Soil vs Dirt: Why Soil Biology Matters for Wicking Beds
Older soil science focused on sand, silt, clay, and nutrients like NPK. Modern soil science adds the missing piece: biology. Biology is…
From Wicking Beds to Gbiota Beds: The Food Strategy
For many years, simple wicking beds helped people grow food during drought and hardship. Since then, the world has changed. We now…
Questions and Answers: Practical Wicking Bed Advice
This question and answer article brings together real conversations between growers and Colin Austin, addressing the most common practical issues faced when…
Scaling Wicking Beds: Large-Scale Adoption for Food, Water, and Climate Resilience
Wicking beds are usually seen as a backyard method, but they can also be scaled up to deliver major public benefits: more…
The Waterright Philosophy 4: From Subsurface Experiments to Microflood and Wicking Beds
In the mid-1990s, Colin Austin asked a simple question: are there better ways of applying water? Horticulture had become more efficient, but…
The Future of Food Growing: Water-Efficient Food Growing for a Changing Climate
This presentation outlines why the future of agriculture must adapt to climate change and water shortages, and why co-operation is essential. It…
The Wicking Bed Basket Scheme For Healthy Food
The wicking bed basket scheme was designed to make truly nutritious, fresh food available to almost everyone, including people with limited space,…
Wicking Beds: How Underground Water Storage Changed the Way We Grow Food
Wicking beds emerged from practical experiments aimed at growing food under drought conditions, first in Ethiopia and later elsewhere. The core problem…
The Realities of Global Warming: Why Soil Carbon and Water-Smart Farming Matter
Global warming is a risk we cannot afford to “wait and see” about. Even if we reduce emissions, fast-growing economies and a…
Wicking Bed – A New Technology for Adapting to Climate Change
This article explains why global climate negotiations such as Copenhagen struggle to deliver real change, and why agriculture offers a practical path…
Wicking Beds: A Practical Technology for Adapting to Climate Change
Climate change presents two linked challenges: reducing carbon in the atmosphere and protecting food production in a world of increasingly erratic rainfall.…
Resolving Climate Change With Wicking Beds: A Practical Plan for Carbon, Water, and Food Security
This article explains why climate change is so hard to solve politically, and why soil and food security may be the most…
Shade Houses and Wicking Beds: An Easy Way to Grow Organic Vegetables
Growing vegetables through hot, wet Queensland summers is difficult because of heat, insects, weeds, disease, and heavy rain. This article explains a…
Safeguarding Future Food Supply with Wicking Bed Technology
This report explains how wicking beds can help safeguard future food supply by saving water, improving soil quality, using nutrients more effectively,…
Vision for Food Security, Water Shortages, and Climate Change
This vision outlines a practical way to improve food security, reduce water waste, and address climate change by capturing carbon from the…
The Next Great Change: Soil Carbon, Wicking Beds, and the Future of Food
This article looks thirty years ahead and argues that the next major shift in society will be driven by environmental services rather…
Why This Site Exists: Innovation for Future Generations
This site exists because I believe we have a responsibility to future generations to rethink how we use soil, water, and food…
Community Action on Water: Why Harvesting Small Rains Matters
Australia does not suffer from a lack of rainfall. What we suffer from is a failure to capture it. Most rain falls…
Harvesting Smaller Rains: Water Storage, Wicking Beds, and Anticipatory Irrigation
Droughts are part of Australia’s natural cycle, but we still waste the water that falls in the smaller rains. The volume is…
Anticipatory Irrigation: Using Timing to Save Water and Reduce Evaporation
Anticipatory irrigation is a practical, common-sense approach to watering crops more efficiently by working with rainfall, soil behaviour, and evaporation rather than…
The Origins of Wicking Beds: Lessons From Drought, Soil, and Water
Wicking beds did not begin as a backyard gardening idea. They emerged from practical work on food security during drought, where the…
The Vision for Wicking Beds: Origin, Purpose, and Soil Biology
Wicking beds are often described as a water-saving trick, but that misses the bigger point. Modern food systems are excellent at producing…
From Dirt to Living Soil: The Science Behind Soil BioPacks
Soil BioPacks were created to make soil biology practical for ordinary growers—so we can grow vegetables that are not just “big and…
Wicking Bed Liners Explained: Are Plastics Safe for Growing Food?
People often ask what lining materials are safe for wicking beds, especially when plastic films are involved. In this newsletter Colin Austin…
Wicking Beds and Nutrition: Why Soil Quality Matters More Than Water Saving
Gardening Australia recently showed how to build self-watering containers and asked people to focus on water saving. Colin Austin agrees the design…
Wicking Beds and Modern Diets: A Practical Path to Nutrient-Dense Food
Wicking beds are often promoted as a convenient way to save water and reduce the effort required to grow vegetables. While this…
Ying Yang Food Explained: Nutrient-Dense Growing for Better Health
Modern diets often deliver plenty of energy—fats, sugars, and refined carbohydrates—yet fall short on minerals, trace elements, vitamins, omega-3, and plant-based phytochemicals.…
Ying Yang System for Optimal Nutrition: Fresh Plants in Wicking Baskets
This month’s newsletter focuses on wicking baskets, also called the Ying Yang system. While the concept is simple, understanding why and how…
The Truth about Diet and Health: Insights from Colin Austin
This August 2014 newsletter explores how to separate reliable science from hype in nutrition and health. It highlights the importance of neurotransmitters,…
Fresh Vegetables Made Easy: Wicking Baskets for Health and Nutrition
The wicking basket system is revolutionising access to nutrient-rich, home-grown food. By providing a simple, low-maintenance way to grow fresh vegetables packed…
Grow Fresh Vegetables with Wicking Baskets and Beat Processed Foods
The Healthy Food Association is transforming access to nutrient-rich, home-grown food through the innovative wicking basket system. By simplifying cultivation and delivery,…
Taming the Hungry Beast: Understanding Sugar Addiction and Diabetes
High-fructose sweeteners and ultra-processed foods have created a powerful, addictive drive in many people — a “hungry beast” that drives overconsumption and…
The Rise of the Hungry Beast: How Processed Foods Drive Diabetes and Illness
Modern technology has transformed the world by boosting productivity, lowering costs, and giving us access to more food and products than ever…
How Home-grown Vegetables and Wicking Beds Can Help Prevent Diabetes
This newsletter reflects on the human cost of modern diets, particularly diabetes, and the importance of growing fresh vegetables in nutrient-rich soil.…
How Wicking Worm Beds Maximise Water Efficiency and Boost Plant Growth
This article explores the practical and biological principles behind wicking worm beds—a sustainable and water-efficient growing system. By creating an underground water…
Wicking Beds Under Construction: Beginner’s Guide to Reservoir Gardening
This practical guide walks you through building a wicking bed from groundworks to planting. It explains site choice, excavation, liners, reservoir construction,…
Open vs Closed Wicking Beds: How to Build the Right System
This article draws on practical instructions for building efficient wicking beds — whether open-in-ground or closed container types. It outlines how to…
Stones vs Organic Materials: Optimising Wicking Bed Performance
This article explores the development and functioning of wicking beds, comparing the use of stones and organic materials. Colin Austin explains the…
New Developments in Wicking Bed Technology
This article explores the latest developments in wicking bed technology, highlighting design innovations, soil improvements, and water management strategies. Modern wicking beds…
Weather and Wicking Beds: How Climate Impacts Gardening and Soil
This article explores how weather influences the performance of wicking beds. Drawing from Colin Austin’s research and field observations, it explains how…
The Complete Guide to Operating Modern Wicking Worm Beds
This article provides a detailed guide on operating modern wicking systems, from small garden boxes to large-scale beds. It explains setup, soil…
Soil BioPacks: Building Living Soil for Healthier Crops
This article introduces the Soil BioPack, a living ecosystem of plants, fungi, bacteria, worms, and minerals designed to regenerate soil and improve…
The Evolution of the Modern Wicking Worm Bed System
This article traces how the wicking worm bed developed from simple subsurface watering ideas into a practical, highly productive horticultural system. It…
Wicking Bed Support: Coaches, Services, and Local Guidance
This article gathers experienced gardeners, designers, and permaculture practitioners around Australia (and beyond) who offer advice, design, and construction services for wicking…
Sustainable Food Security Strategies for Local Communities
Food security is a critical challenge as climate change, soil degradation, and water scarcity threaten global food production. This article explores practical…
Solving the Food Crisis with Soil, Water, and Community Action
This article explores the global food system, highlighting the importance of healthy soils, sustainable water use, and the role of technology in…
Diabetes and Phytochemicals for Healthy Blood Sugar
Diabetes is a complex and potentially life-altering condition, but our diet — especially fresh, nutrient-rich vegetables and herbs — can play a…
The Science of Nutrition: Why Soil and Trace Minerals Matter
This article explores why many popular “health foods” and diet products — often promoted with flashy adverts and “scientific” claims — are…
The Biology Revolution: How Living Soils Transform Food Production
'The Biology Revolution' explains how working with living soils can transform food production. Healthy, biologically active soil improves nutrient availability, water retention,…
Homegrown Nutrition: Wicking Beds for Healthy Soil
Jung Chang, the author of "Wild Swans," highlighted health, belief, and belonging as keys to a good life. This article explains why…
How Soil, Food Quality, and Lifestyle Shape Modern Health
This newsletter explains why some wicking beds fail, why they may smell, and how soil biology, water balance, and nutrients affect plant…
Why Aeration Matters in Wicking Beds (and How to Improve It)
Healthy plant roots need both water and air. In wicking beds, water rises from a reservoir into the soil, but if the…
Understanding the Core Principles of Wicking Beds
Wicking beds work by keeping soil at a consistently moist level through capillary action, using an underground water reservoir instead of frequent…
Why Fine Soil Outperforms Stones in Wicking Beds
Using stones or coarse materials in wicking beds is often counterproductive. This guide explains why fine, organic-rich soils perform better, how proper…
Wicking Bed Soil vs Stones: Maximise Water, Nutrients, and Plant Growth
This article explains why using stones (or coarse sand) and cloth at the base of wicking beds — a common practice —…
Wicking Bed Technology Explained: Grow Nutrient-Dense Vegetables with Less Water
Wicking bed technology is a sustainable gardening method that saves water, improves soil fertility, and promotes healthy plant growth. Using an underground…
Soil Regeneration for Healthy and Sustainable Wicking Beds
This article argues that human health and soil health are intimately linked: modern food often lacks essential minerals and phytochemicals because soils…
How to Build Water‑Retaining Soil with Sponge and Wicking Beds
This article explores the principles of regenerating soil for vegetable growing using wicking bed baskets. It highlights how soil biology, water management,…
Mk 11 Wicking Beds: Efficient Gardening for Vegetables
This newsletter explains the principles and practical use of Mk 11 wicking beds, a system designed to save water, recycle nutrients, and…
Mk 11 Wicking Beds for Nutrient-Rich Gardening
Wicking beds Mk 11 provide a practical, low-cost solution for growing nutrient-rich vegetables at home. By carefully separating air and water layers,…
Sponge Beds for Gardening: Create Fertile, Water-Retaining Soil
Sponge beds are a low-cost method for building biologically active, mineral-rich soil from poor parent material. They use recycled organic waste, staged…
Tips for Preventing Stinky Wicking Beds
This article explains why some wicking beds can smell bad and, more importantly, how to prevent or fix that problem. Stinky wicking…
Growing for Health: A Community Guide to Nutrient-Dense Food Production
Growing for Health: A Community Guide to Nutrient-Dense Food Production This document is a condensed and reorganised version of the “Xiulan” material:…
The Development of Wicking Beds through Soil and Water Systems
The Development of Wicking Beds through Soil and Water Systems This blog explains how wicking beds were developed and why they work…
Soils for Wicking Beds
Many people think wicking beds are just to save water; the most important feature however is creating a mini ecology with a…
Bed Depths for Wicking Beds
Many people have asked about the depths of the beds. The rules are pretty simple. The reservoir zone should always be less than…
How Water Moves in Soil: Gravity, Flow & Biology
While the physical construction of the bed may not be so important it is essential to follow certain rules to ensure the…
Soil for Wicking Beds: Biology, Minerals and Health
Healthy Plants vs Plants That Make Us Healthy The most common question I am asked is about soils for wicking beds. That’s…
Soil Biology: The Key to Healthy Wicking Soils
Soil biology is the key — my aim with WickiMix is to provide a concentrate and inoculant where people can create their…
Real Soil: Growing Healthy Food in Living Soil
I am a great believer in science, however I am concerned about the way science is used (or abused). Antibiotics must be…
Types of Wicking Beds for Healthy Soil & Plants
Wicking systems rely on the attraction between soil and water so water (and nutrients) will rise up from a water storage to…
Energy and Regeneration in Wicking Beds
Food gives us energy and regenerates our bodies. Most commercial foods now contain a lot of energy or calories based on simple…
Open Letter to the Prime Minister: A Climate Strategy Using Soil Carbon and Wicking Beds
This letter outlines a practical way to strengthen Australia’s climate strategy by pairing carbon trading with real, measurable carbon reductions. The core…
The Coach Scheme for Wicking Bed Technology
This article explains the Coach Scheme for wicking bed technology: why it exists, how it works, and what coaches do. It traces…
Healthy Food Association: Registry of Coaches
This registry is a simple public list of coaches connected to the Healthy Food Association. Coaches provide their own details by email,…
De-Boggling China: Food, Farming, and Health in a Rapidly Changing World
Halfway through a trip to China, Colin Austin is “de-boggling” — trying to separate real insights from quackery while looking for Chinese…
Gin Gin State School Wicking Bed Project: Educational Gardening for Schools
This community project at Gin Gin State School in Queensland brought teachers, students, parents and local volunteers together to build outdoor wicking…
The Future of Agriculture: Adapting Farming to Climate Change
This article is based on a talk Colin Austin — inventor of the wicking bed — gave during a China tour in September 2009.…
The Healthy Food Association: Growing Together for Better Health
This article introduces the Healthy Food Association, a non-profit community focused on improving health through nutrient-rich, biologically active soil and home-grown food.…
News from China: Scaling Wicking Beds for Food Security and Climate Action
This update explains the progress of international work to scale wicking bed technology as a practical response to food insecurity and climate…