EPISODE · Sep 9, 2025 · 44 MIN
Subtropical and Topicals in a Cold Climate | With Steve Fawcett from Tropo
from White Strawberries: Gardening for Wellness & Joy · host Samantha Penman
Ask a Question or Leave a Comment🌱 In this episode, I sit down with Steve Fawcett to explore Troppo — an urban tropical food forest in Te Puke. Yes, tropical plants… outdoors… in a place that gets frost and hail!We dive into: 🍌 Bananas as mineral accumulators (and why banana lollies taste the way they do) 🌴 Air layering and how it can trigger early flowering in plants ❄️ Frost protection strategies and mulching like crazy 🌳 Why food forests build deeper community resilience than veggie beds aloneSteve’s casual style hides just how much knowledge he’s built through hands-on experimenting. From Papua New Guinea childhood memories of climbing fruit trees, to creating a lush, diverse, small-space forest garden in New Zealand, this conversation is a reminder of how much joy and abundance plants bring.📚 Recommended for: food forest dreamers, experimental gardeners, permaculture enthusiasts, anyone curious about growing the “impossible” plants in their climate.💡 Resources & References:Troppo Victor Group Charitable Trust Kai Resilience ProjectAbout 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.
What this episode covers
Ask a Question or Leave a Comment 🌱 In this episode, I sit down with Steve Fawcett to explore Troppo — an urban tropical food forest in Te Puke. Yes, tropical plants… outdoors… in a place that gets frost and hail! We dive into: 🍌 Bananas as mineral accumulators (and why banana lollies taste the way they do) 🌴 Air layering and how it can trigger early flowering in plants ❄️ Frost protection strategies and mulching like crazy 🌳 Why food forests build deeper community res...
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Subtropical and Topicals in a Cold Climate | With Steve Fawcett from Tropo
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