Tropical Heatwave

Scarecrow’s Garden Log: 13:02:2010:

Alyssum Lobularia maritima
with the flowering Butternut Pumpkins
in the Kitchen Garden.

What’s the weather been like in the garden?
We had another official Heatwave that week that’s 5 days by 35C. Along with the heat that instance came humidity that fed down from the northern tropical regions! Many areas of the state (and indeed the country) received significant rain…we received 1mm.

Propagation:
Planting out:

Sugarsnap Climbing Peas planted on the edge of the Wicking Bed by the old chook house in the Kitchen Garden. I’ve put some trellis up for them to climb on. See how the roots have grown out the bottom of the loo rolls in just 2 weeks! I buried the tube and all and mulched them well.

I have additionally sorted and thinned out the Trees For Life, planted some replacements and graded the plants. I’ve sorted and checked the seedlings of Old Man Saltbush Atriplex nummularia for the Community Garden.

Other than that I have been scrubbing pots for re-use.

In the Garden that week:

The Jalapeno Chilli has set fruit for the third year!

The bees are loving the Sunflowers that have volunteered around the garden that year…so are the Ring Necked Parrots so I’ve covered some of the heads with old orange bags!

The Perennial Sunflowers Helianthus

maximilianii,
that sprouted again that year,
are sneaking under the shade cover on the Berry Bed.

I’m trialling some brewed compost tea (well worm cast tea actually) and that one doesn’t smell at all…just as well considering it is brewing in Doc’s workshop! More about that later.

The first of the Red Lima Beans have set…
…these are the only beans that have survived
this year to set fruit.

Lucky Dog has found another source of grapes that year! The Ruby Seedless Grapes are ripening on the Dog Pen/Chook Run fence. We told her dogs aren’t supposed to eat grapes but she doesn’t want to know about that!

I had already added that photo of LuckyDog when Matron asked for some pics of Lucky. So here are a couple of others. With that heat and humidity Lucky doesn’t do a lot except sleep, scratch her face and go back to sleep. She turns 16 that year and is feeling very old on hot days…

Weekly Harvest Tally:
Doesn’t include Greens fed to the chooks on a daily basis or herbs picked for use in the kitchen for cooking or tea making.
Amaranth Leaf***52g
Capsicum Hungarian Yellow Wax***15g
Carrots Chantenay Red-cored***271g
Eggplant Casper***142g
Parsnip Hollow Crown***182g
Potatoes Kennebec***637g
Salad Mix***65g
Silverbeet Rainbow Mix***341g
Tomatoes Roma***370g
Zucchini Golden***25g a tiny baby one!
Grapes Black Sultana***500g
Plums***470g

Eggs
22 from the Farmyard Ferals

To see how the various Garden areas fit on our half acre block check out the newest Map of our place HERE

[Source] Scarecrow