Dear Fellow Gardener
Welcome to the June 2021 newsletter from Sophie's Patch in the Adelaide Hills, SA. Each month I share what has been happening in and around my patch of garden in the Adelaide Hills, as well as some of my adventures further afield. I hope you enjoy reading it. Sophie Thomson.
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Winter has arrived at Sophie’s Patch, with frosts last weekend blackening the last of the warm season crops like pumpkins and tomatoes.
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While this autumn has been drier than normal, it has also been milder than normal. In a typical year we would expect the first decent frosts of the season to finish off summer crops in early May, and some years they have been as early as the start of April, but this year it was almost a month later before the frosts killed everything off. So, it's out with the old and in with the new, and the pumpkins and the last of the self-seeded tomatoes have been harvested and pulled out. Don’t forget if you have a few green tomatoes left, there is a great recipe on our website for making green tomato cake ...... after all, how much green tomato pickle can you actually eat? This cake also freezes well, and while the thought of it may make some cringe, everyone who has tasted it absolutely loves it.
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Final Harvests and Winter Veg
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The last two vertical vegies left growing at Sophie’s Patch have also been blackened by the frosts. We harvested the New Guinea beans and they are drying on a rack in the shed for seed. My daughter Rose will harvest their seeds when they have dried out and have both seeds and seedlings of these wonderful versatile vegies available for sale at our spring open garden in November.
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I've harvested the last of the pumpkins, and this weekend we will also harvest the last of the Caigua and also save the seeds.
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The Choko vines are blackened, even though they didn’t fruit at all, so I will simply cut off the foliage. Chokos were an experimental crop for me last season as I had never grown them before, and I was keen to see just how productive they would be. There was also a massive response when last year I asked Instagram followers if I should try to grow chokos at Sophie’s Patch https://www.instagram.com/p/CDBawr2JXlS/ with so many strong opinions for and against, and some hilarious comments including @karen.j.king strongly against who commented that she’ll “never shake childhood PTCD” (post traumatic choko disorder 😊). Well after such a reaction, I had to give them a go. My main concern was that our frost would kill them off each winter and they wouldn’t reshoot… yet they didn’t really grow well in our warm weather anyway. I had been told stories of the vines taking over and I was keen to see if they could be used to create quick summer shade with the fruit being an extra bonus. What a disappointment they turned out to be, as only two of four plants thrived, they took ages to take off, and were still only one metre high at the end of January …and to top it all off, they didn’t produce any fruits. Maybe they don’t like my salty bore water, but if that were the case, I would have expected to see symptoms on the foliage. Maybe I have saved myself and my family from any PTCD.
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Frosts have also blackened all the yacon plants, but that does not hurt the plant as they would die off a bit later anyway. Also known as earth apple, yacon is an unusual tuberous rooted vegetable related to sunflowers and Jerusalem artichokes. For those who have not grown it before, it produces tubers which look similar to white sweet potatoes, however they are delicious when eaten fresh. Tubers are usually 200-500g although apparently under ideal conditions they can get to 2kg each. In South America, children harvest the tubers, peel them and eat them fresh much like an Aussie kid would eat an apple. They are crisp and crunchy with a delicious sweetness like sugar cane juice, perfect as an addition to salads or stir fries, or it can be used in other cooking. We have made a delicious upside down yacon cake from a recipe I got from The Diggers Club.
It is planted in late winter and grows to a large perennial 2m high. Like most plants that grow large quickly it appreciates good soil and water. Tubers are harvested in early winter and it is worth leaving a few tubers in the ground to keep growing. In terms of its health benefits, yacon syrup is available from health food stores and used as a low-calorie alternative to sugar with a low glycemic index. There are many other reputed health benefits of yacon including weight loss, and as the tubers are high in inulin, a wonderful prebiotic, they are promoted for optimal gut health. Inulin is also the carbohydrate that makes Jerusalem artichokes so …… memorable. And while I do love eating yacon fresh, when I have overdone it, I have noticed the same effect of their relative, known as the windy root or fartichokes https://sophiespatch.com.au/2018/07/05/jerusalem-artichoke/
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Renovations In The Vegie Patch
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Elsewhere in the patch, the last month has seen the main vegie garden undergo some renovation. We started this vegie patch back in March 2012 converting what was once cow paddock into an in-ground vegie garden. To do this, the whole area was sheet mulched or sheet composted, basically covered with cardboard or newspaper, and either bark chip where the paths were to be, or compost where the beds were to be. Check out the photos from when we started.
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Since then, I have continued to add more organic matter, year in, year out, and over time, the beds have become raised. The whole garden is on a slope, and as the beds were not properly retained, the soil would move downhill. So, over the past month, Erik my handman, who helps me with my Royal Show gardens each year and also helped with building the community garden at Parndana on Kangaroo Island, has helped to box up the beds with hard wood sleepers. It did occur to me that I could convert them all to wicking beds, but for the moment I will just raise the sides to contain the existing soil and make it easier for me to add inputs such as compost or aged animal manures. While this was all happening, I have let most of the plantings in there finish off as I plan to add some extra vegie garden soil and compost before I plant again. I have also taken this opportunity to let my flock of free ranging ducks into the vegie patch to reduce the numbers of small rural snails (the white Italian snail and the small, pointed snails), as usually I try and keep the ducks out, so they don’t cause any damage to the vegies.
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I love leaves…and I leave leaves...
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Many years ago, I was asked by an editor to write a column about what to do with leaves in autumn. In response, this is what I wrote https://sophiespatch.com.au/2019/03/02/love-leaves/. I knew their garden and they did have a massive old oak tree which would drop a ton of leaves, and my garden is only relatively young with the oldest trees being 10 years old so the volume of leaves I must deal with is nowhere near what they must handle, but I do love leaves… and I leave leaves... until they have all fallen that is. I know other people who rake them up almost as soon as they fall as they can’t stand the mess ..... At Sophie’s Patch, even when they have all fallen, I simply rake them onto the garden and let them break down naturally. After all, this is what would happen in nature.
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Check out this Instagram poll where I asked people what they do with leaves...
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It has been a full month with lots of diversity.
Kangaroo Island
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There was a quick trip to Kangaroo Island as I had the opportunity to show The Hon. David Speirs, Minister for the Environment and Water, the Parndana Community Garden. It was a grant from that department that was seed funding for all the bushfire garden recovery stuff we have done on the Island. Community gardens are about so much more than growing food. They help grow strong, healthy, connected and resilient communities. This community garden is an amazing example of that. I was also very excited to introduce him to some of the community members who are involved in the garden and those who are ensuring it continues to support those who need it. Check out the photos here…… Unfortunately, not everyone was able to make it on the day he visited, and in particular, the garden guardians, Denis and Maree Perkins, were away. It may have been my idea, but they have been the ones, visiting almost daily to keep the garden growing so well with their attention and love, and while they were not present, they were with us in spirit.
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I was also able to share with the Minister the incredibly generous support that has been given to fire affected gardeners from the Nursery & Garden Industry of SA and other businesses across Australia.
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I am back over on Kangaroo Island at the end of the month, to help with the distribution of a further 250 fruit trees donated by Balhannah Nurseries. You might recall they donated nearly 300 trees last winter which was for those who had lost their gardens and were planting again.
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This year the trees will be for those who lost their homes and gardens and are rebuilding and now ready to plant fruit trees. By coincidence, this trip will be on the weekend that Gardening Australia’s bushfire special airs. It includes two stories I filmed over there – one about the community garden and one about the incredible Kangaroo Island flora regenerating after the fire. Make sure you are watching Gardening Australia for this special on Friday 25th June and repeated on Sunday 27th June.
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I love seeing great ideas germinate, and a few weeks ago I attended the City of Charles Sturt’s inaugural ‘Verges Alive’ event. Many councils have verge policies and encourage their residents to follow a plan and process to plant out the verge ...... but this is going the next step...... making it easy to apply to plant the verge, be added to the ‘do not mow and do not spray’ register, and then supplying subsidised plants (10 for $10!?) and even subsidised wicking beds to be used on the verge. More than 1500 plants went out in just 2 hours alone!!!! How awesome. This is planned to be an ongoing event and it’s in the budget for the future. https://www.charlessturt.sa.gov.au/services/home-and-property/your-verge/verge-gardens
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As urban infill results in smaller blocks, and larger house footprints on those blocks, verges are vital to help mitigate the urban heat island effect, create habitat and support food security and local food systems, not to mention they look great and improve the aesthetic appeal and property value of the area. And just like #communitygardens, verge plantings can help develop strong, healthy, connected local communities. This council employs a full time 'Open Space Community Planner' (Go Janet Willoughby !) to support community gardens and community gardening projects like the Rosetta Street Greening group which plant along the railway line and can be seen at https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/rosetta-street-greening/12648892 The response to me sharing this initiative was incredible, with it resonating with so many people https://www.facebook.com/sophiethomsonpublicfigure/posts/341018324049876 It also got picked up by Ali Clarke on ABC Adelaide radio who loved the idea. Wouldn’t it be great if other councils adopted a similar policy!
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Last weekend I had three days over on the stunning Eyre Peninsula for a huge program of garden talks and workshops in semi-arid Minnipa. We had lots of fun and laughs, as well as talking gardening under challenging conditions - heat, drought, hot north winds, alkaline soils, gutless non wetting sandy soils .. .and boron toxicity. Talk topics included sustainable gardening, falling in love with your soil (and the importance of compost), vegie gardening, dealing with pests and diseases in an organic and sustainable way, and we also did two hands on workshops on rose pruning and wicking beds.
These gardeners are a tough and resilient bunch and succeed in growing gardens against many odds. The audience was primarily female, as most farmers had started seeding that week after a 15mm of rain ‘break’ to the season. Driving at night, you could see the fairy lights of the machinery seeding away in the dark. Organised by Fiona Carey and the Minnipa & Districts Swimming Pool, it was made possible thanks to a Primary Industries and Regions SA ‘Connecting Drought Communities’ Events Grant.
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I love Eyre Peninsula and there is something about its big skies, wide open spaces and rugged beauty that feeds my soul. While there, I visited two rock formations that were absolutely breath taking – Pildappa Rock and Tcharkuldu Rocks. Following breaking rains the week prior, the wattles were alive with bees, butterflies and birds and the water pools were full. Check out some images here. Minnipa is the Gateway to the Gawler Ranges and while visiting the region you could also check out Mt Wudinna, claimed to be the second largest monolith in Australia, after Uluru.
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Garden Hero - Trevor Nottle
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Not only was I a speaker at a number of events, but I also got the chance to attend a talk by one of my gardening heroes, Trevor Nottle, as part of the SA History Festival 2021. Presented in conjunction with the Organization of Hellene and Hellene-Cypriot Women of Australia, his talk was called ‘Gardens of Promise – celebrating the traditions of the Migrant Garden’. As I think about the vegies I grow in my garden, I am grateful for the influence of these migrant gardeners and the knowledge, produce and seeds they have shared. My first New Guinea bean seeds were given to me by a wonderful Italian gardener called Armando Matteucci. I filmed a segment with Armando and his wife Maria back in 2009 https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/the-happy-gardener/9430956 and he is celebrating his 90th birthday this month.
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Armando with his New Guinea beans 2009
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Over the past month I have had two fun days filming for Gardening Australia. One day was with the amazing Maggie Beer in her home vegie garden. Not only is she an amazing cook, she is a passionate gardener as well! Maggie visited Sophie’s Patch for the first time last spring and this was my first time to visit her garden. It was such a fun day hanging out with her and talking about her passions and also her wonderful Maggie Beer Foundation which is making sure that older Australians in aged care also have access to fresh, nutritious food.
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Special Events
Over the past month we have had some wonderful workshops at Sophie’s Patch. Here are the photos from the basketry special event where people learnt the art of knotless netting. You can see more of their projects here...
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Fruit Trees
We have also had the first three of our fruit trees workshops where our fruit tree experts, sixth generation orchardist Wez Redden and passionate fruit tree grower and member of the Rare Fruit Society Chris Day (Every Day Sustainable Living) explained how to prune, prepare and plant deciduous fruit trees to take advantage of bare rooted fruit trees available in nurseries and garden centres for the next couple of months. Winter is the best time to plant these deciduous fruit trees as they are cheaper, easier to handle, and you can create a great shape from the beginning. To understand what bare rooted means watch this segment filmed at South Australia’s largest fruit tree wholesaler, Balhannah Nursery https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/bare-root-planting/9438044
Due to demand, we have added an extra date for these workshops, and it is coming up on Saturday 12th June and a couple of places left within it. Bookings essential via https://sophiespatch.com.au/2021/04/19/fruit-tree-pruning-preparing-planting-workshops-2021/.
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In July, we will also be running grafting workshops with Wez and Chris as grafting is a great way to create your own fruit trees, start a home orchard on a budget, grow rare or old-fashioned varieties, or create multi-graft fruit salad trees (multiple varieties on one tree). Participants will each graft three fruit trees to take home with them and learn a new skill and the tools to do more grafting at home. We ran these grafting workshops last year and they were a great hit – check out the pictures from last year’s event at https://sophiespatch.com.au/2020/07/06/grafting-workshop/ Numbers are strictly limited due to supplies of rootstocks and grafting knives so bookings essential via https://sophiespatch.com.au/2021/04/19/grafting-workshop-2021/
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New Succulent Art Workshop
23rd and 24th July 9.30-12.30
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Create your own succulent picture frame masterpiece with Lorraine Thompson from Hillside Herbs and Succulents.
You will make your own succulent picture frame with the frame, succulents and everything else you need provided, and Lorraine guiding you through the process.
Sophie will also take you on a tour around the garden at Sophie’s Patch and you will enjoy a delicious afternoon tea made from home grown produce from the Patch.
We are monitoring the COVID 19 pandemic situation and the governments health advice closely and will follow all directions.
Numbers strictly limited so book early. $125 + booking fee
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Spring Open Garden 6th to 8th November 2021
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As we mentioned in last month’s newsletter, the dates for our Spring Open Garden in 2021 are the 6th to 8th November. This includes a weekend and the following Monday, even though it’s not an official long weekend, as opening over three days spreads the crowds, gives us a backup date in case the weather is inclement and having the Monday is great for those who work weekends or are retired and more flexible with their time. If you are planning a trip to attend this event, I suggest that you look to book your accommodation now, as tourism within Australia is at an all-time high.
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Gardens to Visit in Adelaide
For those coming from out of town, make sure you include a couple of extra days to visit some of the other wonderful gardens around Adelaide. Whenever I travel, I love to see gardens I have heard of or seen on Gardening Australia, or ones that are recommended by locals. Some of my favourites are the Botanic Gardens in Adelaide, Blackwood and Mt Lofty; Carrick Hill; The Waite Arboretum; and The Cedars. In this post on my website I share why....
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We had several garden tours at Sophie’s Patch earlier in the month including a group of attendees from the national conference of The Australian Lavender Growers Association.
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We open our garden for group tours by appointment in spring (mid-September to mid-November) and in autumn (mid-March to mid-May) and we are taking bookings for spring 2021 or autumn 2022.
As I have mentioned before, I think doing a group tour of my garden is the best way to see it, as its much for intimate and interactive as I take these groups on a personal tour of my garden followed by afternoon tea or coffee with delicious home baked cakes made from our home grown produce. If you can get a group of 30 or more people together from your social, interest or council group or plant society, contact me sophie@sophiespatch.com.au.
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Stay tuned to my calendar for other events closer to the time, and you can keep up to date on my Facebook and instagram feeds.
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Newsletter Prize
This month we are giving away a set of frogs. Winners are selected at random from the newsletter readers and then are given a week to accept the prize.
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