Scarecrow's Garden Journal Notes: July 2011

Freebie of the month!!!
Doc managed to grab a couple of huge bales
of clean straw for the garden.
They had been rotting out in the paddocks
and many more are going up to the Community Garden.
The chooks are happy!
Temperatures this month:
Lowest Min -4.9C
Highest Min 8.6C
Lowest Max 8.2C
Highest Max 20C
45mm mm Rain
Weather Highlights:
This Verona Purple Savoy Cabbage didn't mind the nearly -5C frost!
The month began with quite warm temperatures but a rainy change in the weather put a quick end to that! Over the next three weeks the daytime temperature hardly rose above 12C with quite a few chilly mornings below zero! In fact the cold weather had our state in the weather news!!!
See Here and Here
The month ended with almost spring weather! Except for the -2C frost!!!
Light rainfall and drizzly, damp mornings kept the rain gauge ticking over slowly.
Rain comparison with other years:
2011 45 mm
2010 28.5 mm
2009 35 mm
2008 26 mm
2007 16.5 mm
Propagation:
Seeds:
Lettuce Lactuca sativa
Black Seeded Simpson - The Lost Seed
Crispmint - Diggers Seeds
Drunken Woman - The Lost Seed
Gloria - Select Organic
Red Coral - Eden Seeds
Brassicas
Broccoli Brassica oleracea Nutri Bud - The Lost Seed
Cabbage Brassica oleracea Red Express - Southern Harvest Seeds
Cabbage Brassica oleracea Early Jersey Wakefield - The Lost Seed
Cauliflower Brassica oleracea Mini - Diggers Seeds
Kale Brassica oleracea Lacinato - The Lost Seed
Kale Brassica oleracea var acephala Red Bor F1 - Diggers Seeds
Leeks Allium ampeloprasum var. porrum
Bulgarian Giant - The Lost Seed
Elephant - Diggers
Carrots Daucas carota var. sativa
Lunar White - New Gippsland Seeds (white)
St Valery - The Lost Seed (orange)
Lobbericher - Southern Harvest (golden yellow)
Purple Dragon - Home saved seeds (purple)
Clover Trifolium pratense var sativum Red - Phoenix Seeds
Coriander Coriandrum sativum - Mr Fothergill's Organic Seeds
Peas Dwarf Pisum sativum Onward - DT Brown (germinated in hot house)
Phacelia tanacetifolia - Phoenix Seeds info link
Silverbeet Beta vulgaris Green Silver - Organic DT Brown
Willow Herb Epilobium parviflorum - Eden Seeds info link
Very early sowing of Spring Seeds into the heated propagation frame housed in the caravan See descriptions Here
Tomato Lycopersicon esculentum
Big Rainbow - Diggers
Black Russian -The Lost Seed
Grosse Lisse - Eden Seeds
Ida Gold - Home saved
Kotlas - The Lost Seed
Money Maker - The Lost Seed
Pineapple - The Lost Seed
Stor Gul - The Lost Seed
Eggplant Solanum melongena
Casper - Eden seeds
Long Purple - Diggers
Capsicum Capsicum annuum
California Wonder - New Gippsland Seeds
Hungarian Yellow Wax - Eden seeds
Beans Runner Phaseolus coccineus
Scarlet Emperor - The Lost Seed
Sunset Runner - Diggers
Cossack Pineapple Physalis pruinosa - Phoenix Seeds
Potting up/on:
Broccoli Nutri Bud
Cabbage Early Jersey Wakefield
Cabbage Red Express
Cauliflower Mini
Coriander
Kale Lacinato
Kale Red Bor
Lettuce:
Goldrush, Red Coral, Drunken Woman, Black Seeded Simpson, Crispmint
Miner's Lettuce
Phacelia
Purple Mizuna
Silverbeet Rainbow Mixed
Spinach
Early Black Wattle Acacia decurrens
Tomatoes Black Russian, Ida Gold
Beans Scarlet Emperor, Sunset Runner
Sage Grandfather (cuttings)
Native Thyme Ocimum tenuiflorum see Here
Planting out:
African Bush Daisy Euryops chrysanthemoides (from cuttings) at the Community Garden
Almond Tree seedling that had grown too close to a cherry tree was transplanted into the chook run
Jostaberry Ribes nidigrolaria (from cuttings) into the perennial bed
Potatoes Solanum tuberosum - The Lost Seed into Bed 1 Main Vegetable Garden
Nicola
Brownell
Rhubarb Rheum rhaponticum crown Great Victoria
Taupata or Mirror Bush Coprosma repens (from cuttings) into the chook run
Seedlings planted out:
Broad Beans Crimson Flowering into Kitchen Garden Wicking Bed 1
Miner's Lettuce in the old chook run
Red Clover in the old chook run
Cuttings/Division: freebies from the garden!
Anise Hyssop Agastache foeniculum
Black Currant Ribes nigrum
Clary Sage Salvia sclarea
Evening Primrose Oenothera speciosa
Fig Tree cuttings from prunings
Garlic Chives Allium tuberosum
Jerusalem Artichokes - dug and replanted around the chook runs
NZ Spinach Tetragonia tetragonioides
Prostrate Rosemary Rosmarinus officinalis Prostratus
Sage Grandfather Salivia apiana
Rock Rose Pink Cistus incanus
Around the Garden :
New Pumpkin Bed in the Old Chook Run area. Based on a Hugelkultur design but a lot like a compost bed with wood underneath. I've used Tagasaste and Acacia wood (from storm fallen trees) that was already beginning to rot. The theory is that this wood holds a lot of moisture and slowly releases it to the plants growing in the bed. I intend to grow some Trombone (Gramma) and let them sprawl over the area. More info on Hugelkultur Here
While I was weeding and clearing the Old Chook Run area
I dug up a few Sweet Potatoes!
Busy sowing lots of seeds, potting up seedlings
and even planting a few
with more going in up at the community garden.
The new straw meant mulching, mulching and more mulching.
The soil is still a bit cold for mulching
but in my climate now is the best time to mulch
to retain the soil moisture.
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. This month this has included Drunken Woman, Crispmint and Miners Lettuce, Parsley, Parcel, Gotu Kola, Shallot Greens, Coriander and Endive. Lots of Dandelions, Thistles, Winter Grasses, Kale and a few bolting Lettuces, Endive for the chooks.
Apples Golden Delicious 4800g
Apples Jonathon 2300g
Celery American Stringless 3080g
Celery Pink 50g
Pea Snow Roi de Carouby 55g
Radish French Breakfast 88g
Silverbeet Rainbow Mixed 170g
Spinach Bloomsdale Long Standing 175g
Sweet Potatoes 1382g
Eggs
60 From the 5 Farmyard Ferals
7 From the 3 Barnevelders
34 From the 5 Faverolles who have been hiding their eggs in bushes/straw!!!
The Favorelles love the straw so much
they are laying in it (everywhere but in the nest box!!)
July of Previous Years:
2010
2009
2008
2007
To see how the various Garden areas fit on our half acre block check out the newest Map of our place HERE
See what's happening at the Community Garden over here at it's very own Blog
For links to the Seed Suppliers go here