April 2016 Blog Posts (11)

This is a New Blog for Mid Autumn to Spring..

I thought it might be helpful to see what everyone is Planting, Harvesting and Preparing for in the garden now. Perhaps this would be helpful to those of us who would like to…

I often think about Disabled Gardeners. What is the definition of disabled? Maybe you have Arthritis or Doggy Hips, walk with a cane, the Knees are not as young as your mind is. What ever the disability how do you manage to get things done? To turn the soil over and plant the seedlings then to produce such wonderful produce.

Do you have special Tools you use in the Garden? Any Hints and Tips for us. If you do I am sure we have members who would like to hear about them.

With a day off work, it was a chance to harvest and cook some of our own produce.  Lunch started with pumpkin soup, followed by sweet potato, tatsoi and spring onion frittata, served with cassava chips and salad (tomato, cucumber, capsicum, leafy greens).  Then to finish - platter of yellow dragon fruit, passionfruit, raspberries and carombola.  It was such a good feeling to be self sufficient even if only for lunch! Similar again for dinner sounds good.

I've been working on creating a tropical themed garden for one of the sections of our yard. I say experiment because everything in this garden when you are starting from basics is an experiment!!

It started like this:

So basically a lawn with a frangipani tree. First up was making a pawpaw circle - digging in back breaking, soul crushing clay... I think I got to…

Hi everyone,

How are everyone's gardens going?  Mine, still not that productive.  We are going ok in the fruit department.  Passionfruit,1-2 small pawpaws ripening up per week, the last 3 melons from the garden and the odd small handful of raspberries from my very poor looking raspberry vines.  I also harvested the ONLY fruit that set off my citrus grove trees that I planted last year.  Yes, I know, to be fair to them, they are just babies.  It was the rio red grapefruit.  I…

Such an easy, and extremely delicious Bolognese recipe! Not the classic one, but believe me it is tastier! Not only because I replace the pork with beef mince, but also because I prefer to add fresh veggies to almost every dish, including this one. Basically, almost every vegetable which grows in your backyard might go straight into the frying pan. Check out my version of the recipe and i guarantee you’ll never want to go back to the classic…

LIMES! Wondering if anyone is interested in a produce swap. I have more limes than I can freeze, pickle, bake or drink. Happy to exchange with any veges! I'm at Carina.

I'm not obsessive about weeds. Most of all, in regard to them, I'm lazy. 

I may spray (vinegar+borax+salt) to murder them on the paths and gravel surrounds, but among the veg I'm tolerant because I know if I pull-a-weed I am sure to remove more than I planned.

If you are planning to pull, I say, do so only after good rain.

But…

Tonight the temperature falls to 19C (and maybe below) for the first time this year in my patch. You can feel the cooling night air on your skin.

Despite the warm days still, you can see how the evening respite from the heat is registering among the plants.

I just built (wait for it...wait for it) another two mounds and planted both of these out with potatoes I'd chitted from store-boughts.

I then divided a Vetiver Grass clump  by hacking at its edges. 

[I have a…

Hi guys,

Well I just finished my major holiday project - built the garden shed.  I was going to also build a rock pathway but as it took 3 days of torture AND I managed to put a drill bit through my thumb, I decided not to be too ambitious.  The shed was the $169 job from Aldi's.  If you bought one and haven't put it up yet, word to the wise:  When they refer to the "short side" it means the side with all the holes drilled into it (short height wise, not length wise).  The swearing…