What is Okra? Technically, okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) is a fruit, but is perceived and eaten as a vegetable. The colour changes with the variety, and ranges from pale green to pink to dark maroon. A heat-loving, low-care crop that thrives in strong sun and humidity, okra does best in subtropical and tropical gardens (if you’re
So many of us have come to live in subtropical climate areas from colder, more mild regions. Naturally, we have grown up eating traditional European vegetables, so when we become gardeners, those are what we try to grow. We soon realise that those veggies aren’t so compatible with humid subtropical conditions, and that we need
Lovage needs to make a comeback! There, I’ve said it. But I won’t be surprised if you’ve never heard of lovage- we don’t see it in grocery stores, we rarely see it in recipes, and the plants are hard to find. To me, plants that are low-care perennials which put a lot of food on
Yarrow is native to temperate regions of Europe and Western Asia, and has been grown for many centuries as a medicinal and ornamental herb. While I’d heard the name ‘yarrow’ long ago, it wasn’t until I really got into gardening that I sat up and took notice. I then discovered that yarrow is not only
Chokos (aka chayote) are amongst the most prolific, versatile and healthful vegetables you can grow. Rarely available commercially, chokos are a traditional staple in many warm temperate and subtropical home gardens. The fruits’ crisp texture and mild flavour lends itself to roasting whole or adding to soups and stews, where it will take on the
Finger limes are an unusual citrus fruit which are native to subtropical Australia. They taste just like regular limes yet are unique in their texture and presentation; the insides look just like fruity caviar. Even in Australia, this is a gourmet fruit which can be hard to find & fetches high prices in retail markets.
It’s no news to any of us that subtropical and tropical climates have extremely hot summers. Add to that some punishing humidity & daily downpours, and you’ve got the potential for some vegetable gardening disasters. Anyone who has tried to grow traditional European crops through a QLD summer has learnt the hard way that hot
There’s nothing like growing your own basil. Inhaling the lush scent when you brush past it in the garden. Watching its flowers attract essential pollinators. Picking leaves for salads, pesto and pasta sauce. Using it as a companion plant that improves the flavour of tomatoes. Sadly these are usually only seasonal pleasures, because annual basil
Do you know how expensive passionfruit can be? It’s outrageous to pay for something that you can grow so easily at home! We love passionfruit, and it was the first major food crop we grew here at the Self Sufficient Me home garden. Using my top tips on how to grow a ton of passionfruit,
Water celery is a little-known perennial edible that grows in most climates & makes a fantastic addition to any food garden. All parts of this plant can be eaten, and the mild taste sits somewhere between parsley and celery. It’s easy to grow, and will survive both very hot summers and hard frosts. Despite this,
Purslane is one of those unusual little herbs that lots of us have yet don’t ever notice. Considered a weed in many western countries like Australia, but an edible in the Mediterranean and Middle East, you might say it walks the line between vegetable and weed. What Exactly is Purslane? Purslane is a succulent edible
To prune, or not to prune….that is the question! I’m talking about tomato plants, of course, and in this article I’m going to explain why sometimes you should prune tomatoes, and sometimes you shouldn’t. Types of Tomato Plant There are several things I look for whenever I’m thinking of pruning tomato plants, and the first
Ok so you’re new to gardening. Or maybe new to raised beds. We all know that veggies need soil to grow in, but where do you get the soil from? Which soil do you use? How deep does the soil need to be? What else do they need? Do I need to add fertiliser? If
The well-known catchphrase ‘beautiful one day, perfect the next’ was devised by advertisers to describe Queensland summer…but I don’t think they had gardening in mind when they coined it. Summer in subtropical south-east Queensland has 3 keywords: hot, humid, and rainy. This is a time where the gentle breezes and pleasant sunshine of spring have
Do you love eating garlic, but have trouble growing it in your warm climate? Then you might find elephant garlic (allium ampeloprasum) a fantastic substitute. This hardy allium does well in the tropics & subtropics where the winters are rarely cold enough to grow a good garlic crop. Elephant garlic has huge cloves with a
Meet celtuce- one of the most versatile, tasty, useful, yet least-known vegetables. Celtuce (lactuca sativa var. asparagina) is a form of lettuce which is effectively dual-purpose; the leaves can be eaten as lettuce, and the thick stem as a type of celery. This unusual edible will grow in a variety of climates, suffers minimal pest
Are you worried about the rising cost of food? Or even worse, a food crisis? We’ve seen unprecedented pressure on our food supply these past couple of years- things like extreme weather events, a shortage of fertiliser, logistical delays, rising energy prices and even a lack of fruit & veggie pickers are affecting us like
A surprising amount of common plants are in fact environmental weeds. Many of them are still sold as desirable plants at nurseries and hardware stores nationwide, so it’s no wonder that we don’t realise the damage they can do to our environment. Environmental weeds comes in all forms- they can be trees, shrubs, grasses, vines,
The Kratky growing system is essentially a small, portable hydroponic system for growing veggies that is quick & easy to set up at home. A type of passive or static deep water culture that works without pumps or any electricity, it was named after Bernard Kratky, a researcher from the University of Hawaii, who first
Grocery prices have risen sharply in 2022 due to inflation, and this upwards price trend doesn’t look to be stopping any time soon. Compounded by shortages due to the pandemic and localised extreme weather events, fresh produce prices in particular are higher than ever. We’ve all seen the $12 lettuces headline, but luckily as gardeners
Self Sufficient Me is a blog about self-sustainment by growing our own produce (plant/animal), and self-fulfilment by looking after our health (physical/mental) through exercise and slowing life down a little.
