Yesterday, Andrew and I attended a permaculture garden tour at Melliodora,
David Holmgren and Su Dennet's property in Hepburn.
The thing I most took from the tour was about improving soil. We've been attempting to do this for a number of years, but really stepping it up this year. 2015 is the International year of soils, very appropriate. We have quite sandy soil here (being not too far from the beach), and I have heard from older generations that the area we live in used to be market gardens, which has probably robbed the soil over time as well.
David in the orange shirt
The grand old pear tree that dayes back to about 1860. I think I need to take some time to absorb all the information from the tour, little snippets come back to me, and i need to figure out how it applies to where we are and what we're doing (on a much smaller scale).
15 new plants that came home with us, from Digger's St Erth, Frogmore Gardens, Maldon Market, and Daylesford Market. I'm reclaiming yet another piece of grass, that is mostly dead dust bowl at the moment. I'm putting chook poo and straw mulch from the chookhouse, bunny poo, and some ash from the wood oven, just piling it up like sheet mulch. I've just planted a couple of salvia bee's bliss ( a groundcover sage which attracts bees), and a few comfrey as a border (all from the above photo) in there, away from the rich manure. When the weather cools in autumn, I'll probably plant an almond tree, which is deciduous (provides leaf mulch), has beautiful, early blossom (bees love it), and it will provide much needed summer shade.
4 comments:
Wow would love to go check out that garden. I'm trying to improve my soil here as well. Good luck
Watch out! If your comfrey grows like mine it'll be nearly waist height.
It must;ve been a lovely day; I'd love to go there one day.
I do have some comfrey here already, but haven't found it to grow quite that tall! It seems to grow better in part shade here, but that might have something to do with the sandy soil- they dry out quickly.
David's place is awe inspiring isn't it. What I never realised is that he has a hectare and that's it! His property is so jam packed with things it blows the mind! His 7ft tall corn stalks stand out in my mind, as does the beautiful lake.
Post a Comment