So, how did I get started? As mentioned on my About page, gardening has been a passion and lifestyle in my family on both sides for a few generations.
Now, I did live for over 10 years in the Pilbara (in Karratha), in a coastal town which during summer regularly gets up to 45’ C (113’ F) and not much more than 19 days of rain per year, with a pretty good chance of a cyclone (hurricane/typhoon) hitting the town during wet season. And yes, I have been through quite a few.
So, the only way to grow any vegetables was throughout winter, which some of us colder climate people would call the perfect Mediterranean summer. The winters up in the Pilbara are beautiful, with some of the most mesmerizing sunsets and sunrises I had ever seen in my life.
Throughout the years I had always tried to grow something, be it papayas from seeds (never worked past the seedling stage) or simply having house plants, as the aircon would keep them alive during the summer times. I even used an old bathtub to grow some herbs and chilies in it.
I managed to grow some decent crops within one year, from tomatoes, to capsicums, herbs, beans, flowers, chilies … you name it. That year I saw as an experiment, to try out spacing, different soil components, seed sowing vs seedlings, watering frequencies and so much more. Every weekend I would do my research, read blogs and books, watch YouTube videos and browsed through Instagram garden accounts. We even build a little garden station, which I got extensive use out of, installed shade cloths to protect my plants from the harsh sunrays of the Pilbara and even connected my two large garden beds to our retic system. My gardening life was great! … and suddenly I started dreaming of something bigger.
I dare say I did pretty well during my time in the Pilbara, and my gardening journey continued in 2021 when we moved to Perth (Capital of Western Australia) where I was able to work within a well-tempered Mediterranean climate, in zone 10b.
What’s basically important to know is that no matter how much space you have or what climate you live in, you can start a garden anywhere. Be it small, large, outside, inside … any space will do as long as you have the interest, love and passion to learn and grow.
Watch this pace for more blogs to come about compost monitors, how I went from using the already existing veggie garden in our new house, to my current Corten steel garden beds and so much more. . . So what do you say – Get sowing and growing!
