Category 28

Far more than an online gardening shop offering good old-fashioned customer service, Brian and Kaylene Chapman’s Aussie Gardener Store website has built an online gardening community where you can shop, share, connect and learn.

Aussie Gardener Store’s aim is simple: to simplify gardening so everyone can give it a go and succeed. Whether it’s through the rigorously tested range of products, the unrivalled customer and after-sales service or the growing online community supporting new and experienced gardeners on their journey, Brian, Kaylene and the Aussie Gardening team want to help.

Pip partners with brands who align with its values. Ethical companies producing good- quality products that don’t harm the planet, instead aiming to improve it. Browse more ethical companies you can choose to support at www.pipmagazine.com.au

Catalyst Soil Conditioner Liquid is a fermented fertiliser containing a balanced formulation of beneficial microbes and more than 80 essential minerals so that passionate gardeners, professional growers and farmers can achieve first-rate results in soil health, plant nutrition and yields.

I was immediately attracted to this tarpaulin because it is made of canvas. Most tarps these days are made of polyethylene and over time they get weak and degrade, shedding strips of plastic all over the place as they eventually fall apart.

The beauty of canvas is it is strong and it won’t break down as quickly. And unlike the old blue tarps, it won’t shred micro plastics as it ages. Canvas tarpaulins are breathable and won’t sweat, and they have that beautiful unique smell of canvas, which reminds me of camping as a kid.

The Aussie Gardener canvas tarps axre made of a sturdy 340 gsm canvas so are great to use as covers and as part of your camping set-up. They have reinforced stitching for strength and the larger sized options have double-stitched seams where the canvas is joined together. They are UV stabilised and have anti- mildew properties, too.

The country is at a crossroads. In The Wires That Bind, inventor, engineer and visionary Saul Griffith reveals the world that awaits us if we make the most of Australia’s energy future.
Griffith paints an inspiring yet practical picture of empowered local communities acting collectively when it comes to renewable energy, and benefiting financially. He considers both equity and security – an end to dependence on foreign oil, for instance. He explores the rejuvenation of regional Australia, as well as the rise of a new populist movement driven by Australian women.

We love seeing what kids are growing with their families in their gardens, so snap and email us an image of what you’re harvesting at the moment.

Send the photo to editorial@ pipmagazine.com.au, and our favourite will receive a copy of Slow Fashion by Megan Anderson. This issue’s winner is four-year- old Freyja Helland from Bega, NSW.

The moon’s phases and its associated gravitational pull has a significant effect on the behaviour of tidal oceans, so it’s easy to understand how the moon can have a similar effect on the moisture in our soils and plants. By planning what you sow to coincide with the phases of the moon best suited to the type of vegetable and how you’re planting, you’ll give yourself a higher chance of success as well as increase your yields.

Striking in their appearance, Turkey tail (Trametes versicolor) mushrooms have been a favourite among foragers all around the world for many years due to their immunity- boosting properties.

Found in damp forests growing on dead or decaying hardwood trees, logs and stumps, turkey tail mushrooms are saprotrophic, which means they get their nutrients from dead organic matter which is breaking down.

As a result, they play an important ecological role in decomposing dead trees and recycling nutrients back into the forest ecosystem.

Silverbeet is native to the sea coast of Spain, Portugal and islands of the Mediterranean Sea. Wild sea beets are still found in the Cape Verde Islands, the Canary Islands and Sicily. Beetroot, sugar beet and forage beet are also classified as Beta vulgaris.

Silverbeet, also called Swiss chard, has been used for human consumption and animal fodder for centuries. Rainbow silverbeet has has purple, orange, yellow, pink, red or yellow stems.

Not a conifer or an oak as the name would suggest, the coastal she-oak is native to southeast Australia. A member of the Casuarinaceae family, she-oaks are drought hardy and fire resistant.

Aboriginal use of native plants is often threefold. The plant may provide a valuable resource in the manufacture of tools, weapons and/or utensils. It may also provide an ingredient that either has medicinal value or be a source of nutrition.