Busy times at Frog Pond Farm. Jeff (a good bloke) mulched all our olive cuttings, pine branches and a host of carbon bits that had been cluttering up the place. Now I have 3 rather good sized piles of mulch which I shall use on the veg garden and surrounds. Not the pine mind you … no way, this is too acidic to go anywhere near my veg plot, with the exception of the strawberries of course, who have grown into rather large clumps and are covered in berries.
Great Lakes lettuce .. growing nicely
All our beds for now have been planted – salad plants and the chillies have finally made the dirt, which was prepped prior with loads of organic material, coffee grounds, rok solid and then a thick layer of mulch. The chillies are enjoying their new home with eggplants, geranium, zinnias, marigold, basil, marjoram and I shall be poking in some parsley too. This bed is over planted of course – but chillies like it humid. And trust me they will get that!
As for my spuds – hmm, my planting in mounds was a mini disaster thanks to my escapee chooks so I dug them up and planted them with comfrey in trenches. They are growing gang busters now which will be something to do with the weekly doses of manure tea. I have also mulched the plants with straw, cold compost loaded with worms and I’m considering using my olive mulch here too. And why not, I’ve got plenty of it!
Proof – Sally is on the ‘wrong’ side of the fence.
Exiting spud garden
Egyptian Walking Onions …
Red onion doing its thing
Our garlic is showing some rust – something to do with the amount of rain we have been having. But all being well, it will be hauled out in the next month. I got ruthless the other day and ripped out much of the self seeded stuff which was cramping our alliums growing style …
It appears that we have some 4 legged fiends in the garden who have done a nice job of digging up the heirloom runner bean seed that my brother John planted for me. I found the chewed seed strewn on the ground … So only one bean has lifted its greenery to the sky. Might be why I have an ice-cream container sitting on the floor in the kitchen full of dirt and more seed!
Feijoa flowers … this tree is covered
Nothing like a dust bath with the kids
I’m feeling very happy too, as I sprayed the rest of our orchard with fish fert and whizzed past my garden in our ATV merrily spraying that too. I did note that I have a peach tree that I haven’t pruned particularly well. It looks much like the root stock has sent out a branch which is healthy and covered in leaves. The other half of the tree is covered in lichen and looking sad and nearly nude. While I don’t believe that the lichen is the culprit here, it does seem to gravitate to trees which aren’t in great condition.
Auckland and its humidity just isn’t the best environment to grow peaches. Oh dear! I shall throw about some lime (it’s raining in Akl today) and give it a good feed. Meantime, my fingers will be crossed behind my back.
Happy gardening
Very busy time Madame Julie. The feijoa flower looks so gorgeous. Must get one in. Lucky finding a good bloke who mulches.
Hey lovely … oh do get in a feijoa, the fruit is beautiful. We have about 17 of them (LOL) .. nothing like a bloke that likes mulching!
I think I’m so organised with my garden, then I visit here to see what you are up to on Frog Pond Farm and realise there is so much more I could have done! We tried growing a native peach tree here, without luck. My beans, lettuce, silverbeet and camomile are going well, the kale is taking over the garden, and some little creepy-crawlies are getting to some of our ripening tomatoes before we are!
Hey Joanne … LOL. I’m sure you are organised with your garden. Such a shame with our peach tree, it was a beauty. Really strange seeing that half of it is growing brilliantly while half is struggling. Shame on those creepy-crawlies!
What are those lovely blue flowers at the top of your post? The photographic detail is stunning. As always, love the animal shots and while much of what you write about is essentially Greek to me, I still find it fascinating and so impressed with all the work you do there! But when something’s a passion, ‘work’ is kind of arbitrary, is it not? 🙂
Those blue flowers are borage and the bees adore them. Pleased you like that pic. Laughed when I read about ‘Greek’ to me .. Yes yes, to the passion and work the two are wonderfully ‘linked’. Thanks for stopping by as always 🙂
Love the image of you merrily wandering around spraying fish fert everywhere! I had a potato disaster too in that they haven’t come up at all – not on! The day after I planted them in a trench the heavens opened and I can only imagine that they all drowned 🙁 or the dog ate them?? happy gardening!
Hey Sarah … ha ha I was laughing at myself too when I was doing it. I get so excited when I’m feeding that garden (oh what is wrong with me LOL). Spud disaster .. oh dear. That would ruin my day. Bet the pooch didn’t eat them 😀 Happy gardening back at you Miss!
Hi Julie, must tell you that I’ve put in some walking onions since reading about them on your blog. Don’t you just love growing things for the first time. Your feijoas look so healthy, not all shot through with bug holes like the leaves on our Northland ones.
Hi Anne .. oh that’s great. They are so tasty and easy to grown. I was checking on mine over the weekend and hauled out all the self seeded stuff that was swamping them. Yes, I love growing things for the first time. Always amazing … Oh boy, those feijoas – there are 2 in our back yard that are loaded with flowers. I have never seen anything like it. 🙂
Oh my goodness I envy your lettuce (I bet you’ve never heard that line before)! The gardens looks wonderful. The spuds look like they will easily be ready for Christmas. Let us know when they start to blossom. Take care Julie. Bob
Ha ha ha Bob, no I haven’t! LOL … thank you the garden is looking pretty good. Thought of you when I put up the spud pic, they just might be ready for Chrissy, but I don’t mind if they aren’t!!! You take care too … Julie
Love seeing all you are doing Jules! It got busy here too, all of a sudden. Time of year I suppose 😊
Cheeky Sally, sauntering back. Cite chickadees are growing fast. Love that borage.. Such a pretty flower. Love herb flowers.
Gorgeous pics as always. Thanks for sharing!
Ha ha .. I know cheeky Sally! Those chickadees are growing so fast .. Fingers crossed one of them is a rooster (there will be 😉 ). Isn’t borage the best? The bees think so too! Glad you like the pics Robyn .. Always great knowing you have stopped by! 😀
😃 😃
Back at you lovely …
I love the green salad leaf against that autumnal background !
Thank you … spring down here though:) Thank goodness ….
What a nice and versatile garden! Great photos, I espacially like the blue flowers. The chicks are so cute and the portrait of the sheep is amazing – it seems to me a little cheeky! 🙂
Hey Josephine … oh thank you, glad you like the pics and flowers. Took some amazing shots tonight of our sheep getting shorn! Yep those chicks are cute and the sheep was being very cheeky! LOL
Looks like everything is going well! I hope Sally co-operated and returned to the proper side of the fence 🙂 Your photographs are stunning!
Hey Jess .. She did indeed! Glad you like the pics, thank you! Take care Miss 🙂
gorgeous flowers 🙂
Thank you Joshi ..
What a lovely setting! Looking forward to following your growing seasons!
Thank you! Looking forward to sharing our garden with you 🙂
I love your chickens, especially Sally 🙂 Is she an Australorp? She looks very similar to our Australorp girls 🙂
So much happening in your garden! I have a feeling the climate must be a little cooler in your area than where we are? Your veggie garden sounds more like the southern parts of Australia, where as up here in North Queensland it’s heading into the way-too-hot-to-grow-anything time of year. I’m going to try really hard to at least keep the salads growing through the hot summer days here though 🙂
Sarah x
PS thanks so much for your lovely comment on my last post! It made my day 🙂
Hey Sarah .. Gosh, did I? Your writing is lovely, I so enjoy your blog. Yes, Sally is an Australorp and my fav. Hence she needs her wing trimmed to keep her out of my garden :). Our weather in Akl is humid and rain and more rain. It has been the dampest spring in ages. The garden is growing like mad .. Which might be something to do with all the fert teas I chuck at it! Thanks for stopping by Miss 🙂
I think I amin love with your sheep! 🙂 <3