Growing Greens in a Drought - Jane's Patch
Accessing and eating fresh, nutrient dense, chemical free food is a very real challenge for many who live in rural and remote parts of Australia. Despite the many challenges, people like Jane Kinnon and her family are overcoming them and eating some of the most amazing greens I’ve ever laid my eyes on!
Jane lives with her husband and family on a cattle property in central western highlands, Queensland, two hours from the nearest regional town. They have an average annual rain fall of 20 inches and have lived there for 31 years.
I asked Jane to be a guest on my blog because I think that what she’s doing is incredibly inspiring! Jane is a member of Joy's Fitness Hub, and she graciously answers my questions below…When did you start growing your own veggies?
In the early years, we struggled with the dramas of growing in an open plot, because it was exposed to the elements and we only had a short window to have everything bearing in autumn (before the winter gets too cold) and spring (before the onset of the summer heat). Add to this trying (in vain) to keep the moisture levels up… we had struggling plants, bugs, grubs and pests! But then 11 years ago we made the covered patch. This was a game changer.
Luckily, we have made some water improvements to ensure we have plenty of water even through the drought. We have a foundation of sandy loam soil and lovely light alkaline dirt that will grow anything if you just add water! A bit of mulch and cow manure also bring great rewards.
What’s the covered veggie patch like?
The covered patch is 22 x 8 meters and was made by stretching shade cloth over 63 mL poly-pipe that had been curved & pushed securely. Steel framed ends and posts were made to fully enclose the garden. We ran sprinkler lines suspended from the ceiling of the enclosure. We topped the soil of this plot with a layer of well mulched manure and rotary hoed it into the soil. Then, we divided the area into 4 long rows where we plant the veggies.
What are the main benefits of growing your own this way?
The benefits of the covered patch are endless! The patch is protected against the summer heat, dry winds, inconsistent watering and frost in winter. Plus, we no longer have a pest problem, which I believe is due to healthy plants and the enclosure.
We use no pesticides, herbicides or manufactured fertilizer. We were a bit concerned about the plants being pollinated without bees, but everything bears abundantly with only the aid of ants!
What are you growing at the moment?
Zucchini, spinach, baby spinach, Bok choy, cabbage, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, beans, snow peas, tomato, eggplant, beetroot, lettuce, capsicum, dill, chives, shallots, parsley, oregano, thyme & basil. We also grow edible flowers including violas, nasturtiums and marigold.
What are the main benefits?
There is no greater reward or pleasure than picking your own freshly grown vegetables!
We have year round supply of organic vegetables that last so long when harvested. We don’t have to worry about keeping cool bought veggies on the trip home from town, nor do we have to worry about what our veggies have been sprayed with.
If we have an abundance of something, my daughter Ainsleigh comes up with some pretty special recipes!!
Ainsleigh’s broccoli basil pesto recipe:
- Handful of basil leaves
- 2 heads of broccoli
- 1 cup cashews
- 1 tbsp sesame seed
- ¼ cup walnuts
- Salt & pepper
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Garlic
- 4 tbsp olive oil
Method: Blitz everything together until the broccoli until you have a pesto consistency. Keep in a glass jar pouring extra olive oil on the top to keep it longer (it’s lovely on veggies, in a pasta dish, on crackers, or stuff into mushrooms/chicken thighs & bake).
We find that if we immerse broccoli, spinach, Bok choy, beans, snow peas in water after picking for about ½ hour, then shake the water from them and store in the cold room/fridge, they stay crisp for a lot longer.
All the unusable waste goes to the chooks where we get the most amazing quality eggs!
What tips do you have for those who are just getting started?
Make your garden as easy to care for as possible, because if it’s too hard, you’ll give up. We had the initial time and expense to get our covered garden up and running, but it was built for the long term, is easy to manage and it works.
I just love what Jane and her family are doing. The investment they made 11 years ago to cover their patch has resulted in over a decade of "champagne nutrition" at their fingertips!
