Episode 1

Hear our mentors, Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman & Levi Brinsdon-Hall introduce their regenerative organic growing journey to becoming key mentors for For The Love Of Bees Earthworkers Programme: Regenerative Horticulture 101, and their passion for supporting people to grow radical hope through food.

Episode 2

Brit Morison and James Stembridge from Tomtit Farm introduce the farm and ask our Earthworkers mentors the two questions noted below.

1. Cover-cropping, we do this in our garden and love it as it gives some beds a rest and also brings life to our garden with the cocktail of different species growing. But is there any right or wrong way to cover crop, for example how long should the crop be in the ground, should we cut it before it flowers or seeds? Best way to cut? Are we better off to drop the cut material to break down into the soil or remove for composting. What's the best way to encourage breakdown and for how long? We are currently using weed mat to do this but don't want to create an anaerobic environment or harm the life in the soil.

2. How do you suggest growing no-dig kumara and potatoes successfully? We are going to have a go for the first time this year growing kumara and don't want to disturb the soil as much as we can but are a bit unsure how to do this? We have tried with potatoes and find you need a lot of compost as the potatoes don't dig down into the soil causing them to get sun damage if you don't keep adding compost or mulch regularly.

Episode 3

Jake Clarke and Tom Scott from For The Love Of Bees’ model farm OMG (organic market garden) introduce the farm and ask our Earthworkers mentors…

1. How to grow tomatoes without pruning them on an urban farm scale? Through my past experience I have found the most prolific and resilient tomato plants are the ones I do not prune.

2. With the wet weather at the moment the buttercups have taken off and are colonising parts of the farm. Although I am not concerned about the "competition" they create, I am concerned about them being toxic and what they are telling us about the soil. Having toxic plants next to edible plants poses a health and safety risk. We weed them out as soon as we see them however are they a symptom of a problem rather than just the problem? Are they telling us that there is a problem with our soil? Is there another way to manage them besides weeding?

Episode 4

Lani Rotzler-Purewa at Taita College introduce the growing project she is leading, share her favourite biology-first methodologies, applications, or principles from our Earthworkers Programme, and ask our Earthworker mentors Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman and Levi Brinsdon-Hall two questions included below.

1. We are wanting to create a shape and design and fill it with perennials. What do you recommend to create borders to keep the grass out and keep its shape? Do you recommend any plants that are either edible, good companions or good for pollinators that are good for boarders?

2. We’re establishing our garden beds on land that is clay heavy. It's quite boggy and you’ve recommended lime, how do we apply it?

Episode 5

Watch Sasha Kunts from Urban Leaf Farm introduce the farm, share his favourite biology-first methodologies, applications, or principles from our Earthworkers Programme, and ask our Earthworkers mentors Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman and Levi Brinsdon-Hall two questions written below.

1. How can I polycropping with strawberries? I'm using a tarp with holes for strawberries, thinking of some companion plants that can stay in the same bed as strawberries for 1 to 2 years.

2. Are there any cover crops that are good for drainage boggy soils? The piece of the land I am renting is very boggy and almost swampy, wondering if it's any use using it, e.g. maybe some cover crop is better than others to relieve this condition?

Episode 6

Rebecca Swan and Ange Fleming from Growing Point at Dignan Street Community Garden introduce the farm ask our Earthworkers mentors Sarah the two questions below.

1. Our soil test in Feb 2022 was showing our organic matter level is still too high @ 15.4% (down from 25.7% in March 2020). Can you step us through how we would bring the OM down by adding topsoil/ dirt as you suggested in the zoom the other night Daniel? We are making bio complete compost with F:B of around 0.87 and making compost extract with it rather than putting solids on the beds so we don’t add more OM. There is a range of opinions about appropriate F:B for vegetable growing. eg, Dr Elaine Igham says veges like F:B of 0.5- 0.75 whereas Dr Christine Jones says more fungi the better. Nicole Masters talks about fungal dominant soils being sluggish in agricultural pastures. What are your thoughts about that?

2. We have been polycropping in our long beds since 2020. Can you recommend a guild for our small greenhouse coming into spring. We have used a cover crop of mizuna, coriander, calendula to remediate our cracked soil which seems to have worked well (we had plenty of saved seed of those).

Episode 7

Watch Coral from Earth Steward Farm as she introduces the farm, shares her favourite biology-first methodologies, applications, or principles from our Earthworkers Programme, and ask our Earthworkers mentors Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman and Levi Brinsdon-Hall two questions below.

1. Due to increasing the production per m2 we have a block of around 1000 m2 which will come out of production for a while. We would like to know of other uses that would benefit the farm both environmentally, socially and economically . Our first thought is to grow a herbal ley/cover crop that A) Act as a weed suppressor until the block is needed - at least a year , so ideally will set seed or be perennial B) It increases the population of pollinators / beneficial insects around the farm. C) We can harvest or create an activity derived from it that could bring in social value to the community and economic value to the farm as well.

2. Strategies to grow / supply vegetables for CSA boxes during winter.

Episode 8

Watch Emma Morris and Leo Gedye from Pīwakawaka Farm at The Learning Environment as they introduce the farm, share their favourite biology-first methodologies, applications, or principles from our Earthworkers Programme, and ask our Earthworkers mentors Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman and Levi Brinsdon-Hall two questions noted below.

1. How do you plan the timing of the polycrops so everything is ready to plant on the same day?

2. How can we effectively implement underplant and bring diversity to a conventional orchard?

Episode 9

Watch Lucy Pierpoint and Britta Hamill from TUMG as they introduce the farm, share their favourite biology-first methodologies, applications, or principles from our Earthworkers Programme, and ask our Earthworkers mentors Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman and Levi Brinsdon-Hall two questions noted below.

1. One of our biggest constraints in terms of production is our seedling production.We don't currently have a tunnel house or other large covered seedling growing space, and we have been stalling a little on getting this sorted due to uncertainty about what the best option is. - How much seedling-raising space do we need for our current ~100m2 of growing space, and possible expansions? - How shady is too shady to put a tunnel house? Unfortunately our main flat areas are relatively shaded by a large tree.

2. Our boggy clay soil in the garden makes for muddy paths, so we have woodchip on our paths. However, because of the slope we have had a lot of woodchip straying onto our beds - and I worry this is making the soil sluggish and slowing down the process of breaking up that clay. What are your thoughts on the downsides of woodchips on the bed compared with the downsides of having high borders on the garden beds.

Episode 10

Watch Rebbeca Wood from Kumeu Community Garden as she introduces the farm, shares her favourite biology-first methodologies, applications, or principles from our Earthworkers Programme, and ask our Earthworkers mentors Sarah Smuts-Kennedy, Daniel Schuurman and Levi Brinsdon-Hall three questions below.

1.Any advice on establishing low maintenance perennial beds?

2. Why have my potatoes not grown? (Been there about a year! And only now starting to show leaves!) 3. What is the best/fastest way to break down wood chip base beds?