Good Organic Gardening Issue #13.5 - 2022

A four-week visit to Western Australia at the time of putting this issue together proved, among other things, a reminder of how incredibly beautiful our native plants are. Our timing was spot on. Swathes of pink everlasting daisies, clouds of white and pink wax flowers (more on them next issue) and masses of bright-yellow billy buttons with their soft grey foliage made every excursion a horticultural treat. Primed by the obligatory visit to Kings Park, Perth’s stunning botanic gardens, on the recommendation of natives guru Angus Stewart we embarked on a 200km road trip north, to Badgingarra. It turned out to be a highlight. The area is home to the Yuat traditional owners and Macropidia fuliginosa, the striking black kangaroo paw, found only in a narrow strip close to the coast from just…

Jo is an environmental scientist, photographer and writer. She has worked in the environment movement for decades and is co-ordinator of the National Toxics Network, an organisation dedicated to creating a toxic-free future. She has written many articles for magazines and is the author of two books: Toxic Playground and Safer Solutions. LEAD POLLUTION AND THE URBAN CHICKEN With an increasing number of people turning to home food production and backyard chickens it’s important to consider whether your soil might be contaminated. A recent study found that backyard hens’ eggs may contain, on average, 40 times the levels of lead than commercially produced eggs. It’s a real blow for backyard sustainability but an issue that can’t be ignored, since even low levels of lead exposure are harmful to human health, especially in the…

A horticulturist, writer, presenter and passionate organic gardener, Chloe uses her social media profile Bean There Dug That to educate and inform likeminded gardeners, using fun, creative videos and posts. Find her on Facebook and Instagram @beantheredugthat PETUNIA ‘CRAZY CORAL’ PETUNIA × HYBRIDA The plant: A new and improved petunia that flowers earlier in the season than others — up to six weeks earlier, in fact! This variety has a more compact habit, but each individual plant will grow up to 80cm wide. This spreading growth habit is perfect for hanging baskets or filling garden beds with colour quickly. Growing: ‘Crazy Coral’ prefers a full-sun position in a rich free-draining soil or premium potting mix. This petunia will happily grow in pots or in garden beds and it looks extra-special when mass planted. Floriana,…

A FRESH TAKE ON HOSPITAL FOOD! The Queensland Mater hospital group has been trialling edible gardens to boost the wellbeing of health workers as well as patients’ nutrition. Mater’s Director of Dietetics and Food Services Sally McCray says healthcare workers had been under increased pressure in recent years with the global pandemic and therapeutic horticulture was a way to “care for carers” and reduce burnout. “We are starting off with a small growers group of interested staff members who will maintain the outdoor gardens and be able to harvest the produce for their own use,” McCray says. In addition, Mater is partnering with Vegepod Australia and chef Luke Mangan to grow greens for the hospital kitchen. Luke and Mater Executive Chef Aman Marwah will use the microherbs in dishes designed to improve the nutritional…

When a plant has lots of common names, especially across many languages and cultures, it’s a sure sign that it’s both very useful and widespread. Egyptian spinach has a plethora of names. Grown throughout Africa, Asia and into the Middle East, it’s also naturalised in parts of Australia and known as a weed in Far North Queensland. It is considered the national vegetable of Egypt. Leaves, seedpods and stems are harvested from this versatile plant. The young leaves are eaten like spinach and used as a thickener in soups, for example. A traditional dish is molokhia, a meat broth flavoured with onion, garlic, coriander, bay leaves and cardamom. Finely chopped jute leaves (also called molokhia or mulukhiya) are added and cooked for a few minutes before serving. The leaves are highly nutritious, providing the…

Many native plants have commercial potential. With much to offer gardeners in warm, frost-free areas, the native currant deserves a closer look. Evergreen, handsome and productive, it’s also adaptable as it grows in both sun and shade. It’s quick to produce a crop, setting fruit after just a year of growing. It has male and female flowers on separate plants. The flowers are white and appear in spring. This large shrub — it can reach 2–4m in height and 2m wide — can be grown as a hedge or screen, which allows a mixed planting of male and female plants. The female plants produce clusters of small fruit which are almost like long bunches of small grapes. Fruit ripens in late summer to autumn as the berries become sweet and tasty. They start out a…