Plant for the planet
by Metropol | July 23, 2025 8:30 am
Grow and harvest your own garden, plant native, focus on organic gardening practices – from garden to plate, and back again, sustainable living starts in your own backyard.
COMPOST
A sustainable practice and age-old action in recycling nutrients back into gardens, compost keeps waste circular. Instead of food scraps going into landfill, where its decomposing would emit the greenhouse gas methane, composting diverts valuable resources into soil. This significantly enriches soil health and nourishes plants, reducing the reliance on synthetic fertilisers. In short, you can use what you grow to grow even more.
HOW TO: To set up your compost, start with a sturdy structure in the sun – available at local DIY stores or build your own. Prepare layers of broken-up carbon (leaves, sticks, twigs) and nitrogen (fruit and vegetable scraps, lawn clippings, coffee grounds, tea leaves). For every layer of carbon, add a layer of nitrogen. Clue up on what to avoid – meat, dairy, and diseased plants. Cover with a lid, and mix regularly. It’s mature and ready to be used in your garden when brown with an earthy smell.
CONSERVE
Recycling food scraps is one way to be resourceful, yet there are other opportunities in conservation that contribute to a sustainable lifestyle. Hydrating your plants doesn’t always need to come from water mains – sometimes what we require mother nature already supplies. Conserving rainwater is a key element of sustainable gardening practice.
HOW TO: Set up a rainwater collection system in high volume areas such as downspouts to redistribute and irrigate your garden. If you’re worried about unwanted debris or insects entering your hydration station, simply install a fine mesh screen to filter rainfall.
GARDENING SCHOOL
Keen to develop that green thumb? Help is at hand…
Canterbury Horticultural Society New Zealand’s largest gardening and horticultural organisation, CHS offers gardening education and training courses aimed at upskilling home gardeners. chsgardens.co.nz
KoruKai Herb Farm
Located on Banks Peninsula, KoruKai offers courses in organic and regenerative gardening, as well as bokashi composting, worm farming and more. korukai.co.nz
Source URL: https://metropol.co.nz/plant-for-the-planet/