Rob Walter's Page

Several of my pea plants have produced sports, or at least offshoots with very different characteristics. They are not from seed, but just growing out of the main stem of the pea plant. They appeared once the main crop was almost totally over. In at least a couple of them, the peas have gone from being sugarsnap (thick-walled pods) to shelling peas (thin-walled pods). The others are still sugarsnap, but the pods are flatter than normal.

This what the sport looks like:…

...possums!

So, I guess it's time for the latest update on my battle with them. If you see my previous blog post, I had two areas that were set up to deal with possums. One area was protected with a nylon mesh, combining architectural elements of the Sydney Opera House with the visual appeal of a plastic bag stuck on a barbed wire fence. The other area had a low electrified fence. The…

This blog post actually started as a private message to Lissa about raspberries, but as I waffled on I thought I should share it with the world.

Should Williamette raspberries be losing their leaves? I have one cane that appears to be dying in a rather tragic-looking manner, and others that are green and cheerful. I'm not used to deciduous plants, so I can't really tell the difference between dying and preparing for winter.…

Gardening in a rental property presents particular challenges. I'm fortunate to have three clearly defined garden beds in which I can do whatever I like. For the last  couple of years I've mostly grown veges, but now I'm moving into the wonderful world of fruit growing as well. I've dedicated one of my garden beds to paw paw and citrus, two fruit trees that produce within a very short time frame. The rest of the yard is basically just lawn, so there are limits on what I can do. The landlord…