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Saturday 7 September 2013

The Beginning of Spring - Garden Update



I've been reading all week about the exciting things happening in everyone's spring gardens.  All the work that's being done in preparing soil, planting seeds and seedling, bare rooted fruit trees and in some cases, major landscaping.  Such busy little bees out there.  I haven't had a lot of time but since the bones of my veggie garden were laid down last year there are no real major projects planned except the chicken coop later in the year.  I need to plant some radishes and lettuce and turn the bed in prep for tomatoes.

This photo was taken way back then when we first put the beds in Aug 12.  
I'm hoping that i can get some arches happening between the beds so i can utilise the space between the walkways.  There is a lot of air up there.   Imagine growing melons vertically???

So, this is what's growing at the moment.  Its all very green.....

Parsley is in overdrive.  Its taking over everything in one of the beds.  Time for a major trim.  
New shoots on my Trixi Pear.  I'm just letting it do its thing.  Apparently despite being miniature it will have full size fruit.  I put the wall tiles on the floor hoping that they will somehow make their way onto it some day.  
Lots and lots of little cumquats on my potted tree.   They are so pretty, i don't want to pick them.
Blossoms on the Blueberry Bush.   The sun was a real problem for getting clear photos today.
Pretty Borage flower (out of focus)
Beetroot - Wow, i think this one needs picking for a salad.  
The pea plants are finally growing.

Cabbages and Brussel Sprouts.  

Brussel Sprouts - i seem to have lots of leaves but no hearts yet.  
Companion Planting - Dill and Mint among the sprouts and cabbages
The little pansies are meant to distract the cabbage moth.  Apparently they think it is another moth and move on.
This perpetual spinach was planted last September in my first bed and it has been providing salad leaves ever since.
Chard still looking decorative in the garden, because we don't eat it.  

Peppers still growing on last summers bushes

Alyssum cascading over the raised beds.
Not the most attractive of beds.  Potatoes and garlic.   I threw this together quickly as it took off once the heat arrived.  Tomorrow i will cover all these up leaves and go higher.
Pineapple Feijoa Bush - with rosemary on the side.  
Strawberries - i didn't get any off these last year, so Ive got my fingers crossed.

Nasturtiums are going mad up the trellis.  

Clivia Lillies up the side .  These will soon be pulled out on the fence side (if you want them, say so) as i am going to string up the pergola frame for grape vines.   

Blasted Sun - the only good thing going on in the front yard are the Lilly Pillies on either side of the front door.  
Now, you know how our (not mine really but i have good job ownership - its all mine) factory has a sheet metal shop with powdercoating - well sometimes the clients make mistakes with measurements and we get a
 call saying - throw them out, we gave you the wrong measurements.  Well given that i had oooed and argghed at these when they were being made, i found them next to my desk in the morning.  What a nice surprise.  They are made of sheet steel, so they are very heavy.  They even drilled holes for me.


I'm thinking Strawberries or fancy lettuce. 

There's more to see but you must be getting bored by now, so I'll wrap this pictorial up.  Happy Gardening.

Thanks for visiting Living In The Land of Oz



11 comments:

  1. Fantastic. You've got a lot going on. I haven't got room for cabbage and brussels and we've got club root in the garden so I'm admiring your greens from afar. Your strawberry boxes are wonderful - definitely a very colourful garden.
    Love from Mum
    xx

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  2. I have learned to love a whole lot of plants that in my pampered city existence I scorned with a passion. I HATED agapanthus before but something that will live, indeed thrive, on Serendipity Farm, that not only lines the driveway but keeps moisture in our stark soil all over the long dry (and last year HOT) summer is my new best friend. Where I used to wrestle the flower stalks from the plant as soon as they had finished so as to stop them seeding, now I can be seen dancing up and down the driveway, stalks in hand wafting them from side to side in bare spots with gay abandon. I used to ignore grasses but they grow so well and need no assistance to grow and spawn...grasses are "IN". In saying that...some plants have moved into my peripheral vision as terrorists...forget-me-nots are no longer pretty blue little perennials, they are ninjas! Same goes for those leptospermum daisies. I could tolerate them in town in the back of my garden bed but here, they take over swathes of garden bed and choke everything else out. Funny how adding a bit of extra land changes the game plan.

    I LOVE those wall tiles. The bright colours bring out the magpie in me :). Everything looks lush and healthy Lynda and particularly tender and delicious. It has been a pretty mild winter all round and Brussels sprouts need frost and lots of cold weather to set. It might not have been cold enough but you can use the leaves anyway...waste not, want not! I can't see 3 of your images (starting from the pansy shot and down 2). Can't get them to force using "show image" either for some reason. I can see the peppers/capsicum shot so something happened when they were loaded.

    DON'T throw the cliveas away! They sell for $10 a pot Lynda...you should pot them up and sell them :). LOVE the new pots by the way, there are bonuses with everything...even work! ;).

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    1. Ive not long gone over to Chrome and so ive noticed that if i just use explorer that its not quite right. Iv gone on and made my photos smaller hoping that this will correct it but at this end i see them all (on PC and phone).

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  3. I keep forgetting to say...you have the MOST amusing catchpha words of any blogger blog I have been forced to fill them out for. It makes the whole process less annoying ;). Not sure why they give your site these fun words but when I write a book I am going to come here and comment for hours to get inspiration ;)

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    1. I know, i came across one the other day that was actually a bit naughty. I've noticed sometimes that the numbers are so in shade or fuzzy that i have to try for the next one. I don't like it either.

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  4. Wow Lynda your garden is looking fantastic, Ive never grown chard dont think I would eat it either I wonder if its good for chooks and rabbits they tend to get my silverbeet.
    I love those purple containers.

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  5. Lynda, your garden looks beautiful. So edible and lush!

    Your green thumb is well established my friend.

    Gav x

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  6. Gorgeous, gorgeous garden Lynda! I will have to get a wriggle on and do something in mine...
    Here's a thought for eating up the silverbeet - cut the leaf part away from the central stem, roll up the leaves and slice thinly, steam a bit, squeeze out the liquid, squash into small golfball shapes and freeze. Then throw them in the pot every time you make a stew or soup to add 'green', add them as a layer in lasagne, pop them in a potato gratin..
    You can chop the stems and saute slowly with onion and throw into the stew or soup as well...

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  7. Lynda, your garden looks FANTASTIC! Everything looks so lush and green. Do you have problems with the caterpillars eating your cabbages etc? Fighting a constant fight here. I have clivea envy of your place just like I have of Nanna Chel's place - they are gorgeous. Thanks for sharing all of this.

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    1. No caterpillars at the moment but i have all the companion planting and tricks of the trade going on. Dill and Mint in amoungst the plants, little white flowers to scare off the cabbage moth, egg shells both crushed (to make it uncomfortable for slugs and snails)and upturned to show the white inside (again to scare the moth away). Im keeping the soil damp so i dont get the ants and thus no one to carry the aphid babies up the stems. Its a constant battle, isnt it. My biggest problem is things going to seed before they have grown.

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  8. Your garden is looking lovely and healthy Lynda. Lots of lovely colour in this post...gorgeous :)

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