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Gardening for Wellness & Joy: White Strawberries
Welcome to White Strawberries, where gardening, permaculture, and sustainable living nourish body, and spirit and the planet. I’m Sam—a gardener, mum, educator and podcaster.
This is my passion! So, I'm glad you're here. Each episode explores an aspect of growing and eating nutrient-dense foods and growing flowers for joy.
I cover garden design, soil health, mushrooms, animal integration, and seasonal growing insights along side in-kitchen gardening and cut flowers. Because growing biodiversity means everything grows better.
I am a self confessed lazy gardener, who aims to do things efficiently with max returns.
🌱 Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced gardener, I hope you'll join me each week.
🌱 Let's connect on Instagram: @whitestrawberriespodcast
📘 Join the conversation on Facebook: White Strawberries Podcast
Gardening for Wellness & Joy: White Strawberries
Sunflowers: 6 Reasons to Grow them | Sparking Joy
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🌻 How cool are sunflowers?
In this Sparking Joy episode of White Strawberries, we explore everything there is to love about sunflowers — their ancient history, mythological roots, and the many ways they bring life (and light!) to your garden.
From Greek mythology’s Helios and the sunflower nymph, to modern uses like phytoremediation — where sunflowers help clean toxins from the soil after disasters like Chernobyl and Fukushima — these plants are true multitaskers.
We also dive into how to:
🌻 Use sunflowers as living garden structures for beans, peas, and pumpkins
🐝 Support pollinators and boost biodiversity
🌿 Choose heirloom, non-F1 sunflower seeds for saving and replanting
🥗 Enjoy the nutritional power of sunflower seeds — packed with healthy fats, protein, and minerals
🐔 Feed your chickens homegrown, nutrient-rich seeds for a sustainable flock
Whether you’re a permaculture grower, a seed saver, or just love bee-friendly blooms, this episode will inspire you to plant a few giants of your own.
🌻 Sunflower suppliers mentioned:
Koanga Institute
Kings Seeds
Also- thank you Elena, a listener, for sending this link through. They do free soil testing in Aotearoa: Soil Safe.
📸 Let’s connect on Instagram: @whitestrawberriespodcast
📘 Join the convo on Facebook: White Strawberries Podcast
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