Organised chaos in the garden

Hanno had surgery on his eye, had a checkup yesterday and he's fine now. He just has to take it easy and not do any dirty or dusty work for a little while. He asked me to thank you all for the good wishes sent to him. I thank you too.  :- )

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We're really lucky to have the opportunity to grow some of our food right outside our backdoor. All of us who grow what we can in the space we have available, including those who grow in containers, we're all fortunate to be able to do it. Of course, work comes into the equation too - the work you need to do to get your own land, the work you do to grow the vegetables and to harvest them. But most of us love getting our hands dirty so that we get the chance, a few times a week, to walk inside with a harvest basket full of fresh produce for the dinner table.

We all garden in different ways - and that difference is usually brought about by the climate we live in. Hanno and I live in a sub-tropical climate with excellent rainfall. One of the reasons we chose to live here is because we knew we could grow food most of the year. As a result of that we garden in a different way to people down south and in other lands where the coldness of winter means that nothing can be grown then. In those circumstances, the main effort is put in during the warmer months, there is a definite harvest time and, most of the time, the excess is frozen, or put up in jars and bottles in the form of sauces, jams, fruit and vegetables that are stored in a cupboard for use during the colder months.

As I said, we're lucky here in that we can grow food all year, although we choose not to grow much in summer. There are too many bugs then and the heat keeps us inside, or at least in the shade. We keep harvesting a few odds and ends over summer but we stop planting in November and start again in March - the start of Autumn. This way of growing food requires us to fill the spaces left after the harvest of a crop, or just pop in a plant or two when we remove a tomato bush or cabbage. We start off in March with neat and tidy rows of lettuces and cabbages all lined up, which Hanno likes, and as the seasons progress we are left with organised chaos, which I like. As there is a lot of fresh food throughout the year, we tend to freeze small amounts of excess vegetables, like spinach, chard, carrots and beans, and make sauces and jams when we have an over abundance of fruit.

We're at a sort of half mast stage at the moment. We were late in planting this year, and then the rains came, killing off the seedlings, and now we still have the peas, cabbages and lettuces of winter, while we're planting eggplant, tomatoes, chillies and herbs - all the plants that love the heat.

I am always aware that not everyone has the gift of fresh food - some can't garden due to ill health or time constraints and some don't have the land. I am aware also of the millions who struggle everyday to have even one meal. So when I walk inside with my harvest basket full, knowing what I've just picked will be in the salad bowl soon, or served, steaming, with some roast chicken, I remember how lucky we are.  Lucky because we live in a country that rewards hard work; lucky because we were able to work all those years to save enough to buy a block of land to live on; lucky we have enough to share, and grateful that we do not take the opportunities we have for granted.

On the weekend, we have the good folk from Permaculture Noosa coming over to look around our garden so tomorrow I'll be out there putting on some mulch, and watering. Hanno is still out of action for the next day or so but he'll be out there with me, so it will be a joint effort.  What's happening in your garden?