Irrigation

After the girls cleared some of the obviously blocked sprinklers the other day, Trina decided to take a look at them all... and just as well, my goodness some of them were hideous. At least now they should let out a lot more water. It just seemed strange that it was drying so easily.

Johnson Family

This week for school holidays the Edmonds household had some visitors camping. They are the Johnson family, Karrina, Cindy and June (in generation order). Dad, Cary was unable to join them time around.

We had an absolute blast with them here. Karrina entertained my three rugrats so superbly, that despite Jason being home he actually got to 'rest' the foot that he had injured.

It also meant that we had an opportunity to get to know Cindy better. She is our local dance teacher. Liz and Tania have been taking her class for at about 2 years.

Immigrating (from America) is difficult at the best of times - so... you guessed it, we've asked them to join Mummies in Gummies :)

They are a fabulous addition to our little community and we look forward to many happy harvests with them... and of course dancing around the garden :)

reflecting on the week

After asking Cindy to join our crew we had our Tuesday morning working bee.

Not all of us could make it, but those of us who could got straight into work.

Weeding mostly... But also noticing the changes that were happening.

The Scallopini Zucchini and one or two cucumbers had started on the mounds we set up before our trip away.

The carrot seed tape got put down too so we'll see how well that's going to do. The original had not worked in the GH so we pulled that up and put it under plastic to germinate. The onion haven't done very well in trays so also trying them in toilet paper tape. Fantastic space saving discovery that with a little water it sticks to the window well...

Given the kids were off school, they were offering to help, so we put them to work cleaning sprinklers and setting up the remaining tyres for the compost bin.

We hoed the tomato area and the potatoes and dug over the area for more beans.

That night Tania and Liz got out and created rows for the beans.
Next day Lin got in and planted said beans.

Following day V and Liz put in more beans and fluffed around with the irrigation system. There is a setup where you can suck up water from a drum- like a manure tea or the like - however that is not working. Went down to the local plumbing store and it looks like it's going to be a $50 expense that no one really has right now, so that is definitely one place that the Yates winnings (fingers crossed) could come in handy.

The pumpkin is ready to be planted, but we need to finish filling up the compost bin tyres so we can grow them vertically.

Pak Choi almost ready to go in too

My b-i-l, Justin rang one night and asked if he could bring some 'twigs' over to burn on our property. When he got here the trailer was full of compost... so my brain got ticking over and decided to place it in the area that we were about to dig over for silverbeet... yay... less work to be done :)

Next with my new wwoofer Franciska we level off the silverbeet patch, removing any raspberry saplings that were popping up.

Also planted a the Yates lettuce seeds, which is already popping its little heads out :)

Feed 'em S@#T and Keep 'em in the Dark

MUSHROOMS

About a week ago V bought aruond a mushroom kit. Today I attempted to read the instructions... quickly fell asleep on those and decided to google.

So far this is the most useful and least scarry guide I've found



This video talked about the use of card board and coffee grounds, but I didn't quite understand why?



This next one explained the coffee grounds a little (albeit no audio) and gives you an option to increase your yield



Then I found a fantastic website that explained some of the terms and gave you idea's on what to grow them in... also explained coffee grounds :)

http://www.mushroom-appreciation.com/grow-mushrooms.html

So then I got to thinking... it's all very well, putting the spores into the soil but how do you get new spores without having to buy them again. Then I found this site which I have to say has been the most enlightening and has video as well. It told me the name of the process of 'getting more spores' was called cloning (surprise surprise) and then - you guessed it - GOOGLE for more videos. http://www.mushroomvideos.com/Mushroom-Cloning

Just before we move on to cloning though this site really was the best one I think... should our mushroom venture take off that Bill (AKA DH to Lin) will likely be tasked with creating a boiler for us to sterilise the substrate... (see at this point in the process I am starting to use strange words).

So anyway, cloning - I found this video with green lighting and done in silence until the end where mexican/spanish (I think - we don't study that part of the world down here) is spoken... thus making me wonder if it really was taking a culture from a button mushroom (but infact it was...) It was done in open air and if you read the comments, some people were horrified by that. Personally I figure if it is done in an unsterile natural environment then why have all the pomp and ceremony of a glove-box (but that's just me)



There was also a video of the same sort of thing done in front of a Hepa-Filter blowing air toward you thus pushing any contaminants away from your work... a little bit of protection doesn't hurt I guess ;)

Of course if we want to go down the petri dish method we'll best learn how to prepare petri dishes. This is a video about how to do with ath with Potato Dextrose Agar 'mix' the name of which I got from the 'green' video.



and then there was this beauty to extract the spores (far easier and a different video had already said that aluminium foil comes off the roll sterile)...



Best spore print without all the scientific gear - Part 1



then what to do next



and with that and the fact that I have been at this for two hours and it is 11:15... it is time for me to sleep :)

One last thing before I go... I've seen this word coir used here and there, and was baffled as to what it was and how it is used. Turns out it is just another type of substrate (growing mix)... or, as per a site I found... Coir is condensed coconut fibers that expand in moisture and when properly prepared can help budding mushrooms fight off the molds and bacteria that would kill them. Other material must be added to meet the high-nitrogen requirements of mushroom growth. http://www.ehow.com/how_10045860_use-coir-substrate-mushrooms.html#ixzz1bPeNIqft

Deliverance...

d-d-ling ling ling ling ling ling ling

We have corn... of course at this early stage it looks like grass - of which there is a lot of in the garden here and there but this is appearing in a row and forgive me if I'm wrong, but grass clumps together.

The carrot seed that I toilet-papered germinated VERY well and now that the shoots are starting to turn green they got planted... here's hoping the next stage works well. The test tape that I put into the garden originally did not work as it did not keep wet enough.

Of the mounds we made just before I went away, we have a Lebanese Cucumber and a Scalloppini Zucchini poking through. Given there was space at the base of each mound for the cucumbers and gherkins we decided to put beans toward the bottom of the mound. Apparently good companions and will help protect the cucs a bit I believe.

You probably also notice that the dirt is quite dry. This is due to forgetting to water it last night and having a lovely sunny day today. However, I do want to state that I think the earth needs 'help'. I do not remember it being this 'clay-like' a few years ago, and given it hasn't really received any TLC I think it is time to give it some. Must get on to neighbour about getting sawdust and horse manure.

... and more planting

but this time I won’t rabbit on for ever…

So Lin, Tania and Liz had a quick wizz in the garden this morning to plant a few more ’things… ZUCCHINI, SCALLOPINI ZUCCHINI, GHERKIN, LEBANESE CUCUMBER and APPLE CUCUMBER.

I’ve given up on the trays, so given I’m away for a few days thought it a good time to try taking it straight from the ground. So we dug over the area and created 10 mounds. Right now only these seeds have been sown, but the plan is to check out their best companion plants and stick them in the ground when I get back. At least this way, they are there and going to start growing… I mean, why waste time right.

Planting Time

In reference to getting his bag ready for school, Joe “am I ready to put it into my bag”. Mum “I don’t know darling… let me come and see what you have PLANTED” -hmmm, I don’t think that came out right.

Clearly, I have planting on the brain.

Let’s see – on Wednesday…

The morning was taken up with a SuperClinic appointment for my son Joe (old broken arm injury) and it had gone on a lot longer that expecteed. But when we got home we got stuck into the garden together. He threw down some more radish seeds in the gaps where we had harvested them the day before.

In the meantime I planted SPRING ONION and LEEK from seedlings and put in some SWEETCORN seeds directly in the ground. I had read on the Yates site about the Three Sisters - (http://www.yates.co.nz/vegetables/how-to/grow-the-three-sisters/)… corn, climbing beans and squash, being good companions and so I thought I would give it a go.

We had some SCARLET RUNNER BEANS that were showing signs of life from last years bulbs so it went down there between them and the CHILLIES (also from last years batch and of course a perennial). Chances are we won’t be able to put the squash in the space around it but at least two of the sisters will be helping each other out. I have also heard that corn is best planted in squares to help cross-pollination. I wasn’t actually able to set it up this way, but will try with the next lot I think.

On a note of success… it’s damned nice to see some produce this early on. RADISHES are a great quick win really. Although we had planted some in rows, some had also self-seeded from last years patch.

That night Lin and her daughter Abby put in some time and dug over the area on the other side of the SCARLET RUNNER BEANS, ready for the PEAS.

On to Thursday, Veronique (V) and Liz got stuck in again, this time planting the PEA seedlings into three rows, approximately 20 seedlings in each of three multi-pots we’d sown. They fit nicely into the space and in three rows. Hopefully the bamboo stakes that Lin’s hubby Bill has cut for us will be ready before the PEAS are too much bigger. Last thing we need is to plant fresh BAMBOO in our lovely patch.

Thanks to V’s coffee obsession, we also put COFFEE GROUNDS around the PEAS to stop the snails from attacking them. it didn’t even wash away when we turned the sprinklers on. You can see it in the photo – its the darker patches around the individual pea.

V had also bought around an ARTICHOKE in a pot, which we transplanted. I am soooooo looking forward to getting an artichoke from it. I’ve only ever had one in my life and from that vague memory am excited about the prospect of another.

CARROTS… why aren’t they taking off in this garden? It’s either getting washed away – in which case they can’t be far away – but more realistically the birds must be taking them. SO what to do. We discussed this with SARAH THE GARDENER when we saw her and she suggested making our own carrot tape out of TOILET PAPER and keeping it moist until they are germinated. Now no offence to Yates, but I do prefer the idea of pulling out my baby carrots to make room for the others to get large, so the seed tape that they are selling, with one seed perfectly spaced, just doesn’t cut it for me. So if you care to view the picture, we have four seed toilet paper tapes nicely germinating under plastic which gets a squeeze of the spray bottle now and then (I can even take them on holiday with me) and another three put on top of a mound with a little dirt on top… let’s see which option works best.

Talking of planting, I am once again baffled by the mysterious seedlings that are popping up in my trays.

Now, who can tell the difference at the seedling stage between lebanese cucumber, apple cucumber, zucchini, scallopini zucchini and gherkin. Either way the the success rate hasn’t been that great, two pots having done nothing at all… but please take a look at the picture above and tell me which is which…

Phobic...

Something we haven’t told you about our resident novice Trina… is that she is NOT a gardener for a VERY good reason…

… on Tuesday we were working on the patch, scrubbing out the weeds that had started and planting the TOMATOES.

Firstly, the poor lass arrived with vertigo, so we set her to work fixing the sprinklers so as not to disturb her head too much. After finishing that, she decided her head would be able to cope with crawling on the ground taking out some of the seedlings. She did very well scrubbing out two, rather full rows of weeds when suddenly, she started screaming and hyperventilating, stood up and ran away.

Liz knew exactly what was going on, whereas some of our newer Lin and V had no idea what was happening.

… Trina is PHOBIC about ANTS!!

None of the little blighters had managed to crawl onto her, which we are all thankful for, because if that had happened we would have been in jeopardy of remembering our first aid lessons, as there was a STRONG possibility that she would stop breathing and faint… heaven knows what she would have landed on ’cos there are a fair few hazards in the area.

Thank you ants for being a little scared of Trina too ;)

Rain Rain... Go Insane

Rain rain, go insane

Come again for a few days

My wheat will grow

Vege seedlings will show

But dry up by Friday ’cos when the holidays begin, the children will play (preferably outside)


Seriously though… I checked this morning and the new beans that I planted are poking their heads through… I call that success.

Even the pumpkins, pak choi, zucchini are starting to do ‘stuff’.

I also just put coffee grounds around the seedling trays. Kindly supplied by V (our coffee obsessed member) it is supposed to be an alternative slug and snail murderer… still I am so determined to keep the little buggers away that I threw some Blitzem down too ;)

Seed Poem

A poem that a friend posted on FB that I thought was so relevant to our little group…

Scatter seeds of kindness everywhere you go;
Scatter bits of courtesy————
watch them grow and grow.
Gather buds of friendship;
Keep them till full-blown;
… … You will find more happiness
than you have ever known.
- Amy R Raabe

Chooks Pecking Garden

After culling the chooks it was time to set up the garden for the chooks arriving in December.

Liz used bird netting to cover the roof, but it didn't stretch all the way over and down to the ground, so setting up a little bit of a resistance figured that some of that green plastic netting would suffice.

She dug over an area and had the kids sprinkle wheat down.
Next she moved some parsley and comfrey which is apparently a great alternative for the blood and bone component of the layers mash that you can buy.

Thankfully it rained... you can imagine what a dessert was left after 12 chooks vacated.

Two days later however, wheat seeds are missing, so back to the drawing board on that side of things... still at least the ground is a little softer.

Weekend Away...

But we endevoured to go anyway!.. with much convincing (NOT! He he))

Ok so it started on a sad note.......poor Lin couldn't join us!

Still, with a hiss and a roar we headed to Ruakaka - to my fathers place, enough beds, meal planning done, now to 'garden planning'!
or so we told ourselves anyway!

Saturday........sleep......sleep.....sleep! (Any parent of littlies will understand!) and EARLY WAKE UP!
YES our body clocks just wouldn't allow us to sleep in!
Except V who apparently has no prob sleeping......(cow, sheep, pig and any other semi offensive word we thought to call her)


Poor Liz though, was awake didn't want to wake anyone else so stayed in her room while Tania and myself had a Spa!
A nice rest in the spa and we were in a much better mood and readily accepting to V obvious selfishness! (how dare she sleep when we can't!) (am I a bit focused do you think?!)

And let the garden planning begin..........or maybe after a movie? Ok so a Movie won that vote......then another, and
another! Yay 'CHICK FLICKS!' which our hubbies have a distinct lack of like for! Then dinner break and a discussion on how we all could hate a movie so much, but let it run cause we didn't want to upset someone, if anyone else was enjoying it. After that discussion Tania felt no NEED to pull punches, and after a couple of readily voiced objections
we found yet another movie to watch!

And a late night spa looking at the stars, me and Tania......."is that the milky way?"......"no!"....."yes!".....
and other such riviting discussions and we were ready for another....you guessed it......MOVIE!

Now I'd hate to rivit you all with our fascinating weekend if it wasn't for the fact that this was a 'garden planning' weekend! Or so our husbands thought anyway!

Without boring you all with how our Sunday went (much of the same really, then heading home again) I would like to note that because of the lack of planning that actually took place, another weekend is definitely in the planning stages!

OK so more planning on the planning weekends than the actual garden but hey, who are we to complain right? (Thats the hubbies job who all got left with the kids! he he!)

 

Time to get busy

Well, after all that effort getting ready, we of course had no seedlings to plant. As a result, we have had a couple of weeks off. Now of course there is plenty to get back into. Mind you, if you'll check out Mummies in Pinnies, you'll see we did get up to some other types of mischief.

We had made rows and put beetroot, carrot and radish in. So far the radish is doing well - even some rogue ones that have popped up from last years patch. The interesting thing is that the beetroot seeds on the right hand side are doing well whereas the beetroot on the left side is not as advanced.

Now, right at the beginning, we decided to spray glysophate on some kikuyu grass that was coming in through the side of the greenhouse. It is supposed to be rendered useless upon contact with dirt, BUT, given the problem with the beetroot and no apparent issues with the water supply, we wonder if this is really true.

At first I thought the carrots had done nothing, but now I can see that the seeds have washed off the tops of the mounds and are growing up in the middles. V suggested teatowels on top to keep them moist, and our friend Sarah the Gardener has suggested making a type of seed tape using toilet paper.

The same day as planting beetroot seeds, we also threw in a pile of potatoes and a few yams. So far 13 potato seeds have done their job. Yams will take their time.

As for the seedlings, we had some trouble with the first batch we had sown. Perhaps we should not have used the seeds we had stashed away at the back of the laundry cupboards - well past their used by date. Having said that the silverbeet seeds that frankly looked sick and were well past their use by date worked perfectly well... so you never know.

Anyway, we replanted beans, more peas, onions and pak choi. After only 10 days ago and they are poking their heads out nicely, so at least we don't have to go out and buy 60 bean seedlings etc to cover our five families. Imagine the expense...

Photos to come - once Tania gets here :)