This site is to simply document interesting plants and growing techniques. It is a reference for me but hopefully you may find some of it useful somehow.

I’m especially interested in food produce including fruit and herbs.
But I also have a long developed interest in plants such as species orchids and many Australian natives.

My gardens

I grow a wide range of plants in several locations around Sydney.

The first main home location is what generally would be called a cold temperate climate in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney NSW Australia about 1000 metres above sea level. The weather can get pretty crazy here. We have many intermediate seasons and temperatures can vary from hot dry summers with several weeks at around 35+ degrees C in January down to about 1-2 weeks of snow at around 2-6 degrees C in July mid winter. After another warm spring transition period in September/October with electrical storms, in November we often have a lot of rain and even sometimes snow again. Being at a high elevation in the dividing range our UV levels can often rise into the extreme levels above 11 see http://www.arpansa.gov.au/uvindex/daily/ausuvindex.htm

The second main production location is in a warm temperate almost Mediterranean climate located at Arcadia in the north west of Sydney. It has an early warm spring and a hot dry summer with rain in February and March into autumn. The winter is short and cold but does not get frosts. It is ideal for growing a lot of different food plants including those originating from places like Mexico, South America and Mediterranean foods – like tomatoes, cucumbers, artichokes, olives, garlic, chili, capsicums etc. It is also ideal for growing those that just can’t survive the radical weather changes in the mountains and that need a long summer with some heat and sun.

The third growing area being currently developed is in a small old colonial farming area called Rydal just west of the dividing ranges. It has a moderate inland temperate climate that is on the dryer side in Summer with a fairly low to moderate rainfall overall and some good chilling hours during winter with a small snowfall during winter. It has a clay based soil in a protected valley and does not suffer as many extremes as further west. It is ideal for growing winter bulbs like Garlic and plants such as pomegranate, stone fruit and apples etc.

Production

I supply fresh produce – vegetables and herbs – to friends, cafes, restaurants and other people who like eating quality food.

I supply seed, plants and cuttings to a range of people. I am always interested in collecting and swapping seeds and plants with others.

Although I save as much of my own seed as possible produced each season to regrow, I’m always on the lookout for additional new varieties and forms of the same plants as seeds or cuttings etc.

I can grow to order some plants and produce. Usually due to my excessive propensity for collecting and experimenting I will fill all available growing space, but with enough lead time it is possible to allocate spaces for growing specific plants.

Other botanic related interests

I belong to or support a range of groups interested in growing plants and seed saving. Some are large and some are very small and local. Some examples are: