Avant Gardeners

--This episode is proudly sponsored by Bokashi One. Reduce landfill and boost the efforts in your garden in a fuss-free, no-smell way. Enjoy 15% off the entire Bokashi One range by using the promo code AG15 when purchasing from www.bokashi.com.au between now and 1 Jan, 2025--  Matthew Evans was a chef and food critic who left Sydney in search of flavour and to become closer to food production. He landed in Tasmania’s Huon Valley and he, his partner Sadie Chrestman and son Hedley call the 70-acre Fat Pig Farm home. Matthew is the author of books including The Real Food Companion, The Dirty Chef, Not Just Jam, Soil and his latest book Milk, published in 2024.  Matthew is gearing up to host the inaugural GROUNDED Australia conference at Fat Pig Farm on December 4 + 5, 2024. This two-day immersive event is part food festival, part writers' festival and part farming conference, which will interrogate how to do farming better. Over 40 amazing speakers will descend upon the Huon Valley for workshops, discussions, networking, amazing food and drinks and even a mobile sauna!  Matthew lives, gardens and farms on the land of the Merlukerdee people. To celebrate, we're drinking the dregs of a limited-release Fat Pig Farm Rhubarb Gin. Over ice. It's delicious. We're chatting tomatoes, our seedling dealer, our grevillea era (loving the Bronze Rambler). We're upcycling milk cartons, tomato trellises are up, and there's a story about the dangers of mowing.  Check out Grounded Australia here and here. Follow Matthew and Sadie's adventures at Fat Pig Farm on Insta here. Follow us on Instagram here. Thanks for being here. 

We came across Huw Richards perhaps the odd-way around, first picking up his amazing book 'Veg In One Bed' before discovering his huge online presence. Huw has been gardening since the age of 3 on his parents' smallholding in mid-west Wales. He started a YouTube channel aged 12, which has since received over 100 million views. Huw's gardening is driven by curiosity, experimentation and impact planting. It's obvious how much joy he derives from striving for flavour and beauty in the garden.  He's a brilliant communicator and oh boy did we love this chat with him.  Check out his Substack, find him on Insta or Youtube. Huw's latest book is called The Self Sufficiency Garden.  In this episode we’re drinking Waubs Harbour Distillery whisky (yep, we've gone top shelf). We're talking about Australia's Big Things, Clematis 'Freckles', the cows have set Em's native trees back a couple of years and we're recommending 'Growing Vegetables South Of Australia' by Steve SolomonAll the things. Thanks for joining us. Follow us on Instagram here.

  We’ve had Hannah on our list for a looooong time, so it’s a bloody thrill to have interviewed her. Hannah Maloney is the inspiring force behind Goodlife Permaculture, an organisation all about sharing concepts of education, community and design to help people create good lives and landscapes.  Hannah is a host on Gardening Australia on ABC, a best-selling author with two books in the bag and another on the way, and by all accounts, an infectious ball of energy and good vibes. Hannah lives, works and gardens in Nipaluna/Hobart with her partner Anton, her daughter Frida and a menagerie of animals including chickens, goats and ducks.  In this episode we’re cracking a pistachio Cicchio Spritz by the legends at Zonzo Estate, We’re recommending Nettles and Petals, we’re talking fertilizer, asparagus, cows, rhubarb. All the things. Thanks for joining us. Follow us on Instagram here.    

Justin O'Brien was one of those in the online gardening world that welcomed and embraced us. So it's an absolute treat to get the man himself behind the microphone to chat all things gardening. Perhaps better known as his Instagram alias of Urban Farmer, Justin O’Brien has been gardening in some form since he was a kid, and was an active member of the Camden Community Garden for nearly a decade, seeing it through the floods of 2022., Justin and his wife Chantelle purchased their current home nearly 3 years ago, and Justin documents the garden transformation, sharing plenty of useful tips and lots of laughs, as he creates a home for his veggies, his chickens and his family. Justin is also a fiercely competitive gardener and may or may not still be touchy about last year's failed competitive pumpkin growing.  But before we get to that we're drinking a classic - Campari and soda.  We're utilising Jac Semmler's succulent growing tips, we're loving Hannah Maloney's The Good Life, Maddie hard recommends Maggie McKellar's Graft. We're talking Organic Gardener Magazine, chimmichuri, putting up jute netting, and making the most of the spring rain thanks to a well-timed installation of a new gutter and tank system. Hurray! Find us on Instagram @avantgardeners.podcast. And pretty please share our podcast with a friend of yours and / or rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for being here :-)