Five quick wins for your winter garden

For the time poor, stressed out, overwhelmed and uninspired

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Do you have a cup of coffee beside you? If not, go and make one and come right back.

Got it? Good. Take a huge glug and one deep breath. Today we are trying something new. Today we are going to get pleasurably manic. Today we are going to GET SHIT DONE.

I ran a little poll on my instagram this morning asking what things are currently keeping people from their gardens. I have to say I wasn’t even surprised by the answers - work, kids, renovations, illnesses, looking after parents and uncertainty about what to even do out there.

All totally, exhaustingly relatable.

Are you drinking your coffee? Have another sip.

Ok, so. I have this entirely irrational way of thinking about my life, I wonder if you have it too? I struggle daily to keep up with all these things that I have decided are “Very Important To Achieve RIGHT NOW”, while simultaneously convincing myself that oceans of calm, peace, relaxation and carefree leisure time exist just around the corner. And, if I can just finish this one last big project, all the chaos that surrounds me will melt, instantly into a new, glorious order.

The bench tops will be clear - always. I will find 15 minutes - daily - to exercise, I’ll discover a way to drink coffee without staining my teeth, and our house will baby-proofed to such an impossibly thorough extent that my husband and I will be able to sit at the back table, laughing about the misadventures of our 20s, our well-moisturised hands cradling nice wine in stemless glasses, while our son amuses himself contentedly with a toy that makes neither noise nor mess and some sort of modern, really-cool-but-also-calming soundtrack plays from the speakers in our wall.

We don’t have speakers in our wall. My hands are dry as an old boot, lined like the cracks in a dry river bed and our 17-month old son’s favourite way to amuse himself - currently - is to climb the HUGE LADDERS leaning against our partially demolished kitchen wall, beside power tools, builders sand, screwdrivers and rubble. Two days ago I fell down a small hole in the floor (and I have only JUST realised, in writing that, that this is the reason I can’t move my right ankle properly!!).

And yes, undoubtedly when our renovation is finished a little more order will be restored. But chances are we’ll find a way to fill the pleasant void with more madcap projects, and anyway, based on my instagram poll this morning, it certainly seems like life doesn’t ever, really, suddenly become calm, orderly and filled with peace. For any of us. Life is fast and furious and I’ve decided the only appropriate course of action is to stop waiting for peace to arrive and start finding ways to get my kicks now.

Have another sip of your coffee.

The long and short of it is, there’s no guarantee that any of us is ever going to ‘find’ the time we need to grow a garden we love (or adopt a wholesome exercise regime, cook all our meals from scratch, meditate, stretch, be present yada yada yada). Life will probably just keep on being hectic. So, I think we should just abandon the self-delusions, lower our standards and find a few, easy, practical, caffeinated ways to garden amid the chaos. And, most importantly, to enjoy it.

Here are five quick wins for your winter garden.

Sow broad beans

Broad beans are the easiest seeds to sow - they’re big, all you’ve gotta do is shove them into the soil. They’re the perfect size for kids to plant and, once they start growing, you can eat the tips and the flowers. The pods appear in spring and you harvest them as they ripen (start at the bottom of the plant).

You can buy seeds from The Seed Collection or The Diggers Club or West Coast Seeds (I haven’t bought from West Coast Seeds before but they are WA locals which is cool and should mean shipping is speedy). All the growing I instructions you need will be on the seed packet, but I also have a guide available here for my paid subscribers.

Fling poppy seeds

I’m a big fan of seeds I can fling around into any gaps in my garden, and if you want poppies this spring, now is the time to fling them! This is another one kids can help with. For a list of my favourite poppies, check out this guide, or if you wanna keep things fast and simple, just grab a packet of Flanders poppy seeds here (they are currently NINETY CENTS A POP), or these Icelandic poppy seeds here.

Plant an artichoke

Artichokes are the best, toughest and prettiest mediterranean plant, and they ask very little (just a sunny spot and some water over summer). They are DELICIOUS to eat and if you leave the buds on the plant they will produce spectacular flowers. Very low maintenance plant and one your kids could totally help you plant too. You can buy seedlings to plant now (don’t start them from seed - not worth the hassle or the wait time!). If you’re in Perth you can get them from Guildford Garden Centre now (just buy one - they’ll grow and multiply in your garden bed over time). Want more info? Check out my guide to growing artichokes.

Plant a pot of violas

Never underestimate the life-affirming potential of a pot of flowers! This is another one that can take all of 15 minutes and that your kids can help with (my main goal in life is now to get our son obsessed with gardening so that ‘parenting’ will one day turn into ‘just gardening together, nonstop, for the rest of time’. You just need a few nice pots, about 15-20cm in diameter, some potting mix (I use this one), and a 6-pack of violas (or pansies). Rextrain yourself and just put 1 seedling in each pot - they’ll grow to fill it and will appreciate the space. If you’re in Perth you can probably get everything you need from Dawsons.

By the way, in case you’re wondering if any of these businesses are currently sponsoring me - they’re not. I always worried about mentioning the brands of stuff I used or the places I shopped from, in case you thought I was just being a profiteering hack, then I realised it’s actually easier for you if I include all that info.

Drag a table (or blanket) into the sun

For our last quick win, we aren’t even going to garden. Although if you ask me, we all need a looser definition of gardening that can include things like just sitting in the sunshine. Today is a glorious winter day.

Our lives may be wild, or busy, overwhelming or uncertain. But let’s assume that none of that is changing any time soon. Let’s assume that all we have, for sure, is today. A patch of sunshine, with the people we love, all together in our less-than perfect lives. And who knows, maybe out there on the blanket, for those brief fifteen minutes (before work calls and the kids start fighting or the dog decides to throw up right next to you), it really will seem quite close to perfect, after all.

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