Visit Rosalie 12 November 2017

On Sunday 12 November the Food Garden Group visited Rosalie's garden at Sandfly -
When I arrived at Rosalie's property it was foggy and drizzling and all you could see was trees, a house, and a garden in the mist. But then within ten minutes the day transformed itself into a nice warm day with blue skies, and suddenly we saw a wonderful property on top of a hill with great views over surrounding hills and bush.

In the photo above Rosalie (on the left with hat) welcomes us and discusses what she did to convert her rocky bush soil into a garden since she moved here a decade ago.

Hard to believe really, but this is Rosalie's thriving fruit and berry area .... under gum trees. Rosalie is not allowed to remove trees without permission (the property is part of a conservation zone). This area is on a slope where runoff from the hill makes the soil slightly more moist. With compost and worm castings added the fruit trees and berry bushes are doing surprisingly well.

Here is Rosalie's completely netted extensive food garden. Here she plants/sows small quantities of many vegetable varieties, using the no-dig method. Rosalie is vegetarian and this caged garden provides her with all the vegetables she needs.

Rosalie likes to use recycled materials wherever possible and her hothouse (photo below) is a good example of how with minimal costs a lot can be achieved. And things don't always have to be perfect. Take this hothouse for instance. There are no windows that can be opened, but with the door always open and holes in various spots ventilation is not a problem and it is very effective!

Isn't it wonderful when you have so much space on your land that you can make things as large as you like them to be. Below is Rosalie's vast chook run and chook house, giving the chooks ample space to roam in.

Rosalie was happy to share her experiences and people were keen to learn. In the photo below she discusses how she manages a worm farm in an old bath tub.

Contributions to the produce table and morning tea were many and varied (eg. Ross's four boxes of heirloom tomato seedlings - wow!) and everyone had a great time.

Last time we visited a suburban food garden. This time a food garden in the middle of the bush. The next visit will be to a productive garden on a flat block on the edge of a country town. Every garden is different, and there is always something to learn.

Many thanks, Rosalie, for sharing your expertise, your time and your effort. We all appreciated it!

And thanks everyone who came for their generous contributions to produce table and morning tea!

This text was previously published on the Food Garden Group blog. It was written by Max Bee.