Lived Experience Forum

[ArraDreaming]

@Paperdaisy we live pretty close to all 3 major supermarkets so always keep an eye out online at what’s on sale and buying up if we can 

[BPDSurvivor]

I hear you @ArraDreaming @Paperdaisy @Bow @hanami !

I hardly ever go shopping, but when I did yesterday, I noticed people all standing around staring. Then I realised why… the prices of things are ridiculous! People must be standing there calculating costs in there head!

Sustainabilty? @ArraDreaming . You’ve got a head start because you love gardening. I don’t like gardening, but when I have compost, in dig holes in my garden and bury the compost. It doesn’t take long for potatoes to grow, pumpkins, rockmelons, tomatoes… once the plants grow, I separate them so the produce get enough nutrients. I’ve got 8 large pumpkins this year, and ever ending supply to silver beet and tomatoes, prickly pears, rockmelon, and HEAPS of potatoes! The potato plants grew from potato skins I buried! So Voila! That’s how I hardly go shopping. 

For meat, i by a leg of lamb, and ask the butcher to cut it up into diced pieces, chops etc. Then I freeze it in little portions for the next few months.

And that’s about it!

You definitely have it better because of your green thumb!

Ill take photos of my garden produce next time - and it’s food all year round.

BPDSurvivor

[BPDSurvivor]

 

This is stuffed zucchini. Zucchini from the garden. It was huge! @ArraDreaming @Paperdaisy @Bow 

This is the silver beet - grows like a weed.

 All this pumpkin is from the garden. Grew by itself from seeds in the compost.

I guess this saves me money so then I DO have money for takeaways and coffee. I have to say I have takeaway 1-2 times a week.

Hope you’re all inspired lol!

And it can’t be too hard to grow things, seeing I DONT know the least about plants. It’s trial and error. I have never bought seeds before. This is all from compost.

[Paperdaisy]

That is amazing @BPDSurvivor I'm very impressed!! 😄 I would love to have a veggie garden but I'm in an apartment right now.. maybe one day! 

[BPDSurvivor]

I didn’t realise I had photos, but here’s a few rockmelons! Grown from seeds in compost.

 

 

 

@ArraDreaming ! And I found a photo of what a meal looks like - all from the garden here except the olive oil and sesame seeds in the zaatar.

Greens, potatoes, cucumbers:

Another dish from the garden:

[Appleblossom]

Yep @ArraDreaming  Me too ... re cost of living... petrol ... eeeeeeeek!

@hanami I found Mexican a great way to get legumes into the diet, 30 years ago. Never regretted it.  My family of origin with all their frugal ways only did split pea soup.  Soups, salads and a legolamb are my main stays.

@BPDSurvivor Your compost is wonderful.  You must have a fair bit of space.

[Historylover]

Wow, @BPDSurvivor. That's some gardening skill you have there. I must try too hard!

[Bow]

You have inspired me @BPDSurvivor ! When we get back from our overseas trip next month I’m going to give veggie gardening another go! We have a compost bin but it never gets used. And we have 2 large garden beds that we have done a little gardening in…. I think we just get lazy and also we’ve had trouble with bugs….. do you get bugs???

[hanami]

Hey @ArraDreaming 

I agree, it can be a pain to go to different stores! I have a Woolies and Aldi right near me but still find it annoying to both. My daughter works at a fruit and veg shop and I always ask her, please tell me what is cheap this week. She says, I don't know, I hate work and don't take notice. Well thanks for your help daughter lol. 

Hanami

[ArraDreaming]

Wow great pics @BPDSurvivor Growing definitely is the way!!

You just reminded me that I haven’t been out to check the veggie patch in a couple of days. 
Hopefully spring time our trees start to get fruit again, that will help. We have so many fruit trees that are just sad sticks at the minute.