September 1st is the official first day of Spring here in New Zealand. With this winter having been the warmest since records began, it's been tempting to rush out and plant everything possible in the garden. But wisdom urges caution at this time of year. And sure enough, on the 2nd of September I woke up to a surprise sharp frost! There's nothing more devastating to a gardener than to plant lots of beautiful seedlings and have them all get killed (or severely stunted by an untimely visit from Jack Frost!
Pictured left is a beautiful purple cauliflower. Even then stems are pinky-purple and look good enough to eat! Which got me thinking - how come with broccoli and cauliflower we only eat the flower of the plant (the heads), and usually throw away the leaves and stems, even though they taste just as good and are generally even higher in nutrients?
Not this frugal Kiwi! We'll be eating the florets for a meal, and then I'm going to harvest and cook the stems and leaves too! I've been using broccoli stems for some time - they just need to be peeled before slicing and cooking as the outside tends to be tough when cooked. Now to try those beautiful looking cauliflower leaves.
Pictured left is a beautiful purple cauliflower. Even then stems are pinky-purple and look good enough to eat! Which got me thinking - how come with broccoli and cauliflower we only eat the flower of the plant (the heads), and usually throw away the leaves and stems, even though they taste just as good and are generally even higher in nutrients?
Not this frugal Kiwi! We'll be eating the florets for a meal, and then I'm going to harvest and cook the stems and leaves too! I've been using broccoli stems for some time - they just need to be peeled before slicing and cooking as the outside tends to be tough when cooked. Now to try those beautiful looking cauliflower leaves.
Things are starting to move in the vege garden. The brassicas are getting to the point of harvesting most of them (one naughty cabbage is even trying to go to seed!), the first leeks are almost getting to edible size, the beetroot is ready to be all harvest, the carrots have sprouted and need thinning, garlic and peas are starting to poke their heads up, the strawberries are beginning to flower, and the raspberries have burst into leaf.
Being spring, though, it's been very wet. I'm seriously considering digging a pond just so there's somewhere for the water to drain into.
Being spring, though, it's been very wet. I'm seriously considering digging a pond just so there's somewhere for the water to drain into.
The late planted Brussel Sprout plants are getting bigger, though no spouts on the stems as yet. I may have to net these to keep the butterflies off them soon, but hopefully this week's frost will have kept the white butterflies at bay for a while longer.
The peas I transplanted are growing nicely, and the ones I sowed a couple of weeks back are just starting to poke through the soil. I soaked the peas in water for several hours before planting, to speed germination - a very helpful hint at this time of year when cool soils can otherwise slow them down.
Carrots ready to thin, and kale still going strong.
The various ideas I had for where to transplant my raspberries and boysenberries to have not worked out at this time, so I decided it was time to tame the berry patch right where it is - I finished pruning the canes, removed a bunch of suckers which are in a bucket awaiting planting in pots or giving away, and used an offcut of reinforcing mesh to train the boysenberries on. The raspberries are already leaving up strongly. Looking forward to yummy summer berries!
The brassica bed on the right is still producing small broccoli florets, which grow off the side of the stems after the main heads are cut off. (For this reason, one does not pull out the whole plant when the main head is ready). There are purple cauliflower just starting to develop heads, and brussel sprouts ready to start the first picking. The cabbages I planted to fill some gaps when I pulled out the buk choy haven't really grown much at all, so may end up being chicken fodder - we'll see.
The bed on the left has silverbeet, a couple of leeks that are getting to a good size, one brussel sprout plant, and several celery I've just recently planted out, after keeping them cozy in a plastic bin all winter. I'm covering them with plastic bottles at night to protect them from possible frosts.
The bed on the left has silverbeet, a couple of leeks that are getting to a good size, one brussel sprout plant, and several celery I've just recently planted out, after keeping them cozy in a plastic bin all winter. I'm covering them with plastic bottles at night to protect them from possible frosts.
The garlic bed is now fully planted. I read in a magazine that you should put netting over the bed until the garlic has sprouted, to keep cats and dogs off. I didn't at first, and sure enough they kept walking on it and leaving holes with their paws. Because there are some garlic in the back part that are several inches tall, while the rest are just beginning to sprout or have only just been planted, I couldn't lay netting flat over it. So I brought some steel rods (rebar) from the building supply store, and bent them over the beds to hold the bird netting up. I LOVE rebar - you can do so much with it, and it's pretty cheap! I used 10mm bars - and because the beds have wooden sides, the natural springy-ness of the bars causes them to press outwards against the sides, holding the hoops in place. I just pushed one side down into the soil against the side of the bed, grabbed the other end and pulled down while holding a hand in the middle to help it bend in the right spot, and then applied pressure so I could push the other end in too. I've threaded some lightweight straight rods through the sides of the mesh to hold it down on both sides (being new it tends to pull together in the middle). When the garlic is all up, I'll move the rods and mesh over onto the strawberry bed to keep the birds off all those yummy strawberries!
The left had bed in this picture is planted in 70 odd strawberry plants (with chives in the middle) and mulched with pine needles. The strawberries are just beginning to flower.
The left had bed in this picture is planted in 70 odd strawberry plants (with chives in the middle) and mulched with pine needles. The strawberries are just beginning to flower.
Brassicas coming along - lots of purple cauli starting to head, and some greyhound cabbages that are starting to race. The brussel sprouts don't look terribly great so far, but we'll see.
Good old faithful leaf lettuce! I'm planning on growing leaf lettuce in pallet gardens this coming summer, in a spot where they will be partly shaded in the afternoon, as lettuce does not like to get too hot.
Spring onions and leeks growing steadily.
Spring onions and leeks growing steadily.
Beetroot more than ready to be harvested - old leaves are fading, and new ones are starting to grow. Have been meaning to harvest this bed and bottle the beetroot - on the chore list for very soon!
Then I will freshen up this bed, and decide what to plant here next.....choices, choices! I really should plan a proper crop rotation - this year the beds have just gotten planted in whatever needed to go in. Now I have all 12 of these beds established, I need to start thinking about proper rotation and forward planning. Time for a session with my garden diary!
Then I will freshen up this bed, and decide what to plant here next.....choices, choices! I really should plan a proper crop rotation - this year the beds have just gotten planted in whatever needed to go in. Now I have all 12 of these beds established, I need to start thinking about proper rotation and forward planning. Time for a session with my garden diary!
Third brassica bed. A few broccoli still sprouting, purple caulis doing well, but the brussel sprouts that are behind them are getting really hammered by the birds. This bed is at the far side of the garden, with the neighbours large trees over the fence. Every time I walk through the garden, blackbirds fly up out of this area. They must be hungry. Hmmm...been meaning to make some bird feeders.
A recent earthquake has caused a pipe under the far side of our house to leak, and I discovered large amounts of water seeping across this lawn. My boys and I dug a ditch last Sunday to carry the water away. I've been wanting a ditch anyway, as this area has problems with rain not running off. This will be my potato plot, as soon as I have time to dig it over and get it prepped. Meanwhile, a few of my hens are getting it started.
Inside the greenhouse - weeds have been cut down, trays of seeds are sprouting, and I've cut up the grapevine prunings which will make great kindling once they dry out properly. The greenhouse needs some serious work to finish it off properly, and I'd love to build some benches in here too. Thinking about growing peanuts in here this summer, as well as using it for seed raising and potting up things.
One of our sets of twin lambs - the girl (left) is being bottle fed, and the boy (right) is feeding off his mama, but likes to run over and have a bit from the bottle too. It always fascinates me how, even in a paddock full of other lambs, twins will always cuddle up to each other, even though they play with all the other lambs. Even when fully grown, twins are close and recognise each other.
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