By Kendrea Rhodes
Talk about a catchy name: this is the kind of word that involves all five senses to make sense of! First, roll it around on your tongue, say it out loud and listen to it. Then see how it’s spelt and by the time you’ve done all this, your brain will have conjured up the feel and smell of fresh garden vegetables.
Veg2Table is a new business developed by Rachel and Lyndon May of Lobethal. The idea is quite simple: they will help you get your own home-grown vegetables into your kitchen, so that you and your family can enjoy the many benefits of growing and eating the freshest produce.
Knowledge is power and if you know how your food was grown, what chemicals were used, the age of the vegetables and how far they’ve travelled, then you can regain some power over your family’s nutrition. Instead of your fridge being filled with vegetables after the weekly shop, you can harvest as you cook, therefore your garden truly becomes your larder.
Most people would love to grow their own veggies, but don’t have the time and a garden takes a heck of a lot of planning, know-how and hard work. This is where Veg2Table take away the pain of starting out and provide you with your own tailored-made, kitchen garden. They also offer an ongoing maintenance service: so while you are off working in the city, busy taking the kids to their sporting events, or even away on holidays, they will do a fortnightly service on your garden which includes; weeding, pest control, harvesting, composting and mulching.
Rachel and Lyndon live in Lobethal with their daughters, Lucy and Grace. Rachel has been brought up on fresh vegetables, with both of her grandfathers’ vegetable gardens supplying their families over the years. Rachel has had ten years experience in soil consultancy, working in the Adelaide Hills and surrounds for Rural Solutions SA. Lyndon has had fifteen years experience as an advisor for a leading agricultural supply company, specializing in pest control and plant diseases. Both Rachel and Lyndon have substantial tertiary qualifications in Agronomy, Natural Resources, and farm business management systems. And, both of them have a passion and interest in the home garden and a genuine concern for the health and quality of the food they provide for their own family.
It all started in their veggie garden in 2009, sitting with a cuppa, contemplating life. Friends have often asked them for advice and they realized that, between them, they have a lot of knowledge and experience. This was when the idea of Veg2Table was born. Rachel said “it was a bit of a light bulb moment”.
Veg2Table have a display garden at Woodside Landscape and Hire that you may visit from Monday to Saturday, 8am-5pm. The garden is currently stocked up with winter crops such as lettuce, garlic, rocket, broad beans, parsley and spring onions. It’s a 2m square bed using untreated red gum sleepers in a simple but attractive design. The soil, fertilizers, mulch, pea straw, garden supplies, hardware and hire equipment are all available from Woodside Landscape & Hire, who provide a consistent supply of high quality goods and services. It’s a great partnership for two local businesses, which not only helps customers, but the local hills economy too.
Tim Spurling, the manager at Woodside Landscape and Hire, said that it’s all down to people getting accurate and relevant information about their situation. This is definitely not generic advice from the TV or magazines: with both of these businesses being local and living locally, their knowledge of local soils, climate, seasons and flora is invaluable to their customers.
So now, you can have your veg. and eat it with the practical help and advice from Veg2Table. Make a booking during the month of June, and mention this article to receive your first consult 1/2 price. Contact Rachel May on 0457 929 998 or visit their website at www.veg2table.com.au
We part with some advice from Veg2Table for the hills winter gardener: “Even though things may appear quiet in the garden over winter, it is important to think about preparing garden beds for when things warm up again in spring. Soil preparation is the key for helping to combat pests and diseases in the garden. Planting a cover crop over winter is a great way to boost your garden opportunities for the spring. A legume cover crop, such as broad beans, vetch or Lucerne is a good way to boost nitrogen levels in the soil, and help control root diseases ready for the tomatoes in September.”
