Dear Diary: 24th October

OBSERVATIONS:

After a brief 'heat wave' (summer temps in spring), we've had fairly 'spring' temps, but I think August was dry and hot, and September was working it out, and October's been...pretty good? More damp than I remember it being before. I think we need a bit more dry through November to concentrate the flavour of the stone fruit into the flesh. Hopefully we get it.

The PERSIMMON has gone from bare branches to full metal leafage in a matter of weeks. Plus fruit everywhere. I have no idea how I'm going to net it; it's going to be a job and a half and I'm not sure they make nets big enough! Have to think about this.

If I leave the TWO-STONE nectarines out much longer, I think they're going to mould, the way they always do (that variety is very prone to mould). So I might pick them this weekend and dry them in the food dryer as quarters and halves. Has to be done during the day, so hopefully there's sun on the weekend!

CHOOKS:

Sister noticed one of the chooks – Haamyu - wasn't doing so well earlier this week, and so she got taken to the vet. They didn't do a scan of her, but thought she might have some kind of inflammation, and so she's got antibiotics to help things along. It's a bit of a mess, though.

Goong's gone broody again.

Kerry's eye stye appears to be coming back, dammit.

I note that Kerry is usually grazing right up until dusk. I wonder if she's getting enough; she's the smallest of the chickens and scrawny, but seems to be a regular egg-layer. I'm thinking of spoiling her with high-energy mash, specially. (She's just so small and dainty, but in a beaten-and-bullied kind of way.)

Need to take the tractor off the APPLE-CREPE tree

COMPOST:

I dug out most of the right-hand bay and dumped it on the centre bay, along with a layer of woodchips that I chipped on Sunday. Don't think it's heated up, though. *sigh* I'm terrible at making compost.

PREPARING:

Put some pea straw down in the APPLE-CREPE with the tractor, then move it onto the CREPE-RHUBARB, but don't open it up to the chooks just yet. Wait until the LEAFY GREENS there have finished setting their seeds, then pluck the stems and let the chooks in.

APPLE-CREPE will be planted out with the CORN and the CAPSICUMS. But I need to put a couple of capsicums somewhere warmer.

SEEDING:

Sowed a 'Chicken Feed' mix from Mr. Fothergill's (Bunnings) beneath the lounge room windows, covered with a wire basket. It is now the NakedGardener Patch after a woman I follow on TikTok who burned herself with boiling water about a year ago, and posted that she was planting garlic today (she's in the northern hemisphere) not to remember the day, which she describes as the worst of her life, but to change the meaning of the day.

I also sowed a handful of brassicas for summer, very few of which are actually sprouting, alas. I don't know if it's too hot for them, or if they'd just taking their time, but the other day there were only two which had sprouted.

The CLOVER in front of the chook yards are doing nicely.

PLANTING OUT:

Still need to plant out CAPSICUMS, CORN, MELONS (I need to get these out soon!Actually, this weekend might be a good idea, because next weekend is going to be rainy), a couple of TOMATOES and...other stuff.

I also planted a WHITE SAPOTE under the JACARANDA, in part because I need to have a succession plan for that tree, because I don't want it there forever.

Oh boy, I need to work out where I can fit the GINGER. They did really really well in the vegepod, and I'm inclined to put them there again.

HARVEST:

DAMMIT. MY ONE APRICOT FELL OFF. I'm really pissed off about that; I have three apricot trees, and half the reason I got into growing things in the first place is because I have the fondest memories of the apricot tree that we grew in the backyard back in the 80s, and it gave the most amazing apricots. I haven't tasted anything like it in all that time; mostly because anyone who has an apricot tree is not about to give away their apricots. They're just too good.

Maybe I should go visit a friend out in Orange and see if they've got apricots.

Speaking of travelling out of town, I need to look at what's available to see in Tamworth.

Picking AVOCADOS once a week still.

I think the GARLIC is about to need harvesting. I need to look up when they are to be picked, and how to preserve them. Also: WHERE AM I GOING TO KEEP THEM, DAMMIT?

FEEDING:

I gave some epsom salts to...the BLUEBERRIES and a bunch of the other plants under the front lounge window, maybe a little to the vegepod tomatoes. And some more to the staked tomatoes and the plants in the driveway vegepod.

I think I fed the MANGO. Not sure what I fed it with, though.

I also made a weed tea with dandelions and other weeds from the front yard, soaking them in water until it's smelly, and I've been adding it to my watering buckets, so everything is getting a nice nutrient bath.

PRUNING/STAKING:

Finaly staked the TOMATO PATCH in the triangle garden. Also staked the tomatoes in the small vegepods.

I think I need to prune the APRICOT down. Possibly also the DUAL PLUM and maybe even the CHERRY. They need a nice big shock, something that will change the fruiting game with them. It's very annoying, thoug.

THOUGHTS:

We finally got the window shades up again, to the west and the north. It meant dismantling the chicken run under the lounge room window, but that's okay. The girls won't die from being kept in the chook yards and the tunnels.

I'm wondering if i'm going to need to hire someone to help with the harvest, and whether I could pay them in preserves... Or, I could just call on assistance from the PSN crowd....and pay them in lunch and preserves. :)