Elizabeth Waddington is a writer, permaculture designer and green living consultant. She is a practical, hands-on gardener, with a background in philosophy: (an MA in English-Philosophy from St Andrews University). She has long had an interest in ecology, gardening and sustainability and is fascinated by how thought can generate action, and ideas can generate positive change.
In 2014, she and her husband moved to their forever home in the country. She graduated from allotment gardening to organically managing 1/3 of an acre of land, including a mature fruit orchard,which she has turned into a productive forest garden. The yield from the garden is increasing year on year – rapidly approaching an annual weight in produce of almost 1 ton.
She has filled the rest of the garden with a polytunnel, a vegetable patch, a herb garden, a wildlife pond, woodland areas and more. Since moving to the property she has also rescued many chickens from factory farms, keeping them for their eggs, and moved much closer to self-sufficiency. She has made many strides in attracting local wildlife and increasing biodiversity on the site.
When she is not gardening, Elizabeth spends a lot of time working remotely on permaculture garden projects around the world. Amongst other things, she has designed private gardens in regions as diverse as Canada, Minnesota, Texas, the Arizona/California desert, and the Dominican Republic, commercial aquaponics schemes, food forests and community gardens in a wide range of global locations.
In addition to designing gardens, Elizabeth also works in a consultancy capacity, offering ongoing support and training for gardeners and growers around the globe. She has created booklets and aided in the design of Food Kits to help gardeners to cool and warm climates to grow their own food, for example. She is undertaking ongoing work for NGO Somalia Dryland Solutions and a number of other non governmental organisations, and works as an environmental consultant for several sustainable companies.
Visit her website here and follow along on her Facebook page here.
Keeping chickens on your homestead gives you far more than just eggs (and potentially meat). Chickens also help to incorporate organic matter by scratching, they eat pests that would otherwise plague …
Being a successful home grower involves understanding how to make the most of each and every crop that you grow. Experienced organic gardeners soon learn that not everything goes according …
If you’ve been gardening for any length of time, you know that compost does magical things for your yield. But even the most active compost bin can’t break down all …
Elderberries are one of my favorite fall-garden attractions. Where elders grow, the glossy, black berries on their reddish-pink stems are a definitive sight of the season. Here on our homestead, …
Lettuce is one of the easiest crops for any gardener to grow. But getting it right means thinking about which varieties are right for you and your area. If you …
Daffodils are surely one of the cheeriest sights in a spring garden. Most gardeners will no doubt be aware that these are one of the earliest flowers to bloom in …
Rosehips are definitely one of the defining flavours of the fall. Yet many people are unaware that many rose bushes develop these useful hips (if they are given the chance …
One of the most pleasurable jobs in any garden is choosing which plants to grow. It can be great fun to seek out new options and explore all the different …
Potatoes are a staple crop, and a great thing to grow in your garden. But if you grow them in traditional rows, they do take up an awful lot of …
Growing trees in your garden is always a great idea. They can enrich your life in a huge range of ways, as well as sequestering carbon, cleaning the air, and …
A 5 gallon bucket can be an incredible useful thing. There are many ways to use them around your homestead. One of the most obvious ways to use these reclaimed containers is …
Lavender is a beautiful and fragrant flower that finds a place in many very different gardens. Lavender is, generally speaking, a rather easy and low maintenance plant to grow. However, …
Cabbage is a member of the Brassica family, and of course, we grow many members of that family in our gardens. Many gardeners will grow cabbage, kale, broccoli, cauliflowers, turnips, …
Water is one of the most important factors – not only in your garden but on this planet. Life as we know it would not be possible without this vital …
Growing your own is not just about sowing, growing and harvesting. It is also about making sure that you make the most of the crops that you grow. This means …
If you only have a small garden, growing in pots or containers can be a good way to go. Just because you don’t have a large backyard, that does not …
In an organic garden, we are always trying to find ways to deal with pests, problems and plants that do not involve the use of synthetic chemicals that can harm …
Sage is a wonderful plant to choose to grow in your garden. It can thrive in a wide range of different settings, and bring many benefits. It will be beneficial …
You might think of the spring as the primary seed sowing time. But there are actually plenty of seeds you can still sow through the summer months. In this article, …
You may not know it, but many gardeners swear by Epsom salt as a secret weapon in their organic gardens. It is generally better to focus on restoring or maintaining …
If you are trying to go greener, you may already be aware that baking soda is a very useful thing to have in your home. It can be used to …
There are a number of reasons why you might wish to grow climbing plants and flowering vines. You might wish to add them to a wall or fence to improve …
Life can be busy. Most of us do not have the time to spend hours and hours in our gardens each week. But a garden can be low maintenance and …
Choosing perennials with long blooming periods won’t just bring welcome color to your garden. It will be great for pollinators and other wildlife too. And what’s good for the wildlife …