Explore edible garden trail

If you’ve tried growing fruit and vegetables in your garden at home, without success, it might be worth taking a drive to Samford on May 16 for meandering along The Samford Edible Garden Trail.

The trail is a chance to opportunity to tour eight inspiring gardens and pick the brains of the hosts, so you take some useful tips and tricks home with you.

The idea, brought to life by four Samford mums, was first hatched last year and aimed to open up local gardens to visitors in a bid to share knowledge about growing food.

A global pandemic forced them to rethink the concept and they instead did the legwork for keen gardeners, featuring a garden every day for two weeks online using videos and welcoming questions.

It was so popular, they continued it until the end of the year – showcasing a different garden every two weeks.

Founder Susanne Englehard said the initiative now had a following across South East Queensland.

“We’re going to continue that because we have a wider audience now, but now we’ve come back to the original idea of a one-day annual event,” she said.

“We’ve got a team of people behind this and we’ve been wanting this to happen and it feels like a real community event, so it’s very exciting for us to be able to see it come together.”

What’s happening

Green thumbs, brown thumbs and everyone in between will have an opportunity to visit and tour eight productive gardens on May 16 from 9am-3pm.

“Each one is unique and they’re very spectacular. It’s an opportunity to be inspired by seeing these gardens but it’s also the opportunity to speak to the host. It’s an opportunity for people to ask questions and that was one of the biggest motivators for me,” Ms Englehard said.

“It’s the best way to learn … an exchange of information. Locals can see what grows well in our area. We’re encouraging people to grow a little bit of food in their own backyard.”

The trail is also supporting small scale farmers and encouraging people to buy from them.

“That’s really important to us. We have a very unique area here and want to connect people with our farmers,” she said.

Visitors can also do this via four local cafes and restaurants, which will be showcasing local produce on their menus that day.

Pause Restaurant will be offering a three-course meal using 100 per cent local produce, Little Tree Bake and Brewhouse will be selling a soup, The Latin Shack Café will have a pizza, Samford Patisserie will create a pastry and will be offering a free cup of coffee for Edible Garden Trail ticket holders.

The Open Day aims to be day out for the family. There will be a kids’ treasure hunt, with clues at each of the open gardens, tasting opportunities of homegrown produce, and plenty of other ways for them to get their hands dirty and get involved.

Tickets are limited. First and single adults $10, subsequent adults in each group $5, children visit for free.

To find out more and buy tickets, visit samfordediblegardentrail.com.au

Must-see gardens on May 16

· A suburban back and front yard fully converted into raised garden beds - they grow and preserve an abundance of food

· A permaculture garden blending perennial vegetables, fruits, and flowering plants

· A 10-year-old subtropical food forest built on what was some of the poorest soil in the region and is now a microbial masterpiece of soil life

· A tradie’s garden complete with mini swale vegetable garden and orchard built on a slope, soil created from truckloads of horse manure, and upcycled wicking beds

· A tree-changer couple’s cottage garden, complete with raised beds, and orchard, a herbal tea garden and chickens

· Clever landscaping to capture water run-off into swales of dwarf bananas, an enclosed growing area with fruit trees, pineapples and passionfruit - all protected from birds, and terraced garden beds for easy access and useability

· A sustainable house and garden, with a subtropical orchard with more than 220 trees, 80 bush tucker trees, and an amazing aquaponics system

· Two local farmers show the amazing results they are achieving with their small-scale diversified organic farming methods

More than just gardens:

· Madi Mushroom, a young local farmer and business woman, will be sharing her knowledge of cooking gourmet mushrooms, at 9am and 10am, at the outdoor kitchen in Pause Restaurant

· For those wanting to take some of the gardens home with them, Millen farm, the local urban community farm, will be hosting a farmer’s market, and open up an area for picnics among the produce