Spring into organic gardening

New issue out now!

Tomatoes are always a popular topic for organic gardeners – and for good reason – they are such a versatile crop, whether eaten fresh in salads or turned into sauces or chutneys or thrown into your favourite casserole. But they are also one of the most pest and disease-prone crops with any number of problems ready to foil your harvest.

For the October issue of Organic Gardener Linda Cockburn has put together a comprehensive guide to tackling pest and disease problems, plus, choosing resilient varieties. There are charts for common tomato diseases, common nutrient deficiencies, and pests. It will give you a good head start for the spring planting season and ensure a healthy bounty.

We also cover five top salad vegies to grow – rocket, tatsoi, mizuna, beetroot leaf and lettuce. Julie Ray adds some zing with quick, easy and tasty salad dressings and ideas to bring salads to life with ingredients like pickled vegies, cheeses and more.

We also head to Tasmania for some special articles. For years I’ve been wanting to entice Peter Cundall and his wife Tina to reveal their ornamental garden. Surprisingly, Peter is not only obsessed with fruit and vegies and describes Tina as the most dedicated flower lover he’s ever met! They have a wonderful range of  flowers from roses to irises, perennials, shrubs and trees, including a small woodland patch of golden daffodils. Flowers bring colour, beauty, beneficial insects, and can help promote a healthy backyard ecosystem, so consider including them in your garden this spring.

While down in Tassie we also feature Sally Wise and her new farm and cooking school. The popular author of countless food books for the ABC has found her nirvana in the Derwent Valley, close to Hobart, where she has oodles of fruit and veg to preserve and entice visitors with. Sally tells the story of finding the property and setting up her school, and throws in a couple of simple recipes as well.

And Justin Russell goes on a tour of organic hot spots in Tassie, from Willie Smith’s cidery to the Agrarian Kitchen. If you get envious we have a terrific competition to win a trip for two to Tassie which includes air fares from your nearest capital city, accommodation for four nights and a cooking class with Sally Wise! Plus don’t forget our other great competition: Patch from Scratch – a chance to win an urban backyard permaculture transformation. Entries close September 30th so don’t miss out.

AND you can download a free digital edition of this issue for your ipad from Apple newstand!