Edible Landscape Projects and Blog

What do Britain's Jamie Oliver and Sunshine Coast's Bruce Molloy have in common?  A passion for real food that's what!

When Edible Landscapes owner Bruce heard about Jamie's Ministry of Food Australia, he was quick to get in contact with the Good Foundation and offer his expertise on the one ingredient that EVERY chef (or cook) MUST have - the very best fresh produce.

Bruce has long been an advocate of helping people to help themselves when it comes to growing then eating their very own fresh veggies, fruit and herbs.  The founding force in establishing the thriving Peregian Beach Veggie Village, his video documentary ''Stop in the Middle' earned a second place in the Erin Brocovich-sponsored International Environmental Crusader competition and a lunch date with the fiery environmental campaigner herself.

Says Bruce of his encounter with Erin, "I came away revitalised about working on sustainable projects with an even greater determination that you can succeed when you're ethical, passionate and refuse to give in!"

Through his Sunshine Coast-based company Edible Landscapes, Bruce has donated one of his starburst shaped Veggie Beds to the Ministry of Food Truck, a portable kitchen and learning centre currently at Morayfield Leisure Centre.

Setting up the Veggie Bed from the initial bed-building to the actual planting out took Bruce (with the help of the girls in the Ministry of Food van) around 4 hours.  Since being planted in early October the Veggie Bed has already provided fresh, nutrient-packed veggies and herbs to the van.

"We have loved having a garden to watch grow and feast from during our time in Morayfield" say the girls.

You can watch the short YouTube video of Bruce setting up the Ministry of Food Veggie Bed at www.ediblelandscapes.com.au

Bruce is now focused on delivering the health and lifestyle benefits of fresh-food production to as many people as possible, through his fantastically-easy-to-set-up-and-use Veggie Beds.

Bruce says the Veggie Beds product is one he is grateful to have found after a long and sometimes tedious search.

"I've road-tested so many different types of raised veggie beds from the traditional ones made from sleepers, to ones made from corrugated iron and a variety of different materials, but these, these are the Rolls Royce of veggie beds." Bruce laughs.

And by Rolls Royce, Bruce is quick to point out that he doesn't mean the Veggie Beds are expensive or gold-plated - but that they are design-perfect for the task in hand: setting up a vegetable bed to grow vegetables quickly and easily.

Made using food-grade plastic, Edible Landscapes Veggie Beds reuse waste products - including rice husks - to become a fantastically useful and sustainable product.

Veggie Beds come in all shapes and sizes, can be moved when you move (or want a change), are 'child's play' to set up, 'They're like Lego for your garden!" says Bruce, and will have you growing your own fresh produce right in your own yard immediately.

Veggie Beds are delivered right round Australia and prices start from just $93.50.  If you're looking for an unusual Christmas present that will keep on giving (and growing!) a Veggie Bed is the go!

For more information or to order, please call Bruce on 5448 3769 / 0411 518 773 or visit www.veggiebeds.com.au.

ENDS

I'm bringing home spent coffee grains from local cafes, mumbling about carbon nitrogen ratios and the autumn rains have subsided somewhat.

Must be time to build a compost.

The end result of composting is humus. Humus is a soil conditioner, soil improver, water saver, microbe habitat and is 'plan available' food for your garden.

I like my compost 'hot'. The volume and ratios result in a heated environment which hastens the composting process and gets humus into my garden faster than a smaller, slower, add-it-as-you-go type compost. And, as it's winter, our ducks are getting most of our food scraps. With a hot compost, ideally, we're looking for a carbon nitrogen ratio of 25:1. The nitrogen provides the proteins for the microbes to build their bodies so they can munch on the carbon materials and break them down into humus - the process of composting. Carbon materials are characteristically brown and dry. Think straw, paper, woodchips and sawdust. Nitrogen materials are generally green and fresh. Think green leafy material, fresh grass clippings, animal manure, blood and bone and azola.

I build my compost like a lasagne - a big 1 cubic metre lasagne of decayed organic matter containing gazillions of beneficial soil critters working fast. A layer of straw, then a layer of manure (I prefer cow), then a layer of water with molasses mixed in, then a layer of green stuff, then repeat that again and again until your pile is about 1 m high and 1 metre wide in both directions. Turn the pile every few days for the first week, then once a week after that. When the pile does not heat up significantly after a turn, it's ready - this should be a few weeks, depending on your climate. It will be cool and will look and smell like rich, dark soil.

Easy, quick and you may well have access to the ingredients for making a pile of 'the good stuff' in your backyard right now!

Compost isn't just about piling up layers of straw and cow manure. Observe and tend your pile. Watch the heat, the smell and the size over time.

If it's not hot enough?

We're aiming for a HOT compost here - stick your bare arm in to the middle and the temperature should be just uncomfortable. If it's not or if the pile is not breaking down as quickly as you would like, add nitrogen and check the water content. If it's too dry, add some water the next time you turn it.

Too hot?

If it's steaming and smelly and reducing greatly in size, there's too much nitrogen so add carbon.

Wet and heavy?

If your pile is leaching (water running out of the base) and soggy and heavy to turn, add some dry material on the next turn and consider the size of your materials. If your grass clippings are too fine and matting together, mix in some chunkier materials on the next turn as well.

Consider where you build your hot compost as well - build it on a new planting site, build it higher than your fruit trees or veggie beds so the nutrient that is leached (you won't keep it all in the pile!) is taken up by plants that can use it and/or use the heat generated to preheat your hot water, like Nic and Brad