Back in Virginia, gardening was all about timing. Plant in the spring, harvest before the frost, and hope the weather cooperated. Here in Wollongong, though, it feels like the rules are a little looser. I’ve that you can grow things like tomatoes practically year-round, which seems wild to me.

The challenge is figuring out what little gardening knowledge I have that actually applies here. Seasons are flipped, the weather seems mild most of the time, but apparently the summer sun is no joke. The next year will be pretty interesting as I learn how hot, how cold, how dry, how rainy, and how windy it can really be. There is a lot to figure out: soil, drainage, sunlight, and which plants are actually weeds pretending to be something else. More than once I have pointed out a flower I liked, only for Kym to tell me it was a weed.

So far, I’ve added to Kym’s already established garden:

• One tomato plant, now growing where some broccolini had bolted and gone rogue.
• An oregano I divided and tucked into a few spots.
• Seeds for basil, rosemary, zucchini, and capsicum that I am giving a try in a tray.
• A few cuttings I have brought home to propagate from our walks.

Those walks have turned into a bit of an adventure. We head out in the evenings with my bum bag (fanny pack for the Americans), a pair of snips, and a plastic bag with a damp paper towel tucked inside. If I see something that looks interesting, I take a quick cutting and wrap it up before anyone notices. It is hard to tell what is on private property and what is not, especially down by the creek, so I try to be discreet. I haven’t seen my face blasted on any of the local FB groups yet (although to be fair, they haven’t let me in all of them yet!).

It is all very early in the process and honestly a bit of a gamble. I’m sure some things will work, some won’t. Flowers seem like they might be easier than food, but I am giving my best shot at both. There is no pressure, which makes it fun. I am just learning as I go, and with so many plants I have never seen before, there is a lot to explore. At some point, I would love to spend time volunteering at the botanical gardens or even working outdoors somewhere, just to get more hands-on experience.

For now, I am enjoying the process of planting, propagating, and seeing what sticks. It feels good to be starting something new, even if I am still figuring out which things belong in our garden and which are just weeds pretending to be flowers.

Lethal Aussie wildlife encounters: still 0