Update February Week 3:
Over 17kgs of fruit and veg harvested this week...this was one day's haul.
Suyo Long Cucumbers, Blue Ballet Pumpkin, Tigger Melons, Purple King Beans, and those Tomatoes are supposed to be Big Rainbow but they seem to be completely different!
Temperatures this week:
Lowest Min 11.7C
Highest Max 36.7C
No Recorded Rainfall
We have had a couple of quick showers but I think the rain gauge has too much dust in it to record it.
Propagation:
Potting up/on:
Celery from seed
Chives from seed
Ethiopian Cabbage from seed
Fig Trees from cuttings
Parcel from seed
Pelargonium Madame Salleron from cuttings
Pigface Orange from cuttings
Pot Potpourri Pelargonium from cuttings
Silverbeet from seed
Volunteer seedlings of Primula and Erigeron from pots on the table
Seedlings planted out:
Alyssum
Division: from potted plants on the propagation tables!
Chamomile Perennial
Mints - Applemint, Orangemint, Gingermint and Egyptian mint,
Fernleaf Bamboo
Lebanese Cress
Thyme - Russian, Pink, White, Variagated Lemon,
Cuttings: from potted plants on the propagation tables!
Scented Geranium/Pelargoniums -
Lemon Supreme Marble Grey, Orange, Peppermint.
Felicia amelloides Variegated
Next Week To Do:
Clear beans from Bed 7 and direct sow Spinach seeds on the 23rd/24th Feb or 27th/28th Feb
Sow Red and Green Cabbage seeds in punnets on the 23rd/24th Feb or 27th/28th Feb
Harvest Tally:
Doesn't include Greens fed to the chooks on a daily basis or herbs picked for use in the kitchen for cooking or tea making.
Beans Purple King 262g
Capsicum California Wonder 1251g
Carrots Mixed 52g
Cucumber Suyo Long 841g
Garlic Elephant 150g
Melon Tigger 460g
Onion Red 86g
Potato Brownell 323g
Pumpkin Blue Ballet 515g
Rockmelon Hearts Of Gold 2250g
Squash Acorn Table Queen 1236g
Tomato Big Rainbow 307g
Tomato Black Cherry 52g
Tomato Ida Gold 64g
Tomato Money Maker 587g
Tomato Stor Gul 326g
Black Sultana Grapes 9083g
Eggs: total for the week 19
14 From the 5 Farmyard Ferals
0 From the Lone Barnevelder
5 From the 4 Faverolles
The Grape Dryer
when it's full we will wrap a net curtain right around
the sides to keep the bugs and dust out.
It has been hot this week but we managed to resurrect the Grape Drying rack. We couldn't use it last year because the weather was too wet. We used the electric dryer but it took about a week to dry the grapes...much too long.
This year I'm hopeful of dryer weather...although rain is forecast for the weekend! Right now it's hot enough here for them to dry in the shade.
I am slowly making my way through the potting benches. Instead of making more room I seem to be finding loads more plants to pot up and take cuttings from...oh well at least I am getting rid of all the dead plants in the pots.
To see how the various Garden areas fit on our half acre block check out the newest Map of our place HERE
Some of the interesting links I have found on facebook this week...
Most of these come from the Homestead Survival facebook page.
This is a nifty way of storing a small number of packet seeds, if you save your own you could make up some storage envelopes of your own to put into the pages.
Some great templates for seed envelopes over on this link and this one
Something I have asked Doc to build for me...
...instructions over on this link
If you have tried potato towers and found them a bit hot (well I did in my climate) here's a nifty way to cool them down a little...I would top the growing spudz up with compost not just straw because straw doesn't hold enough water. More on this link.