Growing Your Cosmos Patch
Do you feel extra witchy when you’re in the garden?
I love getting my hands in the soil and nurturing my herbs and flowers and watching them grow!
I reached out to a beautiful woman I met in the community many years ago, Lydia from the Cosmos Patch, to learn more about how we can grow our own vegetables. When is the best time to plant seeds? and what do we need to be aware of in the lunar cycle?
Lydia is an embodied farmer who cultivates vegetables and ferments. Her story is an inspiring tale of following her passion, listening to nature and making it her passion and living.
You can watch the full interview here: GROWING YOUR COSMOS PATCH
How did you come up with your name?
When I started growing veggies I was constantly in awe of what it takes to grow the food we eat and just the beauty of nature. I wanted to share these stories. My sister Thea helped me vision a name. I am and always have been a “nomadic grower”, I don’t own a farm with a name and I grow on multiple sites, on many projects. My name needed to embody this.
Cosmos is one of my favourite flowers. Cosmos is also the universe. The gardens I grow reflect the cosmos. They look wild and a little chaotic with so many different species dotted throughout. There are multiple varieties of seeds growing in harmony with one another, each seed serving different functions to support the growth of a flourishing garden that is like a cosmic “universe”.
Just like the cosmos, my gardens are not a jumbled mess, they are a carefully considered, meticulously arranged and harmonious universe and each seed has its purpose within the whole, within the cosmos. The cosmos is infinite, expansive, complex and mysterious, much like our soil and much like our gardens.
Where are your patches?
When I started cosmos patch in 2019 I was growing on Bundjalung Country alongside Hungry Earth Agroecology at The Farm. I was also growing at Kennedys Lane Farm in Myocum. I grew with Good Natured Gardening at The Farm, Hidden Valley in Coopers Shoot and Byron Fermentary, at The Farm. I was also caretaking private sites, helping landowners grow their own food.
Currently I’m growing on Wiradjuri Country in central west NSW in a town called Mudgee. Here I caretake the gardens at Lowe Family Wine Co and grow organic and biodynamic produce for their onsite restaurant The Zin House. When I moved to Mudgee, a huge cosmos patch (flowers) had just been sown on the Lowe farm, deep cosmic alignment at play!
What do you grow and when do you decide its the best time?
I grow all kinds of edible crops from fruit and nut trees to annual and perennial vegetables and herbs to medicinal plants and soil food. Growing food also facilitates the growing of soil, of habitat, of community, of connections and of an abundance of lessons.
The best time is anytime, it just depends what I want to grow and what they need to thrive. I look to the “season” to determine this. I use the term season loosely, what I’m referring to is the changing climatic conditions throughout the year. It’s not quite as simple as summmer/winter/autumn/spring as these seasons vary wherever you grow. I prefer to look at the specific conditions where I am (temperature and rainfall plus humidity). Is it hot & dry, cold & wet, warm & humid?
Some seasons aren’t ideal for growing at all because the conditions may be to extreme. I take the opportunity to rest and feed the soil using cover crop (green manure). Cover crop is a diverse mix of crops all serving different functions to feed and nourish the soil. Preparing and resting the soil makes more sense to me than battling all year round to grow food. If you care for your soil your harvests are more abundant and your produce is more nutrient dense.
How do you know when to plant something?
I look at the moon cycles and the placement of the other planets to determine what to plant and when. This includes looking at when full moon and new moon are. This tells us which way energy is being directed, above (leaves) or below (roots) the soil.
What seasons do you follow?
I observe many cycles, from noting the amount of daylight vs nighttime hours (equinox & solstice) to the moon cycle or using other planets to guide me. Sometimes I don’t even know what anything in the cosmos is doing. I just sow seeds and observe what grows. This is one of the best ways to learn. Just starting with something. Nature is incredibly resilient and innately wants to grow. But when I do tune into the subtleties and grow accordingly it’s incredible to observe the difference.
Tell me about your connection with nature and listening to country…
My connection to nature has always felt very powerful. I have always felt peaceful and calm in nature, and stirred and uncomfortable in manufactured environments. I never wanted to be inside when I was young, I always wanted to be outside climbing trees, finding birds nests, feet in the sand or the soil, listening to the birds and the frogs. Natures subtleties tell us so much. I love to just sit and listen and observe wherever I am whenever I can. How does the air feel? What sounds can I hear? What smells are in the air? These observations can help us become more attuned to the needs of the land we care for.
Most popular things to grow for those living in a rental?
Fast growing seasonal annuals like radishes, coriander, dill, parsley, rainbow chard, kale, choys, cos lettuce, peas and spring onion during the cool months and basil, tomatoes, cucumber, zucchini, beans, pumpkin, corn and maize during the hotter months.
Amongst this I always grow flowers to attract pollinators and beneficial insects to the garden. My favourites are calendula, cosmos, marigold, borage, comfrey and other flowering woody perennial herbs like rosemary, lavender, thyme and Mexican tarragon.
You can also plant fruit trees as an offering to the land where you rent. Hopefully you’ll see the first harvests from this and also leave a gift for anyone who follows your path and inspire them to grow too.
What are your daily rituals?
I always start and finish my day with yin practices, once in the morning and once in the evening. Pigeon, happy baby, child’s pose, plough pose and Shavasana are my favourite poses to keep my body healthy and strong and prevent pain.
I journal when I feel inspired, I love to write and share stories and observations. I also include gratitudes from each day.
One of my most treasured daily rituals is sitting silently in nature doing absolutely nothing. A practice I am particularly fond of and very good at. Currently I live by a beautiful creek so in the afternoons I sit by the creek and simply be.
Rituals that make you feel connected to ancient traditions?
Having my hands in the soil everyday. I always remind myself to look up and observe the cosmos in awe and wonder, especially the night sky. Watching the path of the sun and the moon. Listening to nature always. Always giving to the land, and giving thanks. Nourishing the soil, laying or sitting on the earth.
Best local Byron Bay farmers we can look out for?
Head to any of the farmers markets! Some of my favourite stall holders for their growing practices and integrity are…
Rainforest foods
Kennedy’s Lane Farm
Red Earth Organics
Craigs bananas at Byron Farmers market
Byron Fermentary for fermented veg grown and made to the highest standard
Other growers to look out for/ follow on socials/ reach out to for amazing produce…
Hungry Earth Agroecology grows across multiple sites
Growing roots permaculture & Living Agroecology for all tropical perennial and hard to find foods
Can we get vegie boxes from you?
Not at the moment but I’d recommend getting to one of the local weekly farmers markets. We are so fortunate in the Byron shire because there’s one almost every day. Choosing to support your local farmers is the most powerful way to drive positive action and support those farmers fighting for a fairer food system for all. Support from locals really is everything for the farmers.