Mint (Mentha) is a classic staple herb to grow that provides your kitchen garden with an abundance of fragrance and flavour. Mint can be used for both sweet and savoury dishes as well as medicinal, cleaning products, teas, and more.
Mint can be very invasive so it is important to choose the right location to grow mint so that it doesn’t take over your garden. Below will be more tips on where and how to grow mint along with creative ways to use your abundant harvests!
Sunny Position 6rs. Contain the roots in a pot or container.
CARE
Water regularly.Protect from the harsh summer sun.
FERTILISE
Feed with compost and with liquid seaweed fertiliser.
PESTS
Slaters, slugs, snails, green caterpillar, aphids. Rust.
HARVEST
Trim regularly. Harvest in the mornings.
REPRODUCE
Mint grows quickly from cuttings or dividing the plant up.
Why Grow Mint?
Mint is refreshing and packed full of flavour. Below are just a few of the amazing reasons to grow mint at home.
Here are some of the many reasons to grow Mint:
Easy to grow
Low maintenance / hard to kill
Flavour Teas or drinks
Natural insect spray
Aids in digestion
Calming qualities
Rich in vitamin A
High in anti-oxidants
Aid in upset stomachs
Nutrient-dense
Easy to propagate
Flowers for the bees
Condiments, dressings and dips
Popular Mint Varieties
‘Peppermint’ – Classic mint variety. Sharp flavour. Often larger leaves. Great for sweets, cocktails, teas and scented products.
‘Spearmint’ – Popular mint variety. Rounded leaves. Great for Roasts, sauces, teas, baking and fresh in salads.
‘Chocolate Mint‘ – Fun flavoured mint to grow with a mild chocolate flavour. Dark reddish tinted leaves and stems.
‘Morrocan Mint‘ – Fragrant mint with subtle spiced flavour. Great for roasts, salads and teas.
‘Grapefruit Mint’ – Fresh with Grapefruit notes. Summer drinks, salads, teas, cocktails and dressings.
‘Varigated Applemint‘ –Small green and white variegated leaves. Slight fluffy leaves. Sweet apple flavour. Gret for drinks and salads.
‘Ginger Mint’ – Fresh and vibrant flavour. Great for teas, salads and dressings.
‘Berries and Cream’ – Sweet berry notes. Great for desserts, teas and cocktails.
When to Plant Mint
To start off growing Mint it can be best to plant in Spring after the last frost. Mint will do well all year round in most moderate climates.
How to Grow Mint
Choose a sunny location.
BE AWARE – Mint sends out runners under the soil and can become invasive quickly. It is always advised to grow mint in a pot or container. A repurposed garden such as a wheelbarrow also works well!
Mint will grow in nearly any soil but it’s always good to add fresh compost. Ensure the soil is free-draining so that the roots do not get waterlogged.
Protect mint from the harsh summer sun and keep well watered in hot weather.
Trimming the mint regularly will help it stay low and bushy.
Care/ Maintenance
Mint can become root bound in containers quickly so if it starts to look sad it may need to be split up and divided to allow more room for the roots.
Feed with liquid seaweed or homemade fertilizers to help add nutrients into the contained space.
Pests / Disease
Slugs and snails may eat young seedlings. Use natural pest management. Aphids can also be an issue on young shoots. Dip them in soapy water. Green caterpillars can be a problem in summer and are hard to see against the green leaves.
How/ When to Harvest
Use sharp snippers or scissors and cut the tops off regularly. This will stop the plants from getting too leggy and stay low and bushy. Harvest Mint and herbs first thing in the morning when they are hydrated and full of life. You can keep them in a jar of water until you are ready to use.
Reproducing
The best way to reproduce Mint is to take cuttings or pull up a section with roots already attached. This will start growing immediately.
Cooking and Using Mint
Mint is a great flavour enhancing herb for many different dishes.
Pumpkins are a great base crop to grow and can provide you with a large amount of food. Pumpkins come with their very own packaging and can be stored as they are for 3-8 months if they are prepared and stored correctly. Having a supply of pumpkins in the pantry can supplement your meals throughout the year. Different varieties of pumpkins will store for varying amounts of time. This is usually due to the toughness and thickness of the skin. If you want to grow pumpkins for storage choose a variety that has longer storage qualities. Varieties such as Jarradale, Queensland Blue, and Blue Hubbard have great storage qualities.
STEP 1: HARVESTING
The first step to preparing your pumpkins for storage is to harvest them correctly. Follow the tips below.
Harvest the Pumpkins once they reach maturity to ensure the skin is as hard as it can be.
Pumpkins are ready to be picked when the closest curly tendril to the stem is brown and going dry. The vines will be starting to die off slightly. The pumpkins should be slightly hollow when you knock on them and have hard skins.
Use sharp secateurs and cut the stem as close to the vine as you can. This ensures you don’t damage the pumpkin and creates a handle to carry them with.
STEP 2: CLEANING
Wash the excess soil off and ensure the pumpkins are clean. Use a mix of 1:1 vinegar and water to wipe them down and remove any bacteria.
While washing the pumpkins check for any damage or areas that pierce the skin such as holes, or scratches. These won’t store well so it would be best to start using these first.
STEP 3: CURING
Curing allows the pumpkin skins to dry and harden before storage.
To cure the pumpkins place them somewhere sunny and sheltered for 1-2 weeks. This can be outside if there are no frosts or rain otherwise a sunny porch or deck will do. Just be careful if you have rats or other critters around.
Ensure they are spaced out and not stacked on top of each other.
STEP 4: STORAGE
Once the pumpkins are cured choose a dark cool location to store them. 10-16 degrees Celcius.
Pumpkins may leak sticky residue from the bottom flower or stem so don’t be alarmed. Also, consider this when choosing a location to store.
Ideally place them on cardboard, wood, or plywood. Do NOT store them on carpet, lino, or concrete as this will promote bacteria and moisture.
Allow space between the pumpkins and do not stack them to allow airflow.
Roll the pumpkins over and check the cardboard for mold regularly.
Roasted Salt and Vinegar Pumpkin Seeds make a delicious snack that once you start you won’t be able to stop! Below are three delicious flavours: Salt and Vinegar, Cinnamon and Honey and Lime and Cracked Pepper. Get more from your harvests by using the whole pumpkin. After harvesting your pumpkins save the seeds from the best ones – select for the best flavour, biggest size, or whatever traits you desire. With the remaining pumpkins and seeds, you can make these snacks to add crunch to salads, soups, or just enjoy them on their own.
Roasted Salt and Vinegar Pumpkin Seeds
Reduce your food waste and turn extra pumpkin seeds into delicious snacks.
Ingredients
white vinegar
pumpkin seeds
sea salt
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees
Rinse your pumpkin seeds to remove any extra pumpkin flesh.
Coat the seeds in white vinegar and sprinkle with sea salt.
Roast until slightly golden. Approx 5 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool. They will get crunchier as they cool.
For extra flavour splash with a little vinegar as you serve them.
Enjoy!
Honey and Cinnamon Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Turn your leftover pumpkin seeds into a delicious sweet treat.
Ingredients
Pumpkin Seeds
Honey
Cinnamon
Sea salt
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius.
Wash the pumpkin seeds to remove any flesh.
Drizzle enough honey to coat the seeds and sprinkle with cinnamon and a pinch of sea salt.
Spread the seeds out on a roasting tray and separate them. Roast for 4-5 mins check regularly the honey will caramelize quickly. Remove the seeds from the tray while they are still hot.
Enjoy!
Notes
Add on top of ice cream, and cakes, or enjoy them as they are.
Lime and Cracked Pepper Pumpkin Seeds
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Delicious and full of flavour!
Ingredients
Pumpkin Seeds
1 lime
Cracked Pepper
Sea salt
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius.
Wash the pumpkin seeds to remove any flesh.
Grate lime zest over the pumpkin seeds and squeeze enough lime juice to coat the seeds. Season with a pinch of sea salt and grind over crack pepper.
Spread the seeds out on a roasting tray and separate them. Roast for 4-5 mins check regularly. Remove the seeds from the tray while they are still hot and allow them to cool on a plate.
Pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima.) is a great base crop to grow that provides your homestead with an abundance of food. Pumpkins can be stored to use throughout the year and provide a variety of uses both sweet and savoury.
Pumpkin is easy to grow if you get these key things right: Rich compost, Sun, Water, and plenty of space to roam.
Pumpkins come in three main species, known as
Cucurbita maxima – Thick skin large pumpkins (eg. Jap, Queensland Blue)
Cucurbita moschata – Winter Squash (Butternut)
Cucurbita pepo – Summer Squash
Depending on where you live in the world different species will be known as Pumpkin or winter squash. In this plant of the month, we will just be focusing on the Cucurbita maxima.
Feed with compost and with liquid seaweed fertiliser.
PESTS
Slaters, slugs may get young plants.Rats can get to the pumpkins.
HARVEST
From 70-120 days.
REPRODUCE
Save seeds from the best-tasting pumpkins.
Why Grow Pumpkins?
Pumpkins are easy to grow and can provide a large amount of food. They are a great base crop to build complete dishes with both sweet and savoury.
Here are some of the many reasons to grow Pumpkins:
Easy to grow
Low maintenance
The whole plant is edible: Fruit, flowers, seeds, young shoots, and leaves
A large source of food
Have their own “packaging” with a hard exterior
Rich in vitamin A
High in antioxidants
Aid in upset stomachs
Nutrient-dense food source
Easy to store
Save seeds easily for sustainable gardening
Popular Heirloom Pumpkin Varieties
‘Jarrahdale’ – Australian heirloom. Ribbed blue/grey skin and orange flesh. Sweet and smooth flesh. Weight approx 5kg. Great storage.
‘Queensland Blue’ – Popular Australian heirloom. Large grey/blue skin. Easy to grow. Great storage.
‘Turks Turban‘ – Heirloom from the 1800s. Fun to grow for its interesting shape. Orange, green and white colours. Good storage.
‘Bohemian‘ – Australian heirloom once thought to have been lost. Great for roasting. Stores well.
‘Golden Nugget’ – Small compact bushing plant – great for small spaces. Good for stuffing. Small round orange pumpkins. 1kg per pumpkin.
‘Blue Hubbard‘ –Large heirloom from the 1700s. Long vines. Great stored up to 12 months. 10kg per pumpkin.
‘Dills Atlantic‘ – Giant Pumpkin grows up to 220kg! Best used for pies and soups or winning competitions.
‘Lakota’ – Orange and Green skin with bright orange flesh. Bell-shaped. Nutty flavour. Decorative and great for storage. 2.5kg per pumpkin.
When to Plant Pumpkins
For an early season, you can start your seed off in a tray indoors or in a greenhouse. This is best at the end of winter or the start of spring. If you are sowing the seeds directly in the soil, it is best to wait until spring after frost. In warm, frost-free zones, you may be able to grow pumpkins all year round.
How to Grow Pumpkins
Choose a sunny location with plenty of space. Most pumpkins can ramble several metres but 1sqm per plant is enough.
Pile on the compost. Pumpkins are heavy feeders so mound up a pile of compost to plant your seed or seedlings on top of.
Apply mulch around the seedlings to retain moisture.
Poke a stick or stake near the mound. As the vines grow and take off you will have a locater to know where to water. Avoid watering the leaves as this can cause powdery mildew. Water around the stake.
Pumpkins can also be grown vertically if you are short on space. Provide robust trellis support and direct the vines in the direction you want. Once the pumpkins start to form, it is a good idea to place a sport underneath to that the stem can support the pumpkin as it grows. A stretchy “hammock” style support works well.
Care/ Maintenance
Try to avoid watering the leaves.
The fruit requires pollination to set and grow to maturity. If you notice the small pumpkins shrivel and die off it may be due to a lack of pollination. You can hand-pollinate by wiping pollen from the male flower onto the female flower. See more details on how here.
Feed with liquid seaweed for added nutrition if you have poor soil.
Pinch the ends of the vine off if it gets too long and wild.
Pests / Disease
Slugs and snails may eat young seedlings. Use natural pest management. Aphids can also be an issue on young shoots. Dip them in soapy water. Rats and mice may also nibble on your pumpkins. If you have issues with this you can build a crate or mesh around the pumpkin until it is ready to harvest.
How/ When to Harvest
Your pumpkins will be ready when the vine starts to die off. The closest curly tendril to the stem will be brown and going dry. The pumpkins should be slightly hollow when you know on them and have hard skins. Use sharp secateurs and cut the stem as close to the vine as you can. This will help with storage (see below).
Reproducing
The best way to reproduce pumpkins is to save the seeds. Save the seeds from your best-tasting or largest pumpkins. See the seeds saving guide here. wash and dry your seeds and store them somewhere dry and cool to replant next season.
Cooking and Using Pumpkins
Pumpkin is a great base for many sweet or savoury dishes. It can even be used as a base for many sauces and preserves.
The young leaves and shoots are also edible. These can be added to soups, curries and stir-fried. The flowers are great stuffed or used in salads. The seeds can be coated in spices and roasted for snacks or added on top of soups.
Depending on the variety, some pumpkins can be cured and stored for up to 12 months. Most will be around 6 months. The thicker the skin, the longer they last. Check the variety for a guide.
To prepare your pumpkins to store:
Cut the stem as close to the vine so that you do not damage the pumpkin.
Wash any dirt off using a hose.
Wipe the pumpkins down with a mix of Vinegar and water (1:1) This helps remove any further dirt and bacteria. Check for holes or damage to the skin. These will not store well so they should be eaten first.
Place your pumpkins somewhere dry with diffused sunlight to cure for two weeks. On the deck or porch is often a good place. This helps to harden and dry the skin.
Store your pumpkins in a cool and dark space between 10-16 degrees Celsius. Place them on a piece of cardboard or ply to protect them from bacteria or moisture on the floor.
Check your pumpkins regularly for any signs of mould or softening. Discard them so that they don’t affect the others.
Delicious Roast Radish and Carrot Salad with Radish Top Chimichurri dressing for a low waste recipe to get the most your of your harvest. Roast Radish is just something else! They are sweet, juicy, and delicious additions to a roast veggie salad. Radish are a quick crop to grow and can fill up gaps in your garden beds to get maximum production out of each space. There are so many delicious ways to use Radish and this salad is a wholesome and easy way to eat Garden to Plate.
Roast Radish and Carrot Salad
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Wholesome and delicious roast veggie salad using root to tip.
Ingredients
8-10 Radish
6-8 Fresh Baby Carrots
3 cups chopped Greens (combination of what is available) Spinach, Kale, Sweet Potato Leaves, Chard
Olive oil to drizzle
Salt Flakes or Seas Salt
Chilli Flakes or fresh Red Chilli
Chimichurri Dressing - See Recipe card below
Instructions
Wash the radish and carrots and remove the tops. Set aside for the Chimichurri Sauce.
Cut the larger carrots in half-length ways. The small or thinner ones can remain whole. So that all the carrots are of a similar thickness.
Cut the larger Radish in half and leave any small ones whole so that they are all roughly the same thickness. Optional - add scores with a knife 1/3 the way through the radish. This allows for the dressing to soak in later.
Add the Carrots and Radish to a roasting dish, drizzle in olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and cook for 35mins or until slightly brown. I like my roast veggies a little crisp still. Cook for 45 minutes if you want softer roast veggies.
Whilst the veggies are roasting prepare the Chimichurri Green Sauce - Recipe card below. Use the Radish and carrot tops in place of parsley.
Remove the roast veggies from the oven whilst you prepare the rest of the salad.
In a large saucepan add 1/4 cup water and 3 cups of chopped greens. You can also use any leftover radish and carrot tops not needed in the dressing as part of your greens. Toss and allow to wilt then remove from the heat. Drain and add to a serving bowl. Drizzle over 2-3 TBSP of the green sauce liquid and toss to mix through the greens.
Add the Radish and carrots on top of the greens. Spoon and drizzle over the remainder of the green sauce.
Add fresh red chilli or chilli flakes, salt and edible flowers to garnish and serve.
Notes
Edible flowers I used - Sweet violets, fennel flowers, dried purple and blue cornflowers.
Chimichurri Dressing using Radish Tops
This recipe below can be adapted to make using the leftover radish and carrot tops. Swap out the parsley and fennel fronds or use a mix of both.
Chimichurri Dressing
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
This vibrant green dressing is packed full of flavour and is a delicious way to add a fresh zing to your meals.
Ingredients
1 cup Parsley*
1 1/2 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP Red Wine Vinegar
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1/2 cup Fennel Fronds*
1 tsp Sugar
2-3 Garlic Cloves
Sea salt flakes to season
Fresh Red Chilli or 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
Instructions
Add Parsley, Lemon juice, Vinegar, Sugar, Fennel Fronts, and Garlic to a mixer or mortar and pestle. I prefer a mortar and pestle as I like it chunky and not to blended. Blitz or crush to combine and make a green sauce.
Then gradually add oil to combine. Add Chilli flakes and a pinch of Sea Salt Flakes. Taste and balance with more salt if needed.
Drizzle over the green sauce. Garnish with sliced red chilli, fennel fronts, and edible flowers.
Notes
* Swap Parsley or Fennel fronds for Radish tops, Carrot tops, Corriander, or a mix.
There may be a little extra sauce than needed so you can keep it in the refrigerator to use within a few days or freeze it in ice cubes to use in cooking.
Chimichurri dressing is a delicious and fresh condiment to serve on so many of your homegrown meals. I adapt this sauce regularly using different herbs or greens such as Radish or Carrot tops! Drizzle this dressing over your roasted Radish or veggies for a zero-waste meal. See notes for some of the swaps I often use. This sauce is so fresh and zingy which is great to serve over foods that are rich or creamy to give them a fresh kick!
Chimichurri Dressing
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
This vibrant green dressing is packed full of flavour and is a delicious way to add a fresh zing to your meals.
Ingredients
1 cup Parsley*
1 1/2 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP Red Wine Vinegar
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1/2 cup Fennel Fronds*
1 tsp Sugar
2-3 Garlic Cloves
Sea salt flakes to season
Fresh Red Chilli or 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
Instructions
Add Parsley, Lemon juice, Vinegar, Sugar, Fennel Fronts, and Garlic to a mixer or mortar and pestle. I prefer a mortar and pestle as I like it chunky and not to blended. Blitz or crush to combine and make a green sauce.
Then gradually add oil to combine. Add Chilli flakes and a pinch of Sea Salt Flakes. Taste and balance with more salt if needed.
Drizzle over the green sauce. Garnish with sliced red chilli, fennel fronts, and edible flowers.
Notes
* Swap Parsley or Fennel fronds for Radish tops, Carrot tops, Corriander, or a mix.
There may be a little extra sauce than needed so you can keep it in the refrigerator to use within a few days or freeze it in ice cubes to use in cooking.
