Ask a Question or Leave a Comment

Sam missed an episode! Why?

Taking time to pause, reflect, and reset is just as important in life as it is in the garden 🌱

In this personal episode of White Strawberries, I’m sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the podcast after nearly a year of consistent episodes. From humble beginnings (yes… five downloads and my mum falling asleep 😅) to growing a global audience, this episode dives into what’s working, what’s been surprisingly hard, and what’s coming next.

With the lead-up to Matariki, I’m stepping into a seasonal reset — reflecting on the past six months and intentionally designing the next phase of this podcast, my courses, and how I support you.

If you’ve ever wondered what it really takes to build something from scratch — or you’re on your own journey of growth — this one’s for you.

🌱 What You’ll Discover

• What I’ve learned after 45 podcast episodes
• Real podcast growth stats
• The hidden complexity of email lists, websites, and automation
• Why I’m taking a month off and what I’m resetting
• The vision behind my Grounded gardening course
• I've reduced my grocery bill while eating high-quality food
• Why growing your own food is becoming more important than ever
• How you can shape future episodes through Q&A and voice messages

🔗 References & Resources Mentioned

• Grounded Course (coming soon)
• White Strawberries Podcast Website (in progress)

🎧 Previous White Strawberries Episodes You Might Enjoy

About Sam – Learn more about the host of White Strawberries.

Support the Podcast – Buy Sam a Cuppa to help keep new episodes coming.

Join Grounded – Be first to hear when the course opens.

Ask a Question – Submit a gardening question for a future episode.

Ask a Question or Leave a Comment

🌱 Before you plant another single tree, there’s one step that can save you years of frustration: observation.

In this Mastering the Garden episode of White Strawberries, I walk you through how to understand your land before you grow — from mapping shade and wind to testing soil, water movement, and frost patterns.

Using real examples (including why my mum’s feijoas fruit weeks before mine just 12 minutes away), we explore how small environmental differences shape what thrives — and what struggles.

This episode is your practical guide to working with your land instead of against it, using simple, often free tests to build a resilient, abundant garden.

🌿 If you’ve ever felt like you don’t have a “green thumb,” this might be the missing piece.

🌱 What You’ll Discover

• How to map shade across seasons and use it to your advantage
• What wind patterns reveal about plant placement and disease risk
• How frost moves through your land — and how to work with it
• Simple ways to observe water flow, drainage, and waterlogging
• Easy at-home soil tests (including structure and moisture checks)
• How weeds can give clues about your soil conditions
• Why climate zones (like USDA) are helpful — but limited

🔗 References & Resources Mentioned

• Permaculture Research Soil Test Handbook — by Chris Trump & collaborators
• iNaturalist (plant identification app)
• Seek by iNaturalist (child-friendly version)

🎧 Previous White Strawberries Episodes Referred to

• How I Saved My Garden from Summer Storms, Flooding and Wind (Episode 37). Look it up on your platform 🤗

About Sam – Learn more about the host of White Strawberries.

Support the Podcast – Buy Sam a Cuppa to help keep new episodes coming.

Join Grounded – Be first to hear when the course opens.

Ask a Question – Submit a gardening question for a future episode.

Ask a Question or Leave a Comment

Should we be using pesticides on our fruit trees? And if not… what do we do instead?

In this episode of White Strawberries, I’m joined by Matthew Priestley, whose work and thinking around ecological systems challenges and encourages us to rethink how we respond to pests in our orchards🌿

We explore what’s really going on when pests and disease show up, and why reaching for sprays might be missing the bigger picture. From airflow (including opening up a “wind tunnel”) to soil health, tree nutrition, and system design, this conversation is all about working with your ecosystem instead of against it.

If you’re growing fruit trees and wondering how to manage pests without pesticides, this episode offers a practical, grounded alternative rooted in science, observation, resilience, and long-term thinking.

What You’ll Discover

• Should you use pesticides on fruit trees—or avoid them altogether?
• What pests and disease are actually telling you
• How airflow and pruning reduce pressure naturally for some fruit trees
• Why soil health and tree nutrition are foundational
• How systems evolve as your trees grow and mature
• What to do instead of spraying (organic and non organic pesticides)

Find Matthew on the BrotherWood site here and on Socials here.

Some of Matthew's favourite resources:

Products he mentioned (He has no affiliation with these):

Hortitech Foliar Protect

Hydrolysed Fish

Wood Vinegar

Book recommendations:

Michael Phillips, The Holistic Orchard

Nicole Masters, For The Love of Soil

Education/Inspiration:

Permadynamics, permaculture based training, PDCs and short courses

Elaine Ingham - Soil food web

Matt powers - Regerating soil

Paul Stamets - Fungi

If you enjoyed this episode, I’d love your support:

⭐ Jump into your podcast app and leave a rating & review
💌 Send me a question or share your thoughts
🌱 Tell me what’s happening in your garden right now

🔗 Connect with Me

📍 Website: whitestrawberriespodcast.com
📸 Instagram: @whitestrawberriespodcast

May your strawberries be white and your soil full of carbon 🌱

About Sam – Learn more about the host of White Strawberries.

Support the Podcast – Buy Sam a Cuppa to help keep new episodes coming.

Join Grounded – Be first to hear when the course opens.

Ask a Question – Submit a gardening question for a future episode.