Garlic harvesting has been a huge success.
However timing is key. The earlier ones I planted (April) were fully mature and ready to harvest before the October rains.
The others planted later (June) needed to be harvested as soon as the rains came to avoid them rotting, and they weren't as well developed.
Also planting in a raised bed produces a better result than directly in the ground.
Sunday, 21 October 2018
Planting Summer Veggies
In the last month I've planted the following:
- Okra. Direct from seed and also in seedling pots. Both are fine
- Malabar spinach. Direct, but no luck so far
- Kang Kong, both direct and in seedling pots. Both are fine.
- Cucumber (in the ground and doing well, from seedlings planted into the ground about a month ago)
- Zucchini - already huge and producing fruit. The key, I think, is to get these in as early as possible so you get a decent crop before the humidity sets in. These were probably started from seed at the end of August or early September and put into the ground late September.
- capsicum. Tricky to germinate, and needs warm temps. One is a decent size and in the ground, the rest are still tiny.
- Egglplant (from bought seedlings)
- Yacon (from tubers saved from the previous year)
- Bitter melon (from seed to seedling to bed)
- Rock melon (from bought seedlings)
- Moringa (from seed to seedling to raised mound)
- Pigeon pea (from seed to seedling to bed/ground)
- Shiso - broadcast the seed. Seems Vietnamese shiso doing the best so far.
- Okra. Direct from seed and also in seedling pots. Both are fine
- Malabar spinach. Direct, but no luck so far
- Kang Kong, both direct and in seedling pots. Both are fine.
- Cucumber (in the ground and doing well, from seedlings planted into the ground about a month ago)
- Zucchini - already huge and producing fruit. The key, I think, is to get these in as early as possible so you get a decent crop before the humidity sets in. These were probably started from seed at the end of August or early September and put into the ground late September.
- capsicum. Tricky to germinate, and needs warm temps. One is a decent size and in the ground, the rest are still tiny.
- Egglplant (from bought seedlings)
- Yacon (from tubers saved from the previous year)
- Bitter melon (from seed to seedling to bed)
- Rock melon (from bought seedlings)
- Moringa (from seed to seedling to raised mound)
- Pigeon pea (from seed to seedling to bed/ground)
- Shiso - broadcast the seed. Seems Vietnamese shiso doing the best so far.
Friday, 13 July 2018
Turmeric
Harvested 400g of good quality turmeric yesterday. This was from one plant of orange turmeric obtained from Daleys. It was growing in the metal veggie bed, so had lots of soft soil (compost, potting mix, manure, rotted straw) and had been growing since spring. It produced the roots in a fairly small area. I waited until the leaves had mostly dried. The stem was still a little yellow and moist.
For propagation I'm trying a couple of different methods:
- 3 pots planted with tubers that had some roots attached and put in the poly tunnel
- original main rhizome planted in wine barrel in poly tunnel
- 1 brought inside and put in a shady area
For propagation I'm trying a couple of different methods:
- 3 pots planted with tubers that had some roots attached and put in the poly tunnel
- original main rhizome planted in wine barrel in poly tunnel
- 1 brought inside and put in a shady area
Saturday, 16 June 2018
Yacon
Today, 16 June, I harvested some yacon which I had planted last Spring. The stalks had mostly died down, though there was one that was still quite green. The soil at the base had heaved so it seemed like a good time to harvest.
Lifting the plant was easy, and didn't even require a fork - I simply grabbed the bunch of stalks and pulled, then rooted around for the tubers. There were a number of small pinkish white tubers near the surface which will be used for replanting (I have stored them in a bucket with just damp coir peat), and one I planted out just to see if it will manage to grow back.
Of the edible brown tubers, they were of a good size. Approximately a third of them were rotten - it would be interesting to try to harvest slightly earlier next year to see if I can get a better yield. Note, I had tried to harvest a different plant in another location a month ago, and there was nothing there to harvest, so it is probably worth waiting for the soil to heave and at least some of the stalks to die back.
I placed some in the sun for a day, and have stored in the fridge crisper in a plastic bag.
The plan is to cook these in a hotpot - they absorb flavours well but add a sweetness to the dish.
Update (26 June). Checked the yacon plants in the banana circle. The plants themselves grew well, but they produced no edible tubers. The harvest referred to above were simply in the ground (next to Panama Berry tree). I surmise that the difference is moisture - the banana circle is quite a moist area, whereas the area next to the Panama Berry is reasonably dry.
Lifting the plant was easy, and didn't even require a fork - I simply grabbed the bunch of stalks and pulled, then rooted around for the tubers. There were a number of small pinkish white tubers near the surface which will be used for replanting (I have stored them in a bucket with just damp coir peat), and one I planted out just to see if it will manage to grow back.
Of the edible brown tubers, they were of a good size. Approximately a third of them were rotten - it would be interesting to try to harvest slightly earlier next year to see if I can get a better yield. Note, I had tried to harvest a different plant in another location a month ago, and there was nothing there to harvest, so it is probably worth waiting for the soil to heave and at least some of the stalks to die back.
I placed some in the sun for a day, and have stored in the fridge crisper in a plastic bag.
The plan is to cook these in a hotpot - they absorb flavours well but add a sweetness to the dish.
Update (26 June). Checked the yacon plants in the banana circle. The plants themselves grew well, but they produced no edible tubers. The harvest referred to above were simply in the ground (next to Panama Berry tree). I surmise that the difference is moisture - the banana circle is quite a moist area, whereas the area next to the Panama Berry is reasonably dry.
Sunday, 10 June 2018
Trees Planted
Planted today:
Ficus macrophylla (Moreton Bay Fig) x 3 - on flood plain
Acacia fimbriata (Queensland Golden Wattle) - next to creek
Acacia podalyriifolia (Qld silver watter) - on rocky side of hill
Allocasuarina littoralis - on rocky side of hill
?Syzygium luehmannii - beside overland flow (grown from seed from a tree collected from the local swimming pool, hence the question mark, even though I'm fairly sure).
Planted Last Week
Diploglottis cambellii (small leafed tamarind)
Ficus macrophylla (Moreton Bay Fig) x 3 - on flood plain
Acacia fimbriata (Queensland Golden Wattle) - next to creek
Acacia podalyriifolia (Qld silver watter) - on rocky side of hill
Allocasuarina littoralis - on rocky side of hill
?Syzygium luehmannii - beside overland flow (grown from seed from a tree collected from the local swimming pool, hence the question mark, even though I'm fairly sure).
Planted Last Week
Diploglottis cambellii (small leafed tamarind)
Friday, 8 June 2018
Cockies
The white cockatoos have decided to visit our property this week, in the mornings and late afternoons. Cute, noisy, majestic, and a beautiful site. The price? All of our passionfruit and the our last sunflower.
Veggies for Autumn/Winter ; and how other plants are doing
I have just planted:
- Timor lettuce (into straw bales - from seeds sown into punnets about 3 weeks ago)
- Fennel (into the ground - from seeds sown into punnets about 3 weeks ago)
- Daikon (direct into ground)
- Beetroot (direct into ground)
- Garlic (direct into ground)
- Fresh load of broad bean seeds (from Bunnings, direct into ground)
- amaranth (seedlings that were sowed into a punnet about 3 weeks ago)
- some bee-attracting flowers (into straw bales and ground, from seed planted into punnets)
2-3 weeks ago (early May), I planted:
- garlic (direct into wine barrel) - these are doing well already
- daikon (direct into straw bales) - seem to be doing well, although leaves exhibiting some deficiencies
- beetroot (direct into straw bales) - taking awhile to get going
- burdock (direct into straw bales) - poor germination rate, 3 are growing slowly
- broad beans direct into ground (very poor germination rate)
- snow peas (direct into ground - OK; straw bales - NOK)
- shallots (direct into straw bales) - doing well
- bush beans (killed off by the cool temperatures, only one surviving is in a hot-house)
4-5 weeks ago
- bok-choy direct in raised bed - doing well
Other Plants
- Choko harvested and put into shaded area inside. They are all sprouting well. Put one in the sun (as this was advised from one site on the internet) but this is doing very poorly and getting sun burnt, so I recommend the shade. Have now potted up some of these, and put some others in the ground and we'll see which ones survive the winter
- Albizzia seedlings in pots - going yellow and losing leaves; not clear if they will survive the winter
- Tipuana tipu seedlings in pots - going yellow and losing leaves; not clear if they will survive the winter
- Timor lettuce (into straw bales - from seeds sown into punnets about 3 weeks ago)
- Fennel (into the ground - from seeds sown into punnets about 3 weeks ago)
- Daikon (direct into ground)
- Beetroot (direct into ground)
- Garlic (direct into ground)
- Fresh load of broad bean seeds (from Bunnings, direct into ground)
- amaranth (seedlings that were sowed into a punnet about 3 weeks ago)
- some bee-attracting flowers (into straw bales and ground, from seed planted into punnets)
2-3 weeks ago (early May), I planted:
- garlic (direct into wine barrel) - these are doing well already
- daikon (direct into straw bales) - seem to be doing well, although leaves exhibiting some deficiencies
- beetroot (direct into straw bales) - taking awhile to get going
- burdock (direct into straw bales) - poor germination rate, 3 are growing slowly
- broad beans direct into ground (very poor germination rate)
- snow peas (direct into ground - OK; straw bales - NOK)
- shallots (direct into straw bales) - doing well
- bush beans (killed off by the cool temperatures, only one surviving is in a hot-house)
4-5 weeks ago
- bok-choy direct in raised bed - doing well
Other Plants
- Choko harvested and put into shaded area inside. They are all sprouting well. Put one in the sun (as this was advised from one site on the internet) but this is doing very poorly and getting sun burnt, so I recommend the shade. Have now potted up some of these, and put some others in the ground and we'll see which ones survive the winter
- Albizzia seedlings in pots - going yellow and losing leaves; not clear if they will survive the winter
- Tipuana tipu seedlings in pots - going yellow and losing leaves; not clear if they will survive the winter
Monday, 26 March 2018
Autumn Rain
The start of autumn has been very warm, with a couple of days around 35 degrees. Around 5th March it cooled down slightly (29 degrees) but it is feeling very humid.
Early March we had some heavy rain (63mm overnight).The creek overflowed over and around the little road down the valley, flattening grass. I will need to mark out this top level to aid in planting as I plan to start regenerating the creek area.
March is almost over and it has been raining on most days. Most of summer has been fairly dry, so it seems the wet season has been crammed into March. From what I hear, "autumn rains" are a fairly regular event. The ground has been so saturated that it has been impossible to do much gardening. Certainly digging holes and planting trees is a no-no (ruins the soil structure), so progress has been frustratingly slow.
Even at the end of March the temperatures have been around 30 degrees, and stiflingly humid.
Wind has been another feature of March - mostly Southerlies and South-Easterlies.
The okra is starting to feel the overnight coolness (around 18 degrees) but is still producing. Most other veggies have finished, but that's partly due to the poor veggie patch we have, methinks. The Panama Berry trees have found their groove and have been producing consistently for a few months now (only planted them about 6 months ago). Around 3 per day. They need to be eaten quickly, within 24 hours, otherwise they wrinkle and start to go off. They are delicious, but the skin is tough and bitter so it is best to peel them (a tricky process) or just use the hole where the stalk was attached and suck out the insides. They are super sweet. The chickens love them too.
We wanted to clean up the veggie patch by getting the chickens (Isa-Browns) in there. But this breed seems almost useless for anything but laying. They escape the veggie patch and try to go home to their coop, and even if they don't, they don't do much scratching around. When they escape, if our dog is around he chases them, catches them, and starts to pull their rear feathers off or bites their wings. So far we've always been there so he isn't a chicken-killer just yet.
Planted a pomegranate in the bed close to the house - this soil is generally super well-drained so should be a good spot for the pomegranate. We took out a globe artichoke that wasn't doing very well. After digging the hole I discovered it wasn't as well-drained as I thought, and this, as well as the unsuitable climate, may have contributed to the poor performance of the artichoke. I added lots of compost so hopefully the pomegranate will be ok.
In most places on the property (outside of the garden beds around the house) I've discovered that planting trees in holes doesn't work well. Everything needs to be raised, and high! That means large berms, "avocanoes" for the avos, and my most recent trick, a quartet of straw bales (lucerne, actually) surrounding a space filled with compost and potting mix. The theory is that the straw bales will gradually break down and feed the plant, and they can either be replaced with new bales or alternatively just left to decompose, hopefully leaving a high mount. So far I've tried this latter technique with a banana and a muscadine grape.
I planted some macadamias just before the rainy season (i.e. end of Feb) but they don't seem too happy with the amount of rain. Hopefully they'll pull through. The peanut tree, planted at the same time, seems to be doing much better (Sterculia quadrifida).
Early March we had some heavy rain (63mm overnight).The creek overflowed over and around the little road down the valley, flattening grass. I will need to mark out this top level to aid in planting as I plan to start regenerating the creek area.
March is almost over and it has been raining on most days. Most of summer has been fairly dry, so it seems the wet season has been crammed into March. From what I hear, "autumn rains" are a fairly regular event. The ground has been so saturated that it has been impossible to do much gardening. Certainly digging holes and planting trees is a no-no (ruins the soil structure), so progress has been frustratingly slow.
Even at the end of March the temperatures have been around 30 degrees, and stiflingly humid.
Wind has been another feature of March - mostly Southerlies and South-Easterlies.
The okra is starting to feel the overnight coolness (around 18 degrees) but is still producing. Most other veggies have finished, but that's partly due to the poor veggie patch we have, methinks. The Panama Berry trees have found their groove and have been producing consistently for a few months now (only planted them about 6 months ago). Around 3 per day. They need to be eaten quickly, within 24 hours, otherwise they wrinkle and start to go off. They are delicious, but the skin is tough and bitter so it is best to peel them (a tricky process) or just use the hole where the stalk was attached and suck out the insides. They are super sweet. The chickens love them too.
We wanted to clean up the veggie patch by getting the chickens (Isa-Browns) in there. But this breed seems almost useless for anything but laying. They escape the veggie patch and try to go home to their coop, and even if they don't, they don't do much scratching around. When they escape, if our dog is around he chases them, catches them, and starts to pull their rear feathers off or bites their wings. So far we've always been there so he isn't a chicken-killer just yet.
Planted a pomegranate in the bed close to the house - this soil is generally super well-drained so should be a good spot for the pomegranate. We took out a globe artichoke that wasn't doing very well. After digging the hole I discovered it wasn't as well-drained as I thought, and this, as well as the unsuitable climate, may have contributed to the poor performance of the artichoke. I added lots of compost so hopefully the pomegranate will be ok.
In most places on the property (outside of the garden beds around the house) I've discovered that planting trees in holes doesn't work well. Everything needs to be raised, and high! That means large berms, "avocanoes" for the avos, and my most recent trick, a quartet of straw bales (lucerne, actually) surrounding a space filled with compost and potting mix. The theory is that the straw bales will gradually break down and feed the plant, and they can either be replaced with new bales or alternatively just left to decompose, hopefully leaving a high mount. So far I've tried this latter technique with a banana and a muscadine grape.
I planted some macadamias just before the rainy season (i.e. end of Feb) but they don't seem too happy with the amount of rain. Hopefully they'll pull through. The peanut tree, planted at the same time, seems to be doing much better (Sterculia quadrifida).
Tuesday, 6 March 2018
Late Summer
This summer we planted a number of trees and plants.
1. Swale
I made a mini swale, hand-dug, on the South paddock that faces North and leads down to the dam. This is the site for the bamboo plantation (which currently has 4 x Dendrocalamus asper) but while digging it was discovered that the soil near the bottom of the slope was rich and deep, so fruit trees would grow well here. I've planted on the berm:
- jackfruit (seedling)
- 2 x avocado (Reed, seedling)
- true licorice as an NFT and berm stabiliser
- pigeon peas
- garlic (Glenlarge)
- garlic chives
- sweet potato (kumara)
- okinawa spinach
- moringa
2. Chestnuts
Planted 3 chestnut seedlings in the paddocks destined for the alpacas. One was planted about 2 months ago and is leafing up nicely. Another planted at the same time has not grown at all and is now developing brown spots. It was planted right next to a moringa (at the same time), so not sure that is related. I suspect it is more due to a poorly draining hole, even though it was prepared well in advance. Another has just been planted in a hole prepared about 6 weeks ago. One more chestnut, this a grafted one (Winchester) has also just been planted.
3. Bush Tucker Area
- Walking Stick Palm
- Peanut tree
- Macadamia A16
- Macadamia Bushnut x 2
- Davidson Plum NSW (D.jersiana)
- Plum Pine (Podocarpus elatus) x 1 (to join the other two already planted)
- Musk mallow (Abelmoschus moschatus tuberosus)
4. More Bamboo
The planting of Gombong batu is ongoing and taking a lot of time. Still many more to go.
I planted 2 x Gigantochloa sp. Hitam Hijau by the main dam.
MORINGA
I've grown a lot of these from seed but most a growing slowly and are quite unhappy. There is one exception which was planted in the site that previous saw composting taking place. It has grown at about 5x the rate of others. Even this one, however, has been developing yellow leaves - I am not sure if this is due to lack of water or too much water or poorly drained subsoil. I suspect the first.
So it seems they need a well-draining soil with plenty of organic matter and frequent watering.
VEGGIES
Vege patch has been consumed by sweet potato and beans so is less productive now and needs a renovation.
Original okinawa spinach has almost died - their pot was invaded by ants. Luckily I took plenty of cuttings (they are easy to grow from cuttings - root them in water then pot them up).
COWS
We are looking after the neighbours cows for a month while they are away. In the first paddock they did quite a bit of damage to the young wattles (trampling and breaking them) and ate most of the leaves and branches off the casuarinas. They were then moved accidentally to the wrong paddock (Land for Wildlife area) and despite being there for only one day have done significant damage. The sandpaper fig (birds eye) has been stripped of the majority of its leaves and the main stem has been broken, the Blue Quandong has also been eaten (about 1/3 of it), and the Black Beans have been broken. Acacia victoriae was small and has disappeared, no doubt trampled. The only untouched tree was another Blue Quandong which has a hornet's nest on it (I got stung yesterday on the hand checking it out - it stings for a few minutes and there was a big welt on my hand for about half an hour, but it seems to have had no lasting effect apart from a small red mark that is here the next day). UPDATE: Welt came back with a vengeance a day later and was crazy itchy. Added lots of betamethasone cream and had a Telfast which seems to have helped.
1. Swale
I made a mini swale, hand-dug, on the South paddock that faces North and leads down to the dam. This is the site for the bamboo plantation (which currently has 4 x Dendrocalamus asper) but while digging it was discovered that the soil near the bottom of the slope was rich and deep, so fruit trees would grow well here. I've planted on the berm:
- jackfruit (seedling)
- 2 x avocado (Reed, seedling)
- true licorice as an NFT and berm stabiliser
- pigeon peas
- garlic (Glenlarge)
- garlic chives
- sweet potato (kumara)
- okinawa spinach
- moringa
2. Chestnuts
Planted 3 chestnut seedlings in the paddocks destined for the alpacas. One was planted about 2 months ago and is leafing up nicely. Another planted at the same time has not grown at all and is now developing brown spots. It was planted right next to a moringa (at the same time), so not sure that is related. I suspect it is more due to a poorly draining hole, even though it was prepared well in advance. Another has just been planted in a hole prepared about 6 weeks ago. One more chestnut, this a grafted one (Winchester) has also just been planted.
3. Bush Tucker Area
- Walking Stick Palm
- Peanut tree
- Macadamia A16
- Macadamia Bushnut x 2
- Davidson Plum NSW (D.jersiana)
- Plum Pine (Podocarpus elatus) x 1 (to join the other two already planted)
- Musk mallow (Abelmoschus moschatus tuberosus)
4. More Bamboo
The planting of Gombong batu is ongoing and taking a lot of time. Still many more to go.
I planted 2 x Gigantochloa sp. Hitam Hijau by the main dam.
MORINGA
I've grown a lot of these from seed but most a growing slowly and are quite unhappy. There is one exception which was planted in the site that previous saw composting taking place. It has grown at about 5x the rate of others. Even this one, however, has been developing yellow leaves - I am not sure if this is due to lack of water or too much water or poorly drained subsoil. I suspect the first.
So it seems they need a well-draining soil with plenty of organic matter and frequent watering.
VEGGIES
Vege patch has been consumed by sweet potato and beans so is less productive now and needs a renovation.
Original okinawa spinach has almost died - their pot was invaded by ants. Luckily I took plenty of cuttings (they are easy to grow from cuttings - root them in water then pot them up).
COWS
We are looking after the neighbours cows for a month while they are away. In the first paddock they did quite a bit of damage to the young wattles (trampling and breaking them) and ate most of the leaves and branches off the casuarinas. They were then moved accidentally to the wrong paddock (Land for Wildlife area) and despite being there for only one day have done significant damage. The sandpaper fig (birds eye) has been stripped of the majority of its leaves and the main stem has been broken, the Blue Quandong has also been eaten (about 1/3 of it), and the Black Beans have been broken. Acacia victoriae was small and has disappeared, no doubt trampled. The only untouched tree was another Blue Quandong which has a hornet's nest on it (I got stung yesterday on the hand checking it out - it stings for a few minutes and there was a big welt on my hand for about half an hour, but it seems to have had no lasting effect apart from a small red mark that is here the next day). UPDATE: Welt came back with a vengeance a day later and was crazy itchy. Added lots of betamethasone cream and had a Telfast which seems to have helped.
Monday, 15 January 2018
Summer
We are about a third the way through summer now. Success in the veggie patch has been a result mainly of the following:
- snake beans
- okra
- luffa
Some intermittent success from:
- cucumber
- zucchini (but very small)
- lagos spinach just starting
The failures have been:
- Corn. This either gets eaten by various pests (mice, caterpillars) or fails to pollinate properly and we end up with cobs with very few kernels. It seems both research and protection is needed before we can grow corn successfully
- Malabar spinach. Strangely, we grew this well in our previous place but here we aren't having any success. They germinate and grow a leaf or two but fail to thrive.
On the perennial side:
- Asparagus is growing and ferning up, but the beds have been invaded by grass and weeds
- Okinawa spinach was doing better in spring time. It seems to need a bit of shade in summer. A few plants have been produced by taking cuttings and rooting in water before potting up.
- Arrowroot is growing well
- Pigeon peas doing well, but mostly grown as windbreak and shade plants for veggies, and as chop and drop, rather than for harvesting the peas
- Chillis are doing fairly well, but are being attached by lots of pests that eat the leaves and the chillis
- Capsicum hasn't been doing so well, just producing a few small fruit
- Banana trees are growing, but it is too early for fruit
- Panama berries growing well. They don't seem to like the wind that much. But they do love being in the chicken coop with all the poop around. And the chickens love the berries in return.
- Turmeric is growing, slowly. Time will tell whether this is a success.
- Yacon growing well, but we won't know until we harvest
- Ditto for taro
- Sweet potato is taking over (but again, not sure if they will offer us much more than a ground cover).
- snake beans
- okra
- luffa
Some intermittent success from:
- cucumber
- zucchini (but very small)
- lagos spinach just starting
The failures have been:
- Corn. This either gets eaten by various pests (mice, caterpillars) or fails to pollinate properly and we end up with cobs with very few kernels. It seems both research and protection is needed before we can grow corn successfully
- Malabar spinach. Strangely, we grew this well in our previous place but here we aren't having any success. They germinate and grow a leaf or two but fail to thrive.
On the perennial side:
- Asparagus is growing and ferning up, but the beds have been invaded by grass and weeds
- Okinawa spinach was doing better in spring time. It seems to need a bit of shade in summer. A few plants have been produced by taking cuttings and rooting in water before potting up.
- Arrowroot is growing well
- Pigeon peas doing well, but mostly grown as windbreak and shade plants for veggies, and as chop and drop, rather than for harvesting the peas
- Chillis are doing fairly well, but are being attached by lots of pests that eat the leaves and the chillis
- Capsicum hasn't been doing so well, just producing a few small fruit
- Banana trees are growing, but it is too early for fruit
- Panama berries growing well. They don't seem to like the wind that much. But they do love being in the chicken coop with all the poop around. And the chickens love the berries in return.
- Turmeric is growing, slowly. Time will tell whether this is a success.
- Yacon growing well, but we won't know until we harvest
- Ditto for taro
- Sweet potato is taking over (but again, not sure if they will offer us much more than a ground cover).
Winter
Last year we were living near the coast so ended up with a pretty warped view of what winter was like here. Now that we've moved about 10km inland, things are different (much colder). For the record, here is what our winter has been like:
June - a wee bit cold in the mornings but still in the double digits. 10 was probably the coldest it ever got to. I kept all my trees outside at this time and they weren't suffering too much.
July/August - Things got real cold, with mornings frequently dipping into single digits. The coldest was 6 degrees, which happened about twice, 7 degrees which was not uncommon, with 10 probably being the average (there were some warm mornings around 12-14 degrees). There has been next to no rain in these two months. Also, the Westerly winds have been very strong during late July and August. We had a couple of freak days in the 30's, but otherwise maximum temperatures ranged from 20-26.
I planted broad beans around April/May, and while they have grown and flowered, they have produced no beans, despite being pollinated. I've put this down to the max temperatures being too warm. I've given them potash, so that shouldn't be lacking.
Daikon has grown well in wine barrels, and kohlrabi seems to be doing well. Chinese celery, after a slow start, has grown reasonably well. Wild tomatoes have been growing and fruiting all through winter, though I haven't sown any so not sure how they would go.
I planted out some bananas mid-August (based on my warped sense of when the weather would warm up). They are surviving, but not ecstatic. Brazilian spinach was also planted out in winter (in June) and has been suffering a bit - the one I have in a pot that spends days outside and nights in the shed is doing much better.
The polytunnel has been home to seedlings. Planted in early August, the following have germinated and are doing well:
- snake beans
- sunflower
- okra
- bitter melon
- luffa
- corn
So far the following has failed to germinate. Not sure if due to the weather or due to poor seed:
- zucchini
- watermelon
- melon
Also I'm growing a cucumber in a wine barrel in the poly-tunnel, and it is producing. Basil also is growing, albeit a bit slowly.
Note there is a mouse problem - it has been digging up my seeds so now I have to put them away in polystyrene containers at night to protect them. They seem particularly partial to melon, corn, beans and zucchini.
June - a wee bit cold in the mornings but still in the double digits. 10 was probably the coldest it ever got to. I kept all my trees outside at this time and they weren't suffering too much.
July/August - Things got real cold, with mornings frequently dipping into single digits. The coldest was 6 degrees, which happened about twice, 7 degrees which was not uncommon, with 10 probably being the average (there were some warm mornings around 12-14 degrees). There has been next to no rain in these two months. Also, the Westerly winds have been very strong during late July and August. We had a couple of freak days in the 30's, but otherwise maximum temperatures ranged from 20-26.
I planted broad beans around April/May, and while they have grown and flowered, they have produced no beans, despite being pollinated. I've put this down to the max temperatures being too warm. I've given them potash, so that shouldn't be lacking.
Daikon has grown well in wine barrels, and kohlrabi seems to be doing well. Chinese celery, after a slow start, has grown reasonably well. Wild tomatoes have been growing and fruiting all through winter, though I haven't sown any so not sure how they would go.
I planted out some bananas mid-August (based on my warped sense of when the weather would warm up). They are surviving, but not ecstatic. Brazilian spinach was also planted out in winter (in June) and has been suffering a bit - the one I have in a pot that spends days outside and nights in the shed is doing much better.
The polytunnel has been home to seedlings. Planted in early August, the following have germinated and are doing well:
- snake beans
- sunflower
- okra
- bitter melon
- luffa
- corn
So far the following has failed to germinate. Not sure if due to the weather or due to poor seed:
- zucchini
- watermelon
- melon
Also I'm growing a cucumber in a wine barrel in the poly-tunnel, and it is producing. Basil also is growing, albeit a bit slowly.
Note there is a mouse problem - it has been digging up my seeds so now I have to put them away in polystyrene containers at night to protect them. They seem particularly partial to melon, corn, beans and zucchini.
Compost Tea
We need to build soil and adding compost tea seems to be a good way to do this, so that's what I'm about to embark on.
- I bought a 200L blue drum (food grade) for brewing the tea. Bought it for $25 off ebay
- Air pump. From my research needs to be at least 40L/min. Bought an electromagnetic one off ebay for about $60. I wanted to buy the Nitto Medo L60B like Richard Perkins uses at Ridgedale Permaculture but they cost over $300, so will only do that if I find the cheaper ones don't work.
- You need to strain the compost tea before applying it. According to Elaine Ingham a paint strainer is best but must be 400 microns to allow the microbes and fungi to get through (you can get finer paint strainers but they are going to filter out the fungi so this is an important thing to check)
- Currently investigating sprayers (again must have a nozzle 400 microns at least)...
- Clean equipment (e.g. sprayer/watering can/drum) after use. You can use hydrogen peroxide, bleach, or any other anti-microbial cleaner.
- Dilute the tea 5:1 rainwater:tea
- To keep your air pump from getting wet, place it 2 or 3 feet from the bucket. Its also good to put the pump either higher than your bucket or for your air hose to rise above the bucket a few inches to keep from getting tea back into the pump.
- When you finish brewing your compost tea, it should have an earthy smell. If it stinks, it means it didn’t get enough oxygen, and anaerobic bacteria took over.
- Several days before brewing your tea, mix some fungi food (like powdered oatmeal) into 1/2 gallon of moist compost, cover it, then store in a warm, dark place. When you are ready to brew your tea, your compost will be covered with strands of fungi. This will inoculate your tea with beneficial fungi.
- Use all the tea within a day
Tools and Materials Required
- Hydrogen peroxide for cleaning - TOBUY
- Long handled brush for cleaning the drum- TOBUY
- Sprayer- TOBUY
- Pump - Bought
- Paint strainers - Bought
- Drum - Bought
Ingredients required
- compost
- NO Molasses (Elaine Ingham does not recommend molasses)
- fish hydrolysate
- kelp meal
See Elaine Ingham's recipe.
- I bought a 200L blue drum (food grade) for brewing the tea. Bought it for $25 off ebay
- Air pump. From my research needs to be at least 40L/min. Bought an electromagnetic one off ebay for about $60. I wanted to buy the Nitto Medo L60B like Richard Perkins uses at Ridgedale Permaculture but they cost over $300, so will only do that if I find the cheaper ones don't work.
- You need to strain the compost tea before applying it. According to Elaine Ingham a paint strainer is best but must be 400 microns to allow the microbes and fungi to get through (you can get finer paint strainers but they are going to filter out the fungi so this is an important thing to check)
- Currently investigating sprayers (again must have a nozzle 400 microns at least)...
- Clean equipment (e.g. sprayer/watering can/drum) after use. You can use hydrogen peroxide, bleach, or any other anti-microbial cleaner.
- Dilute the tea 5:1 rainwater:tea
- To keep your air pump from getting wet, place it 2 or 3 feet from the bucket. Its also good to put the pump either higher than your bucket or for your air hose to rise above the bucket a few inches to keep from getting tea back into the pump.
- When you finish brewing your compost tea, it should have an earthy smell. If it stinks, it means it didn’t get enough oxygen, and anaerobic bacteria took over.
- Several days before brewing your tea, mix some fungi food (like powdered oatmeal) into 1/2 gallon of moist compost, cover it, then store in a warm, dark place. When you are ready to brew your tea, your compost will be covered with strands of fungi. This will inoculate your tea with beneficial fungi.
- Use all the tea within a day
Tools and Materials Required
- Hydrogen peroxide for cleaning - TOBUY
- Long handled brush for cleaning the drum- TOBUY
- Sprayer- TOBUY
- Pump - Bought
- Paint strainers - Bought
- Drum - Bought
Ingredients required
- compost
- NO Molasses (Elaine Ingham does not recommend molasses)
- fish hydrolysate
- kelp meal
See Elaine Ingham's recipe.
Bamboo
It is 2018 and we've kicked off the year by starting our bamboo windbreak. We've picked a small area to start with and will make this wider than the rest of the windbreak. It will double as a nice mini bamboo forest with a path that leads to a small clearing. The species chosen is Gigantochloa pseudoarundinacea cv. Gombong Batu. The main species recommended for windbreaks is Bambusa oldhamii, but the max height of this (18m), which is usually less in Australia, is not really tall enough for my needs. The species chosen (Gombong Batu) gets to 30m, theoretically, so is more appropriate. It is also good for structural use and has a pretty good edibility rating also. Depending on the performance of this area, we may continue with this species for the remainder of the windbreak or fall back on B.oldhamii.
The soil is quite compacted and full of clay, so we've added gypsum and compost to the holes, measure which will hopefully be sufficient to allow the bamboo to grow well. The plants have also been innoculated with mycorrhizal fungal spores, and the bottom of the planting holes sprinkled with biochar. Once planted, around, but not directly on top, Dynamic Lifter pellets have been sprinkled and the bamboo is sheet mulched for a 1m radius with newspapers and thick layers of lucerne mulch placed on top. Hopefully this will be enough to keep the grass at bay until the plants become self-mulching (with their allelopathic leaves).
I also couldn't resist purchasing 4 plants to kick off our bamboo plantation. This will occupy a North-facing slope on the Southern part of the property. There is a large dam between it and the house which will act as a firebreak, although if you maintain your bamboo it shouldn't be too much of a fire risk. The plants selected were Dendrocalamus asper (two different cultivars - the Indonesian clone and Betung Hitam, a black culmed variety), which produces very large and sweet shoots for eating. Eventually the plantation will also have D.latiflorus and Nastus elatus, with potentially a few other species for fun, but the D.asper and D.latiflorus will comprise the majority of plants. Row spacings of approximately 7m will be followed to allow passage of a tractor if need be. The rows will also be oriented slightly off contour with parallel ditches leading down hill and each plant surrounded by a basin connected to the ditch. The idea is that a solar pump will pump water from the dam up to the top of the slope and into the ditch which will feed water downhill into all the basins one at a time, overflowing and continuing onto the next one, until it reaches a spillway at the bottom and ends up back in the dam. It may be an idea to plant more vegetation, possibly a reed bed filter system, below the bamboo so that the high nitrogen runoff can be filtered before re-entering the dam.
The soil is quite compacted and full of clay, so we've added gypsum and compost to the holes, measure which will hopefully be sufficient to allow the bamboo to grow well. The plants have also been innoculated with mycorrhizal fungal spores, and the bottom of the planting holes sprinkled with biochar. Once planted, around, but not directly on top, Dynamic Lifter pellets have been sprinkled and the bamboo is sheet mulched for a 1m radius with newspapers and thick layers of lucerne mulch placed on top. Hopefully this will be enough to keep the grass at bay until the plants become self-mulching (with their allelopathic leaves).
I also couldn't resist purchasing 4 plants to kick off our bamboo plantation. This will occupy a North-facing slope on the Southern part of the property. There is a large dam between it and the house which will act as a firebreak, although if you maintain your bamboo it shouldn't be too much of a fire risk. The plants selected were Dendrocalamus asper (two different cultivars - the Indonesian clone and Betung Hitam, a black culmed variety), which produces very large and sweet shoots for eating. Eventually the plantation will also have D.latiflorus and Nastus elatus, with potentially a few other species for fun, but the D.asper and D.latiflorus will comprise the majority of plants. Row spacings of approximately 7m will be followed to allow passage of a tractor if need be. The rows will also be oriented slightly off contour with parallel ditches leading down hill and each plant surrounded by a basin connected to the ditch. The idea is that a solar pump will pump water from the dam up to the top of the slope and into the ditch which will feed water downhill into all the basins one at a time, overflowing and continuing onto the next one, until it reaches a spillway at the bottom and ends up back in the dam. It may be an idea to plant more vegetation, possibly a reed bed filter system, below the bamboo so that the high nitrogen runoff can be filtered before re-entering the dam.
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