The art of gardening

Growing a flourishing garden might look challenging for some, but it's easier than you might think

- carrol baker

You probably know someone who has a beautiful garden that they seem to effortlessly nurture, filled with fragrant blooms or a bountiful harvest of fresh fruits and vegetables. They are in on a little secret. The key to growing robust plants is about understanding the basics things like orientation, nutrition, hydration, sunshine, plant species and soil type. Finding the perfect balance with these things will help your garden thrive.

Colin Purnell from Earthlife says minerals, microbes and moisture are the three most critical elements. Besides ensuring your plants have sufficient moisture, sourcing the right microbial rock mineral product will help to encourage healthy plants. "Microbial technology adds beneficial microbes and fungi species to the soil,” he says. Colin adds that it’s important to source products with a high silica (over 10 per cent) content. “This improves cell structure, creating thicker cell walls in plants, which in turn enhances moisture movement through the plant, helping to reduce insect and disease issues,” he adds.

“The soil in Australia is already compromised, as stated in the 1992 Earth Summit — information shows soils are 55 per cent mineral depleted,” says Colin. Adding compost and manure provides organic material to the soil, but they aren’t offering sufficient minerals to address the mineral depletion issue.

FINDING THE RIGHT SITE FOR YOUR GARDEN BED