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Elaine de Saxe
  • Female
  • Deception Bay, Queensland
  • Australia
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Are both of those Eggplant varieties available from Eden or Green Harvest or somewhere else? I have not had a great deal of success with seeds from Cornucopia. And especially with a Rosa Bianca Eggplant - two packets and no plants. Better luck wit...
15 hours ago
Mmm, those Cossak Pineapples and Ground Cherries sound worth a whirl! My dad used to grow Cape Gooseberries in Sydney and I have grown one lot here in DBay. But my current lot of seeds (NOT from Cornucopia!) have not come up yet. Unlike their rela...
23 hours ago
It's surprising that there would be any growing fruit had the flowers not been fertilized ... I can relate though to the apparently-setting fruit yellowing and dropping off, perhaps non-fertilization is the cause there. But with the fruit growing ...
yesterday
Oh. Darn ... on the bright side, at least mine probably won't have crossed with the Purple Kings next door or the Blue Lakes across the path. Yes, Addy ... they look *very* similar! I've bought those old Italian ones from the eBay seller and some...
on Sunday
Wow! They are similar ... look a bit smaller in the pod length and the seeds are coloured, mine are white without any markings. They must be a related variety though. Are you going to buy some? I'll have a wander around that seed-seller's pages - ...
on Sunday
The desperation-alternative to tank water is rinse water from the washing machine. I have a 200L ex-pickled onion barrel with a tap to which clicks the 1 inch purple low-pressure hose. I bought it originally as a pump-out kit complete with motor f...
on Sunday
Yup, Addy ... this is the quote from the Kitazawa Seed Company in California: Kwintus Pole Kwintus Pole Previos Green Bean Seed #313 The short growing season and the delicious, distinctive flavor of this European pole bean make it a favorite a...
on Sunday
Let's indeed! I've a 5000L tank to fill! One thing we always do when thunderstorms threaten, is remove the phone line from the modem and shut down the computers. My partner had a lightening strike at a previous house which hit some tree roots an...
on Sunday
Give it another season Donna ... if the fruit are not worth eating then into the compost bin! I have noticed a huge difference in flavour of fruits depending on how they are fertilized (or not fertilized!). There are Paw Paws which have a leathery...
on Sunday
You only have to bag when they approach ripeness, not from the very start. Yes, it's a challenge! So far, the ordinary commercial-type Rockmelons which popped up from the worm crap I bought in have been fly-free but a few have little bit of rot in...
on Sunday
A yellow cherry tomato sounds neat! Never tried the yellow toms ... time I did! Especially if they are keen on the heat! Are you coming to Roma Street next Saturday? We could do a swap then :-)
on Sunday
And Logan have a terrific volunteer-run weather station, using some BOM info and some of their own. http://www.loganvillageweather.com/ even though Logan is quite a way from here (Deception Bay) it's still good to check out if you're a bit of a 'w...
on Sunday
sue english and Elaine de Saxe are now friends
on Sunday
Addy, my 'Dutch Pole Beans' could be almost anything! I have not heard of the name you suggest, if it's an heirloom variety there could be a lot of local names for the one bean. With Lazy Housewife I suggest you treat them just like any other bea...
on Saturday
Probably there are variations of Felafel - for instance we prefer Lima Beans to Chick Peas however delightful CPs are in other dishes. It just beats the dried stuff I used to use by a country mile. Simon's is the best foundation I've come across ....
on Saturday
you are so right about wondering how i found time to go to work.i don't however think i am doing anymore than i used to - i think i am just doing things properly now rather than just giving everything a lick and a promise.i have only been retired ...
on Saturday

Profile Information

About me:
Individual
I am currently involved with the following community gardens and groups:
Not currently involved.
I am interested in:
Compost gardening for vegetables. Alternate therapies and many new age topics.
I can offer:
Garden involvement, information
About what I can offer:
Garden involvement - not sure what that means but if it is a visit here then that's quite likely. I do have info to share.
My contact details are:
Deception Bay, Queensland
I am looking for:
Garden involvement, produce, services, information, events

Elaine de Saxe's Photos

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Elaine de Saxe's Blog

Elaine de Saxe

Spudz at DBay

From 750g of seed potatoes plus a couple of Dutchies from a retailer, harvested 3.730g.

Planting in August is a tad too late in the heat ... next time I'd plant as soon as the eyes have developed. And I'd give them a tad more space, too. A 300L bed was a bit cramped. And I'd mix compost (if I have enough!) with the cane mulch and try and encourage some more tubers further up the stems.

The cane mulch plus the layers of 30 percent shade cloth I used to extend the bed depth allowed the tubers to… Continue

Posted on October 28, 2009 at 3:38pm — 2 Comments

Elaine de Saxe

Koalas existence is threatened in S.E. Qld - info and petition

Maybe not exactly garden-related but many of us will be keen conservationists.

Received a note from the Bribie Island Environmental Protection Association http://www.biepa.org via the CREEC mailing list. CREEC is Caboolture Regional Environmental Education Centre at Burpengary http://www.creec.org.au/.

The Redlands Council is concerned about the rate of tree-clearing in their area and the consequent threat to Koalas. The website http://www.redland.qld.gov.au/NewsEvents/PublicNotices/Pages/Koal… Continue

Posted on June 29, 2009 at 2:19pm — 1 Comment

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At 8:37pm on October 12, 2009, Scarlett Patrick said…
thankyou so much Elaine! the seeds have arrived already - what a pretty card - much appreciated :D
SJP
At 10:36am on October 7, 2009, Pree said…
Hi Elaine

I'd love to meet up for a coffee. You're welcome to come over anytime and have coffee at our place as well. Sorry for the late reply, I'm just getting used to this networking site, and I didn't see your comment until now...

Pree
At 7:10am on October 3, 2009, Elaine de Saxe said…
Hi Andrew ...

Winters in Brisbane are mild indeed, some frost in low places but that's all.

My bins are made from a kind of bubble-wrap on steroids, with air coming in from underneath via a pipe and cone.

Bokashi is a Japanese system of a mix of microbes who ferment the scraps, make some liquid on the way which can be broken down and watered into the soil. Then the pickled veges are composted before being used since by this time the collection has picked up heat-generating organisms. The whole lot breaks down quite quickly mostly but items like Avacado skins take forever and eggshells, however small also take a long time. I use shredded paper and sugarcane straw - getting enough browns has always been the limitation with composting. Plenty of gluggy stuff from the kitchen and garden.

However, reading your website it sounds like the compost should be finished in weeks although you don't say how many. Perhaps an indication would help because here am I thinking - what 4 weeks, 6 weeks? when it's more like 14 or 16 weeks or more.

I use a digital thermometer on a probe and am getting tops of 50 deg C but the heaps hold around mid-40s for a couple of weeks. The inventor of the Compost Oven reckons 80 deg C but I've got nowhere near that.

Best regards

Elaine
At 8:37pm on October 2, 2009, Andrew E Davenport said…
Hi Elaine,

Not sure how cold your winters are but during ours in the Uk nothing much happens in the way of compost making so 3 to 6 months is probably not too bad. To speed things up you can put extra insulation around the heaps such as straw but be careful not to cut off the air too much. Composting should really speed in the spring when fresh green materials become available again.Your right about nettle being essential and yarrow is vital too with the honey of course. What is Bokashi juice made from and are using that in your QR heaps? Do you find the Bokashi system works?

Kind Regards

Andrew
At 5:18pm on October 2, 2009, Andrew E Davenport said…
Hi Elaine,

Nice to hear from you. I found the group through googling 'quick return compost'. I agree Miss Bruce was a great old gal and inspired a great number of people to make compost and 'give life back to the soil' as she put it. How did you get to hear about Miss Bruce? Did you ever get hold of a copy of her book? They do come up but can be quite expensive.

Has spring arrived yet in Brisbane? And have you tried making QR compost yet? I'm not sure if you can get the activator out there. I know another lady in Brisbane who managed to get some from a company called Sea Magic they only had limited quantaties but it may be worth getting in touch. You could of course make the activator for yourself providing you can get hold of the ritght herbs but there are substitutions that can be made.

Kind Regards

Andrew
At 3:51pm on September 29, 2009, Pree said…
Thanks very much for your message Elaine! We live in North Lakes now, but used to live near your way in Redcliffe prior to that...
At 7:40pm on August 26, 2009, Scarlett Patrick said…
Oh bother of course.
OK so I looked them up in the administrator section and sent them an email. I can't give their address out of course, but I told them you're chasing them. Cheers SJP
At 3:49pm on August 14, 2009, Scarlett Patrick said…
thanks :)
she's gone
it happens intermittently
at least it wasn't unsavoury this time
cheers SJP
At 6:25pm on June 28, 2009, Florence said…
Thanks for sharing your experiences with compost today, and great to meet you in person ~
At 5:57pm on June 28, 2009, christopher zane hart said…
hi Elaine , thanks for both your company and talk today . It has added a most welcome extra dimension to the Garden Visits .
 
 

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