As I contemplate a new garden, from the beginnings, I think about what I couldn't do without, and what I will plant again. The first plantings will be in pots til the garden is established - silverbeet or spinach, spring onions and herbs. They are always a non negotiable in my garden - I can do a quick brown rice pilaf with various toppings (last night, chilli pickled beetroot) for cheap from that scant fare.

But looking over sixteen years of this place and the #hivegardenqotw theme this week 'freestylin'', I think of the things that drove me nuts because I was always weeding them or pulling out the roots and trying to get rid of them full stop. Sure, they had their benefits, but they were an absolute pain in the ass.

These buggers freestylin' all over my garden and I had no control.

1. Hops

I nearly spelt that 'hopes' - you need that for a big garden, or you wouldn't start, so let me rant about hops instead. We had grand ideas of brewing our own beer, which we never did. Instead, we found hops was amazing to get that kinda stoned feeling that put you to sleep without the alcohol. It's also excellent for migraines.

However, the bines (like vines, with little spikes) catch on your skin and draw blood, and like the wolf it's named for, hops enterwines with all surrounding plants to strangle them. There's a reason they grow them in big fields up poles. It took me a few years to dig them all out as each year shoots I had missed would come back.

Elder

Elder belongs in hedgerows and in the wild, not in your garden. I had big romantic feelings for elder, because I'd loved them in the UK, and made elderberry and blackberry wine and elderflower fritters and champagne.

Yet, whilst they were great for the chickens, providing shade and lots of berries, I never really used the produce here - it was too arduous to pick all the little berries from the flowerheads and the flowers didn't smell as amazing as in the UK, which I think is down to the number of cold days. I've learnt when you plant things, you better be damn sure you're going to use the harvest.

Beside, they self seeded everywhere after birds dropped purple droppings all over the garden. And if they grow behind something or in a crack, it's hard work to pull the bigger saplings out.

I feel the same about figs - they have very tenacious roots (and mine never fruited) and passionfruit, which took years to get all the side shoots out.

Rabbits

Look, it's okay if you plant one rabbit, but never plant two rabbits. They self seed everywhere, dig their own holes to plant more rabbits, eat other plants, and though they shit in nice little piles, they really aren't great. I feel the same about blackbirds.

White rabbits, well, I haven't tried planting them.

What plants will you never plant again? What grow wild and free over your property or in your garden?

With Love,

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