Good Organic Gardening Issue #12.6 - 2022

“Turn grass into lawn,” went those classic ads for Victa mowers. Lately, however, many of us have begun to wonder whether that’s automatically a good thing. We’ve noticed that many food gardeners and those designing their gardens with habitat creation in mind are not sure what to do about lawn areas. Are they a waste of valuable space where you could be growing edibles for humans and wildlife — not to mention beneficial insects? Or are they legitimate leisure areas for people and pets? Does an immaculately manicured lawn have its own special aesthetic value or is it rather a “blank space” in your gardenscape? Grass is a carbon sink, of course, but is its carbon cost (the amount of CO2 it produces) higher than its sequestration value? These are just some of the…

WHERE HAVE ALL THE INSECTS GONE? I’ll never forget a David Suzuki talk I attended about a decade ago in our sleepy village hall in northern NSW. It was a balmy summer’s evening; all the doors and windows were wide open to catch the slightest bit of breeze. Not long into the talk, Suzuki said, “Where are all the insects? This hall should be full of insects attracted to the light.” He went on to explain insects were rapidly disappearing all over the world in what we know now is the “unnoticed insect apocalypse”. Those days of road trips when the car windscreen would be splattered with insects are long gone. Scientists warn the biodiversity of insects is threatened globally and estimate up to 40 per cent of the 1 million insect species…

SUNDAE FRAISE HYDRANGEA, HYDRANGEA PANICULATA ‘SUNDAE FRAISE’ PBR The plant: This new, sun-loving hydrangea is must for summer colour! ‘Sundae Fraise’ is a beautifully compact hydrangea that’s covered in large flowers that begin green, turning to pure white and then to varying shades of pink throughout summer and autumn. It’s fast-growing yet its compact form makes it perfect for small gardens, pots and other containers. Growing: Prefers a full-sun to part-shade position in well-drained but moist soil. Water at the base of the plant, avoiding the leaves. Fertilise in early spring for the best blooms and remove spent flowers after flowering finishes. Plants Management Australia, pma.com.au EVENING PRIMROSE, OENOTHERA SPECIES ‘HERONSWOOD PINK’ The plant: This popular, long-flowering form of evening primrose is a stunning addition to any cottage garden. It produces masses of fragrant pink…

Ginkgo isn’t a quick crop by any means, but it is a tree that will be a long-lived addition to your garden. Though native to China, today this ancient conifer is grown in cool to temperate climate gardens around the world. It is also known as maidenhair tree because its leaflets resemble the delicate pinnae of the maidenhair fern. Even if you are unfamiliar with the tree, many people know ginkgo as a herbal remedy. Ginkgo leaf is included in pills to treat memory, anxiety and other conditions. It is thought to increase blood flow and slow down changes in the brain. Unfortunately, modern studies have not shown that ginkgo slows the onset of dementia or halts normal brain ageing, but it has been used in patients recovering from strokes. It may also…

For succulent leafy greens in winter, grow a crop of the oldfashioned plant known as lamb’s lettuce. It isn’t a true lettuce but can be used to make a salad or fill up a sandwich and is also a great snack while you’re out in the garden. As well as tasting good, the dark green leaves are also rich in vitamins — particularly vitamin C — and iron. Its iron content is probably why lamb’s lettuce has a pivotal role in one of the best-known fairytales, Rapunzel. As you may recall, Rapunzel was named for a leafy vegetable growing in a witch’s garden (still called rapunzel in parts of Germany). As penance for stealing the leaves to feed to his pregnant wife, Rapunzel’s father had to give the baby to the witch. DARWIN…

Cabbage figures in the cuisine of nearly every culture in history, so working out its origins has proved difficult. However, food historians seem to agree that non-heading cabbages were most likely domesticated by the Celts or people from Mediterranean regions around 1000 BCE. From there the variety of cabbages grew and today they are one of the world’s staple food crops, found raw, cooked or pickled on dinner plates the world over. How you prefer to prepare and eat cabbage often depends on your earliest cultural influences. My Irish husband loves a hearty serve of colcannon (a traditional Irish dish of cabbage combined with mashed potatoes) or boiled cabbage and ham. While I occasionally enjoy a serve of colcannon, my stomach turns at limp, discoloured boiled cabbage with ham. I love cabbage served…