The View from the Verandah #1: A veggie garden on the hill.
Hi Steemians,
A while I go I had a blog (yes another one besides the travel, the health, the book club - okay maybe I have a problem) and while I let its website go - what better place to resurrect the spirit of it than right here on Steemit.
And so if you want, you can join me on a new adventure that doesn't involve travelling. But don't worry, Amateur Adventuring is not going anywhere I've got lots more adventures over the world to share!
If you've read any of my posts - or caught the other half's intro post ( @cryptoandzen ), you would know we are pretty interested in becoming more self sufficient while maintaining a comfortable and enjoyable lifestyle close to the city - without being in it - urban homesteading, albeit right now on a small scale (And this is what the View from the Verandah is all about)
Our leanings have always been towards the environmental - though funnily enough we are both qualified Urban Planners - And no we are not stark raving greenies, but we do believe in reducing the wastage and footprint that we at least, leave on this planet of ours.
The other push down this path, came - believe it or not from a change in our diet. A few years back we embarked down a fairly paleo influenced diet - and despite what some people think this has acutally resulted in us eating less meat and more veggies.
Veggies - that's where we come to today's post and I'll shout out right now to a few people who inspired me for todays topic (I'm trying to broaden my posting horizon past my travelling adventures). I hang around a bit in discord and one of today's topics of conversation was veggie gardens - so thanks @gohba.handcrafts; @tomekkk and @ryvhnn.
The increase in veggie eating - and the horrific amount of wastage when you buy them and they sit in the fridge til they start to grow once more led us to growing our own. We've managed to have some sort of garden for the last 15 or so years - some years better than others :)
It was only a couple of years ago, when we finally realised our dream of having our own small acreage - somewhere that was still close enough to civilization so we could work to pay it off) but being able to pay it off well before we are in our graves.
Of course my view of beautiful orderly veggie gardens hit a brick wall when we looked at the nature of our acreage. Pretty much anything that wasn't trees and scrub was the side of a hill.
But where there is a will there's a way!
Building a terraced garden would solve a couple of problems. It would put the b=veggie garden write outside the door.. and not on the very few bits of flat and shady yard down the bottom of the hill. It also took away the pain of mowing that hill. And (at least we think) it looked much better. We took a piece of almost useless land and turned it into something productive.
From our love of growing veggies we started to plant flowers - something I've actually never been into at all. Until I saw the swarms of native bees and butterflies that took to the garden in spring and summer.
We try our best to stay organic. Cow manure comes - when we can from the in-laws farm, we grow excess so there is plenty to share with the bugs and the birds and still give us.. and often friends and neighbours a feed. Though I really wish the King Parrots would eat a whole tomato rather than a bite from every single one they can reach.
If there are any veggies left after that - well it's freezing, fermenting or preserving so we can still cash in on that homegrown goodness right through out winter.
I get to work from home most of the time and my office overlooks the garden. Nothing is better at lunch time than going out and picking the salad fresh from the garden - just what you need when you need it.
It truly is our little piece of paradise and everyday we are are grateful that we have the opportunity to live here.
Hope you enjoyed sharing our little bit of heaven. Til the next adventure
Steem on with love and light
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Great job utilizing that slope, really beautiful veggie and flower garden.
I love having my own veggies, so rewarding!
yep having your own is great isnt it. Last year we tried square foot farming in the beds... I was of the opinion the recommended spacings were way to big anyway... we got so much. We planted in layers in each bed so there would be kale and spinach at the front of the bed and tomatoes or beans right behind them.. grew as much as we could up trellises so we could plant around and below it. worked really well!
That's awesome, we get tomatoes growing in random places because the seeds in compost, we never know where we will find it next :)
Vow this is very big work, but vegetable garden is so practical and so clean. :)
Yes thanks it was a good job.. and it isnt always that neat and clean lol
Gorgeous garden hey!
thanks - we love it!
what woodwork is amazing! and organic is awsome, I have seen mushroom pellet manure things once, that and cow manure goes amazing, have you tried organic compost tea?
Im a vedgie gardener too, 28yo in aus. though i have just gotten into pansies too! haah
No i havent tried the tea.. will have to look into it further.. I have heard its good. Its so rewarding growing your own isnt it
I absolutely love these terraced planters! Thanks so much for sharing!!! Great post!
thanks so much I'm glad you liked it.
Wow! There's too much awesomeness going on in this one post!!! You're veggie garden looks amazing, the flowers and veg look great, your dam post in itself is a masterpiece and you're a fantastic person. I think I covered it all lol Have a fantastic weekend
aww thanks GA! This was last spring and summer so hopefully this year proves as productive! Id id a lot from heirloom seeds so pretty stoked I grew it from "scratch" so to speak!
This post has received a 2.92 % upvote from @drotto thanks to: @goldenarms.
Great post. Love all the pics of your veggies.
My veggie garden is a bit sad this year too much time working and not enough in the garden. We have really sandy soil and it's been such a dry winter here on the Sunshine Coast even my pumpkin vines shrivelled up.
Followed.
Go #TeamAustralia
Thanks Stephen.. hopefully wit will be good this year as well... though the weather has been crazy.. so I don't know.. I've lost some early seedlings because nsw cant decide if its winter or summer right now and swings from one to the other!
You inspired me to go get some seedlings. I found some cape gooseberries, maybe since they're a shrub the might have deeper roots and be a bit more drought tolerant and I love gooseberry jam. We must start to get some afternoon storms soon.
That terracing looks amazing! Do you think you'll have any problems with termites with it being wood?