January in the Garden

Welcome to this month’s newsletter. Now is a great time to think about your goals and plan this year’s garden. I’ve redesigned my kitchen garden for optimum production, created a plant list of species that will provide multi-functional benefits including biodiversity and have started implementing my plan.

This month, I share tips and resources to help you with your goals; gardening guides to make it easy; ways to garden in just five minutes; keep garden records; moon planting and what to do in your garden in subtropical Queensland. Plus I announce the winner of my Live Chat Garden Consultation. Dig in!

I grow plants for many reasons quote


Garden Goals for 2021

We are living in very uncertain times with many suffering from stress and health issues. One of the simplest ways we can empower ourselves is to grow food and medicine in our own well-designed garden. I urge you to consider prioritising your garden this year. If it’s been low on your radar, maybe NOW is the time to take positive action rather than procrastinate. Consider how you can make space for spending time IN your garden to expand its value.

In 2020, there was huge pressure on seed and garden supplies, food shortages in supermarkets and farmers trying to navigate new regulations to transport their produce. I believe food security begins at home – in our garden and pantry. Taking responsibility for what we eat and producing at least some of our own needs is vital to living more sustainably.

If the stresses of life or health issues are weighing you down, spending time gardening is a scientifically researched* way to improve these outcomes. A review of many studies* has found our diets improve through healthier eating; connection to nature** helps relieve mental fatigue; while physical exercise and psychological health improve, amongst other benefits.

Plant Life Balance ambassador and researcher Dr Dominique Hes says “Being able to see plants or be surrounded by them can be an effective mechanism of dealing with stress. Experts say tending to plants can be one of the most accessible and simplest ways to engage in mindfulness.”

* Soga, Masashi, Gaston, Kevin J., Yamaura, Yuichi, Gardening is beneficial for health: A meta-analysis, Preventive Medicine Reports (2016)

** Kaplan, S., 1995. The restorative benefits of nature: toward an integrative framework. J. Environ. Psychol. 15, 169–182.

Dementia study reveals gardening may prevent disease


Gardening Guides to Get you Growing

Healthcare can be expensive so doesn’t it make sense to learn how to save money and improve health by growing and eating nutrient-dense food and herbs? These are some tools to help you.


Easy Ways to Garden in Just 5 Minutes

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January 2017 Newsletter

Organic Gardening Tips for an Abundant Harvest

The Micro Gardener January 2017 Newsletter - Tips on Sowing Leafy Greens, Garden Journals, 2017 Garden Goals + My 2016 Garden Harvests

Hi and welcome to the first Newsletter for 2017 in a new fresh format!

Each month I’ll be sharing a short ‘How To’ video plus bite-sized tips and inspiration to help you grow an abundant, healthy garden in just minutes. Dig in!


5 Tips on Sowing Leafy Greens

In this quick 2 minute video clip, I share easy-to-apply tips on succession planting, varieties, microclimates, harvesting and nutrients.

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Like this video? Let me know in the comments if you found this helpful.


Leafy greens kale spinach in green smoothieLeafy Greens: Did you know?

Dark leafy greens are high in magnesium, an important nutrient often missing in our diets. This mineral is responsible for many chemical functions in your body and deficiencies can results in a variety of health problems.

Add a few spinach or kale leaves to smoothies, lightly steam leafy greens with your meals or enjoy raw in salads.

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Why a Garden Journal is Your Most Valuable Tool

Why Should You Bother Keeping a Garden Journal?

Because if you want to minimize mistakes and maximize successes and enJOYment in your garden, being observant and recording what you see is essential. Even a few brief notes in a Garden Journal can make a massive difference.

Why a Garden Journal is Your Most Valuable Tool - Want to minimize mistakes and maximize successes in your garden? Discover how keeping a Garden Journal can help you take a shortcut to becoming an expert gardener in your own garden. Keeping a simple record of what you observe is vital + SO easy. Dig in!

Most of us think we’ll remember what we’ve seen or done in our garden. But, time is a funny thing. It’s so easy to forget with the busyness of life, what we saw or did, and when that occurred. Where did last year go? In a flash!

Have you ever noticed holey leaf damage on a plant? Have greedy insects beaten you to it? It can be disheartening and frustrating to feel you can’t do anything about it.

  • But what if you knew that at a certain time each year, grasshopper eggs were going hatch?
  • What if you kept a record so you could put preventative controls in place to avoid that damage?
  • Would that be valuable?
  • Wouldn’t you feel a sense of satisfaction knowing what to expect and what actions to take when?

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