We all know veggies are good for us,
and there's nothing quite like
pulling your own fresh produce straight out of the soil.
But things don't always go to plan.
We've all sown a patch with good intention,
only to see it go sideways.
So today I thought I'd show you a few ways
you can help to protect and pollinate your vegie patch.
In nature, plants help each other out.
Your vegie patch is no different.
There's so many plants that can help with pollination and protection -
and they look pretty good too.
Strong wind can be really bad news for young plants.
Not only does it knock them around, it also dries out the soil,
which is providing them with all the minerals and nutrients
they need for a good start in life.
Small shrubs are the perfect way
to create that protected microclimate.
But the thing is, they've got to be plants that can handle it.
They can handle that wind, they can handle the heat.
And two plants that can do that are lavender and rosemary.
Lavender is a perfect go-to plant to provide a bit of wind protection.
If you clip them, they'll stay dense,
and they tend to provide a flower
pretty much from winter, right through to the end of spring.
When it comes to Rosemary, there's so many choices.
But the two main categories are either edible, traditional rosemary,
or our native rosemary.
In this case, we've got one there.
And you can see, as a stand-alone, it's doing its job.
If you wanted to make a hedge,
you could then put in some smaller plants and just keep them clipped.
When it comes to our native rosemary, there's so many choices.
This is a slightly more open-growing version.
If you don't want the more open version,
you can go with a variety that's more dense and compact.
And you can see here, the more it's cut,
the more you get this beautiful, fresh, green, dense growth,
which will really be a perfect windbreak.
There are some great options for protecting your plants from wind.
But what about protecting your soil?
Packing your patch can really help,
and give you the chance to get creative.
Typically, when it comes to adding additional planting in a vegie patch.
Most of us go with edibles.
So I'm thinking things like thyme, oregano, maybe sage.
I want to suggest to you,
why not look at making use of this space between plantings
so that you can bring some colour and some nice beauty to the garden,
and even traditional things like a pansy or a calendula.
I mean, calendulas are fantastic,
to see their happy, smiling faces in the garden.
In this case, this already has a sweet Alice here.
And I thought, well, maybe I could put a purple version of it
here on the corner.
If we're going to have a nice flowering plant here,
why don't we run a little bit of a row?
Planting more in your patch can help increase soil activity
and that acts like a living mulch.
They not only help the soil.
I also make it look really nice.
When you see a flower, you smile.
If you smile, well, that's therapy, isn't it?
So this is therapy for the soil.
It's therapy for the soul.
And when it rains, they're going to be extra happy, too.
I'm sure you know by now that I'm bee-mad.
I'll try anything to attract native bees to my patch.
There's so many benefits to having bees and bugs in your garden.
Pollinators are important for productivity,
increasing yields of fruit trees,
tomatoes and more.
If you plant something that flowers throughout the year,
or during that time when your patch is less productive,
for example, like this one that's in-between seasonal plantings,
then that's a great opportunity for you to attract beneficial insects
and keep them around,
because there's a reason for them to come.
The best way to get a good variety of pollinators into your garden
is to plant a series of flowering plants to invite them in.
Your delicious vegies are going to attract plenty of hungry mouths,
and I'm not just talking about yours.
What we've got here is a delicious smorgasbord for pests.
So what we need to do is think about how can we break this up?
How can we plant things that will bring insects and birds
that will act as predators on those pests.
For example, this grevillea.
It will attract small birds and other insects
that come to dine on the nectar and to shelter in the habitat.
Now, you might not necessarily have space in your patch,
and you don't want to take up that valuable real estate in there.
So what you could do is put this grevillea in a pot
and you can either sit the pot on the edge like that,
or even sit it down here.
And then that will still bring the beneficial insects and the birds
into the vicinity of your garden,
so they can still do what we want them to do.
This paper Daisy will grow beautifully
in and around and even underneath the brassicas,
and become a home for these beneficial insects.
And by them controlling the pests,
it means that we don't need to use harmful and toxic chemicals
on the food that we want to eat.
It really is win-win.
Just because it's a vegie patch,
it doesn't mean that that's all you have to plant.
I really love seeing all these plants working together.
And just like in life,
you can't get by without a little help from your friends.