Join a Life-Changing Organic Class

What is a class like at Ecobotanica?

It may change your life!

Credit for this video: Liam Brennan Film maker

How to Prepare a Banana Flower for Cooking 

My favourite way to enjoy banana flowers is in Seeni sambol. It’s a recipe that I enjoyed often when we had a Sri Lankan family staying with us.  Devika prepared it from any banana flowers we had in the garden. They never went to waste and the Seeni sambol is delicious.

However, correct preparation of the banana flowers is essential or your seeni sambol will be bitter. In this quick video, I  show you how to prepare the banana bell for this recipe.
The recipe for the seeni sambol is in my latest book ‘A Delicious Bunch, Growing and cooking with edible flowers’. Available from Bookstores or from my online store. Click here to order your copy.

Film credit: Liam Edward Brennan, Filmmaker

Elderflower fritters

When I think of edible flowers, my mind turns to elderflowers and making champagne and fritters.

The fritters are crisp, light and delicious.

This recipe is in addition to the scrumptious ones in my book : A Delicious Bunch, growing and cooking with edible flowers

Thanks to: Liam Brennan Film maker for this awesome short video

The Unboxing Video. I’m sharing the excitement and a sneak preview of the new ‘A Delicious Bunch’ books that have just arrived. 

I know this video of an UNBOXING may not go ‘viral’ like so many on the internet before it,  but at least it’s a little bit of a thrill for me to be able to share it with you. Liam rushed over and shot it live.  (It’s great to have talent in the family isn’t it?)

If you’d like a signed copy of the book, it will be for purchase at some of the events, starting with the QLD Garden Expo at Nambour on July 7-9 2017. I’ll be presenting there at the Kitchen Garden, Kitchen stage. More on the events calendar tab under the book. Click here.

You’ll also be able to pick up a copy at your local bookstore. You are going to love this book, I just know it.

Video credit:  Liam Brennan Film maker

How to Make Your Own  Rose Petal Jam 

This is the simple and rewarding way to create a jar of heaven from organically grown flowers that you’d normally just keep in a vase. When I serve this, it always tricks people… Is it strawberry? Plum? The flavour and soft texture is so scentsual.

Ingredients: 200g scented rose petals; 600g sugar; lemon juice; 600ml water; 1 dessertspoon jam setta

Thanks to the talented : Liam Brennan Film maker for this beautiful video

When to Harvest Eggplants?

It’s often a tricky thing, knowing when to harvest your eggplants.

Leave them too late and they are tough, too early and they are wasted and what makes the ends go sandy and brown anyway?

I’ve made this super quick video for you with the ways to know when your eggplants are ready to harvest.

Growing Peas in a Warm garden

It can be a challenge to grow peas in the subtropics as they suffer from the heat, acid soils and powdery mildew because of our warm, or should I say, balmy, winters.

But with a few key pointers, you’ll have a delicious harvest too.

A Taste of Summer- Pineapple skins and Lemon Verbena Green Tea

A quick video to show you how to use Lemon Verbena

Herb to flavour this refreshing summer drink made from a little used resource!

Winter Solstice Celebrations 2015

A wonderful night of mid-winter music, food, dance and labyrinth walking.

Harvesting Rosellas 

Have you successfully grown rosellas this summer?
I planted the seeds in November and they are now ready to harvest come autumn.
You may be wondering about harvest and using the bounty. Check out our 60 second video.

How to Plant an Organic Avocado

We all love avocados right? Well why not have your own. No space? Here’s a quick video about what to choose and how to plant a small organic tree for your backyard. These two varieties are tasty and small enough for many gardens.

Thanks to QLD Organics and Kathy for appearing on this video, providing some great fertiliser and gifting us the avocado for our orchard!

Citrus Secrets – Leaf Miner

We all love avocados right? Well why not have your own. No space? Here’s a quick video about what to choose and how to plant a small organic tree for your backyard. These two varieties are tasty and small enough for many gardens.

Thanks to QLD Organics and Kathy for appearing on this video, providing some great fertiliser and gifting us the avocado for our orchard!

Grow a green manure this winter

It will improve your soil carbon and fertility when dug in before flowering and may even give you a free meal!

This is our first of two green manures essential in the first steps on the road to organic certification of our property (June 2013)

Make your own eco pots or bio pots

Why buy your own pots to raise seeds and seedlings when you can make them yourself free of charge with recycled materials?

Here is a quick how-to video  with simple instructions for planting seeds too.  Remember the first water  of your seeds should always be with a seaweed solution like Seachange (from my on-line organic shop) and then keep the pots and potting mix moist for germination.

Once the seeds poke through, a warm spot in filtered sun is appropriate and remember to water with a liquid fertiliser like Fish and Seaweed weekly or use Backyard Box, once again from my online organic shop.

Happy planting!

Nobbly Carrots and Beetroots

Check out this 2 minute video for diagnosis as I’ll show you what root knot nematodes look like on tomatoes, beetroot and carrots. You’ll find a 4 step program for organic treatment and even possibly eradication!

Why have My Zucchinis died?
Oh no, your once thriving zucchini plant has suddenly wilted and died overnight. It happened in my organic garden recently.
Why would it happen and what can you do about it?

Aussie Native Stingless Bees 
Take a quick look at an active hive of native stingless bees.  You’ll see the hive box layers and the action taking place in the garden. Thousands of tirelss workers pollinating all your vegies and fruit. They are just great to have around! I do have some for sale as they become available once split. See my Organic Garden Shop  page for more details.

Beneficial Insects and Coriander on an Organic Garden

Why do I love my coriander going to seed?

I know, we all want leaves, not a coriander that bolts to flower then seed, but there is a bonus with flowering coriander.

Growing Cauliflowers Organically

A Mini video on growing your caulis deliciously, with a special tip for organic gardeners to keep you cauliflowers snowy white,(or in the case of the Violet Sicilian, bright purple).

Three Types of Heirloom Organic Kale

Not sure what Kale looks like?

Perhaps you are undecided about which one to grow? This 1 minute video will give you the leafy basics for the best kale. Please remember if you are in a hot climate that this vegetable grows best over winter. Mine attracts lots of aphids if I leave it in past Christmas.

Controlling White curl grubs

My raised bed vegie garden was producing beautiful crops until recently, but suddenly my seedlings started to get eaten- overnight! Does this happen to your vegies? Wait til you see what  I found in the raised bed.

How did I get rid of these hungry devils organically? Click to find out the solution and see if you have the same problem in your garden.

How to Control Fruit Fly Organically

Click on the link below for a quick video outlining the 4 easy steps to control fruit fly in your garden – organically.

No more maggotty tomatoes/spoiled apricots or smelly capsicums. AND no need to poison yourself or contaminate your food either.

Get rid of the pests organically and eat all of the harvest yourself!

Growing Your Own Organic Water Chestnuts !

They are a great vegetable for balcony gardens, kids love growing them, and they’re delicious fresh in your stir fries and Asian dishes. So much better than the canned sorts fromthe  store.

I show you how easy it is to get a wonderful harvest of water chestnuts in a large pot or tub. No rice paddy needed, and not even a bath as shown here.

And if you need some chestnuts to get started, contact me in Spring and early summer for a stash of your own.

How to Grow Organic Celery in 4 easy Steps – No Strings attached!
Does your home grown celery taste strong and grassy? Have you ever wondered how to blanch celery?
Is your celery stringy and tough? My easy steps for sweet, stringless celery will have you enjoying every morsel of your crop. PLUS, I’ll show you the secrets to blanching celery. It’s easy and really effective in providing you with delicious celery stems even the kids will like.