Feature Image: 2015 Feb First Crop of Butternut Pumpkins.
2015 Feb First Crop of Cucumbers.
2015 Feb More Cucumbers – Lebanese & Apple.
From the Vegetable Gardens of Allan & Jan Ivarsson.
Our Self-Sufficiency Circle starts with wife Jan Ivarsson retired Financial Accountant for Manufacturing Companies in Australia & New Zealand, as a specialist in Sewing making Quilts and clothes for family, including Grandchildren. Jan is not a Gardener, but she helps me, when I need a second pair of hands.
Allan Ivarsson retired Manufacturing Logistics Materials Manager and Class ‘A’ Consultant and previously Retail Manager, and Heavy Vehicle Truck Driver, now specialist professional writer and Gardener in Self-Sufficiency.
We plant Blue Berries, Fruit Trees, Mango’s, Pineapples, Strawberries, Tomatoes and Lettuce several varieties, Spinach, Herbs, Onions, Passion Fruit and are always exploring other ideas.
Below is my history of images in the Vegetable World but first an important story of young people doing the right thing in Australian Self-Sufficiency.
Allan Ivarsson 2022
Self-Sufficiency is Wisely Expanding in Gardening Australia
First… The Story of what other great younger Aussies are doing.
Second… Flashback to my adventure of building Vegetable Gardens in Images as a Senior.
ABC tabled this news report, “Homegrown produce and swap groups are breaking the supply chains that bind them.” (i)
Gardening Experience
Allan Ivarsson comments… Whilst it is an advantage not to be over dependent on supermarket chains, it is also an asset to save money by growing your own essential food supplies, by your choice of what you like. My wife Jan and I like different foods in somethings hence, we grow a variety of choices. The taste of quality food directly from the garden is far better than the taste of food that has been stored in cooler systems for supermarkets. A classic example is ‘Tomatoes’. The taste of refrigerated tomatoes makes them almost tasteless. Whereas tomatoes eaten directly from the garden are rich with excellent exciting tastes, in different varieties.
Of course, common-sense teaches us make sure you grow your food in quality environment in healthy soil and pollution free atmosphere. Read and learn from others and talk to experienced growers. I read subjects and made sure I understood how to do it well, before starting.
Diet diversity when you grow your own food may seem limited but remember this in hard times when we cannot buy ‘diversity’ like in famine, depression and war, just having food to eat to survive is the difference between misery and gratefulness for the right to survive.
And to succeed in growing your own self-sufficiency you must have the knowledge and skills to do it and the better your experience, the more confident you can feel in surviving hard times, which gives you a sense of peace of mind.
Our home is built on sandstone harder material void of good quality soil. Hence, I had to build raised gardens, or dig down and cutout hard poor soil material and replace it with quality soil that can be created by buying it and upgrading it with compost and fertilizers. I used both methods for different plant locations. Something to eat and something to decorate and help life to exist.
I even purchased large pots to grow things in. Just because you live in a unit place, does not mean you cannot grow some food in a pot.
Everyone must work out what is right for them. ‘Think Safety, Think Survive’. The wiser use dynamic planning which is wise and achievable. Remember, step by step small achievements is collectively better than big projects that fail.
Bringing the community together is the right thing to do with good caring people. It is great when we enjoy sharing with good neighbours.
Simply remember to enjoy peace, avoid the users, the leeches that focus on just taking.
I never joined a group, I simply became friends with good neighbours and we helped and shared with each other as friends, not by feeling forced to share, but by natural caring feelings of decency and concern, by helping each other. Millions of good neighbours work and help each other this natural way.
When you are working elsewhere in long hour jobs, you may just as a hobby grow things to eat. There has been many a time at night when I went out with a torch, to kill snails and slugs. That is part of the experience of being a hobby farmer. Part of your weekend may be useful for relaxation, exercise and the enjoyment of watching things grow.
Where we live in Australian bush, we have the problem of Wallabies. They may look cute and they are an important part of our wildlife, but they can also be pests, they want to eat many things, not all, in our gardens, hence, veggie gardens need fencing to keep them out and to avoid excessive fencing, we have to grow trees, shrubs and plants that wallabies do not like. We lost several plants that look great in city suburbs but we cannot grow, because wallabies eat them into non-existence.
Read the following ABC report, I extracted the information (i) onto a slide, just in case the information vanishes from the Internet, which would be an overview loss of important insight.
Flashback to my adventure of building Vegetable Gardens in Images as a Senior.
This is how I began in my retirement of among many projects on our 12 acre property of building vegetable gardens on our hard land that was limited in fertile soil for growing vegetables and fruit trees. Being pensioners, we are not rich, we own our own home, but we do not have much money, so I had to be frugal in budget to build these vegetable gardens.
The work of building and managing ‘Vegetable Gardens’ is not that hard for the organised, and the bountiful benefits are exciting and far cheaper than buying supplies from supermarkets. In fact, when you learn natural self-seeding, costs are reduced even more.
Image History
In the Beginning the Idea when nothing existed.
By Allan Ivarsson
Author Designer of ‘Philosophical Intelligence’.
February 2014 – Before the vegetable garden was built in cleared area at back of roses.
The planned vegetable garden is located in front of the back section of our house extension including Carport, which I designed in March 2012 on graph paper, measured out, including designing ensuite and laundry and all shelving and location of additional water tank and then I passed the drawing forward to a licensed Architect Drawer and finally a selected builder after I interviewed several builders. The extension project was completed by first month of 2013; including council approved extended Septic Tank support.
March 2014 – Finally I took time out to build a 6 bay annual rotation vegetable garden. Chocker with a large range of food- tastes better than retail supplies. Jan & I assembled the frames. I loaded the soil & fenced off protection; Jan planted the vegetables using companion planting techniques. Now we both just look after them each day; 10 minutes per day- easy huh?
March 2014 – To think when we started in 1992, we were surrounded by just Australian dense bushland. Hi Hoe! Hi Hoe! off to work we go! No this is not the tale of Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs.
March 2014 – A variety of Tomato Plants in foreground starting to grow up.
March 2014 – Easy access to vegetable garden from kitchen & barbecue.
March 2014 – Sugar Cane Mulching was laid by yours truly, along dirt path a day after this photograph was taken. The yellow flowers are Marigold to protect vegetables from pests.
March 2014 – Another view. Mango tree in background gave us a large crop of 100 Mango’s between December 2013 & January 2014.
In 1992 when we purchased this land, the ground was all bush and hard rock soil. Using 19th century methods, no Chainsaws, no tractors or Oxen methods, I built this property by hard work. It took me five years, 2005 to 2010 to build all the raised bed rock gardens by hand. We had an overflow of bush rock on the property 100 metres away, I dug it out, piece by piece, over five years by wheelbarrow, with mattock, pick and sometimes crowbar, finally moving it into place. As each rock garden section was completed, I brought in soil to start planting. After the rocks were moved, I filled the holes with soil.
All the tools I used, were axes, spades, handsaws, hoes, mattock, picks and crowbar and rakes, hand trolleys and wheelbarrows. The rest of the work was persistent toughness of mind and physical strength, given to me by my younger years of weightlifting training.
The images of all the other gardens before creation of vegetable self-sufficiency is another story. One day down the track.
March 2014 – Yum! We picked our first lettuce leaves for salad yesterday.
March 2014 – Our swivel head Owl stands guard against pests. In the wind the Owl spins it’s head to keep an eye on things. Sorry, this is not the story of the Owl & the pussy cat.
Trailer Another Story not yet told.
2015 Mar 30, Rock Gardens Progress Tracking with Wallaby visitor.
The Double Garage was not built until 2011 after the large rock garden was completed between 2007 to 2010 by me.
My vision for our Property is a Private Heritage ‘Bird Sanctuary’, A Wildlife Corridor and if I can find someone to help me, a Koala Habit. We are all duty bound to protect our planet and wildlife and vegetation and waterways from pollution destruction and excessive clearing. We must always use ‘Gaia Management’. The Greens do not understand this concept. I do.
17th October 2010 completed this large rock garden with volcanic rock pathways, a job I started in 2007. Now to establish plants. Septic System surrounded by garden which I extended further in 2012 underground, down the back to a larger section I cleared, which the wallabies love.
ELEPHANT FEEDING IN THE GARDEN – 9th November 2010 This Rock Garden Art was designed, built and photographed by Allan Ivarsson 2010.
I have many stories to tell about my life’s adventures. Read AI Profile Eight First.
In fertile grounds void of rocks and sandstone base near surface, there are other methods that do not need the raised garden methods I had to use. But that is another story.
Allan Ivarsson 2022 (now 73 years of age.)
Founder, director, chairman of ‘things to come’ called ‘Cosmicism’. The way of ‘Blue Light Cosmic Philosophy’, the way of ‘Cosmic Libertarianism’ which uses the most advanced intelligence in the Universe called ‘Philosophical Intelligence’.
