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Beau’s Garden

@beausgarden

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🏡 of @barefoot.creative
Transforming a neglected 50’s garden into a biodiverse haven of productivity and leisure.
🇦🇺 Adelaide (Kaurna), Australia

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G’day and welcome aboard!

We’re Beau and Reece - two mates from Adelaide, South Oz. Join us as we embark on a journey to transform Beau’s forgotten 1950’s garden into an affordable, sustainable oasis where we aim to seamlessly blend ecological functions with beauty and space for human engagement.

With environmental and economic crises in mind, we’re bidding farewell to the traditional lawn and welcoming the charm of food gardening, while creating beautiful and practical spaces for socialising, relaxation and increasing our local biodiversity.

What makes it special to us is the communal effort— you’ll meet some of our friends, family and neighbours along the way, each contributing insights and helping out where possible, shaping memories, sharing knowledge and skills - our gratitude repaid through sharing of garden produce, return favours, and hosting of future garden events.

As the seasons unfold, Beau’s Garden will become proof that with a little creative ingenuity and collaboration, anyone can craft their own sustainable sanctuary that can be beautiful, practical AND won’t cost them an arm and a leg

Follow us on YouTube for all the in-depth deets (link in bio)

#garden #gardening #landscape #landscaping #landscapedesign #horticulture #construction #building #DIY #renovation #sustainability #permaculture #permaculturesouthaustralia #adelaide #southaustralia by @beausgarden

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3 years ago

Water harvesting Pt 2: Greywater diversion

Diverting your greywater to the garden is another great way to save precious water - that is, only water from the shower, vanity and laundry.

My setup is pretty simple - a couple valves attached to my back wall that divert all bathroom and laundry water through a pipe under my deck and out onto the garden. If using harsher chemicals or the gardens got enough water (very unlikely), it’s easily switched to sewer. All gravity fed, no pumps required, other than the washing machine itself. I can then choose which trees get how much water via a series of irrigation taps…or simply all into the swales

❗️IMPORTANT BITS❗️

check your council regs. You can’t legally store grey water for longer than 24 hrs without an approved grey water system as harmful bacteria can form. To prevent this:

💧 minimise chemical use and only use grey water-safe products

💧 wash daily so the system is frequently flushed out

💧 Ensure you have enough flow. A shorter travel distance, steeper grade and pipe size can drastically reduce the risk of water sitting too long

💧 Best to keep it on sewer until ready to divert, just in case the sewer backs up.

💧 Regularly flush the system with clean water, especially in warm weather

Estimates for my 2-person household saves at least 800-1000L per week. That’s enough to keep a couple trees alive all summer long. Just be mindful of total water volume if you have a larger household - nobody needs a flooded yard.

Even better would be to plumb tank water through the house then divert it as grey water before storing in the ground. Full circle water cycle! by @beausgarden

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2 months ago

🌧️ Rain harvesting Pt 1- swales 🌧️

“Swale” - that hype word in permaculture…but for good reason. Put simply, these are shallow depressions in the land designed to direct rainwater runoff, slow down water flow and retain it in the ground. And suffice to say they’re working pretty well for me so far!

It’s worth noting that it’s a lot easier to move water around on a slight slope. My intent here was to catch and store rain in the ground as I don’t have much tank storage, thereby reducing irrigation and allowing other biological processes to naturally take place.

Starting at the highest point, excavated soil was used to form a central path (produce no waste) and graded to direct surface water either side. Each basin fills up until overflowing into the next one via rock dams (recycled concrete chunks from my old patio), effectively creating a mini wetland system.

Plant type and soil drainage is important. Planting directly IN the swale is great for natives, riparian species and thirsty trees like peaches, cherries, citrus, mulberry & bananas; whereas the banks are better for things that don’t tolerate inundation, like avos and mangoes. I’ve also planted perennials and other water-loving edibles inside the swales like galangal, lemongrass and pumpkins (yep, they LOVE it!). Thick mulch was applied and over time, organic matter has accumulated and decomposed to form rich humus, acting like a gigantic nutritious sponge for plants to feed off, while also holding more water and helping build soil structure.

Like many older houses, I don’t have rear stormwater connected to the street, so I’ve directed my tank overflow and greywater into the system with nil flooding issues so far!

I’ve replicated this technique in my verge, so you can be as creative as you like - Its basically water-play for adults! by @beausgarden

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2 months ago

🏡WHY DID I BUY A “CRAPPY OLD TRUST HOUSE”? 🏡

In the crazy world that was post-Covid 2023, I came across this humble 70m2, two-bedroom cottage, perched atop a 530m2 blank canvas with just one lone blue gum. But all I kept hearing was “it’s just a crappy Trust house; it’s ugly, red brick, too old, too small, a maisonette; it needs too much work; Can you knock it down?; or the real estate classic - “its just land value, you could easily fit two or three on here”.

And that’s when I knew this 1951 former Housing Trust shell was being completely overlooked.

Sure, it needed a few cosmetic touch-ups. But I saw its true value - in its beauty, its purposeful history, its charm…and its POTENTIAL . I played along, quietly hiding all of my renovation ideas.

“Value in the marginal” as they say - and this place was the definition.

A compact, manageable sized house with a comparatively big yard, double brick, large shed, protected by neighbouring trees, on a quiet street and bordered by other gardeners. And the birds, oh my, the birds - 23 species so far to be exact.

Internally - gorgeous original floorboards, an unused fireplace, great morning & evening light (when I need it most) and amazing ventilation. But it was the 50m span of north facing garden that was the main draw card.

It meant loads of space to grow food, entertain, relax, watch wildlife and share with the neighbours across the 5ft fences. Its age and scale was its greatest gift… perfectly manageable, personal, imperfect…

it would force me to simplify my lifestyle and offered so many chances to practice and learn new skills, fostering my own self reliance. I could implement changes gradually as my skills and resources allowed and let the space naturally evolve over time without striving for a false sense of perfection - just as those before me had done.

Swipe for summary of principles ➡️➡️ by @beausgarden

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5 months ago

Spot the difference in 2.5 years.

Shows how fast gum trees grow 😂 by @beausgarden

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6 months ago

Welcoming that autumn serenity… calm weather, mild temps, cooling rains, wild overgrowth and plenty of wholesomeness and chocolate. The best time of the year to be a garden. by @beausgarden

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6 months ago

A few pops of terracotta from some recently planted Sedums and the front is looking plump #garden #gardening #perennialgarden #reno by @beausgarden

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6 months ago

late spring / summer harvest 🙂
#garden #gardening #homegrown #fruit #vegetables by @beausgarden

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9 months ago

Little tour of the summer veggie patch so far. This year I’m growing:

- tomatoes
- corn
- tomatillo
- herbs (basils, parsley, coriander, mint, sage)
- beans (scarlet runner, snake bean)
- cucumber
- zucchini
- spring onion / chives
- Piel de sapo melon
- pumpkin / squash
- rosella
- capsicums / chillies
- raspberries
- sweet granadilla
- flowers (sunflower, zinnia, dahlia)

#garden #gardening #permaculture #sustainability #landscape by @beausgarden

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10 months ago

Spent the day hanging out in my “wild” space, pruning and seeing what’s self seeded this year. Just love watching all the different birds talk and zip between plants

#garden #gardening #wild #backyard #design #renovation #landcape #forest #plants #flowers #trees #birds #food #foodgarden #edible #sustainability #permaculture #nature by @beausgarden

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a year ago

New multi purpose shade structure is up!

✅ structure for shade cloth
✅ permanent raspberry & passion fruit trellises
✅ vertical growing from rafters
✅ vertical growing up posts
✅ rafters connecting to shed trellises to grow vines across for summer shade
✅ opportunity to convert to greenhouse
✅ giant bird perch

#building #design #architecture #construction #landscape #landscaping #garden #gardening #plants #homegrown #veggies #sustainability #permaculture #permaculturesouthaustralia by @beausgarden

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a year ago

Decided to formalise my veggie beds using some recycled jarrah

✅ stops wood chips from getting into the beds all the time.

✅allows thicker mulch in the path to stop weeds

✅ keyhole design maximises the edges while maintaining a path behind the trellis

✅ defines the area and just looks nice by @beausgarden

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a year ago