Growing local

Tales from the Tiny Farm: November 18

Salad/veges: I've been trying to show a few pics of modest harvests each day (facebook posts). The idea is to explain that little bits each day add up. If I can make the odd meal from zucchinis then that's great. The same with eggs, tomatoes, silverbeet, lettuce or whatever. Rather than worry about making a whole meal once a week, I find it's better to contribute one thing or two to most dinners.

Fruit: tends to come in batches. I try to make jams, chutneys, alcohols or preserves to make sure we get the most of them. Although with things like the peaches, we tend to eat a lot fresh.

Livestock: I still haven't got off my lazy arse to get new fingerlings in the outdoor perch tank. That's starting to become more important so they have time to grow out before next winter. The quails have started to settle down again after coming home from their holiday house (my mate took them while I was overseas). I'm now collecting eggs to incubate a new batch or two for the season. That also means I'll need to process my 3 oldest birds and combine the two batches from last year's babies (processing any excess males). No, I can't just let them be. Pulling out birds pecked to death is far more ugly than limiting the numbers myself.

It's real and not always pretty, but there is a certain element of joy in the constant change of seasons here.

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Comment by Andrew Cumberland on November 27, 2018 at 20:40: LOL. Sounds like most of us are booming right now. I'm feeling a bit like "reversed game of thrones" - Summer is coming! Arrrgghhh. Christa - the fingerlings come from specialist aquaponics/hydroponic suppliers. Aquariums are way too expensive for the same thing. This mob seem very good. http://www.ausnativefish.com.au/

Comment by Christa on November 27, 2018 at 13:30: Good to hear the tales of your tiny farm, Andy. How do you go about purchasing baby fish? Do you get them from a tropical fish sales (i.e. Aquariums)

We have 2 goldfish in a pond and also 3 unnamed fish in another large pot but the water got a bit green and dirty looking so we had to check if they were still alive and found that they had grown quite a bit and still flapping.

I was surprised to see how many quail you had at the GV. Pity that poultry have an issue with peer pressure, it seems to happen with birds.

We cannot boast too much at the moment, still having a problem with scale on our citrus, and we are dreading the hot weather due next week, and also the lack of rain. We have 3 large water tanks and only one is 1/2 full, so we are carefully filling the wicking beds that need water only.

Glad to hear that our garden friends are doing well in their gardens at the moment.

Comment by Dianne Caswell on November 27, 2018 at 9:24: Great Blog Andy, I to love it when I can prepare a meal from our patch of ground. The Lettuce is almost finished and I am surprised how well the Spinach is doing in the heat. We have Tomatoes a plenty and the Globe Fennel is coming on well. It has been wonderful to be able to pick Fresh Beans almost everyday.

It will be Guava Smoothies a Plenty after Christmas, the trees are laden, only hoping the crop doesn't ripen before we are home from China in January. Our 2 x Mangoes both look like their fruit has held for the first time this year and Paw Paws have been a tasty treat for breakfast and fruit salads. The Wampee has plenty of young fruit but we are yet to try these and the Tropical Cherry has decided to come into bloom again after the birds almost ate the first lot of baby Cherries. The Citrus have been a blessing this year with many Preserves and Cordials being made, enough to share around Family and Friends. I have often wished for a larger plot but now know what I have is sufficient both for me to look after and to produce a good feed from.

I wish everyone a Happy Holiday time with a continued Good Harvest..

Comment by Cathie MacLean on November 27, 2018 at 6:41: Andy, I'm with you. Every contribution that my garden makes to the dinner table makes my heart sing. I made Palak paneer with a huge bowl full of silver beet last night and picked two handfuls of green beans for tonight's dinner. I will pick a couple of eggplants tomorrow and do something with those, along with some tomatoes. Meanwhile I have homegrown ginger and lemon (or homegrown passionfruit or Rosella cordial) flavouring my water kefir on the counter. Sometimes we have almost complete meals from the garden but almost everyday we have something. Every little bit does add up to a feeling of confidence that if I had to, with a bit more focus and attention I would be able to provide food for my family.

Comment by Andrew Cumberland on November 25, 2018 at 21:37: I'm surprised at how it adds up Elaine. A few days of Madagascar beans and cherry tomatoes and I have the makings of a Tex/Mex bean dish. I'm still eating peaches and ice cream for desert.. okay... and sometimes for breakfast.

Comment by Elaine de Saxe on November 25, 2018 at 7:47: That's the reality of home-grown ... unless you've a big patch, the usual home plot just doesn't have the space to grow enough plants to supply the household. Great idea Andy, to pick what's ready to be picked and enjoy that with whatever-else needs to be bought. Better some nice fresh organic than none at all.