Rebekahs Vegie garden

21 Mar '05 11:25 am

I was out in my vegie garden last night, just sitting there looking at it, mind going a thousand miles an hour, wondering what I'll do with it over winter, which seems to be slowly knocking on our door.

I've got 2 vegie beds - an origional one and another which is slightly smaller that I dug up last winter (no easy job when the ground is still frozen (yes I'm a keen vegie gardner!)).

The origional bed is about 2.5m X 6m.
New bed is about 3m X 5m. New bed is devided up into 3 plots with a brick walkway through the middle.

Recently I went into the shop where I work (its an orchard shop (how typical of me eh?!) and brought a bag of Van Rosa table spuds. God they're yummy!!

Anyway, long story short I thought about putting some of those (Van Rosa spuds) in the ground over winter in the 'new vegie' garden.

Now, I know its the wrong time of year for them to be grown, but with some TLC and my heavy duty 'professional' frost cloth, I bet I can get some spuds from my little tubers (now that bag of table spuds just saved me more money!).

What do you guys think? The only vegies I can grow without any trouble over winter is the brassicas.

Hhmmm... someone needs to modify the gene in plants so they're tough enough to resist the winter frosts!

23 Mar '05 9:53 am

I got up early this morning, and get into my vegie vine patch which is down the driveway.

Previously I'd counted around 12 pumpkins growing there, and god knows what else is hiding away.

I picked 7 pumpkins ranging in sizes and breeds. but the funny part is I only planted 1 breed of pumpkin - grey crown. And yet I have Buttercup growing out there too, so I'm buggered if I know where thats come from!
There is about another 6 pumpkins still out there but they're only wee ones, so I've decided to leave them on (until Jack Frost comes) in the hopes that they just might grow a bit bigger now others have been removed.

My Zucchini is coming to the end of its production life. I don't think I'll grow as many next year - maybe only 6 plants at the most. I had planted out 25 zucchini plants this year (I sell my produce).
However, any zucchini that get away on me and turns into marrows, the chooks love eating them so it isn't a total waste.

All my garden scraps go to the chickens. If I've picked a head of broccoli, the chooks get the rest of the plant. Dig out some old silverbeet - they love that too.

24 Mar '05 10:59 pm

Smile

I took this picture from under a picnic table at the shop where I work.

24 Mar '05 11:00 pm

Garden of surprises

I was digging around in the 'new' garden this afternoon and stumbled across these spuds.

No need to guess what we had for dinner Cool

24 Mar '05 11:01 pm

Tomatoes

Still a number of people saying they have blight and other things knocking their plant back a bit this year, but I've managed to keep pests at bay - thank god!

I'm just thankful that this year tomatoes aren't as bad to grow as they where last season. Last season was a shocker for tomatoes down here. Everyone struggled to get some ripened. Most plants last season where at least a month behind.

Taupo

Grosse Lisse

Kakanui 2000

24 Mar '05 11:02 pm

New vegie garden

Here is a picture of my 'new' vegie garden I made last winter. This is where I will put in some Van Rosa potatoes during this winter to see how they grow. If they grow, they grow. If they don't, then oh well.

24 Mar '05 11:03 pm

Mint

Here is one of the pots of Wild West Coast mint. It has the most strongest flavour I've ever come across in any mint.

26 Mar '05 7:12 pm

These pictures are amazing! I look out at my shameful patch (aargh! more self sown tussock, calendula, and lavender seedlings than vegetables), and I blush. I wish I had grown more potatoes! I love the Jersey Bennies, but this spring I forgot (until they had sold out) to plant any.

Regards the moosey tomatoes - we've liked the taste of the pink brandsywine tomatoes - except there have only been two of them (the birds got the rest).

Rebekah, have you ever grown spuds in a stack of old car tyres, in peastraw? The books make it look really sensible, and easy (I've never tried). I wondered if that way you could 'do' some out of season plantings and get - you know - spuds on mid-winter's day - well maybe not, but almost? Do you have a glasshouse? Perhaps the tyre stack in the glasshouse would get enough light etc. Hmm...

Anyway, thanks for the lovely inspiring photographs. I wonder if my too-small row of parsnips is ready yet?
Cheers, and Happy Gardening

27 Mar '05 9:52 am

Moosey - I've grown spuds in buckets before, but to be honest, its much easier (personal experneice) for me to just grow direct into the ground. I haven't tried the tyres though.

Yes, I've got an old glasshouse which seems to be falling apart. It was here when we moved in. All I've done to it is put a lick of pain on the inside to help protect leaves from getting burnt in summer.
Bits of glass are breaking Confused

so something will need to be done about that.

I'll give these spuds a go outside and if it works then thats great. If not, then oh well. Won't know until you try, right?

27 Mar '05 9:56 am

Dreamers vegie garden

After watching Ground Rules last night, I was left drooling and gagging at the bit to get a roll on my new project that'll happen some time down in the biggest pipe line of all pipe line of things.

There is a fence around my vegie garden (no surprise there really) to keep things (cows mostly, since the plot will go in a paddock) out of the vegie garden. Should I find a cow in this "soon to be one day new garden" then I'll shoot her dead before she can tell the story. And yes, I'm very protective of my vegie garden.

This fence is 13m X 16m 'square'.

Inside this fence will be 5 vegie plots.
2 plots: 6m X 3m
1 plot: 4m X 3m
1 plot: 3m X 5m
1 plot: 9m X 3m
The plot that measures 4m X 3m I'm undecided as to whether I'll 'cage' it to keep birds out so I can grow tomatoes over summer and other delicates that birds seem to really enjoy, OR put a glass house in there.

Also inside the fence there are 4 fruit plots.
2 plots: 2m X 3m
2 plots: 1m X 4m

All beds will be raised up by 30cm.

The rest of the area that isn't plots will be bark chipped or similar to stop pugging in the ground.

So, I think (hope) that I will now have a big enough vegie patch to have a good selection of vegies grown all year around.