Coastal Growing Successes

Jerusalem Artichoke Flowers

We live very close to the ocean on very sandy soil and ever since we started gardening we have tried to be improve the soil by using recycled or waste materials rather than purchasing garden soil. This can be hard on plants, as can the location, with a westerly aspect and temperatures between 0 and 45 Celsius degrees throughout the year. We also get strong winds and in the Mediterranean climate that we are in not very much rainfall. We do have access to a bore, rainwater tanks and grey water with each additional source improving the success rates for plants. Whilst the front gardens were originally built for vegetables these factors have meant that we have been slowly shifting to more of a food forest/cottage garden style as the plants are happier.

Apples

 We now have five dwarf apple trees in the front garden and are really pleased with how well they are growing. the Fejoa hedge protects them as does the ground cover of oregano.

Chillies

We are growing more of our annuals in the two raised beds that we recently built outside the kitchen and have successfully grown masses of chillies, cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, beans and eggplants. The beans have now self seeded which is very exciting so we are looking forward to another crop of those.

Lemongrass

 Another success story is the lemongrass which we were originally given one plant of and now we have six large clumps and have given many clumps to other people. We use it in cooking and also as a mulch and it looks fantastic in the new garden bed beside the pool.

Passionfruit

 In an effort to provide both food and privacy in our back garden we planted a passionfuit vine last year. It has now covered half of out back fence and the wire above it covering an ugly shed behind and providing beautiful flowers and fruit.

Pears

 I was given this pear tree several years ago by one of my sons who loves pears and whilst it has taken a while to get established it now has nine perfect pears on it. We cannot wait to try them and have been so excited by the success that we have planted another three trees with the one planted beside it producing its first fruit after only six months.

Pomegranates

 The pomegranate is a very good tree for this area as it is hardy and attractive, we are really looking forward to finally getting some fruit.

Rosemary

 We bought one rosemary plant and have managed to propagate from it and now have several plants and have given some away. The bees love it and we really enjoy its beauty and taste and it is another plant that thrives in this area.

Strawberry Guava

 The strawberry guava has not grown very quickly as it is in a really tough spot, however each year it produces kilos of fruit for us to enjoy. While my aspiration for it to be hedged has now been put on hold we are still very glad to have it in our garden.

Sweet Potato Vine

We were given a cutting of the sweet potato vine and whilst it struggled at first it has now taken off and climbed trellis and covered large parts of the garden. We use the leaves in salads and stir fries as well as occasionally digging up a root to eat.

Shade, Shutters and Strawberry Guavas

The front of our face faces West and we have temperatures over 40 degrees regularly in summer. Previously we had planted the vine and put in a roller blind and gardens. Each of these steps have made a difference.

We continue to  gradually make more and more changes to improve our capacity to grow more food and to reduce the energy that we use.

Here you can see the 5000 litre water tank in the front garden and the roller shutters that we have now installed on the front window which faces west. This will reduce the heat transfer and provide us with security.

Whilst the heat has a detrimental effect on many of our plants the Strawberry Guava is full of fruit. It has not grown as quickly as we would like as we wanted it to be part of a hedge. However it is in a difficult spot and each year is producing more and more fruit, so we are certainly happy about that.

Strawberry Guava and Evening Primrose

 Finally I am getting time to get back into the garden and I am picking a small section at a time to deal with, otherwise it feels too hard. Here is an area beneath a palm trunk where a strawberry guava is planted and self seeded evening primrose plants are growing ( and a lot of  self seeded nasturtiums  which are past their best).

After pulling out a whole wheelbarrow full of weeds I placed down the cardboard that I had collected and then three barrows of mulch.  I am not sure what we will do about the dead palm at this stage, but am considering planting a vine to grow up it. Meanwhile this is another section where the weeds will have a harder time getting through and hopefully the food producing plants will have a better chance.

Strawberry Guava

I have now cleared the grass from around the strawberry guava, it has produced heaps of fruit this year, and is still doing so. Also realised that I need to clear out around the water meter and mulch to stop the weeds, have left the small oregano in place. One day this guava will be a small hedge!

In Our Garden Today

 Getting ready for the water tank and replacing the guttering, a new fence has been put in.

 Gutters have been removed and Andy is sanding them and rust proofing them, the plan is to plumb in another 5000 litre tank and connect it to the no - dig gardens at the front.

 We have had no fruit yet from the pomegranate tree but the flowers are glorious.

 The chilli plants are surviving amongst the pumpkin vines.

 The strawberry guava has produced at least 50 pieces of fruit this year so far.

 The apple trees are fruiting and getting used to being espaliered.

 Not sure what the vine is at the bottom, but the choko vine has taken off again after struggling in the storms and the heat.

 Amazing spider web in the garden at the moment.

 The jujube is still growing, as is the grape vine and banana plant in the pool area.

 The garlic chives are covered in lovely flowers at the moment.

Strawberry Guavas

Another small tree that has begun providing fruit is the Strawberry Guava, the birds love them too!
Go here to find out more about all of the Guava trees, at this link.

Tomatoes, Dehydrators and Pasta Sauce

Well, i certainly learn something new everyday on this journey. Today it was all about using a borrowed dehydrator, and not rushing, to produce Dried Tomatoes, Grapes and Mango Yoghurt. I also collected more Cherry Tomatoes and cooked some to make a bottle of Pasta sauce. And finally I cannot help but admire the Cherry Guava tree which is still only about 6 inches high and has a bout a dozen fruits budding on it! It will be interesting to see what happens to them and what they taste like.