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Mark's Corner
The March Garden
Mark Morrison - Saturday, March 12, 2011
Balmain High Veggie Garden III
Mark Morrison - Tuesday, August 10, 2010
As a result of threat from onion weeds and a couple of monster Strelitzia clumps in the way the veggie garden at the Support Unit is now considerably larger than originally planned.
In view of the ever increasing size and population of onion weed in the veggie garden it seemed the only choice we had was to excavate the soil to a depth that would remove all the onion weed bulbs. After consulting with the school we agreed to excavate to a depth of approximately 150mm and we thought I may as well keep digging and take out some large clumps of Strelitzia as well. This would give us two long beds the whole length of the retaining wall and with one running alongside the retaining wall enabling students in wheel chairs better viewing and access to the garden.
1.5 cubic metres of 'Recarb Ultra' garden mix was delivered and the new veggie garden with two long rows was created. Cow manure was added, some lime and then lucerne mulch to finish off. The cow manure will add slow releasing nutrients to the soil and break down to be an excellent soil conditioner. The lucerne mulch will act as a green manure and add nutrients to the soil and also insulate and retain moisture.
The herbs from the original garden were able to be saved but we had to plant new veggies.
The following were chosen:
Rocket
Perpetual Lettuce
Perpetual Spinach
English Spinach
Silverbeet
Rainbow Chard
Carrots
Red Onions
Celery
Cavallo Nero
Rhubarb More
In view of the ever increasing size and population of onion weed in the veggie garden it seemed the only choice we had was to excavate the soil to a depth that would remove all the onion weed bulbs. After consulting with the school we agreed to excavate to a depth of approximately 150mm and we thought I may as well keep digging and take out some large clumps of Strelitzia as well. This would give us two long beds the whole length of the retaining wall and with one running alongside the retaining wall enabling students in wheel chairs better viewing and access to the garden.
1.5 cubic metres of 'Recarb Ultra' garden mix was delivered and the new veggie garden with two long rows was created. Cow manure was added, some lime and then lucerne mulch to finish off. The cow manure will add slow releasing nutrients to the soil and break down to be an excellent soil conditioner. The lucerne mulch will act as a green manure and add nutrients to the soil and also insulate and retain moisture.
The herbs from the original garden were able to be saved but we had to plant new veggies.
The following were chosen:
Rocket
Perpetual Lettuce
Perpetual Spinach
English Spinach
Silverbeet
Rainbow Chard
Carrots
Red Onions
Celery
Cavallo Nero
Rhubarb More
Balmain High Veggie Garden I
Mark Morrison - Saturday, April 17, 2010
Not far from me in Rozelle is Sydney Secondary College Balmain Campus which has a Support Unit. I recently started to give them a hand in their garden with a new veggie plot.
We decided I would work on a raised bed to start with and plant the perimeter thus giving students in wheelchairs easy access. The site is roughly triangular and is raised with a brick retaining wall to about 1200mm. Existing plantings include Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia reginae), several citrus, a few native shrubs and clumps of Dianella.
My first consideration was the removal of any unwanted plants, to remove weeds and to improve the soil.
We would keep the citrus and rather large clump of Strelitzia and try to relocate most of the other plants.
I hand weeded the garden initially and then started on soil improvement.
The existing soil is light and somewhat hydrophobic (water repellent). I added cow manure, organic soil improver and a soil wetting agent and after a good soaking covered the area with sugar cane mulch and watered it again.
I came back just over a week later to find a bumper crop of new weeds obviously vitalised by their new and improved conditions but with the addition of one of my favorites – onion weed. This will be an ongoing battle for a while because onion weed is difficult to eradicate and the only way to tackle it, short of removing a 150mm layer of soil, is persistence.
The kids are all on holidays now and when they come back their new veggie patch will be ready to plant out and our soil preparation should get the new plants off to a good start. More
We decided I would work on a raised bed to start with and plant the perimeter thus giving students in wheelchairs easy access. The site is roughly triangular and is raised with a brick retaining wall to about 1200mm. Existing plantings include Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia reginae), several citrus, a few native shrubs and clumps of Dianella.
My first consideration was the removal of any unwanted plants, to remove weeds and to improve the soil.
We would keep the citrus and rather large clump of Strelitzia and try to relocate most of the other plants.
I hand weeded the garden initially and then started on soil improvement.
The existing soil is light and somewhat hydrophobic (water repellent). I added cow manure, organic soil improver and a soil wetting agent and after a good soaking covered the area with sugar cane mulch and watered it again.
I came back just over a week later to find a bumper crop of new weeds obviously vitalised by their new and improved conditions but with the addition of one of my favorites – onion weed. This will be an ongoing battle for a while because onion weed is difficult to eradicate and the only way to tackle it, short of removing a 150mm layer of soil, is persistence.
The kids are all on holidays now and when they come back their new veggie patch will be ready to plant out and our soil preparation should get the new plants off to a good start. More
The Compost Corner
Mark Morrison - Monday, March 15, 2010
Rubbish – this one word covers a multitude of different throw away/out or dispose of
items. Landfill areas for rubbish are becoming increasingly scarce and a costly issue. It is
common knowledge that consumers can easily reduce the amount of rubbish put out for
collection just with a little care and forethought.
We can easily start in the garden. How many people fill up their green waste wheelie bin
for collection? – 10’s of 1,000’s. In many instances a large percentage of the green waste
being disposed of could be recycled at home in the form of compost. The benefits of
composting are important. Less landfill would be of benefit to your local council whilst
home made compost will enrich the garden soil thus completing the cycle - you grow
plants, enjoy, compost and return to the soil. Obviously it isn’t quite as simple as that
and some plant waste cannot be composted.
There are several brands of Compost Bins available. Do some research and settle for one
that is easy to manage. You will need a flat space in an unobtrusive part of your garden
preferably in more sun than shade (but not in full sun). Compost needs to ‘cook’ and if
the place where your bin is situated is too cool, the material inside will take a long while
to break down. You can construct a bin out of concrete blocks or baulks of timber. About
1 metre square is the size you need and have an open side to work from. If you can
construct a series of 3 of these side by side, you have the perfect setup. One bin being
used – the next nearly ready and the other being the new one you are adding to.
The motto you must remember when composting is: ‘Everything in moderation.’ It’s all
about the quantity and mix of ingredients. There are 2 basic sets of ingredients – green
and brown. Green includes grass clippings, kitchen scraps, soft prunings etc whilst
brown is: straw, shredded paper, old dried leaves etc.
It’s generally accepted to limit the amount of citrus and onion skins into the mix, but if
the quantities are small and well mixed in there should not be a problem. Avoid any
offal, meat or cooked food scraps – these increase the chance of vermin and can make
the compost smell unpleasant. The most important thing is to add everything in small
amounts and layers. Do not put a huge pile of fresh grass clippings in at one go. This can
either end up as a black smelly mess or just not decompose at all.
Layers – that’s what composting is all about. A small amount of blood and bone helps as
does a pinch of garden lime. The compost should generate enough heat for beneficial
bacteria to break down the ingredients and produce a sweet smelling mix. It should be
kept very slightly moist and turned fortnightly.
Happy Composting
Courtesy NGINA (Nursery & Garden Industry NSW & ACT) More
items. Landfill areas for rubbish are becoming increasingly scarce and a costly issue. It is
common knowledge that consumers can easily reduce the amount of rubbish put out for
collection just with a little care and forethought.
We can easily start in the garden. How many people fill up their green waste wheelie bin
for collection? – 10’s of 1,000’s. In many instances a large percentage of the green waste
being disposed of could be recycled at home in the form of compost. The benefits of
composting are important. Less landfill would be of benefit to your local council whilst
home made compost will enrich the garden soil thus completing the cycle - you grow
plants, enjoy, compost and return to the soil. Obviously it isn’t quite as simple as that
and some plant waste cannot be composted.
There are several brands of Compost Bins available. Do some research and settle for one
that is easy to manage. You will need a flat space in an unobtrusive part of your garden
preferably in more sun than shade (but not in full sun). Compost needs to ‘cook’ and if
the place where your bin is situated is too cool, the material inside will take a long while
to break down. You can construct a bin out of concrete blocks or baulks of timber. About
1 metre square is the size you need and have an open side to work from. If you can
construct a series of 3 of these side by side, you have the perfect setup. One bin being
used – the next nearly ready and the other being the new one you are adding to.
The motto you must remember when composting is: ‘Everything in moderation.’ It’s all
about the quantity and mix of ingredients. There are 2 basic sets of ingredients – green
and brown. Green includes grass clippings, kitchen scraps, soft prunings etc whilst
brown is: straw, shredded paper, old dried leaves etc.
It’s generally accepted to limit the amount of citrus and onion skins into the mix, but if
the quantities are small and well mixed in there should not be a problem. Avoid any
offal, meat or cooked food scraps – these increase the chance of vermin and can make
the compost smell unpleasant. The most important thing is to add everything in small
amounts and layers. Do not put a huge pile of fresh grass clippings in at one go. This can
either end up as a black smelly mess or just not decompose at all.
Layers – that’s what composting is all about. A small amount of blood and bone helps as
does a pinch of garden lime. The compost should generate enough heat for beneficial
bacteria to break down the ingredients and produce a sweet smelling mix. It should be
kept very slightly moist and turned fortnightly.
Happy Composting
Courtesy NGINA (Nursery & Garden Industry NSW & ACT) More
Water Crystals and Wetting Agents
Mark Morrison - Friday, October 16, 2009
1
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