Anyone's Guess...

While I usually have a good success rate of seed germination, sometimes there are seed pots where life seems completely void no matter how much tender care or patience you give them. When that happens I tip the contents into a recycled polystyrene box in the hope something will appear if I just forget about it...and then I start again. It’s a bit of a waiting game to find out if anything will grow and then the interesting part is trying to figure out exactly what it is when it does. So far I have one very healthy cape gooseberry (along with six others that grew when they were supposed to) what I think is a passionfruit (the larger seedling in the picture) but the others I’m not quite sure about yet. I am hoping tomorrow is fine so I can replant them into their own pots which might give them a burst.                    

Today was pouring with rain so Diesel and I jumped into the car and went into town to get a few things. My first mission was to get some more of the longer seedling trays which are fabulous for putting all the punnets in but I also wanted to buy some epsom salts so that meant a trip to the supermarket as well. While dreamily looking through the aisles at all the products and gadgets, I came across some rolls of stretchy plant tie (just like tee shirt rope) so I grabbed one. A lot of people use this because it is soft and stretchy and therefore no harm to delicate stems and branches.Personally, I only use it on certain types of plants because I feel the cloth can become a shelter for pests and disease. Then I found rolls of this awesome velcro tie, less than $8 for just under ten metres but this is reusable...it can be easily put on, taken off and moved around and then used again for other plants. I would wash and disinfect them before using again if they needed it but what a fantastic idea...something that is guaranteed to be used many times over! 

                                                                          

On A New Year Roll...

Looking out my kitchen window the other day, I caught a glimpse of the most spectacular bright yellow flowers adorning my jack-be-little’s. They have had some before but these were so big and bold I just had to get the camera out and take a few pics. Sadly at the end of the day which had been a scorcher, these had wilted and died but they were quite magnificent while they lasted. The pumpkins are now looking like an actual pumpkin which just tickles me pink. They don’t have the bright orange yet, more of a weird yellow...not nearly as pretty as the flowers. 

 

 

The last couple of days have been much cooler which has been such a reprieve from the sweltering heat we have had recently. I think the garden has appreciated the change in weather also because everything seems to have had a spurt. The only thing I loathe is the wind because it does so much damage...My poor sunflowers which are nearly as tall as me were blown over, the branches of my tomato plants dragged around and tangled together and the borage is now a shadow of its former self, though still attractive to the garden life.  The corn is doing well and is now showing fluffy tops, the beans growing in and around them have delicate little flowers and seem to be showing good health. The queensland blue is now about five times the size it was, even the one my big hoof flattened has bounced back. And the raspberries, both  yellow and red, are heavens kisses...Mmmm! 

A few months ago I came home to a coconut sitting in my carport, I don’t know where it came from or why it was there (strange, I know) but I knew there had to be a good use for it...I just didn’t know what yet. A while later a friend gave me a cute little succulent plant he had bagged up and I just knew that the coconut would make the perfect cocopot...and it does! Hopefully it won’t out grow it too quickly because it looks rather quirky and I am thinking maybe I need to get myself a whole bunch of lovely coconuts?

 

I had such a wonderful Christmas, very busy but worth every minute. Friends gave me a new seed tray complete with seedling punnets and some recycled paper pots which were really handy. The recycled pots are useful because you can plant straight into the garden...this is great for sensitive plants that don’t like being handled. It is also a great way of recycling as they are made from paper waste and they are biodegradable so eventually break down into the soil. The other punnets are separated into four sections which are great, I have had to struggle with punnets with no dividers for awhile now and they can be hard work trying to pull the seedlings apart. Today my bamboo stakes arrived that I had ordered along with a good quantity of the divided punnets to match my gifted ones, so I’m excited about the weekend’s missions. There are weeds to pull, stakes to organize and punnets to plant with seed...

Berry Christmas...

Finally we are getting some rain and I for one am appreciating every drop of it! Everything is looking fabulous and I can see the difference each day makes. I am getting so many bumbles and bees visiting now because of all the goodies in the garden but they keep getting themselves lost and accidentally coming inside. Poor Diesel sits with intent curiosity as if deciding whether he should be on the defence or just eyeball them until they leave...usually it ends up with me grabbing something to scoop them up and free them outdoors before he makes his decision.  I have to admit to a special fondness for the bumble bees, their big fluffy bodies are so cute...they are like the V8 of the vegetable garden. The sunflowers were getting far too tall for the window sill so yesterday I reluctantly planted them in the garden. I thought they would have looked so pretty out the back against the brick wall but no one would get to see them  there, so I decided to put them with the others out the front amongst the tomato and capsicum plants. There is quite a sizable difference between these ones and the other two but I am sure they will catch up in their own time. I dug up some of the new potatoes the other day and they were absolutely delicious though my plot is now half empty...the downfall of having a small garden. Still, I have enough for Christmas dinner if I choose to so it’s not all bad news.

A few days ago I had a nibble on the first of the raspberries...so sweet and juicy, they were just heavenly! I am waiting in anticipation for enough to ripen that I can devour a whole mouthful of them at once, one or two at a time is only but a taste. There are new berries growing on the strawberry plants so I might even get to make a summer berry dessert? Haven’t had any more currants but the plants are getting so bushy I’m thinking they will need to be repotted soon. The pak choi is doing really well, the lettuce has been a bit slower than I would have liked but I suppose I should be grateful as the seedlings I gave to a friend completely disappeared from their garden. One of my zucchini plants has had a whitish powder look to it which apparently can be a type of mildew problem common with these plants. After talking to some other green fingered people it has been suggested that the plants can be sprayed with milk. I’m not quite sure on the specifics because one person said undiluted milk while someone else posted that it should be a 10:1 mix, water to milk. So I will just experiment and see what happens. I have nothing to lose but a zucchini plant *grin*

Still waiting for the white sage to come up, maybe it’s just me but it seems to be taking forever! I think it’s the arty side of me that is impatiently waiting to cut, dry and wrap. On Sunday a friend and I took the train into Wellington to do some fundraising for the haven (which went very well) and on the way back I’m sure I could see a type of seaweed growing on the rocks near petone. One morning when it’s not too hot I will drive down and take Diesel for a walk and see if I can get some for the garden. Some people dig it in, some use it as mulch and some make a tea. I have never used it myself so it’s definitely worth experimenting with and seeing which method is more effective. It is also alot closer than having to drive all the way to the other side of Wellington to gather some...beach dwellers just don’t know how lucky they are.

Anyways, to all those who are reading, wherever you are...I hope you and yours have a safe and happy holidays. Take time to feel the wind on your face, the sun on your back and dig your fingers into the soil, it’s amazing just how healing it can be...Appreciate the little things, it’s usually those that mean the most. Merry Christmas!

Earth Love Live xx