Permaculture · Sustainable Living · Circular Farming
Touching the soil
changes everything.
For 10 years I've been transforming my garden with permaculture. Honest notes on rare seeds, cuttings and circular living.
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Low-Maintenance Plant, Quiet Spreader: Four Years of Garden Observation
A plant that asks for almost no care has been growing in my garden for four years and has recently started spreading more aggressively. Here is why such plants can take over and how to keep them in check.
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Cudrania Tricuspidata (Che): A Fruit Tree You Don't Need a Pair For
Cudrania tricuspidata, or Che, normally needs a separate male and female tree to fruit - but mine has a male branch grafted onto the female cultivar, so a single tree does the job. The fruit is still green now, but ripens into something that looks like a red raspberry.
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Oleander: It Bloomed Despite the Bad Soil
This oleander barely survived for years in the worst soil in my garden. This year the plants above it started casting shade, and it finally bloomed properly.
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Black Sea Peach: Standing Strong While Diseases Strike Others Down
While other peaches fall to monilia and leaf curl, the Black Sea peach stands strong. Small, aromatic, local and resistant. A story about why heirloom varieties matter.
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Malus domestica Fuji: The Sweetest Apple of the Garden
With its green to pink-red color transition, intense sweetness and juiciness, the Fuji apple is one of the most loved fruits in our garden. The complete opposite of Granny Smith but side by side on the same property.
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Malus domestica Granny Smith: The Green Sour Miracle of the Garden
Nothing like what you buy from the store. The garden-grown Granny Smith is sour, aromatic, browning quickly when cut. Fruits even in drought.
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Atriplex halimus: Sea Purslane, PFAF's Forgotten Plant
It entered my list from the PFAF system and I understood why later. Atriplex halimus is edible, drought-resistant, salt-tolerant and soil-improving. One of permaculture's forgotten treasures.
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Momordica charantia: Bitter Melon, Both Medicine and Mystery
Whether fruit or vegetable remains debatable but its healing power is undeniable. From stomach ulcers to blood sugar, from dental infections to immunity, Momordica charantia is a medicinal plant with thousands of years of history.
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Rubus fruticosus Black Butte: The Drought Warrior Blackberry of the Garden
Ripening in mid-August, drought-resistant, with large and delicious fruits, Black Butte blackberry is one of the most productive fruits in our garden. Grows without irrigation and yields abundantly.
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Mespilus germanica Bredase Reus: The World's Largest Medlar in My Garden
This rare variety from Breda, Netherlands, is one of the world's largest medlar cultivars with fruits reaching 5-6 cm in diameter. A variety I definitely want to add alongside the medlar already in my garden.
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Chamaerops humilis: Europe's Only Native Palm in My Garden
I propagated them from seeds collected from the Sapanca Richmond Hotel garden. Nearly 10 years have passed. Chamaerops humilis, Europe's only native palm, is one of the most resilient plants in the garden with its compact form.
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Washingtonia robusta: My 10-Year Legacy Grown from Seed
I propagated them from seeds collected from Washingtonia robusta palms along the Derince coastline. It has been 10 years, they have grown taller than me. One of the most beautiful legacies I am leaving for future generations.
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Acca sellowiana Apollo: Subtropical Flavor Growing in Sakarya
Feijoa, a subtropical fruit, has been growing trouble-free in our garden for 7 years with the Apollo variety. Indispensable for its magnificent spring flowers and aromatic autumn fruits.
Read more"Keep the cycle, the future is in your hands."
— HE-QA Garden
Permaculture for me is not just a gardening technique — it's a life philosophy. To repair the soil, keep the cycle and leave a richer nature for future generations. Every seed is a trust, every cutting a hope.
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Letters from the Garden
Seasonal planting calendars, rare plant introductions and permaculture tips. Once a week.