Avant Gardeners

Madeleine Gasparinatos & Emily Allen
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Home & Garden
  • Updated Biweekly

With lots of enthusiasm and very little know how, Emily and Maddie love chatting about gardening, often with a glass of wine or cocktail in hand. In each fortnightly episode, we speak to people who inspire us in the garden, in order to unearth some much needed knowledge.

  1. 13 hrs ago

    Honey Atkinson // Intergenerational Living, Photography, Dividing Labour, Becoming more 'Me'

    -- Save 15% off everything when shopping. Use the code AGPOD15 here. This episode is proudly sponsored by Veggie and Flower Garden Seeds. With more than 900 varieties of veggie seeds, and unique and hard-to-find flower seeds, this is our go-to place to shop for garden goodies. Female founded, Bec sources freshest seed to help with your germination success. We love their amazing customer service, their helpful advice on getting the most out of your seed, and the range of stunning flowers and veggies they have available. -- Honey Atkinson first picked up a camera at age 15 and has worked as a full-time photographer for more than 20 years. We first came across Honey through her work photographing Compostable Kate's book, The Compost Coach, and have been big fans ever since. Recently, her focus has been on working with quietly ambitious women in business. Honey regards her work as a practice in mindfulness, saying, "Searching for what is beautiful about life is a real gift." Until she was six years old, Honey lived on a commercial fishing boat in Far North Queensland. These days, Honey lives, forages, makes sourdough and grows veggies on a 10-acre property on Djiringanj Country in New South Wales' Bega Valley with her partner, children, and mum. We talk about Cathedral Thinking, Perfectionism, Reflecting on ourselves, colour pallettes, taking photos of your garden to look back on and see how far you've progressed, finding little snippets of time to garden.  Honey talks about living on a boat for the first 6 years of her life, choosing to move south, integenerational living including things like domestic and economic division, the joys and chaos of having three generations under the one roof, and what gifts it brings to everyone. Her and her mum have a shared Pinterest board. There's SO much in this chat. Best to just listen :-)

  2. Jul 21

    Olives and Medlars and Quolls, oh my!

    -- Save 15% off everything when shopping. Use the code AGPOD15 here. This episode is proudly sponsored by Veggie and Flower Garden Seeds. With more than 900 varieties of veggie seeds, and unique and hard-to-find flower seeds, this is our go-to place to shop for garden goodies. Female founded, Bec sources freshest seed to help with your germination success. We love their amazing customer service, their helpful advice on getting the most out of your seed, and the range of stunning flowers and veggies they have available. -- Geez, having Poh on last week is a tough act to follow, but we're giving it a crack. Emily has knocked the top off a Brothers Maclean 2024 Mencía, and we love this apt description of it: "Heavier than a pinot, but not too ballsy." Emily's talking about her long Tomato season, we discuss split tomatoes, cucumbers, Tiny Farm Tas' CSA Flower seedling box, and annoyingly somoene threw out Em's poppy seeds. Maddie's misidentifying things, has trouble noting down where things are sown. Emily's discovered a Medlar tree on her property - she'll report back on her verdict of the fruit. Maddie reckons No Mow May is great, and heard something funny (not for the dogs) on vet talk back radio.  Maddie will use Milkwood' olive brining method for her 89grams of olives.  Mountain peppers are being harvested, and we're excited to watch Clarkson's Farm Season 5 (old news now)

  3. Jul 14

    Poh Ling Yeow // The Inconvenience of Gardening, Bees, Peaches and Possums

    -- Save 15% off everything when shopping. Use the code AGPOD15 here. This episode is proudly sponsored by Veggie and Flower Garden Seeds. With more than 900 varieties of veggie seeds, and unique and hard-to-find flower seeds, this is our go-to place to shop for garden goodies. Female founded, Bec sources freshest seed to help with your germination success. We love their amazing customer service, their helpful advice on getting the most out of your seed, and the range of stunning flowers and veggies they have available. -- Poh Ling Yeow is an artist, author, cook, and TV host - one of the hosts of Masterchef Australia. She's also a relatively recent convert to gardening—but gee whiz, has she grabbed it with two hands! ​She doesn't call herself a chef, but she burst onto our screens in 2009 in the very first season of MasterChef. Since then, she's been a regular on TV, including her own series, Poh and Co., which followed the creation of her amazing garden. ​Poh explains that her "greed for life experience" has always made her creatively adventurous and willing to invite change. We think those are words to live by. ​Poh lives, cooks, creates, gardens, and tends to her bees - alongside her beloved dog Tim on Gah-na land in Adelaide, South Australia. Before that we're chatting Miso - Maddie's obsessed with these miso chocolate biscuits, and this way of cooking cabbage that you're going to love (panko, miso and add some chilli - oh my!).  Maddie is loving strawberries growing in pots, and reccomends this Bee Native florists hand balm Poh talks about Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerrer, Maddie talks about Phosphorescene by Julia Baird Poh also references The River Cafe cookbook, and Tickle Tank in Adelaide

  4. Jul 7

    Obnoxious Guinea Fowl and Rebranding Ravens

    --This episode is proudly sponsored by Willie Smith's Non-alcoholic Cider. Made from Organic Apples grown not far from us, we're big fan of this delightful non-alcoholic cider. It's more refined that apple juice, there's no added sugar, and it's something fancier than your standard sparkling water. It has that craft cider taste, and it's a great option if you aren't drinking, want just one less alcoholic drink, or feel like something a little different.  Enjoy 10% off their Non-Alcoholic ciders when using the code AG10 here -- We've knocked the top off a Willie Smith's Non Alc cider for this glorious episode. Not only do we enjoy their cider, but we love going to their Apple Shed too for some live music inside, let the kids run wild outside, a bowl of delicious potatoes or their yummy apple pie.  We're chatting tree dahlias (again), scary snapdragon seed pods, encouraging Ravens in the chicken yard, the no-egg season, chicken curtains, the ridiculousness of the guinea fowl. We're looking at Scarab Beetles in a new light, Emily is planting out Dwarf Gums but needs to consider power poles (as do you if you purchase a property down here!). Emily is singing the praises of Buy From The Bush

  5. Jun 30

    Anna Matilda / Urban Nanna - Carescapes, Permaculture, Foraging, Autism, Renting, Friction Maxxing

    --This episode is proudly sponsored by Willie Smith's Non-alcoholic Cider. Made from Organic Apples grown not far from us, we're big fan of this delightful non-alcoholic cider. It's more refined that apple juice, there's no added sugar, and it's something fancier than your standard sparkling water. It has that craft cider taste, and it's a great option if you aren't drinking, want just one less alcoholic drink, or feel like something a little different.  Enjoy 10% off their Non-Alcoholic ciders when using the code AG10 here -- Anna Matilda, aka The Urban Nanna specialises in teaching people about traditional skills, crafts and methods of living in a modern-day context.  Anna's purpose is about reviving traditional ways of cooking, preserving, and crafting, always focusing heavily on permaculture principles to guide a sustainable lifestyle that's full of gardening and zero-waste practices. Anna is a former primary school teacher with a horticultural background who has created The Urban Nanna to showcase and teach knowledge, methods and skills to people much like grandmas have done for generations.  Anna lives, forages, preserves and works on the lands of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong Boon Wurrung peoples in Victoria, Australia. We're eating Tony Chocoloney. Maddie and Emily discuss Friction Maxxing, Visible Mending, With Anna we delve into Carescapes and specifically Spoons theory.  Anna's book is Everyday Permaculture We discuss Ceres, Milkwood Permaculture, The Veggie Scientist, Autism and Neurodivergence, Catie from Reskilliance Podcast, Foraging and much more. Enjoy!

  6. Jun 23

    Speaking of Gladiolus

    --This episode is proudly sponsored by Willie Smith's Non-alcoholic Cider. Made from Organic Apples grown not far from us, we're big fan of this delightful non-alcoholic cider. It's more refined that apple juice, there's no added sugar, and it's something fancier than your standard sparkling water. It has that craft cider taste, and it's a great option if you aren't drinking, want just one less alcoholic drink, or feel like something a little different.  Enjoy 10% off their Non-Alcoholic ciders when using the code AG10 at https://www.williesmiths.com.au/product/willie-smiths-non-alc -- We're back! Welcome to a new season of Avant Gardeners. This is an Emily & Maddie episode where we start off with saffron and end on a recommendation that will have your veggies lasting much much longer in the fridge. Maddie has grown a successful saffron crop, and now understands why it's so expensive, she's popped in a bunch of Gladiolus, there are kiwi fruits growing (we incorrectly said that kiwi don't ripen off the vine. This is untrue - they will ripen on your bench). Coriander are going off in the garden paths. Maddie is ambivilent about quinces. Emily is giving back to the local seed saving group, and has a great hack with pillow cases. She's recommending King of the Wilderness a story about the amazing Denny King, as a tree that was previously thought to be extinct has recently been discovered. King's Lomatia. Emily is recommending The Swag.  A big thank you to Willie Smith's Non Alcoholic Cider for being this episode's sponsor.

  7. May 5

    Mitch Theissen // The Agrarian Kitchen, Compost, Soil Health, Japanese Salad Turnip

    Mitch Theissen has the enviable role of Head Gardener at the award winning Agrarian Kitchen in New Norfolk, just outside of Hobart. Having grown up in the Huon Valley, born into a long line of apple farmers, Mitch started his career in the kitchen, first in Hobart, then Sydney, before spending time in Japan. It was here that his thoughts returned to agriculture and produce, and upon returning to Australia he sought out the next phase of his career, landing this dream gig a few years ago and being pivotal in what it looks like, and how it operates, today.  Mitch lives, works and gardens with his partner, and young family on the land of the wulawali people in New Norfolk, in lutruwita/Tasmania's Derwent Valley. Before we get to that, Emily and Maddie are (as well as talking over the top of each other -- sorry about that --) talking about radishes. Yep, that's about it. We also talk about  Compost Soil Salad spinners (lol, yes) And maybe you need to rush out to buy some Japanese Salad Turnip Seeds. IYIYK Mitch is recommending Eliot Coleman's New Organic Gardener.

  8. Apr 28

    Baklava Old Fashioned, Dehydrator Season and We Answer Your Questions!

    We're drinking a Baklava Old Fashioned - Maddie had leftover baklava syrup (sugar, water, cinnamon, honey) and has turned it into an old fashioned with burbon, amaretto and a dash of bitters. Absolutely delish! Emily has scored herself the perfect harvest basket, and her benchtop is housing a hard-working dehydrator as she works through the abundance of nashi pears. Maddie delves into the good and the bad dahlia chat.  We discuss tree peonies and mimosa hydrangeas before delving into some questions that you - our amazing listeners - have asked of us. The ones we get into in this episode are: -What are some things you wish you could grow, and what would you never grow -How did you two meet? -What are your favourite cocktails. This was fun, and there are more questions to answer in future eps. Feel like asking us a question? Drop us a DM at @avantgardeners.podcast

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

With lots of enthusiasm and very little know how, Emily and Maddie love chatting about gardening, often with a glass of wine or cocktail in hand. In each fortnightly episode, we speak to people who inspire us in the garden, in order to unearth some much needed knowledge.

Information

  • Creator
    Madeleine Gasparinatos & Emily Allen
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    63
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2023
  • Show Website
    Avant Gardeners

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