With 24 hours to go before I finalise the March #gardenjournal challenge, I thought I'd sneak in an update of my own! I've had a day off today so I've been doing a little bit of pottering, and particularly tidying up the greenhouse. In the high winds, a few of the cross struts snapped as they were a bit thin, and the back door buckled, so this Easter will be about reinforcing it for the winter. I think getting some polycarbonate sheeting might be the way to go as it'll give it a bit of integrity anyway. Of course, being the end of season it's a bit of a mess! The cherry tomatoes keep on coming - next year I'll plant a larger variety in the greenhouse but I was having a contest with someone in town about getting tomatoes by Christmas - I still lost!!
The turmeric has gone okay - I'm not happy with the soil yet and I think I need to look more into how to grow it. It's pretty exciting though as I wouldn't have been able to do it without the greenhouse. I have 4 small plants.
The eggplants have done a lot better in the greenhouse than they ever have outdoors - clearly, the extra heat and longer season works a treat. I've had some lovely big black bonica eggplant which I wrote about in my last #gardenjournal post, but today I was excited to see this white Caspar eggplant hiding in the beds! It's great to experiment for the wow factor but I too often find myself going back to the varieties that work and taste good. For example, this year I experimented with an heirloom zucchini called Romanesco, but next year I think I'll only grow one and stick to the Midnight.
I don't know if you remember me showing you a project a while back where I turned a heap of olive buckets into small wicking pots, but the chillis and bell peppers have done absolutely brilliantly in there. I learn by doing, and this year I've learnt a lot - tomatoes, for example, aren't so much of a fan of the wicking system, but capsicums love it. I'll hoping they'll overwinter in there along with the eggplant - fingers crossed!
As for the rest of the garden, it's a big tangle at the moment but I'm keeping on top of it fairly well. Tomatoes can last up to Easter, but I'm fighting the blackbirds for them at the moment so tend to try to get them a little early and finish off the ripening inside. As usual, I didn't keep on top of the staking in this patch (I never do) so it's a bit mad in there. There's also fennel, peppers, pumpkin, parsley, zucchinis and beans in that mess! Oh dear! It's the kind of photo I didn't REALLY want to show you, but hey, warts and all right?
Gardens are not made by singing ‘Oh, how beautiful,’ and sitting in the shade. –Rudyard Kipling, ‘The Glory of the Garden’ (1911)
I also picked literally bucketloads of hops. Some are drying for tea, and I need to get some vodka for tincturing as well. The hubs loves the hops as it makes him feel a little stoned - it is relaxing, as you'd know from drinking hoppy beer. I've been giving it away for chicken feed - well, donations for chicken feed, and about three or four people are headed over to pick their own bag full as I write this.
I must end with the yakon. Last post I shared only photos but I really want @simplymike to see what she started! I left it in the ground last year and didn't get to try it. I had hoped it would come back and it did - I best harvest some to eat this year! I have no idea when to dig some up, so if you know, please let me know in the comments below!
It's an odd time of year as we harvest because at the same time I'm putting in winter seeds such as kale, other brassicas, leeks, kohl rabi and so on. The soil is still dry and we haven't had much rain but hopefully these babies will be ready to plant out by the time the soil is ready. I can't believe it's also nearly time to plant garlic!
It's not too late to get your challenge in - I'll be finishing it off around lunchtime Melbourne time tomorrow so if you have an entry to get together, please do! I'll be putting the #gardenjournal challenge together after the first week of each month, around the 7th or 8th, depending on what I'm up to, so do bookmark that in your HIVE calenders so you can join in. Check out the challenge here. Please go and check out the #gardenjournal tag and give some gardeners a bit of support and love! I promise you that you won't be disappointed!
With Love,
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Those tomatoes look delicious, we grow tomatoes just like that.
I'm loving tomatoes at the moment - I'm going to be sad when they are finished.
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These tomatoes are great and looks like eat.
I do not know photo seven, they are vegetables or flowers?
In the bucket are hops - they are flowers.
I love turmeric. In my country turmeric very useful, for traditional drink and cooking spices.
I love turmeric. In my country turmeric very useful, for traditional drink and cooking spices.
Do you grow it? I'd love some tips! I"m not sure I"m dong it right - I guess I'll know when I dig it up!
I wish I can, but I have no garden for grow Turmeric.
The taste of vegetables and fruits that you grow with your own labor is better. We also have a small garden behind our house. We have not started planting yet due to seasonal conditions, but we will start digging the soil and planting seeds at the end of this month. I love dealing with the garden and growing a team with my own hands. As a tomato lover, I liked your tomatoes 😍
Oh I agree, homegrown tastes amazing! I'm loving the tomatoes at the moment - I will miss them when it's gone! I hope you can join the #gardenjournal challenge!
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Hello, I am fascinated by everything you have at home; It amazes me, a beautiful orchard or garden of plants. I hope that winter does not affect your planting at all. Everything is beautiful. I was stunned by the white eggplant, I must say I had never seen it. Their tomatoes are beautiful, like cucumber, I don't know how lipids taste, but it looks strange but eye-catching.
You have a whole harvest at home, I am glad you have achieved so much. The peppers also look pretty and the pumpkin, in the distance I saw it hidden among the leaves.
Good luck with everything you propose. ❤
I'm lucky, because we live in a temperate area with mild frost so that we can plant a lot of greens, tubers, onions and brassicas - food all year around! Yes how cool is the white eggplant! Thanks so much - oh, you spotted the pumpkin too! Thanks for dropping in!
OH wow. If I could live a story book life these would be the photos that I would use to describe it.
What a beautiful load of heaven. I am sure it is not without some hard work but it must be very gratifying.
Congratulations on that harvest!
Thanks so much! Aw, that's lovely - sometimes you don't see your own life in that way, and then you realise you have it pretty bloody good. Yes,it's alot of work, but once you get systems in it can be just a matter of a few hours a week - problem is, you can't even stop or you will live in a jungle haha.
All your harverst look amazing!:x The tomatoes look really tasty and I'm nuts about those little orange peppers! :x:X
Plus, I am new to these 'hops'. I didnt hear about them until now. I already opened multiple google pages doing a little research about it! Natural medicine and plants are fascinated right?
Oh aren't they the cutest!!!!! They look so good! So sweet in salads.
Hops are most famous in beer!! But yes, so fascinating and pretty much all plants have some kind of medicinal use!
I wouldnt know! I cant imagine their taste and texture. I have never had it in my plate! :)) Yup, I've read something about them and bear:D:D
Love seeing your greenhouse plants. Such beautiful harvests! I was supposed to start turmeric last October, but alas.... Maybe this year....
You have a greenhouse too? How did I miss that? Yes, there's always another year. This year was the year I thought I'd grow asparagus - I planted them and the chooks grew them! I'm excited about the greenhouse - needs a few tweaks and repairs but I think I'm getting a handle on it now and I expect next year will be even better!
No, you didn't miss it, it exists only in my dreams. But I can start turmeric inside in pots, like I do ginger, then put it outside in a little hoophouse in the summer.