Quo vadis?
The past year has been tough. It’s been terrible for the earth and for humanity however you measure it.
Illness and death have come too close. Plans and ideas have not materialised as hoped. It has become clear that we cannot go on like this.
I sit beside the fire and think
of how the world will be
when winter comes without a spring
that I shall ever see.
J.R.R Tolkien
The only choice is to continue to do what is right, good and beautiful – and continue to resist the Orcs and their masters.
IT’S TIME TO THINK ABOUT
OUR VALUES AND
REVIEW OUR COURSE
We love our garden and we live in it. Yet the hours of the day are limited, as are our financial resources and physical strength. Over the past few years, we’ve put everything into it, only to discover that it’s not wise. The meaningful turns into a sense of inadequacy and fatigue that partly obscures what we’re convinced of. We need to have the courage to make an honest analysis of the situation and concentrate on what matters most.
So what are the jewels of the Tallbacka? What are we going to do more of, and what are we going to leave behind and do less of?
FIRST, THE SOIL AND ITS MICROBES
No Dig is based on caring for and respecting the Earth’s ecosystem. We don’t yet understand all that is going on beneath our feet, but we realize that the system is irreplaceable. The ferocious search for efficiency from the 20th century onwards continues the destruction of arable soils in many parts of the globe. Erosion with widespread deserts, destroyed groundwater, artificial fertilizers, careless use of toxins and plastic have crashed Earth’s ecosystems and wiped out many things we cannot live without. Industrially produced food cannot promote health, because the quantity cannot compensate for the quality.
Tallbacka is a vanishingly small piece of soil, but it gives us the opportunity to do it differently. To benefit the soil organisms we use compost as a covering material and after a few years it starts to show visible results. The climate in Finland is challenging and the amount of compost used is very high (at least 20 m³) and requires both time and effort. We have a lot that we still need to study. The American Matt Powers, for example, has made an interesting study material on the subject that provides instruction via the internet. Collaboration with others interested in the subject is possible in 2025.
The most important thing, though, is to recapture the joy and enthusiasm that threatened to disappear in the summer of 2024. It’s a crazy and fascinating job to build compost!
ETERNALLY INTERESTING ODDITIES AND NEW SPECIALITIES
From the beginning, we were excited when we found something new. We wanted all kinds of berry plants, many varieties and especially ones that we didn’t yet know about. Some of them didn’t thrive with us for long, some on the other hand, we got bored with ourselves and we couldn’t get our hands on all of them. But many rare plants thrive in Tallbacka and give us great joy. One notable of 2024: true quince Cydonia oblonga that bloomed and produced a harvest! Four large and beautiful quince fruits that ended up as jam in Nalle’s backyard. Delightful!
As we ponder what to grow in the coming season, we need to consider the amount of work that is required. For this reason, we are focusing on perennials. The sallad mix (Tallbacka mix) remains in the picture but with a much smaller volume. Many of the species included in the picture are also perennials, such as the lovely wood sorrel Oxyria digyna. Other exciting edible perennials we are trialling to a greater extent are Angelica (Angelica archangelica), ramsons (Allium ursinum) Spanish salsify (Scorzonera hispanica) and perennial wall-rocket or arugula (Diplotaxis tenuifolia). Asparagus officinalis and Hosta or plantain lily (Hosta sp.) will be our main products. We have already expanded and will increase the cultivation of them in 2025. They grow together because they are relatives!
We can find many interesting, old and partly forgotten perennials among the edible perennials. Among others, Caucasian spinach (Hablizia tamnoides), patience dock (Rumex patientia), Good-King-Henry (Blitum bonus-henricus) always arouse the interest of our guests. Watercress (Nasturtium officinale) and bulrush (Typha latifolia) will certainly be growing in the coming pond. The biggest challenge when it comes to growing these perennials is finding the right place in the garden. Once found, the rest is completely natural and in the end everything looks as if the plant has always been there!
HUMAN BEAUTY IN THE CULTIVATION BEDS
The garden lives and grows. Plants don’t bend to human will, but grow beyond their limits, fail to grow, freeze, spread aggressively or change places altogether. The gardener’s job is to get the right plants into the right places and then, when conditions change, take care of their habitat. We dream of a diversity that is beautiful, balanced and promotes the success of the soil and the plants. We try to take into account the light, humidity and heat conditions of the different parts of the garden, as well as the growing power of different plants during the season. We want to create small entireties – growing beds with an idea and character of their own. We give different names to the different parts of the garden. We favour plant combinations that can be joined together through some theme, especially by telling a story to our guests.
The ideology forest gardening has always meant a diversity of trees, shrubs, herbs, vegetables and flowers combined in the same growing space. Sometimes concerns arise with the emergence of root shoots and shade, but usually the consequences are positive. Plants protect and defend each other. Pests cannot spread uncontrollably. Spring frost does not kill the whole vegetation, and gale-force winds do not topple all flowers.
When we create structures and when we build, we try to reuse materials and find natural solutions. The beds, and especially their edges, are important to keep neat. Continuous care is the easiest and quickest way to do this work. That’s what we want to invest in.
STOP FOR A MOMENT
Tallbacka, in our dreams, can be managed with a little less work and also give us time to enjoy the beauty, the colours, the birdsong and the buzzing insects. It’s important for both of us to be able to pause, ground ourselves, and be present in the moment. For years, Nalle has been leading meditation and along with Pontus Anckar, Know Yourself days. Outi has recently been practising kundalini yoga.
The year 2024 has clearly shown us how much stress is too much. We are getting older like everyone else and the world around us is screaming louder and louder. We need to silence ourselves and listen to ourselves and the silence. The healthy food we grow is a luxury. We don’t want to let stress ruin its positive impact. In the garden, we want to create sheltered environments where, if they so wish, the guests in the garden can sit in peace and relax and let their souls rest.