Buy your fruit trees and companion plants from one of our small, owner operated, NZ nurseries. Tap into their experience, their range of unusual and heritage varieties, and score yourself tasty, trusty, reliable trees and plants. These passionate nursery women and men are doing important work keeping older varieties going – support them! Edible Garden […]
July in the vegie patch, Healthy soil project #3 + My next book!
By Leave a Comment | LastUpdated July 1, 2025
About three years ago Jason Ross and I decided to write a book together – we planned it out on post it notes! Since then we’ve been beavering away like mad, and this week it’s gone off for design and layout. In about 3 months Homegrown Fruit: A Practical Guide will hit the book shops […]
The Healthy Soil Project #3: Plant power
By Leave a Comment | LastUpdated July 1, 2025
Plants are incredibly fertile – grass, dahlias, nettles, parsley, plantain, borage, buttercup, comfrey, dock, shrubs, trees – you get the picture, all plants! Just by being there and growing they are improving soil and the health of all the other plants around them. Take fertility next level with a bigger range of plants, a few […]
July In The Vegie Patch + Chooks In The Greenhouse
By 34 Comments | LastUpdated July 1, 2025
Even when its cold and frosty there’s plenty of food to be had from the garden. Here’s a quick round up of what we’re harvesting to inspire you to a four seasons vegie patch. Leafy greens abound – chard, spinach, parsley, kale, chickweed, cress, miners lettuce, endive, chicory and rocket. Bok choy, broccoli, cauliflower and […]
July’s Fruit Tree To-Do List
By 23 Comments | LastUpdated July 2, 2025
July is busy old month in the orchard calendar – we’re planting, pruning and most important of all, assessing new growth to decide whether or not to add compost. Plant Winter is your once-a-year opportunity – seize the day to plant deciduous trees in their preferred moment, to plant shelter, and to overall beautify and […]
How To Mulch Fruit Trees
By 27 Comments | LastUpdated June 1, 2025
Fruit trees, on the whole, do best with a living mulch, which is simply a covering of plants as in the photo above (yes that includes grass and weeds!) A living mulch is not only super fertile, but its loads easier for you too – read more about it here. There’s a time and place […]
