Over the Christmas break, I got to spend some time in the big smoke, Brisbane. It may not be the big city to some but to me it is. To my kids, even more so…crossing a city road is an adventure to them!

Along the Brisbane river is Southbank. While I was wandering along on a balmy night, I came across an edible garden called Epicurious.

I thought that it may have been closed for a private event because there was a fence around it. (Later, I realised that this was maybe because of the upcoming New Year’s Eve celebrations). There was also a large group of happy picnickers sitting at one of the wooden tables so I thought they had booked the garden.

I was happy to realise that it was open to the public. The kids and I wandered in. The kids had a run around and I got to slowly meander around the garden, checking out the garden beds. There was a pond at the centre of the garden with seating around it. I took a seat while the younger kids ran off to the playground….it was peaceful here at night.

During the day, the atmosphere of Epicurious was vibrant. The garden was full of exploring visitors. Epicurious has been designed to let you touch, smell and taste the plants that are growing there. There are loads of different varieties of edible plants.

My favourites were the herbs. The bed that had different types of basil caught my attention. I would love to have a bed of basil like this in my garden!

Having a sweet potato patch with the Brisbane River and city buildings as a backdrop was cool as well. Knowing that all those yummy sweet potatoes were growing underground while city life was whizzing by made me smile.

There are guidelines to picking the produce. Volunteers and horticulturists are on hand at specific times to harvest any produce you may wish to try or take home. They can also answer any questions you may have.

The day that I was there I met Janelle. She was closing up the harvest cart for the day but was more than happy to have a chat with me about the gardens. I also came away with cranberry hibiscus and apple mint cuttings.

Walking along the river, cuttings in hand, I felt appreciative of this garden. To be in an urban environment and have a edible space that is open to the public is significant. There is momentum at the moment to grow your own food. What better inspiration than to have a space to learn about edible plants, how to use them and get growing tips.

Have you visited Epicurious Garden before? Is there a edible garden open to the public close to you? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. 

Interested in visiting the Epicurious Garden? Check out this link for directions and further information about this awesome space.