Green Cocktails

Want to go green this Christmas but don't know how? A little over the traditional poinsettia in a pot? 

Maybe you have to buy for that hard to buy for person? You know the ones.  The ones that have the ability to acquire all that they want and don't really like home wares or nic knacks, or have a small family and aren't really into a movie gift card....

You want to get them something planty of course, but what plant?

Light bulb moment!

Cocktails, Thai takeaway, Italian lovers and an office romance sound like pretty good gifts but we are supposed to be talking plants ... 

I am talking plants, just looking at them from a different view. 

Cocktails

 All I need is a cocktail recipe and the ingredients.

I found the recipe for Real Lime Mojito - lime, mint, sugar, rum.

I planted one of Trevallan's dwarf Tahitian Limes in a terracotta pot and under planted it with mint. I used Searles' Peat 80 potting mix, fertilised it with my organic fertiliser 'Organic Link' and put some mulch on top (I used pine bark). I than printed the recipe onto some decorative paper, laminated it and attached it to the tree. Tall glass and rum was bought and I placed this under the tree and BOOM - cocktails done!

 

 

 So everyone wants to have a herb garden but herb garden as a gift seems soooo boring. 

Why not give someone an "Italian Lover" or "Thai Takeaway".
 

Italian Lover

A large terracotta pot with rosemary, thyme and parsley. 

Thai takeaway 

I collected a group of terracotta pots all in different sizes and planted lemongrass, ginger, mint, chillies and coriander. 

For both pots I used Searles' Peat 80 potting mix, fertilised it with 'Organic Link' and put some mulch on top.

Office Romance

Zanzibar Gem, one of the hardiest indoor plants, place it in a planter and take to work. A planter is a pot without a hole. You don't plant in these pots you just place your plant in them. Because they don't have a hole they are great for indoors - when you water, water doesn't go everywhere.

Another idea I had for those that have a vegetable garden already - I wrapped a box and filled it with organic fertilisers, organic pest control and a book on attracting good bugs to the garden.

So many ideas - it feels like I've got a 1000w light bulb moment!

If you are struggling to come up with present ideas for family members and friends, Trevallan may just be where you need to go shopping this weekend!

Trevallan would love to help you put some green back into Christmas this year. 

Don't Blame it on the Sunshine

What type of gardener are you?

I’m the one that has 15 minutes to spare so I’ll try to get as much done as possible. I don’t care what day, month or year it is. Things get trimmed, fertilised, sprayed and planted when I say so.  

Are you more of a follower of the rules, like only plant your sweet peas on St Patricks Day?’

Are you a seasonal gardener, only plant in the spring, trim in the summer and rest in the cooler months?

No matter what type of gardener you are does it ever feel like you are just unlucky in the garden and then once in a blue moon you hit jackpot and everything goes according to plan? Or are you always lucky and once in awhile things go astray and you just can’t explain it.

Have you ever tried to germinate seeds and sometimes you get 90% success rate and other times not one measlyseed grows yet you did nothing different?

It’s not just you. It happens to everyone.

The good thing is The Jackson 5 and myself may be able to explain it.

Don’t blame it on the sunshine,

Don’t blame it on the gardener,

Don’t blame it on the good soil,

Blame it on the Moon!

For thousands of years people have been practicing Moon Planting.  

Moon planting is based on the synodic period of the Moon from one New Moon to the next, an average period of 29.5 days.

 

Over this time, farmers observed that all aspects of farming seemed to be affected by the interaction of the gravitational forces between the Sun, the Moon and Earth. The plant geeks, scientists, have found variations in sap flow, biological functions in plants and the subtle changes in Earth’s electro-magnetic fields correspond to the Moon’s gravitational pull. For us non plant geeks just as the moon influences the seas tides, it also affects the motion of water in plants and soil. The ebb and flow of this water can have an impact on seed germination, flower development and fruit production.

Ok, so how do we unlock the secrets to moon planting? With a Moon Planting Calendar of course.

Moon Planting Calendars can help unlock the secrets of the lunar cycles with easy-to-follow directions on the right time to plant, when to fertilise, when to cultivate, when to harvest and when is best to time preserve fruit.  

My grandfather swears by Thomas Zimmer’s Moon Planting calendar. It is produced in Australia for Australian conditions.

This moon planting calendar is a detailed chart that gives the correct lunar and astrological planting times forfruiting and leafy vegetables and covers the best times to weed, transplant seedlings, prune, harvest and irrigate.There are even instructions for those new to gardening by the moon.  The calendar also contains astrological information such as moon phase, equinox, solstice and eclipse dates and times, including annual planting by the moon guides as well as an astrological commentary on the year to come.

2014 - who knows what it will bring but I’m sure if you follow Thomas Zimmer Moon Calendar your garden will be bountiful. I also promise when you come into Trevallan Lifestyle Centre to get your moon calendar I won’t serenade you with my Jackson 5 song!

Uncoordinated Wins Again

I’m not what you’d call a sportswoman. I’m a little uncoordinated.  At school I was the child the sports’ teachers would shake their heads at when they saw me coming.  I’m sure they were thinking there is no hope for this one.  Apart from winning most improved player for about three years in a row for basketball, I don’t have that many awards from childhood.

 

I’m sure making up for it now.

 Last Friday night I attended the Nursery and Garden Industry Queensland Award Ceremony.  During the night I had one of those “this is your life moments”. The presenter started to read a story about a girl who seemed to have accidentally fallen into horticulture while looking for her dream job. 15 years on that girl discovers she is working her dream job.

 As the presenter was reading this story I got thinking, this girl sounds a lot like me.

He then announced “The Queensland winner of the Heather Ramsey Young Leader Award goes to – Chelsea van Rijn.”

 It took a moment, hang on that’s me. Wow.

 I WON.

 But what does this mean?

The Heather Ramsey Young Leader Award recognizes and rewards the outstanding achievements of individuals in the Australian nursery and garden industry, who display exceptional commitment and passion towards their business, the industry and industry leadership potential.

That’s me. I’m young (this is my last year of being young though), I’m committed to this industry (long days and sometimes longer nights) and gardening is my passion.

 But it’s not just the physical aspect of gardening. It’s the sharing component I love. I love enabling others to enjoy gardening with my few simple tips. I love going to clubs and talking gardening. I love writing my gardening blog and using Trevallan’s Facebook page to keep you updated and informed. I don’t get paid to write my gardening column that appears in the Queensland Times, I do it because I want to share with you all this wondrous thing called gardening.

 It was an amazing experience to be recognised and awarded this award by my industry peers.   I couldn’t have won this award without you.

 It is because of my customers, my family and my mentors that this award was possible.

 The other day a gentleman came into Trevallan Lifestyle Centre to tell me he hated mowing. He read my lawn challenge article and thought I was crazy saying I loved to mow. He followed my simple steps and now he loves to mow. His granddaughter loves coming over and running barefoot on his lawn. He mows twice a week and loves sitting back to admire his handiwork.

It’s because of happy customers and family who are gardening enthusiasts that my passion has grown. It’s because of you I want to achieve more so I can give you more.

I am so proud to win this award. Thank you for helping me turn my passion turn into an award. I hope we can continue to share this passion for many years enabling us all to have amazing gardens.

Who am I?

Every Wednesday on Trevallan's Facebook page is "Ask it Wednesday?" A day I leave the page open to any questions the followers can throw at me and I attempt to answer them.

It's become a much anticipated day with many people tuning in to see what has been asked and of course what I've answered.

I have developed such a great personal rapport with so many of Trevallan's followers that I forget to some I am just a business on a computer screen.

This became evident when a few weeks ago on "Ask it Wednesday?" I was asked "What's my Horticultural background?"

I realised at this point that so many of you may not realise who I am - the face behind Trevallan's web presence.

I am me.

How to describe me, well first you need to know my family.

I come from a family of gardeners. My knowledge is book based but most comes from being surrounded by it all my life. It's amazing what you can learn just by listening.

My grandparents were gardeners. Their vegetable patch sustained the family, so no outside food had to be bought in apart from meat. My grandfather also loved to fiddle. His true love lay with camellias and azaleas and he self taught himself to cross breed, graft and do cuttings. He was also a lawn fanatic. Think bowling green, see my grandfathers lawn!

My parents before going into retail had a successful landscaping business 'Trevallan Landscapes' that would have been in operation for about 30 years today had my father not died in 2000. Trevallan Landscapes was high in demand and I remember my father travelling all over Queensland doing landscaping work - private and commercial. Working for him was also a great way for me to earn pocket money as I grew up.

I finished my bachelor business degree in 1999 and after my father died began working at Trevallan Lifestyle Centre full time.

Since than my pieces of paper have increased - I have a Certificate III in horticulture, am a Certified Nursery Professional, am chemcert qualified, have been a national finalist for Young Horticulturalist of year and been a HAL emerging Leader. I am also a member of the Horticultural Media Association Qld and am a committee member for local garden club 'Glebe Garden Club'.

As quickly as my pieces of paper increase so does my workload. I now write a weekly gardening column for Ipswich's local paper "The Queensland Times", I write for the gardening magazine 'About the Garden'. I write this blog, manage Trevallan's social media - Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest and this blog plus work at Trevallan. Lucky for all of us Trevallan is run by my mum who works there tirelessly so I can do all this other fun stuff! I also love giving gardening related talks to social and gardening clubs.

While I've been paper collecting so has Trevallan - over the years Trevallan has won a few awards, one I am most proud of is Best Small Garden Centre in Qld in 2010.

As many of us know knowledge isn't gained just from reading a few books. Knowledge is made up of a lifetime of asking questions and determining what you believe is right answer.

I attend as many industry run events and read as much as I can so I can try to stay onto of new information, plant releases. I also try to take the time to listen to my customers, my growers, my suppliers as I find they've tried and tested many things I wouldn't get a chance to try in my lifetime.

Basically I Live it breathe it!

But horticulture isn't my only love - aromatherapy is another passion. In between all my paper getting for horticulture I also completed - Certificate Four Massage Therapy, which included Aromatherapy I.

In October 2012 I won a world wide competition to create my own essential oil blend. This blend 'wisdom' is produced by internationally renowned aromatherapy company Perfect Potion and sold at Trevallan as well as world wide via Perfect potion stores and online trading.

Life isn't just about fertilising and sweet smells because in-between all that I'm nurturing a young family with three children six and under.

So that's me.

The girl behind the computer screen.

 

The Secret

I have discovered the secret to great looking plants.

 

Trace Elements.

 

Trace Elements isn’t some brand spanking new fertiliser on the block. It’s an essential item to healthy soils.

 

Most gardeners are going ‘pfft’ - I so knew that.

 

Well you might know it but how many of you use a complete trace element mix on your gardens at least once a year? What about your pots, at least twice a year?

 

It seems everyone fertilises and expects to see results. What happens when you do all the right things but you don’t see the results you want? 

A common question is – “I’ve given my plants all the TLC they can handle, I’ve fertilised, watered well, even checked the pH level and it's perfect.  What could possibly be wrong with my plants?

Trace elements.

 

Most of us are aware that plants require mineral nutrients for their growth and development. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, the macro elements, the names that usually appear on fertilizer packages, whether you use organic or chemical fertilizers.  It is sometimes assumed that they are the "important" nutrients.  These macro elements are just consumed by the plants in large quantities. Trace elements, micro nutrients can often be forgotten about as they are required in minuscule quantities.

When it comes to macro elements being the most important nutrients, nothing could be further from the truth. Trace elements like Manganese, Iron, Zinc, and Copper, are every bit as vital to the plants metabolism as nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous. They have essential functions and so a deficiency in even one element will adversely affect the healthy growth of the plant. Strangely enough some trace elements when present in excessive concentrations are actually poisonous for plants.

Common gardening practices (such as liming acid soils) can contribute to widespread occurrence of micronutrient deficiencies in plants by decreasing the availability of the micronutrients present in the soil. Also, extensive use of glyphosate (most common weed killer) is increasingly suspected to impair micronutrient uptake by plants, especially with regard to manganese, iron and zinc.

So how do we pinpoint the problems in our soil? We can get a leaf or soil analysis.  Yeah right! I couldn’t be bothered with all that.

So what do I do?

I use Plant of Health’s Bio Trace. It has a blend of the key micronutrients (e.g. iron, cobalt and manganese) supported by macro elements. It is also contains fulvic acid to further enhance growth and health.

The best thing about Plant of Health’s Bio Trace, you mix some up in a watering can and pour it over the plants foliage or as a soil drench. Done. Couldn’t have been easier.

Go on breathe some life into your garden and use Plant of Health’s Bio Trace.

Careful though, when you see the difference it makes you’ll be buying it in bulk like I do now!

Dirty Clothes lead to Healthy Garden

Strangely enough I’ve found that gardening infiltrates itself into nearly all aspects of my life.

 

My job is gardening, one of my many interests is gardening, some of my food comes from the garden, even many of my outfits and shoes are gardening friendly.  Even my morning relax time with a coffee gets extended sometimes with weed pulling and tomato gathering.

 

 

Even my laundry is garden orientated.

 

Laundry. Garden?

 

Well it all started with the water restrictions years ago.  I had a baby in cloth nappies, a yard that needed watering and severe skin reactions to NapiSan.  So the hunt began for a product that could

• Keep my nappies white and clothes clean

• Be used in a front loader with cold water

• Not lead to skin reactions

• Cost effective

• Wouldn’t damage my washing machine and

• Most importantly the water from the washing machine could be used in my garden

 

Finally after much confusion – the laundry powders take up almost a full aisle in Woolworths, and research - trial and error, I found a solution.

 

 

What I discovered was that not all powders dissolve totally in the water.  Go on go and get your laundry powder, mix it in cold water, leave it for twenty mins and see what the water looks like. I bet there is undissolved particles in it, well there was for me with most of the detergents I tried.  These undissolved particles are called fillers. These fillers can not only affect your washing, they can corrode your machine and even affect our health.  These fillers can also affect your septic tanks and cause problems with your grey water.

 

Many detergents also contain salt (sodium sulphate) that can cause major environmental problems in our gardens and waterways.

 

For me I found that most detergents contained chlorine and synthetic perfumes that are used to sanitise and make our clothes smell pretty. The ones that didn’t contain them didn’t get my clothes clean and didn’t smell as nice. Unfortunately it was the chlorine and synthetic perfumes that were causing my skin problems.  For some the chlorine and synthetic perfumes can even trigger bronchial sensitivities.

 

But then finally I found a product that exceeded all my expectations, lucky for me Trevallan Lifestyle Centre now stocks it.

 

The product In discovered is the Euca Laundry Detergent Range. The range has a laundry powder, laundry liquid, a soaker and a fabric conditioner.

The range is based  entirely on Australian Eucalyptus oil. The Eucalyptus oil helps deodorise and sanitise without the need for harsh chemicals, so no more skin or bronchial sensitivities.

 

Euca has no fillers and on average 35 times less sodium sulphate (salt) than other brands of laundry powder.  So the waterways, gardens and septic systems are safe.

 

It can be used in front and top loaders with warm or cold water, it’s cost effective and most importantly my clothes are clean, look clean and smell clean.

 

Not only this I can use Euca to clean my shower and mop the floors so all my water can be reused out in my garden.

 

Never again can I complain about the washing as it’s all going to a good cause – My Garden!

Creating a Sacred Space

I don’t honestly know how it came about. All I remember was it started with a graduation present. 

Perfect Potion was a little shop in the Elizabeth Arcade in Brisbane. Mum and I went there and she bought me essential oils as a year 12 graduation present. Ylang Ylang was one of of those oils. I had a candle oil burner. A few years later I upgraded to an electric oil vaporizer. It was ugly yellow; there wasn’t much choice back then!

No matter where I lived I always had my oils. Slowly as my interest grew so did my extensive library and my desire to try all the oils and all the combinations. I enjoyed infusing my home with the scents I created. I loved it when friends visited and they’d say ‘your house always smells so good’. When I lived in an apartment the girls upstairs used to tell me how much they enjoyed walking past my door as there was always beautiful scents wafting out.

Lucky for me as my interest grew Perfect Potion flourished. More and more stores opened, more oils were released, more blends were available, more products. Quench my scent thirst, no, it only fueled it. 

There was nothing more I enjoyed than spending an afternoon in a Perfect Potion Store.

All the while it never entered my head to pursue it any more than a hobby. 

One day the opportunity arose to stock Perfect Potion at Trevallan Lifestyle Centre. We have never looked back. It has been an amazing journey being a part of a company that seems to only take huge steps forward.

Then something strange happened - Perfect Potion ran a competition, a competition unlike any other. A competition open to all Australian and Japanese residents. The competition was to create your own essential oil blend to be sold under the Perfect Potion banner. They had never offered this before; all the blends sold by Perfect Potion are Perfect Potion’s creations. 

Wow.

But I couldn’t create a blend. What do I know? Perfect Potion even ran some classes on the art of blending to help. I couldn’t attend them. I even convinced myself it would be pointless entering. Then I got excited and started playing around with some of my oils. I then got completely disheartened as time and time again my combinations made me gag!

See the competition wasn’t just about choosing some essential oils. You had to work out the perfect combination of oils and then how much of each oil. Plus the scent you were trying to create was to embody your scared space.

Hang on I live in a small house with kids, animals – what scared space? 

My books! It always comes back to books. Books are my scared space. Books are my escape. At the time of the competition my little library was being built. So now I had a sacred space but no scent. I gave up. 

Then a few days before close of competition inspiration struck. I got it. The oils just worked, the combination, the amounts. It worked. But I still hesitated. It was late that night I finally got enough guts to enter. And swoosh like that the email was sent, the competition closed and I promptly forgot all about it.

You see I had a baby on the way. Number three to be exact. The day the winners of Perfect Potion’s competition was announced I was a little busy. I was in labour.

When I finally got my head out of the clouds I read an email “Firstly, a massive CONGRATULATIONS for being the winner of the Create Your Own Sacred Space Blend Competition”.

I thought “what’s going on. Who won the competition? They aren’t telling me the names”. I thought it was a generic email sent to everyone who entered informing them of the winner. 

Silly me. 

Tears may have flowed when it set in.

Something I loved, something that is so important and a part of me just became real. 

The day that I received that little bottle adeptly named ‘Wisdom’, my heart skipped a beat. Just thinking about it now makes me well up with tears. 

It wasn’t just that I won it was the recognition I also got from the creator of Perfect Potion Sal Battaglia. A man who I admire for all that he and his team have achieved over the years. 

Sal wrote ‘Choosing the sacred space blend has been so difficult for me as there were so many wonderful ideas and beautiful blends…. I was so impressed with the depth and complexity of the blend. It is such a simple formula…..I absolutely loved the blend …’ 

I was and still am on top of the world about this.

Sometimes when I’m having a bad day I just go to the Perfect Potion website and read the Wisdom Blend synopsis ‘Created by Chelsea Van Rijn from Australia, this blend represents her library which is a sacred place of learning, a place to gather thoughts, to be inspired and become wise.’

I read it and think I did that. 

When we have it in the vaporiser at Trevallan and customers comment on how beautiful it smells I love seeing their faces when I tell them it’s a blend I created. I’m sure some of them don’t believe me and think I’m a looney!

I will be eternally grateful to Sal and the Perfect Potion Team for giving me this opportunity. 

I am so lucky to have one of my secret dreams realised and to be able to share it with others.

But what’s in my lucky potion?

Check out Lucky Potion

Lucky Potion

My winning essential oil blend ‘Wisdom’ is a combination of my four favourite essential oils – Ylang Ylang, vetiver, fragonia and patchouli.

Perfect Potion describes the blend as ‘The deep musty and exotic aromas of vetiver and patchouli together with the intoxicating and arousing aroma of ylang ylang and fresh, vibrant scent of fragonia create a truly mystical and sacred space.’

But why these oils? What do they mean?

Ylang Ylang is my all-time favourite oil. It has a sweet floral scent. To me it embodies all that is passionate, sensuous and uplifting. Whenever I wear it I feel confident and almost bewitching. It is believed to be useful in creating feelings of peace and dispelling anger. It is a scent that embodies all that is good about femininity.

Fragonia was an oil that was very new to me but I instantly fell in love with it. It’s an Australian native essential oil obtained from Agonis fragrans. I feel Fragonia has an ability to work at a deep level, releasing both physical and emotional blockages. It’s very soothing and calming oil. I have found it sometimes referred to as the magic oil as it seems to work on whatever level that is needed to help the body, mind, or spirit find balance.

Vetiver, it smells like the earth. Most people are put off by it. I love it. I guess that’s why I love my job. I feel just like the earth there are layers to it. Coincidently vetiver is very useful for grounding and centering a person and opening them up to their core wisdom.

Patchouli is described as soothing, calming and somewhat hypnotizing scent. It always makes me feel like I’ve escaped to the orient when I smell it. Patchouli oil has a grounding and balancing effect on the emotions and banishes lethargy, while sharpening the wits, fighting depression and anxiety.

This is all my own interpretations of the oils and their meanings I am no way a qualified aromatherapist.

With these four oils I was trying to create a scared space for everyone. A place we could escape to to find ourselves. A place where we are free to be us.

When I vaporise ‘Wisdom’ at home it fills my house with such a warm comforting scent. I feel at peace and safe in my own surrounds. I love it when I put it on in the mornings and then I go out. I can smell it as I get to the front door and know I’m home. My shoulders drop and I feel relaxed.

Just recently ‘Optimum Health’, a natural therapies clinic in Ipswich has asked to use it for their meditation classes they are starting soon.

I truly feel this blend will ‘create a truly mystical and sacred space’ for you.

One Potato, Two Potato, Three Potato

The first time I heard the words seed potato I imagined a packet of seeds looking somewhat like bean seeds! How wrong I was.  Seed Potatoes are what you use to grow potatoes and look like baby potatoes.  About 1kg of certified seed should produce about 10kgs of potato. 

The varieties of certified seed potato seem endless – Dutch Cream, Sebago, Pontiac and Desiree are just a few.  There are red ones, pink ones and even blue ones!  Some are good for boiling or mashing, some are better for baking and frying, there are even some that are perfect for microwaving! Some are all-rounders.  How you like your potatoes cooked is how you choose which variety to grow. 

Why should I buy certified seed potato, why can’t I just plant the sprouts that grow from my potatoes from the grocery store? 

Potato plants can carry many potato diseases: bacterial, viral, and fungal; and some of these are passed on through potato tubers. Plant viral infections are persistent and can not only affect your potato plants but your neighbourhood’s plants as well.  All plants in the potato family can be affected like tomatoes, eggplants and chillies. These diseases can also contaminate soil and make an area implantable.

If using non certified seed potatoes the chance of having a disease outbreak is increased.  This is because the appearance of a growing potato crop, or the harvested tubers, is not a reliable guide to the pathogen level in the tubers. For example, late season viral infections may not be apparent until the next season’s crop is growing. So give your vegetable patch a little TLC and start with healthy certified seed.

Potatoes like a sunny well drained position.  It is best to plant them in rich fertile soil that has not had potatoes grown in for at least 3 years.  The best time to plant potatoes is 2-3 weeks before the last frost. The seed should have shoots of about 1cm long; this usually takes about 4 weeks, if seed was bought in June. Large seed can be cut into two, three or four. The cut surface should dry for a couple of days before planting.

The principle for growing potatoes is the same whether you grow them in the ground or in pots. 

1.      Plant the certified seed potato in soil and as they grow and the potatoes start to show through the soil pile more soil up around them. Potatoes form on the surface, when you pile soil up onto of them continually it helps stops the potatoes from being exposed to light and going green. (Green potatoes can upset the stomach) This process also helps produce more potatoes.

2.      Harvest your potatoes when the lower leaves on the plants start to turn yellow. You can dig only what you need and to leave the other plants to grow on. If you want to dig and store your potatoes cut the tops off and allow 2-3 weeks before digging.

 

Dug potatoes should be kept in a cool dark spot.

 

 

Good luck and just think how amazed your friends will be when at your Summer pool party you have blue potato salad!