November 2024 Seed Raising at the Sustainability Hub, Randwick

Thanks so much to everyone who came to our November session at Randwick. We’re in the process of setting up a more formal seed saving group, so if you’re interested, please let me know!

We processed several types of seeds on the day including:

• Nigella damascena, love-in-a-mist, or devil in the bush. This flowering plant, belonging to the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, is one of the most beautiful flowers you can grow in your garden. Its seed has been used as a condiment. Unfortunately, the seed package was not labelled, so I originally thought these seeds may have been Nigella Sativa (black cumin), which looks identical and is also grown on our site — so apologies if that’s what I told you it was! Read more about damascena here.

• Mustard greens are spicy — I’ll say that up front because not everyone likes spicy. They can be grown as sprouts, spicy greens (we call them wasabi greens), and their seed pods can be roasted. They’re a brassica, and you’ll notice their leaves are thick like other plants in the Brassicaceae family, like turnip and bok choi. Read about the various ways to eat mustard greens here.
• Acacia suaveolens (sweet scented wattle) is part of the critically endangered Eastern Suburbs Banksia scrub community. I grow it outside my house and I can testify to its sweet smell, which is not at all overpowering. This wattle grows about 2.5 metres and has a lovely sprawling habit, with multiple stems reaching out in a vase shape. It produces masses of seed which I collect around October, and can be germinated using the hot water or scarifying methods. Read more here.

DIY Seed-Raising Mix Course, 22/8/21

Milkwood’s Best Ever Seed Raising Mix – recipe for your mix – you’ll need coir, worm castings, compost, coarse sand, aged manure

How to ferment and collect tomato seeds best ways to ferment and dry seeds

Coir Peat Bricks – get this $2 one, not the expensive $8 worm bed ones (exactly the same thing but 4 x the price!)

Gardenate – to find out what to grow in this season – choose temperate region if you’re in Sydney

How to Grow Microgreens and Sprouts – easy instructions and videos on how to stack

How to produce cuttings from herbs – sage, thyme, rosemary etc

14 store bought vegetables and herbs you can grow – easy video to follow – lettuce, celery etc

Local Seed Network Manual – free download

Seed to Seed Food Gardens – free download, written for schools wanting to set up gardens, but can be used for starting your home garden

Sydney local networks

Inner West Seed Savers – inner west of Sydney, Sells through Alfalfa House $1

Seed saving networks – alternative sources of seeds, find your local network – Buy Seeds Savers Handbook from here, this is the bible of seed saving, everything you need to know

Grow it Local – find gardeners close to you, list your own patch and seeds you have available

Best seed suppliers (non-GM, organic or heirloom)

The Seed Collection – Ferntree Gully, Vic

Greenpatch – Glenthorne, NSW

Eden Seeds – Beechmont, Qld

The Diggers Club – Heronswood, Vic

Boondie – New England, NSW

The Lost Seed – Macksville, NSW (great bulk seeds)

Seed Freaks – own seeds, 85% locally produced Tassie (many others are importing from overseas)

Happy Valley Sydney – Riverstone, NSW

Image courtesy Markus Spiske on Unsplash

A recording of one of my seed-raising sessions is available here.