Restraining the potatoes!

After a rather fierce little storm the potato plants were laying all all over each other. They are quite hard to separate and to make them stand up again. I have set bamboo posts around the plot and have wound string around and between them:


Some of the larger plants are showing signs of flowering.
The latest potato plantings have all sprouted as well.
The rainbow silverbeet is growing beautifully as it does, though some are trying to flower. New seedlings are on the way. A gnome's view of some stalks:



Zucchini plant is growing things, not sure what so far, it was sposed to be just a green one. Gnome cam:



A new soak hose has been run down the length of the patch to make gentle watering efficient and easy.
Not only but also, two new tomato plants were hand picked from the garden centre and planted this morning, a maxitom 'Big Beef' and a supertom 'Cockatoo'. The first a disease resistant large fruit, the other a cocktail small sweet type.

Photo update, extreme vegetable warning!

They are orange and the smell and look just like carrots!



The red broccoli flowering out looks nice in the evening back light



And just as well my name's not Jack or I'd be tempted to shinny up this bean, It's almost to the top of the string and that is quite high. Bean harvesting will become an abseiling adventure I'm sure.

We have rain

Much needed rain! But it wreaked havoc with the potatoes. They have had such mad growth that there was not much support in the stems. Lost some branches but otherwise they seem to have handled being man handled back to upright. Must put in some support for them all.
Letting a few of the red broccoli flower more. I saw somewhere that the individual florets can be picked later. Madness prevails with the sweet peas, they're threatening passersby. The whole garden is looking good, can't beat spring!
:)

The rocket has flowered and has been removed now. I loved having some leaves in a fat grainy bread sandwich with cheese and mayonnaise.
We have managed to find a perennial version though. But more real stuff will need to be planted.



Planted the chillies and so far the zucchini plant is growing like a mad thing.

Official tomato planting day!

Threw all caution to the wind and actually planted Mr Tomato into his permanent position today, his root ball was starting to get quite tight in the pot that has been his home so far. Luckily he hasn't seemed to suffer too much and done a droop as yet. The beans have reached the top of the tee pee that I'd made, now that has been extended with string up to the pergola high above, I'll have to get a ladder to harvest the beans if the plants keep growing at the rate they have been. There are also flowers starting to pop out so the beans must be eminent. Put the two capsicum plants into the new bed, and I'm tempted to leave a pumpkin seedling to grow, it's sprung up from the compost that we made so we know it's going to be the nice grey pumpkin that is so nice oven roasted with parsnips, garlic cloves and rosemary and things. :)

The rest of the red broccoli plants have decided to join the party and have developed nice heads


They look wonderful against the red/grey leaves.
All the potatoes are growing almost as you watch them. Time to plant the new ones that have been growing strange lumps and bumps near the window in the spare room too.

A small joke

My good friend Jacson just emailed me this small gem of a yolk...
What do you call a bird that sits on garden statues?

A gnoming pidgeon.


sorry
:)

Poor man's aerial photo

Had a most busy weekend, trimmed the hedge, moved some plants around as we have a new white hydrangea, cleaned the gutters as they were growing flowering plants, planted a zuchini in the newest plot, sowed seeds for red carrots and parsnips and organized a moptop mexican orange bush and a guava. As well as a quick spray of copper to keep potato, tomato and citrus diseases at bay.
Whew.

Photo looking down from the roof

More chard than you can shake a stick at

Look at this lovely colander of chard, also known as rainbow beet, the pretty cousin to good old silver beet.



We gently steam it and serve with a sprinkling of parmigiano reggiano ( the real parmesan cheese, wonderful stuff, once you've had this nothing else will ever do) and fresh grated black pepper and a sprinkle of maldon sea salt. Yum!

¦¬)

Had a tiny bit of rain today to dampen the soil. Plucked a few more of our wonderful carrots for a stew. Also the red Broccoli that was picked two days ago needs eating. The other broccoli plants are only now starting to form flower heads, strange that one was so much more advanced than the rest. Part of the mystery of the life of plants I guess.

Of bees, plums and cabages

A couple of shots of progress, our new fortune plum tree has blossomed well and now the plums are developing nicely, unfortunately there are only 27 on the young tree.

Here's a shot from just on two months ago


and this is now


Here's one of the red cabbages, ready for eating, pity in a way as they do look most dramatic in the patch. :)

First tomato baby

The early tomato has had a baby. This is a Supertom 'Suso' . It's still in a pot as the outside temps are still a bit cool. We've been busy carrying it outside in the morning and back in at the end of the day. A bit of a mission but it is growing well and will probably go into it's permanent spot this weekend.



The potato plants are up and out, I am trying to mound them up but it's difficult to find enough spare soil and compost.



and last but not least the beans have made it to the top of their teepee. I imagine that is going to be one crowded mound in a month or so.
:)

Main vegetable patch

A shot of the new patch we started last year and have extended this spring.

Blog beginning!

Where to begin?
At the beginning.
Growing things and gardening in general have always been a pleasure. Having lived for over 27 years in the same house the garden has been gently moulded to what we like, subtle colour, shade and just out of control. The last few years have brought a whole new emphasis on growing your own vegetables and this really has to be the most rewarding way to spend time in the garden. I love the buzz of seeing things growing slowly but surely into something to eat. I hope to keep this diary of the comings and goings in our vege patch.

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