About us
Our passion for Self Sufficiency in the Backyard
We have, over the years, learned much. We started with a pot plant of cherry tomatoes and another of basil. We were renting, had very little money and I wanted to have a go at making fresh bruschetta. We tried store bought basil which would only last a day or two in the fridge and we wouldn’t need the whole packet. It was expensive and we usually threw out more than we used.
We found that from two small pot plants, you can get an abundance of tomatoes and basil. In fact, we learned when you have too many tomatoes you end up using them in things you may not have thought of before. We would pick just as much as we needed and gave away plenty to friends and family, which they loved! Next we thought we’d try to grow some parsley, coriander and silver beet.
We were hooked.
We loved being able to walk out to our pots each night and pick some fresh herbs and cut a spinach leaf. We started to save money and started eating much more healthily. Our standard chips in the oven turned into pasta with freshly chopped tomatoes and basil tossed through it and our usual steak interchanged with a Thai beef salad (steak sliced thinly with fresh coriander, mint, tomatoes). In fact, we started to eat pretty fancy.
10 years on and our backyard is beautiful. We have a typical backyard with a little grass, and border plants; however... the REALLY beautiful part is where our chook pen, vegetable gardens and fish pond is.
Our garden is full of rich soil and lush leaves, with flashes of brightly coloured reds, greens, blacks, and orange and in winter when life takes on a quieter pace, our vegetables provide what our bodies need at that time of year. We have grown every vegetable, fruit and herb that you could think of..... And we are still going.
Our backyard is brimming with life. Our chooks bathe happily in the sand and we hear them purr when they are ready to lay an egg. The sound of water trickles peacefully in the background. Not from a fountain, but from our fish tanks with Marron and Barramundi thriving in fresh clean water.Our backyard’s self sustainability gives us so much reward. Our vegetable garden, chicken pen and fish tank were an easy choice. Our joy is simple.
Anyone can do in their own backyard, what we have done.
You don’t need to spend a lot of money; in fact you can save money.
And you don’t need a big backyard.
Our passion is to make a difference to our community by sharing this lifestyle and making it possible for other families to experience this simple shift in the way we eat.
We believe that gardens should be a place of wonder, where there is something new to be discovered around every corner. Gardens are a place for relaxing, reflecting and recharging.
Having worked at Australias largest nursery for 7 years, studying aquaculture and practicing self sufficiency for the past 10 years we believe that we can start you off on your own endeavours to achieve more produce from your backyard – or leave all the work to us and all you need to do is collect your produce.
Along with a performing self sufficient backyard, Customer Service is equal top of our priorities. For 9 years proprietor Michael Wilson was an integral part of a team that won the top customer service awards in its field 6 years running, not bad for a telecommunications company! And he has brought the same philosophies for customer service with him to Suburban Farmer.
Thank you for visiting our website – if you have any questions, comments or need any further information, please don’t hesitate to contact Michael at mike@suburbanfarmer.com.au.
Kind Regards,
Suburban Farmer
