My Garden: in progress

Tomorrow I fly to the USA for 4 weeks!  I spent a bit of time today tidying my garden up for while I'm gone. I know it's going to be mental when I get back though! The tomatoes are going to be CRAZY and possibly even ripe?  The pumpkins may have taken over by then too. LOL (laugh out loud).

I've been meaning to do a post on my garden for ages now.  I got distracted in my last blog and ended up writing about last year's garden! hahaha.  I've written a whole heap of things for this blog.....but, as usual, I know want to change it all (this is why I rarely revise papers I write!).  So, I think I'll scrap round one (which has a couple of cute antidotes I suppose) and just go with a more easy to follow format similar to my previous blog:  each of my plants gets it's own spot :)  Probably far less writing for me and far more pictures for you! LOL

At the end of summer last year, Dave gave up a large junk of his lawn so that I could attempt to have a winter garden. I had hoped that bringing the plot away from the fence would allow the low rising sun to get over the fence's shadow, but in reality the tip of our round only got a small amount of light.

I did put a few plants in: the silverbeet (aka swiss chard) grandma give me hung in through winter to give us yummy silverbeet pies this spring.  I got a few turnips, but the radishes were eaten by either slugs or ants.  I ended up letting them go to seed

Radish flowers

The onions (and weeds) did pretty good in the two spots I placed them.  They are slow to start and take about 8 months until you can harvest.  I'm pretty pleased with my results:

Row of onions among grass weed and turnip (left)
 (10 Sept)

Onions getting bigger! (28 Nov)

Onions today! (21 Dec)

While waiting for the wet winter to pass, I also planted garlic (which never even sprouted!) and shallot (I'm pretty sure they are doing something; they have lots of green).
I also bought my first ever flower bulbs.  I was delighted with my first spring Hyacinth (a bit worse for the slugs) and my lovely Japanese Iris

I quite liked my surprisingly bright anemone also.

Windswept and rootbound,
but starting to fruit

I planted capsicum (sweet/bell pepper) from the seeds of a store bought pepper sometime in late summer/early fall.  I was surprised to find EVERY seed sprouted! Capsicums, however, don't like the cold.  That meant they had to be in the warmest room of the  house; the dining room where the fireplace is.  We had a lovely forest of plants as our centerpiece throughout all winter!

Bigger Fruit!!!!

Having babied these plants for MONTHS, I was as nervous as a mother letting her child ride her bike alone for the first time!  Would they survive the slugs?  Should I have waited for a less windy day!  Will it be too much direct sun all at once?  I put the 6 pepper plants out on the same day as two store bought tomatoes and an eggplant.

The tomatoes have been doing well, a bit to well actually. I didn't manage to keep their lateral shoots trimmed, so I've had to tie a million different branches to the stakes!  I got a little ruthless today and broke off several well developed laterals, just because I couldn't be bothered supporting them!  As you can see, these two tomatoes have gotten quite bushy!  The little plant in the middle is one of the capsicums.  I've had to tie it up to support he massive fruits :)

My potatoes have done pretty well too!  I can only hope that the massive amount of foliage is producing lots of starchy tubers under the dirt!  It's a touch annoying having them take over the path, but hopefully our patience will be rewarded.

Planting seedlings

While we are really happy with what we've got going so far, the two big crops (we hope) this year will be the sweet corn and the pumpkins!  Dave planted out corn seedlings from the farmer's market as well as popping a few seeds in the ground.  The seedlings are already producing silks and tassles, while the seeds are well established and on their way.

tassels being formed

I have 3 different pumpkin varieties, started from seed.  I've really enjoyed watching their fast progress!  I'm pretty sure they will have taken over by the time we get back.

My baby seedlings on 11 Nov

11 December

and TODAY 21 Dec!

We put in drip line last month.  The idea being we could put a water timer on it for 90 minutes each morning.  We have yet to get the timer going (one from the store was broke, another shipped out without the important attachment piece!)  We are hoping to get something sorted tomorrow before we fly out!  I can't have all my lovely plants die from lack of a plan!

Oh wow, I wonder what everything will look like when I get back!?!

I actually have more photos (the lettuce garden, the plum tree in blossom and fruiting (we ate a few plums yesterday!), but I just don't have the patience to upload them all.  I'm sure this is plenty for all of you anyway ;)

Hopefully I'll post again fairly soon - with some pictures of a white Christmas :)

Happy Holidays!