Introduction (This article was reviewed in July 2012) Tiller the Season to be Growing Trul-a-lul-a-la blah blah blah blah… I know the title is drawing a long bow for a Christmas theme but I've never been a very orthodox person and I guess if you have been following my articles over the past 6 months you'll
Time-poor Many of us now live in a “time-poor” society and freeing up time or not wasting it is a business in itself these days with entrepreneurs cashing in on providing services and gadgets to save us a miserable minute. And, it isn't cheap either to free-up time but don't despair, because I've found a
It's about time I wrote something on landscaping as it is the base of all gardens for crying out loud. And, without a good landscaping plan (even if it means just using the natural landscape itself) all the best intentions won't enable a garden to reach its full potential – no matter how hard we
Gardeners already know the secret soothing effects gardening has on the mind because it's what keeps them/us out there pottering around. Are we born gardeners? I think there's a gardener in most people and there would probably be more people in the garden if they had the time but unfortunately spare time is somewhat scarce
Most of us know how much fun (and useful) gardening can be, especially things like: raising or planting-out seedlings and facilitating the beginnings of life, harvesting those crisp vegetable and fruit crops fresh from the backyard, selecting those fragrant herbs, or pruning and admiring those ornamentals strategically positioned around our home. However, gardening isn't all
In today’s society we’re constantly bombarded by rules and regulations making us conform to a certain set of community values and logic. Largely, these values, rules, and regulations are good to have and keep our communities organised and functioning. However, the sheer overall success of implementing and upholding laws both locally and globally has led
Often people who grow their own produce, whether plants or animals, are considered to be doing so to save money, eat chemical free food, grow what they can’t buy, or as a hobby to help stay fit and healthy. However, few consider home grown food production (like a backyard vegetable garden) as a way to
When I walk around the supermarket fruit aisles, all I see is ever increasing prices for a shrinking array of fresh produce. It seems like there is an attempt to groom ordinary consumers into creatures of habit buying certain premium product lines which are easy to manage with long shelf lives just to allow for
Every climate and food garden has a particular time of year – a window of opportunity – when growing food is at its best. It’s extremely important to know when the beginning of this growing window is in your location; because, if you miss this window of growing opportunity it can set your food growing,
If anyone is still undecided as to whether insecticides are dangerous to humans then they should read the news today about 20 school children who died in India over the past 24 hours after eating a school prepared meal, which allegedly had not been washed correctly before cooking. Apparently, insecticide was still on and in
So as the New Year hits us square in the face like the rising sun of a new day, I wonder how many people are considering self-sufficiency as their New Year’s resolution. Last night I cooked up a sensational meal for the family (even if I do say so myself) I named it Rooster soup
Here’s a cheap and easy way to build a compost making machine three bays side-by-side utilising recycled wooden pallets to make compost for even the biggest of gardens. All serious gardeners make their own compost – it’s just a given – because good gardeners know the benefits and nutrients that can be gained from recycling
So you’d like to grow some of your own food but you can’t be bothered digging the garden bed several times a year and managing annual vegetable crops. Well, then why not grow an edible perennial garden bed instead and have the best of both worlds – home grown produce with minimal work that looks
Choosing the best type of raised garden bed to make or buy for a vegetable garden can become quite confusing these days with so many different options available. This article gives the pros and cons of the most popular types of raised garden beds to hopefully give people a better idea as to what might
Some of us have our own allotment (our backyard) where we can grow much of the produce we require and others rent an allotment of land or join a community garden to get the same results. At the end of the day, is it better to own an allotment, rent one, or join a community
Today, I planted about 23 new gazanias in our garden adding to our ever expanding gazania collection. My main gardening passion is food and I love all types of food plants but over the past few years I have been paying more attention to ornamental plants because I have realised how growing ornamentals (particularly flowering
Lots of people complain about the cost of living (I’m one of them) but many don’t do much about it (I’m not one of them). The media says that grocery prices have actually reduced over the past 12 months or so; however, I don’t see much evidence to back this claim up. And, the media
Do you find kneeling, crouching, and bending in the vegetable garden is getting harder as you get older? Well, you’re not alone! But, don’t despair there's an easy solution that will keep you plodding in your vegetable allotment until you’re pushing daisy’s yourself! It’s called Stand up Gardening. That’s right all we have to do
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.
