Garden update

Apologies... it has been a few weeks since I posted as life has gotten in the way of blogging. Exciting things have still been happening in the garden though, especially with the new seedlings and potatoes I planted (more on the potatoes later). There have been so many posts I have wanted to put up, but havent had the time to even think about downloading the photos from my camera!

The garden is looking fantastic at the moment with everything growing like crazy. Flowers are popping up everywhere, the lemon tree is covered in shoots and blossoms, the vegies are growing like crazy.

The seeds I planted a few weeks ago quickly pushed up into the world. First the rocket came up, then the beans raised their huge head. The two pictures below are after one week.

Here they are three weeks after planting. As you can see the beans have gone crazy, and there has been a lot of success with the tomatoes (top tight) and rocket (bottom right). The basil has been the slowest - I'm only seeing the first little shoot now - almost a month to the day after I planted them. I was quite unimpressed with the germination of the spinach and coriander. Of the 12 spinach seeds I planted (2 per tube), I only got 2 seedlings. And only four little coriander. There are still a couple of late beans coming up - so maybe there is hope for the rest.

As they were getting so big, I planted out the beans with a pack of peas I picked up recently. The rest of the seedlings have moved outside to harden up a little and will be transplanted with their first real leaves start to grow. I think these zucchini (above) will go in next.

In other garden news, the kale is growing like crazy, even with the green smoothies I've been drinking.

I've also planted a number of other 'pre-started' tomato and capsicum seedlings for a bit of an early crop.

Finally, the nasturtium I planted down with the lemon tree is looking amazing and has just put on its first flower!

Starting with seeds

It's mid-August and here in Melbourne it's still cold and wintery, but I am itching to start getting my spring garden going. Most years I leave it too late, and by the time the plants have grown big enough and are starting to flower, the hot temperatures tend to kill everything. My other problem is that everything tends to ripen at once, so I'll have a few weeks of vegetables and nothing for the rest of the year.

This year, I am thinking of doing things differently and plan to plant several crops, each about a month apart. While it's still too cold outside to get things growing in the garden, I've decided to start the first batch of seedlings early and keep them inside until they are strong enough and the weather is warm enough to move outdoors. I'll only plant a few of each variety and if they don't grow then I've not really lost anything and will know what not to do next year!

The other benefits of starting seedlings inside is that:
a) They are free from the pests that usually get to young seedlings
b) They are out of the wind (I've had seed trays blow away in the past)
c) I can water them daily without having to go out into the cold
d) Out of the wind they are less likely to dry out
e) Having them in my living room means they'll get a lot more attention, I can see how they're progressing each day, and if I'm feeling lonely I can have a chat with them :-)

I started with 4 seed trays and filled them with some seed raising mix. Amazingly, they managed to fit perfectly on a square tray I had lying around, so I don't have to worry about any water dripping onto the floor.

Round one seedlings include:
- Cherry tomatoes
- Zucchini
- Dwarf beans
- Climbing beans
- Coriander
- Spinach
- Basil
- Rocket

These will now sit by my back door, hopefully receiving enough light and water without getting too cold. I also picked up the perfect watering accessory last weekend at The Diggers Club - it turns any water bottle into a gentle watering can, exactly what i need for watering seedlings!

Gardening is cheaper than therapy

A not so tiny garden

Last weekend I was lucky enough to get out of Melbourne for a morning bushwalking with friends. We planned a three hour walk through the Lerderderg State Park near Blackwood, about a 90 mins drive out of Melbourne. The trail circled around, mostly following along the Lerderderg River. It was a lovely way to spend the morning, despite the occasional drizzle and flooded paths. 

Lush undergrowth and stunning trees in the Lerderderg Gorge.

A winking log cheered us up when we were starting to get tired.

Mid-way through the walk the path came right down the gorge to the river. Despite looking tiny in this photo, it was actually quite wide.

At times the path itself turned into a muddy creek!

The walk started and finished at the Garden of St Erth, a stunning sandstone cottage that was built in 1860 and is now surrounded by historic gardens and housing a plant nursery and cafe. It is also home to the Diggers club, an organisations that has been running since 1978. Along with running the Garden of St Erth, and another in Heronswood, they have a huge mail order nursery that specialises in rare, organic and heirloom varieties of seeds and plants. 

After the walk, we had a well deserved coffee and flourless orange cake in the cafe before wandering around the gardens and the shop. 

 Daffodils are just starting to come out in the lawns surrounding the main building.

A display of garden beds that appear to be awaiting spring plantings, but if you look closely in the background there is a patch of broad beans just waiting to be picked. If only I had the space for a garden like this! I'm looking forward to coming back in a couple of months when the garden is at its spring best.

The Diggers club have a huge collection of organic seeds as well as a nursery full of fruit trees, vegetable seedings, herbs, bulbs, flowers and native plants. While it was tempting to bring home everything in the shop, my lack of cash on hand meant I left with a bag of Pink Fir potatoes, and a packet of five colour silverbeet and siberian tomato seeds. The potatoes are supposed to be similar to Kipfler and are described as having a rich nutty flavour. They have a huge variety on offer, and I'll be placing an order online in no time!