This list of books by organic market garden expert Eliot Coleman was given to us by the Allsun Farm crew. Apparently these are the 12 books that most influenced Eliot during his transition from school teacher to organic market gardener extraordinaire. They’re pretty radical! Eliot writes: “In order to understand the present and prepare for the future,…
DetailsSix weeks after constructing some zuni bowls as part of our watershed restoration, our structures are full of water for the first time! Exciting to see.
What is it about Guerrilla Gardening? No matter how many times you see it happen, or hear about a new verge planting, it’s always exciting. Is it the fact that growing tomatoes is actually that invigorating? Or is it that people’s small acts of community are that much needed? Either way, here’s a few things…
DetailsRecently the fabulous Hannah Moloney interviewed me about being a female Australian farmer. Hannah has just returned from a stint in Africa with ActionAid working with women farmers and researching where they sit in relation to community food security (right at the center, of course). Now Hannah is back Down Under, she’s featuring some truly…
DetailsI am incredibly excited to report that we’ve just harvested our first ever box of honey from one of our warré beehives. Whoohoo! We are now awash and dripping with organic warré honeycomb. Sweet. The box we took is from the warré hive that had two colonies combined in it last year because of the…
DetailsAs Nick found out when researching for his TEDx Canberra talk on how to save the world with humanure, it’s hard to find good pictures of poo. You may not believe it, but not many folks draw poo very well. Nor the nutrient cycles they interface with. Enter arts collective Cloacina! Am I the only…
DetailsPerhaps you can tell at a glance why I am so excited by this photo? I’ll tell you. We have a humanure compost toilet system built on wheelie bins. We love it. But the place we want to use the finished, composted humanure is over the hill from the toilet block. At the moment, we’re…
DetailsSo we’re creating a forest garden – a lush, shady place, dripping with fruit and springing with herbs, flowers and tubers. But when you think of a forest garden, do you think of paths, their construction, and their capabilities? Or do you just figure you’ll wind your way through the green herbage as you see…
DetailsA quick note that we’re running an Aquaponics Workshop with Charlie from Ecolicious and Nick from Milkwood in Sydney soon, that gives you the tools you need to design your own system. Come and learn to grow your fish and salad here! >> Aquaponics Workshop: 17-18 Dec: Sydney, NSW Aquaponics is an emerging field of…
DetailsA hot day. A secret valley. A high hill. A shady billabong. And a whole afternoon, stretching out before us. Sometimes, you just gotta get off the farm. And go somewhere just over the ridge where the landscape rolls in a different direction, the creek contains waterholes you’ve never seen before, and different plants are…
DetailsEdible Forest Gardens – Volumes 1 and 2 by Dave Jacke and Eric Toensmeier is a spectacular double volume of knowledge. Really, truly incredible stuff. So it was with some excitement that i found this recent podcast with Dave Jacke on Gardening like a forest. Author of Edible Forest Gardens- Volumes 1 and 2, Dave…
DetailsThe last danger of frosts have passed – finally. It is officially time to plant tomatoes at Milkwood. And plant them we did. Oh yes, how we did. The plan here is to be awash in tomatoes by early February. We want tomatoes coming out our ears and out our toes. At which point there…
DetailsDoes your loved one really need another gadget? Probably not. Do they need to learn how to propagate mushrooms, become a natural beekeeper or design their own permaculture system? Heck yes! And so we come to the season of gifting. I am all about gifting. Especially if it’s gifts of useful things made with love…
DetailsThe Milkwood newsletter is an occasional publication that’s a treasure trove of writings, free DIY guides, gardening tips, permaculture hacks, special newsletter-only posts and giveaways, and lots, lots more…