Holding the space

A couple of posts ago I mentioned planting geraniums in my new garden for something other than being pretty, so I figured it was time to talk more about that!

These are the slightly sad looking geraniums I planted a few weeks ago. I have just regular plain pink (?) ones from my mum's garden, and some lemon-rose scented ones from our old house. I love geraniums because they are tough, and easy to propagate (good for kids!) and the scented ones can be just so lovely.


Now I have a deep love of gardening. And one of my children in particular and Charlidog (above)  both have a deep love of tapdancing all over my freshly planted gardens. It frustrates me no end, so rather than get cranky, I thought I would get smart. These geraniums are acting as pioneer plants in my garden! A visual and physical reminder that there is something happening in that spot, and that children and dogs are expected to keep off them as much as they can. Now that they have been in for a couple of weeks, I am slowly adding a few other tough plants that can tolerate the odd foot/paw with minimal distress. Tarragon and gerberas so far, since gerberas are a favourite of the previously mentioned tapdancing child and Tarragon is delicious and cheerful!

It seems to be working quite well, and it means that I've also been able to plant my first fruit tree guild, right next to the patio and right where the original round garden was.

In the centre I have a lemon tree, and surrounding that is a mix of herbs and flowers, with some vege sprinkled in there too. So far I have rosemary, comfrey, society garlic, dianthus, pineapple sage, licorice basil, sweet basil, sorrel, silverbeet, and no doubt a couple of other things I've forgotten. All planted because they will add more than just their beauty or tastiness. Comfrey will be a valuable addition to our medicinal herbs, as well as a deep rooted mineral accumulator, compost activator, mulch provider, and pretty flowers. Both basils will bring in pollinators and predators, as well as delicious leaves, flowers and seeds. Society garlic will bring in predators and pollinators too, add to pest control as the clumps develop, and be delicious in salads and cooking. Each plant needs to do at least a couple of things for it to have a place in my garden. Even the dianthus, which is edible, scented, pretty and attracts beneficial insects!

Now that the weather is drying out after Cyclone Debbie, I'm hoping there will be a flush of autumn growth before things cool down a little for winter. We're full steam ahead with putting in new garden infrastructure, so in the next couple of days I should have another post talking about what we've been doing this last week. I'm extremely excited!

Take care!

Sharing

When we knew we were moving to our new town, one of the first things I did was look up community gardens. I've always felt quite passionate about community gardens - they are an excellent way to help local communities reconnect with gardening, growing food, and each other. Living rurally meant that visiting community gardens was something that rarely happened though, so that particular passion has been on the back burner for a while.

Luckily for me, Maryborough has a lovely community garden! We joined the Lupton Park Community Garden  with a family membership, and now I pop in once a week for a couple of hours to do whatever odd jobs need doing. In return I get to share a cuppa with some new friends, learn more about gardening in this area, get my hands in the dirt, and share what I know.

I get to take home some lovely fresh organic produce too!

                                  A couple of zucchini (one the size of a small child!), some eggplant, 

                                 a mix of beans and some passionfruit, all from my first week. And 

                                                         my own name badge! Very fancy.

This weekend Lupton Park is hosting 4 short permaculture workshops run by Morag Gamble - author, teacher, blogger and general all-round sharer of awesomeness, who can be found at Our Permaculture Life. I'm extremely excited! I'll be learning more about sustainable living, food production and permaculture gardening.

The best part (second best, I'm dead keen for these workshops with Morag lol!) is that they are free for members. I wouldn't be able to go otherwise, as we have other things that are higher priority when it comes to funds. But part of what makes community gardens so wonderful is the sharing that is involved. We share our time and our skills not just with each other, but with anyone who walks through the gate. We share food, and information, and we share a space that allows others to do the same. This weekend is, to me, a prime example of why community gardens are just so valuable. So if there is one in your area, even if you can't get there often, or maybe even at all, see if there is some other way of supporting them. Donations of clean pots, excess seeds, even just sharing information about them so others can connect. All of it helps. All of it builds a community that can start caring for each other. It is well worth sharing :)


Take care, ox