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Hello & welcome to November!As we head halfway into Spring, we can sense the days warming up. It was lovely to have some rain recently (commiserations if you're one of the gardeners who had some hail damage) - let's home a little bit of summer rain every now and again comes our way. The Spring garden is definitely alive & buzzing at our place. Seedlings of corn, cucumber, zucchini, tomatoes and salad greens are pumping. We're picking sugar snap peas, heaps of spinach and silverbeet, some early garlic, and globe artichokes. While the broccoli is almost over (some side shoots still being produced from very sad looking & caterpillar ravaged plants), we've got a couple more nice cauliflower heads forming - but that will be brassicas done & dusted for the year. It's been a good one for us this year - we've enjoyed home grown broccoli most days, quite a few cauli's and plenty of delicious sugar loaf cabbages. I'm now looking forward to home grown salads full of tomato & basil - let's hope it's a good year for them. (An early reminder - we'll be holding our Tomato Contest in early 2020 - so think about your favourite variety and the time it takes to fruit & get yourself organised to enter.)
In last month's email I alluded to the fact that we had a BIG ANNOUNCEMENT to make... well, the time has finally arrived where I can let you know... THE GREEN LIFE SOIL CO will be moving to new premises in 2020.
There's still work to be done to prepare the new site - so we haven't got an exact date for you. Keep an eye on our next newsletter for more of an update. The land we're currently leasing on Farrall Road is earmarked for residential development; we've known this was on the agenda for some years. The time is now right for us to make the move to brand new & bigger premises; and we have loads of exciting things planned in the year to come. We look forward to sharing the journey with you! Until next month ~ happy gardening! Linda & The team @ The Green Life Soil Co In this newsletter:
Jobs for the November garden
What to plant now
Some ideas of what you can grow now include: Globe artichokes, Asian greens, Basil, Beans (Snake beans are a heat loving variety), Beetroot, Capsicum, Chilli, Carrots, Celery, Choko, Cucumber, Eggplant, Ginger, Leek, Lettuce, Melons, Mint, Parsley, Parsnips, Pumpkin, Radish, Rocket, Rosella, Silverbeet, Spring onion, Squash, Strawberries, Sweet corn (pictured above), Sweet potato, Tomato, Zucchini. OK - so a couple of herbs snuck on that list. But many herbs grow well in the warmer months - check out our 'When to Plant' guides HERE on our website. We have one for vegetables, and another for herbs.
Remember to plant out some summer flowering annuals. They'll add colour to your garden, and most importantly, provide food for our pollinators. We need to attract lots of pollinators to our gardens in order to have the best yield from many crops. Growing some colourful flowers in pots means you can move them around to dress up your outdoor entertaining area or to hide bare spots in the garden. Pest Repellent HerbsRegularly, we get asked which herbs are useful to plant around the house to repel flies and mosquitoes. Summer time is when we like to be outdoors, but these pests can ruin an otherwise pleasant evening. I wish there were sure-fire way to use plants to get rid of these pests, but there isn't a magic bullet. Generally, plants that have a strong scent when leaves are crushed or brushed against are useful as a deterrent. The strong scent is distasteful to insects and can confuse them. Some leaves can be rubbed against the skin; although you do need to be cautious as some may cause irritation (especially to young or sensitive skin). Test on a small patch of skin first to see whether there's any adverse reaction. Correct plant ID is always essential to make sure you're not dealing with toxic sap. Remember that 'natural' doesn't automatically mean 'safe'. Caution needs to be exercised when using herbs on your skin, on your children and your pets. If you're not sure - use a sprig pinned to clothing or wrapped in a small sachet. Some common aromatic herbs include:
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Thrive Sustainability - Lower Chittering 0408 157 301
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Waldecks Kingsley - 9309 5088
Waldecks Stirling - 9254 6730
Zanthorrea Nursery - Maida Vale 9454 6260
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Leschenault & Bunbury Markets - Fancy Plants Nursery 0428 844 597
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