OH MY!!!!

It's crazy how time flies lately.  Not a lot of time has been spent in the garden as it's just so wet and cold, time to change my mindset I think.

We have had lots of sad times over the last few months, dealing with issues I never thought we would have to deal with so my beautiful family have taken precedence over everything else.  Things are beginning to look up and my attention is starting to stray back to our garden and living simply once again.

Earlier in the week I visited our local nursery and purchased 2 rhubarb crowns, something I had been meaning to do in years past, they went straight in the ground and I look forward to watching them grow.  I will be returning on the weekend to buy a few berry canes, I'm thinking raspberry and thornless blackberry.  I used to have some other berries but they were in the wrong location and I was always getting hooked up in them, I cracked it one day and ripped them out.

I planted a heap of old seed that I had sitting around and was patiently waiting to see if any would grow, most never got the chance as Chia (one of our hens) got into my patch and dug up all the uncovered beds.

I don't even have any photos to share at this time but will take some soon I promise.

KOMBUCHA GOODNESS

Last week I went to a workshop held by my lovely friend to learn about kombucha.  I have tried and failed in the past with my own so it was really helpful to see someone making it and giving lots of tips.  Well last night I got to pour off my yummy goodness into smaller bottles.  I made an apple/ginger and a plum.  I actually got a tummy bug a couple of days ago and was thinking how good this probiotic drink would be but it wasn't quite ready.  That's what I thought anyway until my kombucha guru said to open a bottle and drink some anyway, so this morning I tried the apple/ginger with soda water and is was delicious!  So excited to add such a healthy drink to my daily routine.

Some other things have been happening here on Brown's Hill, the vege patch has given us an abundance of zucchini, beans, cucumbers and tomatoes,  My spaghettti squash is nearly ready and I picked the bush beans I have been drying for seed today.

Gormet Delight

Cherokee Wax

Last week I also went foraging with a friend for blackberries and though it was a painful experience (one I remember from my teenage years) it was so worth it.  After we spent a few hours with the blackberries, we went and picked mulberries.  It was a huge day but I ended up with 14 jars each of blackberry and mulberry jam.

IT'S MONDAY AGAIN...

Early morning picking today as the weather heats up, lots of zucchini and cucumber, the last of the beans and some yummy tomatoes.

At this point in our lives I have had to make compromises, my aim for 2017 was to cut back significantly on waste particularly single use plastic.  Of course I am constantly thinking about this when I purchase anything but circumstances have changed in our little home and our usually strict budget has now become a lot stricter.

As I am the main accounts manager and shopping queen I now have to look at things a little differently.  For instance, today I needed some fresh produce for lunch and some cooking, there was some organic loose leaf lettuce mix going out for half price, bargain! except that it was wrapped in plastic.  I had to make a decision and I chose to buy it.  There are other things that I would normally not buy due to plastics but I now may have to if they are a lot cheaper than the plastic free variety.

My lunch today was a salad using organic lettuce mix (half price), spring onions (in season and on sale), home grown cucumber and tomatoes, a small amount of feta (on sale and I will use it 3 different meals), a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper.

We all have to make decisions, some more important than others, I'm not going back on my ideals but may just have to compromise here and there.  I intend on growing a lot more produce all year round to cut back on waste and of course keep up my cooking from scratch so that of course cuts down on a lot of waste.  If we all do a little bit, then we are making a difference.

For dinner tonight I thought I would use up some eggs from my girls and a couple of our zucchini. For the meat eaters in our home, curried sausages with rice and for me, zucchini slice.

ON THIS DAY...

It was lovely to have a coolish day today to open up the house and get some scrapbooking done in my planner.  I went for a wander up into the patch, it's so good that I am picking something every day now, that makes me so happy.

I've started following a few new blogs and on The Life Of Clare (sorry having trouble linking) she had a post on on gardening journaling.  This is right up my alley and over the years I have keep gardening journals so it's time to start another.

HARVESTING

* Zucchini
* Tomatoes
* Pickling gherkin
* Bush Beans
* Herbs - Chives, Parsley, Bay Leaves
* Eggs

PLANTING

* Beetroot
* Carrot
* Broccoli - in trays

TO DO

* Preserve Excess
* Keep Up Watering
* Weeding
* Tie Up Tomatoes
* Clean Around Beds
* Find Space For New Beds
* Clean Out Chicken Beds
* Take Off Netting
* Clean Up Herb Beds
* Make Use Of Pots

I LOVE MY GARDEN

I have been picking heaps of beans from my Gormet Delight and Cherokee Wax bush beans. Freezing them has been the best way to deal with the glut but fresh, they are oh so yummy!  I am now letting a few beans mature on the plant to collect the seed.

My very first tomatoes for the season, YAY.  They are small but will be delicious I'm sure.  I'm pretty sure they are Tommy Toe that self seeded from last year.

My first pickling gherkins were picked also, time to find another yummy recipe for them and the girls are as always giving us lovely fresh eggs every day, not to mention eating all the scraps from the kitchen and weeds and snails from the garden.

My efforts are well and truly paying off this year, it also helps that everything is behind so I'm actually home to care for my patch instead of running around the countryside with my son's cricket.

AROUND HERE.....

Gosh time seems to fly by lately, I'm now working out of our home more than I would like to but now that Lachie has been selected into the State Cricket Training Team, we need more income to support all of the travel.

I took a little wander to my neglected vege patch today, well not that neglected as we've been picking lots of tasty cucumbers over the last couple of weeks and made some yummy pickles that I can't wait to try.

A couple of weeks ago I worked out that there was no way I was going to have enough tomatoes for sauce this year, so it was off to the farmer's market to buy a box.  My trusty Squeezo made it's annual appearance and now the tomato pulp is sitting in the freezer ready to make sauce this week.

My eggplants are coming along nicely but I'm afraid they may not get any bigger due to the cold weather we are now having, I might cover them tomorrow to try and keep some heat in.

I'm pulling the last of our carrots and totally stuffed up and haven't planted more as yet.

and the last of your very small amount of tomatoes this season.

So that's my life in the garden around here.  I hope it's nice enough weather for a bit of a tidy up in the patch tomorrow and some seed planting.

HAS IT REALLY BEEN A MONTH?

Gosh I can't quite believe I haven't posted for so long.  I have to say not a lot has happened during this cold winter month but now it's starting to get lighter, two of the chooks have started laying.  I'm so happy to have fresh eggs again, Chia and Cyril jnr have begun laying and keeping us stocked.

These eggs are Chia's, Cyril jnr's eggs are a lovely deep brown.

We had a very chilly day at the start of August, boy that wind was straight from the Artic!

I've cooked lot of yummy, nourishing food.

and I spent time out in the veg patch preparing for Spring planting.  Lots of weeding, mulching and adding manure and Seasol to the mix.  The worms are loving it and I can't wait to begin planting again.

Some other exciting news is that my friend Taryn (chook lady) is taking over a market garden in town at the end of September and has asked for help a day a week in exchange for a box of fresh veg.  There's so much I can't grow here due to space so I will be happily helping out and can't wait.

BACK IN BLOGGY LAND

After a well rested break from the land of blog, I think it's about time I show you what's been happening around here.  I have to be honest, I've been so busy with the kids sports and other activities that I just haven't felt like blogging but it's onward and upwards from now on.

After a late hot spell the vege patch took a major hit, I watered but obviously not enough and lost most of our tomatoes, pumpkins and zucchini.   I am hoping for another flourish now that the weather is back to normal.

I swapped these pumpkins and squash with a local girl I'm getting to know for a large bag of tomatoes for saucing, some carrots and turnips.

Today I pulled out dead tomato plants and added compost and chook poo to the beds. Tomorrow I will plant carrot and beetroot seeds in the empty beds now that the soil has cooled down.

 

In the kitchen this week I tried my hand at sushi rolls, they were fun to make and definately something I will do often.

 

 

I made tuna, mayo, asparagus and avocado rolls and teriyaki chicken, asparagus and avocado. Delicious!

NEW USE FOR THE OLD TRAMPOLINE

The poor old tramp barely gets used and I'm sure I could find a use for the frame out in the garden, but for now the kids still have their moments with trampoline basketball so it stays.

Today I pulled the garlic and what a crop!!!   I'm so excited as I haven't had a decent crop for about 4 years.   This year I went to our local organic store and purchased some bulbs and they have given me a big beautiful crop all ready to plait tomorrow after a little drying out on the trampoline.

What a lovely sight (oh hello Heidi)

 

Well I'm off to watch you-tube on plaiting garlic.  I've never had enough to plait before.

MMMMMM......

I patiently wait all year for this moment

 

 

Gosh it was good.

HAPPY HOME

Today was a perfect Spring day. I spent some time out in the patch weeding, picking and pulling up veges including 1 small carrot that came up with the weeds. It didn't last long, Sophie gobbled it up as soon as she saw it.

 

Something else that made me smile today was this find.

 

 

How could I resist.

AROUND HERE.......

Pancakes - Nigella style
with organic maple syrup
lemon juice (from our home grown lemons)
organic panela (we no longer use sugar in our home)

Chicken stock fresh from the canner.

The second crop of peas are flowering

Sweet little wild strawberries are picked daily

Beetroot are nearly ready to pick and preserve

The bulbs think it's Spring (not sure why, it's freezing) but such a welcome site.

My poor garden bench is a little overgrown, a job for next week.

What is happening around your parts?



GOOD FOR MY SOUL

Over the last week I've been battling nausea with a mild case of gastro. I've felt terrible and haven't been outdoors at all.

This morning after a lovely sleep-in, I never sleep in, I woke and headed to the kitchen for a cup of tea and a chat to the kids then decided this was morning to get some fresh air.

I put on some old clothes and armed with my gloves and a wheelbarrow I tackled the overgrown with weeds native area in our front yard. With that job completed, I started on the strawberry and rhubarb patches, then the rain came down. I headed up to the vege patch and continued to weed in the rain, it felt so good to be outside that it wasn't until I had finished that I realised that I was soaked and freezing. This little outing in our garden was just what I needed, it was truely good for my soul.

After a lovely warm shower and some dry clothes I started with the inside jobs with a smile on my face.

 I went to the post office in the afternoon to find a package waiting for me, it was from Lark over at Daylesford, they had a huge sale a couple of weeks back and I bought some goodies for our kitchen.

What a nice day I've had and I'm not feeling like throwing up any more.

TASTY TREATS AND GARDEN HAPPENINGS

Hi, did you miss me? Nothing like a short holiday away from the screen. To be honest, I just haven't felt like blogging lately, there's been a few posts over at One Crafty Habitat but that was all I managed.

Here are some lovely (very rich) Easter treats that the kids and I made up yesterday.

Early this morning after 2 of the children had risen, I made my way out into the vege patch. I picked the last of the tomatoes and pulled the bushes, I dug soil over and added manure then planted carrot, broccoli, peas and beetroot seed and a bed of garlic.

The last of our sweet smelling basil (I will miss you so much over winter).

The beetroot are starting to take off.

The green manure in 3 of the beds is growing well.

The beginnings of 2 new pea beds. This is where I was growing loganberries but to be honest, they weren't that successful, the thorns were terrible and we didn't really like the taste so I ripped them out today and my hands should be fully recovered in a couple of days.

The girls helping out in the hot house with a slater problem.

So there's a glimpse of what I've been up to, I hope you have a lovely Easter break.