Soil to Serving

Soil to Serving Soil to Serving is a growing library of individual plant guides and other resources to help everyday people grow, harvest and enjoy real food at home.

Last year my broccoli heads were riddled with bugs. 🐛🤢The heads were full of caterpillars, the leaves were riddled with ...
21/06/2026

Last year my broccoli heads were riddled with bugs. 🐛🤢

The heads were full of caterpillars, the leaves were riddled with holes and every harvest felt like a battle against cabbage white butterflies.

This year, my broccoli has been the most successful I've ever grown.

And surprisingly, it wasn't because I had no pests.

I found one green caterpillar early in the season and moved it onto a nearby nasturtium. I noticed a few cabbage aphids too, but after a storm, they disappeared.

Looking back, I don't think there was one single reason for the difference. I think it was the entire system.

The broccoli wasn't growing alone. Onions and spring onions grew nearby, dill and alyssum were flowering, and nasturtiums acted as a sacrificial crop. Together, they helped support beneficial insects and create a more diverse garden.

My horticulture studies have taught me that healthy plants begin with healthy soil and that integrated pest management isn't about eliminating every pest. It's about understanding the ecosystem, monitoring populations and intervening only when necessary.

I had caterpillars. I had aphids. I had pest pressure.

But none of those populations became a problem.

As gardeners, we often ask, "What product fixed the problem?"

But increasingly I'm asking, "What conditions prevented the problem from developing?"

This broccoli isn't the result of one spray, one companion plant or one gardening trick. It's the result of healthy soil, biodiversity, observation and allowing the garden ecosystem to do some of the work.

And for the first time, I harvested broccoli without worrying about what I might find inside the head. 🥦

85kg of pumpkin from my backyard. 🎃Just saved seed from a previous harvest, a little compost, sunshine and time.Those se...
07/06/2026

85kg of pumpkin from my backyard. 🎃

Just saved seed from a previous harvest, a little compost, sunshine and time.
Those seeds grew into 42 pumpkins weighing a total of 85kg.

We'll be eating them for months in soups, roasts, curries, pizzas and more and saving seed to do it all again this summer.

Honestly, pumpkins have to be one of the best crops you can grow.
They're productive, store for months, are easy to cook with and every pumpkin contains the seeds for future harvests.

Looking at this pile, it's hard to think of another crop that gives so much from so little.

If you're planning your summer garden, make room for pumpkins. 🌱🎃

16/01/2026

For anyone who’s heard fermenting tomato seeds is a myth, here’s why I still do it 🍅
You can skip fermentation and dry seeds straight onto paper towel.
They’ll often still grow.
I ferment because it breaks down the natural gel around the seed, the part that can carry disease and cause slow or uneven germination.
Fermentation also helps seeds store better long-term.
Properly dried and stored tomato seeds can stay viable for 5–10 years.
Skipping fermentation = higher risk, less consistency.
Fermenting = cleaner seeds and more reliable germination in my garden.
Just sharing what works for me 🌱

10/01/2026

Big zucchinis may look impressive,
But small ones keep the plant producing and
the kitchen sane.
Pick early.
Pick often.
Pick at 8-12cm
And let the plant keep doing what it's
designed to do. 🥒
Save this for later if zucchini season
always overwhelms you.
HAPPY GARDENING 💚


06/01/2026

🍅 Your tomato wants support, not control.
Grow up, not out.
Prune for airflow, not obedience.
And I'll never tell you to remove suckers
unless they're blocking air and light.
I'll always perfer an indeterminate tomato
Let it be a little wild 🌱💚🍅


30/12/2025

I used to think growth meant always
reaching.
Always moving.
Always chasing the next version of myself.
But the garden keeps offering a different
lesson.
Sunflowers follow the sun when they're
young.
They turn all day, searching for more
light.
And then they bloom... and stop.
Not because they've given up.
But because they don't need to chase
anymore.
There's a season for striving.
And there's a season for standing still
and letting yourself be seen.
I'm learning that rest doesn't come
before the bloom.
Sometimes it comes after.
When the work is done.
When you've arrived.
If you're in a moment of stillness right
now,
maybe it isn't a pause or a setback.
Maybe it's proof you've bloomed
Save this to remind yourself, to let
yourself be seen

25/12/2025

Christmas already?
Save this if summer snuck up on you, it's
not too late to plant a summer garden, it
just helps if you choose the right crops
These are summer vegetables that still
grow well!

Zucchini:
One of the fastest crops from seed to
harvest. Pick young and often to keep
plants producing.

Cucumber:
Quick growing and productive in heat.
Mulch well and water deeply to prevent
bitterness

Pumpkin:
Late-planted pumpkins may be smaller,
but they still flower, fruit and store well.

Sweet corn:
Fast varieties mature quickly in warm soil.
Plant in blocks for good polination

Sweet potato:
Thrives in heat and spreads fast. Plant
slips now for leafy growth and later
tubers.

Cherry tomato:
Much faster and more forgiving than
large tomatoes. Ideal for late summer
planting.

Capsicum (bell pepper):
Perennial in warm climates. Late planting
can still produce if nights stay warm.

Watermelon:
Veeds heat more than time. As long as
soil stays warm, vines will run and set
fruit.

You don't need perfect timing
You need warm soil, consistent water
and realistic expectations

Save this for when doubt hits 💚



19/12/2025

I stopped overthinking my worm farm 🪱

This is a lazy compost and worm farm
system and it turns kitchen scraps
into healthy living soil with almost no
maintenance.

It's an open-bottom worm home put
straight into a garden bed.
Worms compost from the top and move
down into the soil when they need to. No
trays. No stress.

Bonus: I move this once a year as I add
new garden beds.
That means the bed underneath is
already full of worm castings and organic
matter, no need to buy or add extra soil.

How it's set up:
• Worm bedding first (cardboard, sugar
cane mulch, newspaper, coco coir)
• Compost worms added to the bedding
• Kitchen scraps & garden waste on top
• Always cap with dry carbon (straw,
mulch, newspaper)
• Light sprinkle of dolomite occasionally
to buffer acidity

How to maintain it:
• Add scraps to one spot at a time
• Cover every compost "feed" with dry
carbon
• Water lightly only if bedding feels dry
• If it smells, add more carbon
• If worms disappear, don't worry they've
moved into the soil below

This style of vermicomposting is ideal
for hot Australian gardens, expanding
veggie patches, and anyone who wants
better soil without micromanaging a
worm tower.

I've used this system for years now and I
see worms everywhere in my soil.

sand is another good addition, worms
need a little grit.

Save this for later 💚

15/12/2025

Once your onion tops have flopped the onion won't get any bigger and it's a great sign to harvest your onions 🧅 Braided for airflow, stored for months. One of my favourite gardening jobs 💚

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