The Bates’ Homestead is proof that you don’t have to own your own property to grow your own food.
Rental garden veteran Katy Bates, her husband Greg and their two children began their Bate’s Homestead adventure on a small suburban block in Canberra.
Five years later, the family’s current rented property nestles in the rolling hills of Childers. And their 1500m2 edible garden features wicking beds, a chicken yard, beehives and … wait for it… a guinea pig tractor.
Top tips for negotiating with your landlord
Learn from Katy’s experience in this excellent article in PIP Magazine. She describes how to sell the aesthetic and environmental benefits of edible gardening to your landlord and reassure them that you’ll protect their investment by maintaining the garden. Proposing temporary ‘above ground’ gardening in raised beds or containers may also put your landlord at ease about the long-term impact on the property.
Making the most of recycled materials
A key feature of the Bates’ Homestead Garden is their quirky and ingenious greenhouse made from recycled glass doors and windows salvaged from Melbourne’s hard rubbish collections. The large demountable water tank inside the greenhouse can go with the family if or when they move from their current piece of perma-cultured paradise.
Visit the Bates Homestead
The Bates’ Homestead will be open on 27 and 28 January 2024 during the Creative Harvest Edible Gardens Weekend.
Explore this beautiful, inspiring garden and stay for Katy’s talk about gardening by the moon.
Find the Bate’s Homestead on Facebook
Buy tickets for Creative Harvest
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