This week I noticed that our peas and cabbages are not growing well in our original annual garden. Yet they’re growing well in other gardens on our homestead.

Our original annual garden has been planted with annual crops continuously for almost 10 years now, are there are a few ways to interpret the changes that I’m seeing:

1. The soil is tired, lacks structure, or is depleted of a specific mineral or nutrient and I need to add a bit of this or that fertiliser. (we use compost, never fertiliser)

2. The growing environment has gradually shifted, with more shade and more fungally dominated soil. It has become more suited to perennials.

3. The pest load has increased in that specific area, to the point where growing is more difficult.

A commercial operation would likely use brute force to return things to a certain status quo, where the yields and profits are certain. Cut the large trees growing around the space, add some fertiliser. And I notice that as home gardeners we sometimes follow a “just fix it!” approach to growing, even though our needs are much more flexible.

A linear “fix the problem” approach is not the only way, whether growing commercially or on a small scale. Another approach is to think longer-term, and think about the yields suited to the current conditions.

So I’ve been planting more berries in this area to roll with the transition towards perennial, woody plants. I am also adding worm compost to some beds to help the current crop adapt and provide a yield. I will a quick crop of adaptable radishes to fill gaps, remove diseased leaves, and sometimes entire plants. As I roll with the changes, I also shift the environment so that plants are less likely provide habitat for pests.

If our food is connected to our being, to who we are, and woven into our environment, perhaps it should not be a commodity, with fixed prices and rigid markets. It should flow with the conditions around us, so that it is an expression of the creativity of the grower, and an investment in the health and wellbeing of the eater.

Workshops (Our annual worm composting workshop is this weekend)

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