made with the rooster for their freezer. 

With our friends, I feel like I am getting the good end of the deal with beautiful pasture-raised meat but they feel grateful for not having to sit in front of a computer which they hate. Win-win. 

Know your prices

If you keep track of how much you spend on things, you will know a good deal when you stumble upon it. Unfortunately in Australia, our grocery market is dominated and controlled by three main companies that pay the farmers low prices but then upmark their products considerably. 

Many people love to shop at Aldi and some of their lines are better priced than Coles and Woolies, especially their snacks and processed foods. However, if you can't get out of there without stopping in the middle aisle to pick up things you had no intent to buy, it's not saving you any money. 

Supermarket sales are usually advertised on Wednesday nights and start Thursday mornings. If you watch them for a while you will find the sales cycle through. If you can buy an extra few items of necessities you know you will use, you can work out a system that over time means you're never paying full price for many things. This is especially useful with items like eucalyptus oil/lavender oil/tea/coffee/chocolate/toothpaste/toiletries/soap/canned goods etc which all have a long and stable shelf life.  

Learn how to make the basics from scratch

I cook a lot but I am not a fancy cook. Meals are nourishing but simple. Soups, stirfries, stews, salads and oven bakes. If I have the oven on, I try to use it for more than one thing. Many things can be cooked in the oven easily, like sausages. I used to fry them in a pan but now I whack them in a big baking tray and cook them in the oven while the potatoes cook, turning them a couple of times. 

The key to keeping your sanity whilst cooking from scratch for a bit family is to keep it simple. Butter, sugar, honey, flour, cocoa, milk, dried fruit, nuts, oats, jam, baking powder and chocolate chips can be turned into an endless array of treats. I have a couple of basic recipes I tweak to suit almost any situation. 

Kids can bake treats, they often love to do it. It's good to get them involved in the kitchen where ever possible. 

If you run out of bread, scones will get you through till you need to go to the shop for more than one thing.  This should be avoided as each time we go to the shops we are bombarded with advertising and the temptation to stray off-budget. Rhonda Hetzel from Down to Earth has a good scone recipe in her book, or you can find it here. Scone recipe

A good butter cake recipe will see you through most of your cake needs. Add apple and cinnamon for an apple tea cake, banana for a banana cake (just add the milk last as you will need less) cocoa for a chocolate cake. You can ice it with traditional icing or decorate it with fresh cream and strawberries, or spread some melted butter on it and sprinkle cinnamon sugar. The flexibility is endless. 

Simple Butter Cake

Another great money saver is homemade muesli bars. A box of muesli bars is between $6-$10 depending on the brand and size of the box. But you can make them for just a few dollars and double the volume. 

Simple Musli bar recipe

When it comes to homemade muesli bars, I don't buy fancy/expensive ingredients to add to them. As long as you keep the volume of dry ingredients to wet, they should work out. I usually add a combination of choc chips, sultanas, chopped nuts, and chopped dried fruit, depending on what I have on hand. 

Another great snack is homemade popcorn, it is especially great as an afterschool snack. You can make a massive bowl of it for next to nothing. There is no need to buy microwave popcorn packets, just buy the kernels and pop them in your biggest pot over the stove, shaking regularly. Add butter and salt and you have a simple, healthy, quick snack. 

Growing your own herbs

Even if you live in a small space, or have an apartment with a balcony, you may still be able to grow some of your own herbs. Parsley, oregano, coriander, spring onion and basil are all a great place to start. Herbs from the shops are expensive and don't last well in the fridge. However, they add a big punch to a dish and can turn even the most simple meal into something really delicious. If you are not a confident gardener, it may be a great place to start. 

Managing expectations

Unfortunately, kids are bombarded with advertising and can develop their own set of expectations of what they think is 'good' food. In our home, we talk about homemade food being better, and shop-bought items being the lesser option. Grant backs me in this as he is genuinely excited by home cooking and treats and the kids have developed the same sense of enthusiasm. 

I try and ensure each meal has something each child will happily eat, and I don't shy away from challenging foods. I have found that slow acclimatisation to challenging foods over a long period has ensured my children eat most things. For example, Henry doesn't like fresh tomatoes, so I only pop 1/4 of a cherry tomato in his salad. I don't care if he slathers it in tomato sauce. As long as it is eaten, it's all good. Alternatively, each child can pick one thing on their plate they don't like. As children grow their ability to rationalize increases and it becomes easier to encourage them to eat a wider variety of food. Elsie has been my fussiest child, and I often have to feed her dinner or things she is not enamoured with. However, over time, encouraging her to just try one bite has helped her to be more adventurous when it comes to food. She will now eat a spoon with veggies and meat on it. Once her initial hesitation has passed, she will often exclaim that it is "very yummy Mummy!" 

I also put realistic, smaller serves on their plates. They can always go for seconds and it reduces food waste which is a huge money saver. I hate to throw out perfectly good food. 

How are you coping with the cost of living chrisis? What cost-saving tips can you add to this list? 

Much love,

Emma

xx

4

Designing a property using permaculture principles

Recently I finished a permaculture course with David Holmgren and Beck Lowe over at Melliodora and I thought I would share some of the processes that went into our permaculture property plan. Some of the people in my class did beautiful artistic and very professional design plans on their computers, but alas that is not my skill set. Mine is somewhat rudimentary, but it does the job.  

If you have a larger property it is easy to want to jump in and do all the things. But that approach is often not the most sustainable. Doing anything fast usually requires a massive amount of resources and it is also incredibly hard work which brings with it high levels of stress. To me, sustainability is not only about what materials we use and how we consume, but it needs to take into consideration the personal cost.

I remember several years ago listening to a podcast that interviewed Mathew Evans from Fat Pig Farm. He talked about an area in Tasmania that was attractive to people wanting to live a sustainable and self-sufficient life. They would come full of passion to grow and raise all their own food while stepping lightly on the earth. They had such beautiful and noble goals, but several years later they would often end up burnt out and separating. The pressure and exhaustion of trying to do it all have taken an irreversible toll on their family life. This story stuck with me and serves as a reminder that living sustainably is not only about caring for the earth, but it's also about making choices that are sustainable for us emotionally, physically and relationally.

What is Permaculture? 

Permaculture is a set of twelve design principles created to help guide people to live well on the earth with a focus on caring for the earth, sharing the earth's resources and while also caring for people. Permaculture is a movement that came about in the 70's through the passion and wisdom of Bill Mollison and David Holmgren. 

Permaculture is about more than gardening. The permaculture movement is incredibly broad and whether you are old, young, single, a couple, have a family, renting, live in the city, live in the suburbs, are on a property or travelling around the country there will be permaculture design elements you can apply to your life. 

There is something for everyone, in all seasons of life. 

Permaculture encourages us to consider the life we want to live and filter the choices we make through a process that helps us to be better connected to the earth, what resources our choices will require and how to connect to our community in a meaningful and authentic way.  

You can download free-to-use free to use graphics and find out more about permaculture HERE. 
One of the great things about permaculture is people all over the world are living out the 'people care' aspect and there is an abundance of reading material available for free, from the library or on YouTube. 

Designing a property using permaculture design principles

Throughout the design process for our property, sustainability was a priority. Not only with the way we design the practical elements of the farm but the things we do here need to be sustainable in a practical and emotional sense too. The reality of our situation is that Grant currently works full-time off the farm. This is for several reasons. One Elsie was little and I wanted to be at home with her but two Grant is the highest earner and raising a family and setting up a farm is expensive, no matter how frugal and careful we are. If one of us has to be off the farm full time, we may as well bring as much money as possible to justify the time spent away. He also loves his job and I love being at home with the children so it works on all levels. I have also returned to part-time theological study which I can do externally with the hope of one day getting some kind of pastoral care/chaplaincy work in the future. 

Instead of trying to do it all, we focus on the things that will bring the most value to us as a family, and that which we will enjoy the most. With that in mind, my permaculture design focussed predominantly on our house paddock which is a few acres. 

Because we are busy, things can easily be overlooked so it was important to me to design the house paddock in a way that increased incidental supervision and observation. In the house paddock I wanted;
- deep litter chicken yard
- anti-avery orchard (covered to deter birds/possums)
- a shady garden for a child-friendly play space, lots of herbs, easy pick greens, pollination, relaxation
- maincrop vegetable garden
- greenhouse
- some grass for the guineapigs and for kids to play on

 

Stacking Functions

Stacking functions is a major design component of permaculture. How can we do things so they require the least amount of energy and resources whilst maximising the functionality? How can we ensure systems work together in a beneficial manner? 

One of the things we have done is to design the chicken yard so the chickens can access the orchard in the future and the main crop area in times of rest. The chickens can eat insects, scratch up the soil, eat rotten fruit etc which is great for the chickens, the soil and the fruit trees. 

Current site plan of our yurt site. 

This is our current house paddock design. Prior to this winter, there was very little garden, it was mostly mowed pasture with a couple of garden beds. I had tried to garden in the past but it took us a few goes to get the design right. Each failure brought us closer to understanding what we wanted and what would work for our family. Over winter we were busy bringing in rocks from around the property to create garden beds and then each fortnight bringing in either a load of compost or gravel for the paths. It has been a slow and steady process done as finances have allowed. We wanted curved paths and stepping stones so as the garden matured it would feel a bit wild and magical for the children. So the children would be drawn into the garden and really want to explore it. 

Long term permaculture garden plan

Along the southern fence there is a wormwood hedge which has natural flea and parasite-repelling properties, because it will grow through the fence the chickens and the goats can help themselves. I can also easily harvest it for chicken bedding when required. The chicken yard also shares a fence to the house yard so scraps can easily be tossed over the fence to them. 

Realistically, minimising the effort required to do a task means maximising long-term success. 

The compost area has been redesigned to utilize rodent-proof bins in the future. It is also near the gate which will be our main parking area so scraps can be taken out on the way to the car. I will probrably set up an area for compost teas here too. 

The design is very compact and interconnected to utilize incidental supervision. This is so I can keep an eye on the animals and so the dogs can patrol against possums and foxes. The dairy goat yard is close which means it is easy to keep a close eye on labouring does and newborn kids. During the day the goats are free range, and are only secured overnight. The milking shelter was a pre-existing structure on the back of the woodshed. It was built when we extended our solar system and it makes sense to utilize what we have whenever possible. It's a little low but I am only short and sit down to milk so it works well for me. 

Hoopla in her milking shed, trying to push past me so she can forage.

Good fresh milk from Hoopla.

Retrofitting the yurt

Initially, when we bought the farm, we intended the yurt to be a short-term home for our family, with the long-term plan to build a home on the north-facing slope, which from a permaculture design sense is probably the better site. We then intended to rent the yurt out as a farm stay experience, to host  WWOOFers in it and for interstate friends/family to stay in who sometimes visit for a week or two.  

However, due to the current economic and political environment, we have decided to extend the yurt, utilizing recycled materials where possible. We will then retrofit the yurt into a more energy-efficient and fire-resistant building, leaving the north-facing hill as pasture for livestock for the foreseeable future. 

The pros to the yurt position are that it’s well-placed for bushfire resilience at the bottom of a valley near a permanent creek.  As we are off-grid this area gets more shade which is particularly desirable in our hot climate. The shade is more valuable to us in summer than the extra sun in winter, as we have an abundance of wood in our forest for the wood oven in winter. Keeping cool is significantly harder due to only having a small solar system. We can gravity feed our water to the yurt utilizing the western hill and there is flatter ground on the yurt site which is easier for gardening. 

In hindsight, would we choose a yurt? I’m not sure. It is certainly not the best “permaculture design building” around by a long mile. 

But, we were a family of then 5 who moved 2000kms away from home and couldn’t afford to rent a house for the duration a build would take. We needed a home fast on an incredibly small budget.  After camping for 4 months, I didn’t have the emotional bandwidth left to tackle a slow DIY natural build. We chose a yurt because it is essentially a timber-framed building that can be clad in timber or perhaps plastered at a later date. Though the circular shape does make that a little more challenging, it is commonly done.   

Other permaculture thoughts...

I have done an extensive, property plan including fencing plans, water plans, bushfire resilience and more, but it might be a bit long to share here! 

If you are interested in permaculture, I'll pop some links below of some excellent places to start though there are many more. These are challenging times and becoming better connected to your local community, utilising community resources and building up household resilience and sufficiency are all good things. 

Melliodora

Milkwood

Good Life Permaculture

Morag Gamble

Purple Pear Farm

Limestone Permaculture

Much love,

Emma 

xx

6

Long term garden plans, mistakes and reflections

I have found summer gardening on our farm really hard. The pests wanting to eat my veggies were relentless. Recently I ripped out my leafy greens as they had been decimated. Unless I used commercial sprays, the situation was beyond salvageable. I certainly didn't want to risk planting new seedlings until the situation was rectified. So for now, I am focussing on extending our range of edible and medicinal herbs. Thankfully I still have some nice-looking cherry tomatoes free from damage. It would certainly be a sad summer in the garden without homegrown tomatoes. 

Recently we have been drawing up and considering a long-term home/garden plan, utilizing all we have learned over the past couple of seasons. 

The pond is now in, though we need to backfill it with gravel to make it safe for Elsie as it's a little deep. We are beginning to collect rocks to put around the edges to settle it into its surroundings, as well as provide habitat to frogs and other small animals. 

Elsies Garden

Elsie's garden is the small garden near the door. It's where her cubby house and sandpit are and it's a safe area for her to play which can be easily supervised. There is an old galvanised tub there for waterplay too. 

Last summer we planted a large cutting from a frangipani and though it did well in summer, it didn't survive our hard winter frosts despite being planted in a protected area. I have replaced it with a magnolia because I love them with their furry leaves and striking flowers. I have been planting more herbs as well as some cottage flowers like lavender, cosmos, foxglove, salvia and diosmas for colour. It's a great place for herbs being near the kitchen door.  

Some of the herbs in there are chamomile, basil, perennial basil, parsley, Vietnamese mint, lavender, peppermint, (in a corner it can't escape easily) lemon balm, echinacea, spring onion, oregano, different varieties of thyme, sage, cherry tomatoes that self-seeded and elderberry. I may have missed some mind you. 

There is also a crepe myrtle, gardenia and a few other bits and bobs tucked throughout. It is a pretty, cool and shady place.

Round garden

The round garden has been mostly cleared of annuals and with just the perennials remaining. Grant opened it up and is extending the fence to the yurt, continuing with recycled timber pickets. This fence will divide the yard in two so the dogs will have one section when they are not free ranging on the farm. Aggie likes to be with us mostly and is currently sleeping under the bed so she won't mind a smaller yard. 

Gardening with dogs can be tricky and though there are many great examples of people managing a garden and dogs, I find it easier and cleaner to have them separate. Aggie especially loves to dig in any freshly laid manure or compost with no regard to new plants I may have planted. She will even dig in raised beds much to my dismay. Her legs may be stumpy but she doesn't let that hold her back...

Once the fence is done, I will relocate the remaining perennials from the round garden to the pond garden. Then top up the round garden with manure and compost before planting it out again with leafy greens and veggies. Being careful to net everything thoroughly. I have found having flowers in among veggies tricky to manage, though it looks pretty. 

The new pond will be surrounded by a large garden that includes the mulberry tree. That garden will be a cottage-style garden with flowers, herbs and pretty grasses. With perhaps some space and steppers around the mulberry to make accessing it easier. 

I'm thinking of planting agapanthus along the bottom fence line as I have heard stories of them helping to create a lush green boundary line which helps with property protection during bushfires. Agapanthus don't burn easily. Also, a mass of Agapanthus in flower is a beautiful sight. I have a love for colourful old-fashioned plants 

I will be adding several more silver birch trees to the one we have, it looks lonely. Silver birch seems to be a tree that needs friends, they are so pretty. A small stand of silver birth will also provide some much-needed dappled shade. Right now a lot of the garden is in full sun which is hot and not nice to be in. 

Along the fence on the right side of the yard we have started a wormwood hedge. The prunings of wormwood can be put in the chickens' nesting boxes and fed to the goats to aid natural worm prevention. I hope to complete the hedge right down the side by striking cuttings once the plants are a bit bigger. We did have some wormwood planted in the past but Will mowed over them.....There is always a risk when you get kids to help out. Though he managed to not mow over my second elderberry yet so I'm very impressed. 

The pond was a free find on Facebook marketplace, It's in, but needs gravel and rocks to make it look like it belongs. 

The round garden has been opened up, where the gate is will be where the staircase from the deck will go, once the deck is built that gate will be moved elsewhere. We will be putting a parking area on the flat so everyone comes in via the deck which will provide a sheltered area for shoes etc to be stored. You can see what I mean in the garden plans in the first photo.

The big veggie patch

Beyond the bottom fence in the photo above will be stage 2 of the garden which will consist of the orchard, a greenhouse and a big veggie patch. We hope to start on that in the second half of the year. For now, the internal yard is the priority. I'm hoping that increasing the biodiversity with flowers and herbs will attract more predatory insects into my garden and provide more balance. I also want to create a pretty, peaceful and lovely garden for our family. 

Some people might feel it's more essential to get a productive garden up and going before an ornamental one and for them, it might be. But I am at a point where I need some gentleness. I am more confident in my cottage gardening skills than I am in my veggie growing skills. Since moving here our entire lives have consisted of chores and essential jobs. I am confident that once I find joy again in gardening for fun, the desire to garden for food will return soon after. The round garden will be filled with veggies in the meantime again once my seeds are established. 

New chook run

While free-ranging chickens are idyllic, ours are naughty and don't give us any eggs when we let them free-range on a permanent basis. And we really like eggs.

We are going to build a permanent chook run that will run parallel to the veggie garden. That way we can throw the green waste over the fence for them to tun into compost as well as let them in the veggie garden and the orchard to help manage pests and turn over the soil if we want. As we move forward we want to utilise the chooks as a form of composting more than we currently are.  

The importance of good planning

It's good to have a clear long-term plan as we continue to chip away at all that has to be done here. A plan helps bring motivation by providing a picture of how things could be. It ensures everyone is on the same page and has similar priorities. When undertaking a major lifestyle change like we have, that is really important. 

Many people give up on their homesteading dreams after the first few years due to the sheer amount of work they find needs to be done. For us this homesteading journey is the way we want to live our lives long-term, there is no need to try and do it all once. We have made mistakes that wasted time and money by rushing into things before we were ready. 

It's a sobering lesson. 

But due to our mistakes have learnt how to hold back and to embrace the practice of patience by watching, assessing and re-assessing what we are doing and how we are doing. We have learnt how to prioritise what needs to be done and what we value rather than wildly following our homestead dreams.  

If homesteading is a path you dream of, there will always be something interesting to tackle. Today Grant is hanging a light over the kitchen table from an old shade I painted with a sample pot of blue chalk paint. Then he will be building a small shelf from recycled timber near the door to store garden tools and various bits and bobs. While he is doing that I'll get the house in order, take down the Christmas tree, tend the animals and prep tonight's dinner. After lunch we will work in the garden with the kids, I'll shuffle plants and work on the new garden around the pond while he continues to build the recycled timber fence. It's not everyone's idea of a good time, but I really enjoy working side-by-side. There is nothing more satisfying or rewarding to work on projects where you get to see and experience the progress you make. 

And for me, creating a nourishing home and garden where our family enjoys being together is the most valuable project of all.  

Much love,

Emma

xx 

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Gardening in small spaces and weekend links

Though we have a farm, our current growing spaces are quite small. Currently, we have two seperate patches and a couple of small raised beds. It is surprising how many plants you can fit in a small space, and just how much food you can get from them. It's easy to dismiss a small space as useless or not worth the effort, but if you want a garden you'll make it work. Sometimes we need to work with what we have, rather than what we want.

This is the small space we call Elsie's garden. It's about the same size as a courtyard at around 10m2. Though it's small there are a lot of plants there, and an example of what can be done in a small space. It is pretty with flowers and decorative trees as well as lots of edibles. 

We attempted a big veggie garden two years ago but Elsie was tiny, I was home-educating three children and we had broken pasture that kept trying to take the freshly exposed ground back. Then Grant got a different job taking him away from home more. In the end, we let it go knowing there would be another season, and that all good things take time. 

This area at the front of the yurt is what we call 'Elsies garden' It's home to her little cubby and sandpit while being a safe and secure place for her to play. It isn't a big area at about 10m2, but I think a good example of what can be done with a small yard or courtyard. The cubby could easily be the footprint of a small garden shed and the sandpit area is enough space for a small paved area with a cafe-style table and chairs. If you have a small space and children be encouraged, you can still create a lovely, interesting and natural play space for them. It doesn't need to be big.  

If you have a small garden, don't be afraid to use medium-sized deciduous trees. In this little space, I have a crepe myrtle, elderberry which I am pruning up, and frangipani, which didn't make it through winter. I'll be pulling it out and replacing it with a pink magnolia which I have seen a lot of around here. It's always good to have a sticky beak about what others are growing nearby. I also have a beautiful gardenia in one corner. You could easily plant a couple of deciduous fruit trees like a peach, plum or apricot to maximise your productivity if that's what you wanted. By using small-medium trees you add interest upwards and create a microclimate under them which can support a wider diversity of plants. Celery, coriander and lettuce for example don't mind some shade in the middle of a hot summer's day. The good thing about deciduous trees is they let in the sunshine over colder months. 

Along with the decorative shrubs and trees, in this small garden there is kale, chard, spinach, celery, spring onions, lettuce, edible violets, cherry tomato, snow peas, perennial basil, horseradish, parsley, oregano, lavender, echinacea, sage, thyme, pyrethrum and citronella geranium. Along with seaside daisies, diosmas, salvia, African daisy, native orchid, petunias and foxgloves just because they are pretty as well as helping with diversity.  

Freshly planted seedlings. Spring onions and silverbeet.

This small space is constantly changing and evolving as things come to the end of their cycle and other plants are brought in to fill the gaps. As one area is cleared out, I top it up with fresh compost and aged manure before planting it out again with a couple of punnets of seedlings. If you have a small area, it's easy to buy compost and manure by the bag from your local garden centre. Just check your prices as it can differ wildly.

In the photo above I had just pulled out parsley that had died off and some lettuces which had gone to seed. In their place, I planted silverbeet and spring onion. I also moved the horseradish to the back, brought in compost and moved some heirloom volunteer cherry tomatoes. Then I potted up a couple of cherry tomatoes to give to a friend over the weekend.   

We are growing closer to a time when we can either buy more raised beds or put in animal-proof fencing for a veggie plot. It has now about the third job on the list. Woo hoo! We are not sure which option we will take. Raised beds look lovely, have great drainage which is helpful given the predicted soggy summer ahead, and are excellent for growing smaller things like Asian greens, spinach, herbs, chillies and smaller plants. I really enjoy working with them as they are a clearly defined space. But putting in an animal-proof fence around what will be the big patch would allow us to plant bush tomatoes, corn, cucumber, pumpkins, sweet potato, zucchini, berries, watermelon etc. It would however require more, heavier work, but has the potential to supply us with a larger volume of food. We are undecided about which option we will pursue first. 

I'll share what is happening in my round garden which is about the same size over the coming weeks. I'm currently planting it out with cherry tomatoes, capsicum, eggplant, and chillis as well as lots of greens. 

What's growing at your place? Do you have a big yard or a little one?

I hope this finds you well, and that the flowers in bloom bring you a smile.

Much love,

Emma

xx

Weekend links

ABC - Family of 9 keeps family well fed by foraging weeds 

Pip magazine - 6 edible perennials to plant in the garden

Melbourne Bush Foods - Atherton Raspberry

Every time we go to the community garden, all the children gorge themselves on these native raspberries. They are utterly delicious and I'm looking for some bushes to plant on the farm. If you are in the tropics or subtropics I highly recommend planting them!

YouTube - Heidi
I loved the book and the movie Heidi when I was a child, then I found it on YouTube and it was delightful watching on a rainy afternoon. 

Shannon Hayes in 2011 at a sustainable living festival

Shannon Hayes is one of my favourite authors, especially her book Radical Homemakers. I stumbled upon this talk and really enjoyed it. 

Gardening Australia - How to make a wicking bed

Sophie Thompson, one of my favourite presenters on Gardening Australia makes DIY wicking beds. These are perfect if you are a bit hap-hazard with watering, growing in a backyard situation or want to grow in raised beds for mobility reasons.  

Spiral Garden - Forage

This family lives a wonderfully sustainable life. 

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