Here's what we got up to this weekend in the sunshine. Perth's winter is definitely over (in fact I'd ask if it came at all!).
Hope your weekend has been just as enjoyable!
Happy gardening!
Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts
Sunday, August 10, 2014
Saturday, August 2, 2014
Broccoli success
Well, it seems we can grow broccoli in Perth! At least in the winter months. I last tried around spring last year and the white cabbage moth was everywhere. I had experimented using moth shaped white plastic decoys, but I'm not convinced they worked.
We planted some dwarf broccoli in a small bed which gets a lot of sun throughout the day and we've had success! The magpies and crows thought they were pretty nice too - so we draped a bit of bird netting over the broccoli to protect the small heads.
We didn't get too many slugs or snails either - in general, all quiet on the bug front!
I'll be monitoring the change in seasons more closely in future, to really capitalise on the relatively mild winter and the absence of the cabbage moth more so!
Happy gardening!
We planted some dwarf broccoli in a small bed which gets a lot of sun throughout the day and we've had success! The magpies and crows thought they were pretty nice too - so we draped a bit of bird netting over the broccoli to protect the small heads.
We didn't get too many slugs or snails either - in general, all quiet on the bug front!
I'll be monitoring the change in seasons more closely in future, to really capitalise on the relatively mild winter and the absence of the cabbage moth more so!
Happy gardening!
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Capers: stems, seeds and soil!
Found this great post on Michelle Hamer's blog, From Seed to Table, on growing and propagating capers - great to have some firsthand experience of growing these amazing plants. I've been looking for some good info on propagating capers and this is the best so far.
We had our first caper berry a couple of months ago - a lovely plump specimen! The bush itself is probably some 12 months old and doing okay so far, in a pot. I'd like to try and propagate some more plants from seed, so when it comes to our new landscaping, we can plant out some caper bushes as part of a rockery.
I'd love to know of anyone (especially Perth locals) who has given capers a go, maybe as a rockery plant, with some success!
If you're new to capers like I am, you might find this site useful too.
Happy gardening!
We had our first caper berry a couple of months ago - a lovely plump specimen! The bush itself is probably some 12 months old and doing okay so far, in a pot. I'd like to try and propagate some more plants from seed, so when it comes to our new landscaping, we can plant out some caper bushes as part of a rockery.
I'd love to know of anyone (especially Perth locals) who has given capers a go, maybe as a rockery plant, with some success!
If you're new to capers like I am, you might find this site useful too.
Happy gardening!
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Winter plantings
We planted some mini cauliflower seedlings yesterday. Clancy grew them from seed in a big pot.
More potatoes are surfacing as well which is a good sign. I dug up one that was rotten so far, hopefully that's the only one, but the bed, although no-dig, is quite water logged given the amount of rain we've had in the last week. I forgot how torrential Perth rain is!
We also picked a couple of beetroot and some baby carrots over the weekend and the carrots are really sweet - they are a baby carrot variety.
We also fed our citrus trees with the worm castings from our worm farm which needed a bit of a clean out. They've grown heaps in this past month or so and always seem to respond well after a bit of a prune.
Other vegies on the move include snow peas, pak choi, Swiss chard, variety of lettuce and rocket and the herbs too! Who says winter is for hibernating?! ;-)
Happy gardening!
More potatoes are surfacing as well which is a good sign. I dug up one that was rotten so far, hopefully that's the only one, but the bed, although no-dig, is quite water logged given the amount of rain we've had in the last week. I forgot how torrential Perth rain is!
We also picked a couple of beetroot and some baby carrots over the weekend and the carrots are really sweet - they are a baby carrot variety.
We also fed our citrus trees with the worm castings from our worm farm which needed a bit of a clean out. They've grown heaps in this past month or so and always seem to respond well after a bit of a prune.
Other vegies on the move include snow peas, pak choi, Swiss chard, variety of lettuce and rocket and the herbs too! Who says winter is for hibernating?! ;-)
Happy gardening!
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
How does your garden grow
We did a quick whiz around the garden in between rain showers and picked some greens for dinner: beans, snow peas and parsley and thyme. The passionfruit are dropping regularly too - yum!
Potatoes are just beginning to poke through the mulch so will keep an eye on them and make sure they have enough cover. Exciting! The mixed lettuce has been a hit too - a good idea to plant over the spuds us :-)
Love this rain but could do without the 100km/hr winds thanks!
Stay safe and happy gardening!
Potatoes are just beginning to poke through the mulch so will keep an eye on them and make sure they have enough cover. Exciting! The mixed lettuce has been a hit too - a good idea to plant over the spuds us :-)
Love this rain but could do without the 100km/hr winds thanks!
Stay safe and happy gardening!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Vegetables all year round
We had a productive day in the garden yesterday; cleaning out old brassicas (keeping some for seed as well as the last little flowerettes of brocolli), dosing up the peas, beans, garlic and fennel with seasol solution, as well as reconditioning all the potted plants (of which most are flowers such as azalea, peace lilly, pansy and Clancy's 'fairy flowers').
We planted some seeds too, of purple running beans, target beetroot, baby carrots, and rainbow Swiss chard. I also transplanted some coriander seedlings and parsley. Now we have a rather full plot which is great!
The beetroot, carrots, chard and beans can be planted for much of the year in Perth given its mild climate; all seasons but the hot dry summer really (unless you can provide good shade and adequate water for seeds, seedling and young plants). We will see how this summer shapes up and decide if we should put up a shade house at some point.
More generally, the garden layout is beginning to take shape now. We have the terraced corner garden in place, plus I have some hanging basket frames to work with and am on the hunt for secondhand large pots for bushy herbs and small shrubs like lemons and rosemary. As mentioned in a previous post, once we get some paper, mulch and compost down on the terraced bed, we will put in the lemongrass, rhubarb and herbs, plus some oak leaf lettuce that has self-seeded in our planter boxes! Am still looking out for raspberry canes too.
So much to do and the whole of Spring to do it in!
Happy gardening!
We planted some seeds too, of purple running beans, target beetroot, baby carrots, and rainbow Swiss chard. I also transplanted some coriander seedlings and parsley. Now we have a rather full plot which is great!
The beetroot, carrots, chard and beans can be planted for much of the year in Perth given its mild climate; all seasons but the hot dry summer really (unless you can provide good shade and adequate water for seeds, seedling and young plants). We will see how this summer shapes up and decide if we should put up a shade house at some point.
More generally, the garden layout is beginning to take shape now. We have the terraced corner garden in place, plus I have some hanging basket frames to work with and am on the hunt for secondhand large pots for bushy herbs and small shrubs like lemons and rosemary. As mentioned in a previous post, once we get some paper, mulch and compost down on the terraced bed, we will put in the lemongrass, rhubarb and herbs, plus some oak leaf lettuce that has self-seeded in our planter boxes! Am still looking out for raspberry canes too.
So much to do and the whole of Spring to do it in!
Happy gardening!
Friday, August 19, 2011
Truffles down south
It's truffle season down south at the moment and we brought back this beauty from a recent trip to Pemberton, from Stonebarn, out near Quinninup. We were hoping to view the dogs in action sniffing out the truffles, but didn't make it down in time - well, there's always a next time.
I think this is the French variety, the Perigord black truffle.
The aroma is exquisite, sweet and earthy, not to mention the fresh, pungent flavour when served on top of free range scrambled eggs! Freshly cracked pepper and some shavings of parmesan top off a full and luxurious brekky.
We also tried truffles on top of creamy mashed potatoes with fillets of ocean trout for dinner - yummo! I can see why truffles are fast becoming a lucrative industry in the lower south west!
I think this is the French variety, the Perigord black truffle.
The aroma is exquisite, sweet and earthy, not to mention the fresh, pungent flavour when served on top of free range scrambled eggs! Freshly cracked pepper and some shavings of parmesan top off a full and luxurious brekky.
We also tried truffles on top of creamy mashed potatoes with fillets of ocean trout for dinner - yummo! I can see why truffles are fast becoming a lucrative industry in the lower south west!
Friday, July 15, 2011
Lemon cordial
Here's something you can do with all your extra lemons, make cordial!
I tried this recipe out from Nevn and LInda Sweeny's great blog, with great effect - quite aromatic too when you include the lemon rinds - yummo :o)
The results may vary depending on the type of lemons you use - the more zesty the better I reckon!
Thanks to my new neighbourhood lemon fairy for these lemons - cordial coming your way !
Happy gardening!
I tried this recipe out from Nevn and LInda Sweeny's great blog, with great effect - quite aromatic too when you include the lemon rinds - yummo :o)
The results may vary depending on the type of lemons you use - the more zesty the better I reckon!
Thanks to my new neighbourhood lemon fairy for these lemons - cordial coming your way !
Happy gardening!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Winter plantings and seedlings
Our garden is going really well at the moment and Perth has had some decent rainfall over the last month - a refreshing sight!
Clancy and I had planted beans and peas about 3 weeks ago and they are doing well too, as you can see in the foreground. We picked up some marigolds at the local gardening shop - they were going cheap - and have popped them around the outside of the bed as well. So far we haven't had any issues with insects or mildew, etc.
The brocolli is heading up well - not sure about the caulies just yet - one has bolted (the mild winter doesn't help!), but others looking OK for now.
Our backyard project is also about to get underway. We are terracing some parts of the yard so we can plant extras like lemongrass, rhubarb and comfrey (near the compost, as its a good composting agent). Then this weekend past I began preparing the ground running up to the garden bed for some lawn seed to get some grass coverage there - its all sand and ends up in the house after a bit of gardening! :o)
Next we are working on another raised bed made from some beautiful salvaged limestone blocks (why anyone would want to throw them out is beyond me!) and a sandpit under an old grapevine for the kiddies. We will take a leaf out of Josh's book (see Ollie's garden) and make some blocks into stepping stones around the sandpit too - just for fun!
The back patio is all concrete and being westerly-facing was radiantly hot over the summer months, so we want to get some shade up now while its cool, and have plans to put in two passionfruit vines. These grow really well in Perh's mild to hot climate and are great for kids too, as they can search for fallen fruit. I especially love their flowers.
Clancy and I have been putting together some "garden art" pieces as well, to brighten things up, involve the kids and add some interest to the large, open backyard - more on this in another post shortly!
Until the, happy Winter gardening!
Clancy and I had planted beans and peas about 3 weeks ago and they are doing well too, as you can see in the foreground. We picked up some marigolds at the local gardening shop - they were going cheap - and have popped them around the outside of the bed as well. So far we haven't had any issues with insects or mildew, etc.
The brocolli is heading up well - not sure about the caulies just yet - one has bolted (the mild winter doesn't help!), but others looking OK for now.
Our backyard project is also about to get underway. We are terracing some parts of the yard so we can plant extras like lemongrass, rhubarb and comfrey (near the compost, as its a good composting agent). Then this weekend past I began preparing the ground running up to the garden bed for some lawn seed to get some grass coverage there - its all sand and ends up in the house after a bit of gardening! :o)
Next we are working on another raised bed made from some beautiful salvaged limestone blocks (why anyone would want to throw them out is beyond me!) and a sandpit under an old grapevine for the kiddies. We will take a leaf out of Josh's book (see Ollie's garden) and make some blocks into stepping stones around the sandpit too - just for fun!
The back patio is all concrete and being westerly-facing was radiantly hot over the summer months, so we want to get some shade up now while its cool, and have plans to put in two passionfruit vines. These grow really well in Perh's mild to hot climate and are great for kids too, as they can search for fallen fruit. I especially love their flowers.
Clancy and I have been putting together some "garden art" pieces as well, to brighten things up, involve the kids and add some interest to the large, open backyard - more on this in another post shortly!
Until the, happy Winter gardening!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Raised garden bed - 1 month on
Well our seedlings are coming along nicely now, after a month in the ground plus a couple of good rainfalls. Interestingly, the last line of brassicas - caulies and brocolli (to the right of the picture) - are more damaged by white cabbage moth than the others - I'm putting it down to the interplanting with fennel, as nothing seems to attack that and it is quite fragrant when it's a warm day.
Clancy and I also planted some peas and beans up the other end of the bed, with some parsley as well. I had planted some Aussie red garlic in between the brassicas a couple of weeks ago too. They are sprouting well now.
Clancy also planted what we think is a kohlrabi and a broccoli given to her by her Ah Mah and she's looking after them well (i.e. hands off - it's the best way so they'll survive!!).
We have some backyard design plans in the wind - will post about that soon, once plans are firmed up. Going to be an edible back yard with interactive spaces for kids!
Until then, happy gardening!
Clancy and I also planted some peas and beans up the other end of the bed, with some parsley as well. I had planted some Aussie red garlic in between the brassicas a couple of weeks ago too. They are sprouting well now.
Clancy also planted what we think is a kohlrabi and a broccoli given to her by her Ah Mah and she's looking after them well (i.e. hands off - it's the best way so they'll survive!!).
We have some backyard design plans in the wind - will post about that soon, once plans are firmed up. Going to be an edible back yard with interactive spaces for kids!
Until then, happy gardening!
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