Dear Diary: 28th September

WEATHER:

The high temps are rising, but the low temps aren't moving - currently around 13C minimum, but getting double that during the day. 30C predicted for tomorrow, a cooler day on Sunday, then HEATWAVE for early next week. ARGH.

RAIN

Rain last night - about 5mm, I think. Cool and occasional showers today. The tank is filling, there's more due later next week, but we have to get through the heatwave first.

CHOOKS:

Laying regularly: Siyao, Goong, and Carambah. Chouqette is still fluffing around, being noisy, but not apparently laying.

OSBERVATIONS

Dandelions everywhere in the front yard. Couch grass everywhere in the back. Keeping the grass in check is a trick and one that I've not gotten the hang of. The comfrey is growing back in places I don't really want it, and there's onion weed everywhere. I think the removal of that is going to be manual and slow, season by season. It's just a PITA to have to do so often and so much!

PREPARATION:

Trying to manage the dandelions, manually pulling them out (wonderful tool) and weed-tea-ing them for compost. However the north lawn (driveway side lawn) is a bit of a loss - it's almost entirely dandelions at this stage. I've actually acquired some weed 'n feed and am trying that on the lawn, but wow it smells of iron! I did find an article about organic weed control which recommends a product called corn gluten meal.

The truth is, I don't want the lawn so much as I want to be able to develop a nice meadowy space on that north side. Grass need not apply! Unfortunately what I have is creeping buffalo grass (and couch in the backyard; ugh). It's going to need more work and maintenance in the coming season to try to get it to a point of survival - especially as the summer gets hot. That said, a meadow might survive where a garden would not.

Backyard, the couch grass is starting to perk up; I'm pulling some of it up and have weed tea'd it in a bucket off to the side. The promised teenaged assistance has not materialised, so that's a PITA, and I'm mostly pulling it up by hand (and doing my back in the process).

Got the PLUM-STONE, APPLE-CREPE, and AVO-SHED beds in. Need to get the CREPE-APRICOT bed frames cut up and put together and set in place. It wasn't difficult to do - easier with 2 people, I suspect - but it wasn't difficult.

TO DO

• cut panels for last garden bed, or else buy more barrier edging from Hammerbarn.
• draw up measurements for BENCH SEATING
• white oil/pest spray KUMQUAT, MAKRUT LIME, PERSIMMON (after heatwave, when temps have dropped again)
• repot TINY BLUEBERRY
• pot TEA CAMELLIAS
• net front NECTARINE and GOLDEN PEACH
• shade back beds

PLANTING

I repotted both the KUMQUAT and the APRICOT

ICE-CREAM BEAN seeds planted

PLUM-STONE: SPINACH (perpetual), BEANS (blue ribbon - double check this) with a climbing pole in the middle, SILVERBEET?, RADISH (black spanish), BEETROOT (found in packet, unknown type), ONION (found in plastic packet, unknown type)

PLUM-STONE: TOMATOES (both indeterminate and determinate types: indeterminates up the back with suitable structures for hanging plants off (hopefully), EGGPLANTS (labelled, but also have a pic saved and set up), BEANS (pole, possibly snake) at the back.

1 Jaune Flamme, 2 Marmande (red), 2 Brad's Atomic Grape (yellow), 2 Waspinicon Peach (orange), 3 amethyst cream (magenta), 3 blue berries (blue), 2 pink bumblebee (green)

VEGEPOD: Planted Cecelia's GINGER - I don't think the other rhizomes are GINGER, they don't smell right.

RIPENING

Last of the CITRUSES. That's really about it, I think. Other than the fruit which are slowly growing.

HARVEST

Brassica leaves from APPLE-CREPE: should be suitable for a coleslaw-type thing. Last orange, maybe a couple of tangerines? Oh PARSNIPS from bathtub. There's also CORIANDER and ALPINE STRAWBERRIES coming good, and some RED CELERY is making itself known in various spots of the garden.

PRUNING

Pruned the AVOCADO tree - it's too broad and too wide, and I'm kind of worried about the weight of the avos going forward. Not very neat, though.

THOUGHTS

Thinking I'd like to plant some groundcover in front of the chook yard, but the problem is giving it enough time to get some roots in, particularly this summer.

Diary - 15th July, 2023

WEATHER:

Sunny and dry. Warmer, no bite in the morning - my car said 25C at midday.

RAIN

None for weeks.

CHOOKS:

All seem pretty happy and healthy. Goong has a red comb, Siyao's is pretty red, too. Caramabah is still demanding food all the time, and Chouquette isn't showing signs of going into lay. Chouquette comes close and allows me to pet her, but it's more a "where's the food, no food? no pets" kind of attitude.

OBSERVATIONS

Some major cracks in the front yard. Going to contact a plumber about having a look into them with one of those long and flexible cameras. If I can find one to come do the work.

One of the brick pylons under the house is rather less-than-straight. The middle one on the eastern side of B1's bedroom is not perfectly plumb, like it's gently being pushed over. I don't know if it was always like that or has only been in the last couple of years. The problem is that I didn't notice these things before and I'm noticing them now. It's one of the reasons why observation is so important, I guess.

Native bees are back and active on the warmer days. Very still and quiet on the colder ones, and I try to remember to cover them up a little on the cold nights, then open them up so they won't grow mould. But they're active and involved and seem to be doing well.

The TWO-STONE and DUAL-STONE are in flower. The TROPIC DORSET on the Golden Delicious APPLE is setting buds ready to bloom.

The TOMATOES in the bed under the TWO-STONE tree are generally dying - we had some frost, and although I had the old window screens up to give them a bit of a buffer, the one on the south blew off and I think that the tomatoes that would have been otherwise protected by them are now dying.

PREPARATION:

Green mulch. Need to plant out some green mulch in the summer beds. And I just realised that I prepped some COWPEA mulch for the back beds...and forgot that the stuff is for summer mulch. I guess I can plant it and see what survives, but I don't really like the chances. I should have prepped the Woolly Pod Vetch but that stuff can get weedy really easily and I didn't want to risk it. *sigh* Well, we'll plant the COWPEA and see how it does.

PUMPKIN-POTATO bed should probably be green-mulched.

PLANTING

Today, I planted out four ASPARAGUS ferns into the LOWER STEP BED. I've been trying to grow things in that bed for years and the only thing that really grows there are weeds. But the asparagus grows fine in the upper beds with some fertilising and watering, so I'm doing it. Also put the THYME in there from Wormticklers, and tossed down a lot of MUSTARD. To finish it off, I need to put down the remaining pea-straw from the pack.

I was thinking about fertilising the UPPER STEP BED with matured chook manures collected from the coop back when there were blood mites - I think it was 2021? Going to have to look back at the diary for that. But because I associate this manure with the mites, I'm nervous about putting it on the garden, even though it's a long way from the chooks. Just gotta bite the bullet I guess and do it. Get past the fear, etc.

I also planted PARSNIPS under the apples, both the FOUR-APPLE and the GOLDEN DELICIOUS. Less for the roots themselves, more for the greens and the flowers and the promise of pollinators and pest-control. (If they flower.) Probably should have also done daikon and beetroot, just to break up the soil some.

RIPENING

Still the oranges and I think they're tangerines? The ALPINE STRAWBS have been doing their thing pretty well.

HARVEST

BROCCOLI leaves. I need to remember to cook the BROCCOLI leaves! Occasional TOMATOES from the westernmost bed in the TRIANGLE GARDEN.

PRUNING

Did the RASPBERRY PATCH a couple of weeks ago, trimming most of it down and clipping up most of the canes. I didn't really check for spring/autumn canes, and now I need to toss down a bunch of manure and maybe some hay/mulch to give it some feeding before the spring.

Backyard AVOCADO needs pruning down, snip off the tops of the tree. Needs it soon because it's starting to sprout again and I think the next round of flowers are likely to be coming...

The bush of THAI BASIL and the SALVIAS out the front need serious haircuts and soon. Now's a good time to do it, the flowers on the stone fruit trees and the Golden Dorset branch will keep the bees occupied.

THOUGHTS and PLANS

With the weather looking very fine, I could probably make the wooden seats in the next couple of weekends.

I want to set up potable water collection off the roof - I should probably look into that sustainable house in the inner west, find out what they did and how they did it and whether it's replicable here.

There's a part of me that wants to die very fast and very soon. I'm good for it, no real regrets, no need to live forever. But also, there's a part that would like to see what I've developed here go to someone who wants to use it, not just someone who'd bulldoze the lot and build a McMansion.

dear diary: 12th April

CHOOKS

Currently on the APPLE-CREPE bed, having been on the PLUM-STONE bed.

I really want to put the netting around the triangle bed and to leave them in there during the day, but it requires guarding from the local dogs.

The coop needs a second, follow-up spray. And now that we have a product called Alphamites, that might give the chooks individual protection against the mites. Which would be really really good...

PRUNING & PREPARING

Wondering if I should sever the peach and nectarine branches from the STONE tree (and maybe the smaller grafts from the APPLE). They're not really thriving or producing, and things have gotten out of hand. That's my fault for not bringing things along more evenly, but now that it is where it is, maybe it would be best to just end that part of it? And what I want from that tree are the apricots and the plums, not the donut peaches (I get those from the DONUT PEACH or NECTARINES (two trees already that produce those in significant numbers).

The downside of cutting down the two apples is that I don't have either of those types

If I do that, midwinter would be the best time, I think.

PLANNING and PLANTING

Still need to get the GARLIC and the BRASSICAS into the ground. This week would be best so it doesn't rot.

NB guild: Garlic, coriander, onion, leek, lettuce - although with Garlic as the main product, apparently it would be best to do

Guilds from Wollondilly shire: a little further south than here with cooler weather, but some good guild ideas:
Broccoli, chamomile, Dill, lEttuce, Lovage, mustard, Oregano, Parsley, Parsnip, Rhubarb, Rosemary, Sage, Silverbeet, Snow pea, Thyme
Carrot, chilves, katle, leek, lettuce, Marigold, Onion, pak choi, parsley, radishes, sage, silverbeet
Beetrooot, cabbage, cauli, chamomile,Dill, hyssop, lettuce, marigold, onion, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, spinach, snow peas, thyme
Beetroot, Broccoli, brussel sprouts,carrot, chamomile, dill, garlic, hyssop, kale, lettuce, onion, parsley, sage,
borage broad beans, carrots, calendula, dill, garlic, lettuce, marigolds, parsley, parsnip, rocket
amaranth, comfrey, mizuna, mustard greens

There's a mix of perennial and annual in there, which might work because I'd grow the perennial with an eye for the chooks to take it down the next time they're in the space.

Also need to look up planting guilds under fruit trees - specifically the AVOCADO and APRICOT and PLUM for the backyard. I know I had some flagged a while back, but finding them is the trick. maybe this post...

RIPENING

pumpkins, which might be golden nuggets if they go properly orange. Or might just be those round orange ones that look a bit like halloween pumpkins. Whatever they are, I hope they're tasty. Also, I've spotted a streaky butternut or two that have just been pollinated and are now growing. Whether they make it before the vine dies? Another matter entirely.

HARVEST

At least one ear of corn. Not sure what's going to happen to the rest of the corn stalks. I think most of the ears came out during the rain, which means they're not really going to produce anything, I think... And are a bit too hard to be baby corn.

NOTES

Sunny week, ending in a Friday holiday.

Companion planting for winter

ASPARAGUS:

• winter: parsley, coriander, basil, dill, comfrey.
• spring: basil, lettuce, spinach for early crop and ground cover while ASPARAGUS is still growing
• also: strawberries, rhubarb, horseradish

APPLES:

• winter: garlic
• spring: marigolds

Thoughts for front apples: marigolds Thoughts for back apples: one type of garlic

APRICOT

• winter: garlic
• spring: marigolds

Thoughts for back apricot: other type of garlic

BRASSICAS

• winter: chamomile, coriander, dill, mint, rosemary and sage, carrot, chives,
• spring: beans, spinach, cucumber

CARROTS

• winter: brassicas, onions,
• spring:

CHERRIES

• winter: garlic
• spring: marigolds

POTATOES

• winter: coriander, beets, garlic, onions,
• spring: corn, marigolds, peas, celery, bush beans,

PARSNIP

• winter: green peas, rosemary and sage, lettuce,
• spring: bush beans, peppers, tomatoes, lettuce,

• winter:
• spring:

planting/growing notes

Live Love Fruit: Use This Companion Planting Chart to Help Your Garden Thrive

Self Sufficient Me: Underplanting

How To Grow a TON of Tomatoes

Interestingly, something that is almost never said in any of these videos is just how much water a vegetable garden takes to be really productive.

crop rotation

One of the things I want to do once I have chickens: Crop rotation.

Easy Crop Rotation - this is a seasonal one, growing one set of vegies in a bed each year. Could work with multiple beds, although may not necessarily deal with what happens in winter.

This link deals more in-depth with families and planting cycles, including seasons somewhat. Although I suspect that the best solution is always going to be one's own observations and experiences in one's garden space.

It's a little confusing because there are so many things that I like growing, but finding the space for them is another matter, and everything takes longer in my garden - I'm not sure if this is a ground nutrients issue, or something else.

Some thoughts on crop rotation:
Tomatoes/eggplant => cabbage/caulis => Corn/Cucumber/Pumpkins => beans/peas
Capsicums/zucchini => broccoli/brussel sprouts => beans/peas => Potatoes
Corn/Cucumber/Pumpkins => green manures => Tomatoes/eggplant => cabbage/caulis
Cucumber/Pumpkins => onions/carrots => silverbeet/lettuces => green manures
Potatoes => beets/radishes => Capsicums/zucchini => broccoli/brussel sprouts
silverbeet/lettuces => green manures => Cucumber/Pumpkins => onions/carrots

Hopefully, the chickens will help reduce the need for legumes/green manures, though.

Chook Dome: I still have fantasies about doing this circular, but I think circular may have to wait for the front yard, while I go for the space-saving option of rectangular in the backyard, still using a moveable chook tractor - just a rectangular one...

THOUGHT: Sow a line of barrel medic/lucerne along the fencelines, particularly under the crepe myrtle.

LINK: Growing Trout in a bathtub system...

various links

Specifically looking at fruit tree companion planting.

companion planting site

companion plants for fruit trees (NthAm)

companion planting vegetables (NthAm)

Also have feedly'd a bunch of Australian blogs, including artist as family which I regret missing on their 'through Sydney' leg (or even their 'through Kiama' leg. Would have been awesome to see and hear their story!

a pocket full of seeds: as someone who tends to spot 'bald patches' of earth and think "dammit, that could grow some [insert vegie of choice here] very nicely," I rather like the secret subversion of it!

Also: Joel Salatin in Sydney 21st Feb | intro to permaculture