diary: rain rain rain yet more rain

CHOOKS

I think there's a few mites who've come back. Once the weather clears sufficiently, I'll give the coop another spray, along with the triangle coop and the small shelter. I might leave the bottom tray off the chook roost since, according to Hannah from Goodlife Permaculture, the chooks don't need it - and her chooks are down in Tassie where they do get occasional snows.

But putting together a new coop is a priority, just as soon as I manage to gather the pieces, and the weather is decent enough to build the damn thing. Hopefully before next spring.

PRUNING & PREPARING

Trimmed down the picket fence bushes; they're going to need a whole lot more trimming. And maybe I'd be better off going at them with an articulated saw instead over the winter.

Going to need to make a decision about the passionfruit and where I should be encouraging it to grow. I have fencing, I just haven't set it up and I'm debating if I want to. If that's the place to be doing it.

Raspberries need tying up and fencing in. I should put a hook into that fence, suitable for binding up the canes, because they just end up crawling everywhere. Also, probably no autumn berries this year, dash it.

Was planning to do edge composting re: Limestone Permaculture around the bathtub garden. It just feels so bloody COLD right now!

SEED SAVING & PLANTING

I found a leek that has seeds, so that's seed saving. I used the leeks in a kedgeree - still have the green leaves, need to make a potato and leek soup. It'll use up some of the chicken stock in the freezer anyway.

I might end up planting my garlic in mid-April; now I have to work out where...

Otherwise, I haven't planted out my brassicas at all. I don't know where to put them since the beds I was planning for are all overgrown with pumpkin and melon and sweet potato vines. Need to plan that one better next time!

Garlic: planting guide at FB: I have Spanish Roja (Creole, possibly Rocambole), Rojo de Castro (Creole) Valiant (Turban), and Monaro Purple(Turban)

Glass Gem Corn seed saving: I saved a lot of seed and was originally planning to share it at the crop swap at Eden Gardens on the 3rd, but that's been cancelled. ARGH.

RIPENING

I have five pumpkins that have finally pollinated and are steadily growing. at least one appears to be a butternut, but the other three are likely sugar pumpkins. The pumpkins are always late in my garden, I don't know why. I'd really like an early pumpkin for storing.

I don't know about 'ripening' but the hops have flowered, but not very well.

The ginger is waterlogged and on the verge of rotting. I pulled out a piece yesterday, and it was sodden, but seems to be drying off quite nicely.

HARVEST

The taro plants have gone beserk. Seriously beserk. I'm probably going to have to cook some of it at some point. Trying to work out what I can make with it. Taro chips looks like a possibility.

NOTES

The Crop Swap that was planned for this weekend at Eden Gardens has been cancelled. ARGH. All the things I was hoping to swap are now defunct.

I had plans to pick up a wooden wardrobe for pumpkin and melon and potato storage but that's kind of fallen by the wayside due to no energy and no room.