February 2015 Blog Posts (11)

Not only is Herbal Tea Direct matcha great for your health, it's an ideal super food to include in your diet to lose that stubborn fat.

1. Matcha boosts fat metabolism:

A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 1999 concluded: “Green tea has thermogenic properties and promotes fat oxidation beyond that explained by its caffeine content per se. The green tea extract may play a role in the…

Matcha is 100% natural green tea leaves which have been carefully ground down to form a fine powder.

It has been drunk in Japan as part of the tea ceremony for almost 900 years, and is used by Buddhist monks to keep them alert, awake and focused during long days of meditation.

Until recently, virtually all matcha has been consumed within Japan, where it's particularly popular among students who are cramming for exams. But it’s now gaining popularity in the US, UK and Australia…

Matcha is essentially a very concentrated form of green tea. The way it's grown and consumed means that it's packed full of essential vitamins and minerals. Matcha tea bushes are grown under shade which dramatically increases the chlorophyll and amino acid content of the leaf – lots of good stuff.

When you drink regular green tea, you throw away the leaves afterwards which a bit like boiling spinach, throwing away the spinach and just drinking the water – you’ll get some of the…

Does anyone grow the Nam doc Mai variety of Vietnamese Mango? I am wanting to plant one but am unsure which variety of Vietnamese Mango to plant as I want to get an idea of how they grow in Brisbane. I want to plant one that will grow in a pot and that will bare with me keeping it to a reasonable height. I also want to grow the best disease resistant Mango. It is OK to ask a nursery about this but normally they have not grown them to maturity or in our region.

I an wanting the…

Well the rain has destroyed my Vegi Garden, the Butterfly Caterpillars have eaten all the new growth on my Fruit Trees, and what hasn't been eaten or battered by the rain and falling tree branches has grown like mad. So it is time to start the Vegi Garden over again and give the Fruit trees some attention when the little grubs have finished their consuming.

I guess if these are the only problems I have from all the heavy rain, I should be thankful. I am sorry to hear some of our…

There has been a lot of discussion about the most humane way of disposing of Cane Toads. Below are the discussions with links for information on disposal:

Comment by Lissa just now

Quite a good article. A lot of toads were killed in many ways to achieve it.

Would be interested in getting hold…

So welcome!

So far from yesterday morning to 1pm we've had 265mm which is around 10.5 inches. And it's still going. Fortunately so far with little to no wind.

The frogs are still at it - since dark last night the Gracefuls, Greens and Striped Marsh have been singing together. Quite a cacophony! We love it! Used to have Ornate Burrowing frogs too but haven't heard them this season. 'Up the back' over our fence is a small patch of degraded bushland with some mature gums and mixed…

Well, this year has seen in my gardens the most butterflies we have ever seen, in abundance. BUT what comes after the Flutterbys, Caterpillars I hear you say. By the hundreds I can tell you, especially on the Citrus. And what comes after the Caterpillars, well of course More Beautiful Butterflies I hear you say.

Well I cannot bring myself to remove them, after all it is selective pruning that they are doing, just saving me the job???????

Is anyone else experiencing…

Hi guys,

How is everyone enjoying the weather?  Myself, I've quite enjoyed the slightly cooler days and even though we are still in summer, I have been getting out into the garden in the arvo's  a lot more. 

Well mangoes are now being enjoyed in our house.  I lost the first few because I was too impatient and picked them to early.  Left over from my days as a northern Queenslander where mangoes were ready mid to late December.  In total, we had 15 on the tree - Not bad…

The Panama berry is the one in the back pot, it had been in a wicking pot previously with Elaine who found the caramel flavour of the berries didn't mix well in their smoothies with the other fruit and veg that they prefer.



I picked it up early this year and transferred it into this normal but double pot. It has settled in well producing flowers and continually if lightly fruiting.



The front pot is a pomegranate and the one to the left a kafir lime,…