T.W.I.G. - (this week in the garden) 3

This week in the garden (TWIG): we've had a few more odd showers and storms which has lifted gardening spirits even if it hasn't filled the dams



many of the citrus are setting fruit - the lemons are looking particularly good at present




mulberries aren't ripe yet (the weather has been very cool) - other deciduous fruit trees have fruit on the way (the later apples have been blossoming) and we've given the whole orchard a liberal application of organic fertiliser

But much of our attention is now being focused on the vege garden... here it is at the end of winter/ beginning of spring - the two new beds in the front here are planted with pontiac potatoes - which have just emerged this week




here's the garden viewed from the west - and now that we have the 6 big beds I'm going to number them (to keep rotation in mind)




the closest to camera (and left to right) will be beds 1 & 2.... 3 & 4 are the raised beds in behind them... and 5 & 6 are the beds with the spuds this season... (I'll drawn a mud map when I get around to it)

bed one now has the first of the leafy greens planted - that's what it will be having all season

bed two will be our fruiting bed (tomatoes, capsicum, eggplant etc.)

bed three will be legumes (currently has a start with late season broad beans)

bed four is root crops - and here is where this week I've sown the first of our root section with royal chantenay carrot, white icicle radish, early wonder beetroot

I am hoping to do a lot of my vege planting according to my moon planting guide - but practicalities mean I have to plant when I have the time.... this has apparently NOT been a good planting week for anything.... oh well....

to do

left over jobs

sow first legumes

sow early tomato seed

beds 2 & 3 turned and prepared


completed

wistringea hedge planted (including attractive tree guards)

nasturtium seeds sown

early root crops seed sown

transplanted lettuce, pak choy, onion seedlings


picking eating
red onion, baby broad bean, chinese cabbage, tuscan kale, leek, carrot, silverbeet, rocket, passionfruit...

pruning

I'm pleased to report that the pruning is now all done (whew just in time! spring seems to be rushing in)



I have a simple - 'one method fits all' style of pruning... everything gets the old 'vase' shape hair cut.... (yes I know some deciduous fruit trees would rather a different shape - but this is all I can do!)

I start by taking out with the long arm loppers ( that I affectionately refer to as 'the bolt cutters') and cut out any growth in the middle of the tree - next I go around the outside of the tree and remove long branches to keep the tree nice and compact (I've got a lot of trees in a tight area - keeping them neat and trim is a must - it also assists with superior fruiting). Then I reach way up high and take out the top. Time to stand back and take in the emerging results... anything that catches my eye as standing out from the crowd gets a bit of a trim.

Now it's on to the smaller secateurs... all the little weedy little growth gets the chop - so too all the damaged or diseased stems... chop chop chop.

Around and around the tree I go (singing 'here we go round the mulberry bush' of course!)


and voila!

Abas apple
whilst I love my pruning results here it's not a very productive tree...

it's all done.... next victim....

spring?

Its not spring until next week - but tell that to the trees...




the apricot began its blossom run a few weeks ago (and with it - so began the aphid invasion.... grrrrrrrrrr)



The white (or 'king shahtoot') mulberry (Morus macroura) is not far behind - the leaf bud is about to unfurl and with it will come the fruit.

But before I can gobble into their super sweet long fruits its neighbour the Black mulberry ( M. nigra) will be ready - look its already got fruit on the go...




YUM!

all this reminds me - I haven't pruned the trees yet - eeeeek! this happens every year...

note to self - DO THE PRUNING IN JULY...

is there anything more lovely...

....than a beautiful butterfly?

I don't think so .... Here is one of the Orchard Swallowtail butterflies that were cavourting around our buddleia bushes this afternoon... it's wings were almost constantly fluttering so it wasn't an ideal life model...


nor indeed was it alone - look closely and you'll see not one, not two, but three darling orchard swallowtails in this shot...



these are HUGE! that's my hand in the shot - and whilst I may not have the longest fingers or largest palm in the world - it will give you some idea of the size of this beauty...



according to both my observation and confirmation in my copy of 'butterflies of australia' - the Orchard Swallowtail (aka Papilio aegeus) fly 'slowly and erratically' (tick) and 'when settled the wings are held outspread' (tick). This looks like a girlie - who have a wingspan of around 108mm (which is bigger than the boys - you go girl!)

The Orchard Swallowtail is quite common around my parts, enjoying not only the buddleia (purpose planted for butterflies) but use my neighbouring citrus as a larval food plant - they do no real damage... and give great joy


ooooo I just have to give it a wee love pat!




I love 'flutterbys'

back online...

Well as anticipated – it is taking some time to get fully back up online after the lightning strike wiped out my modem and computer at the end of November – I' m still not all together yet - although I’ve got an operational modem, I’m working on a borrowed computer…

In the time I’ve been offline the garden has EXPLODED into full production!



All the beds are full – and we’ve been eating from the patch since early November


Fruits are ripening in the orchard (yum!)




Ohhhh and look what Santa gave me for Christmas….

more blossoms in the orchard

The second flush of blossoms is now moving through the orchard - Our deciduous orchard was planted 9 seasons ago - and we had a very big prune this past winter - but our thought has always been - keep the tree smaller with fruit easier to pick - and we are thinking to the future - when we may cover the whole area to create a chook paradise. We've planted early, middle and late season deciduous fruit trees to extend the eating season as far as possible - and if I include the citrus, I can't recall a time throughout the year when there isn't something to pick from a some tree somewhere in the garden

Now the first apples are blooming - our earliest variety is a Cox Orange Pippin (that Sass 'pruned' into an 'artistic' shape a few season ago... poor tree)

and second is the Granny Smith - what a large flower this has - I just love the pink tinges! It will be followed by our Jonathon, Abas, Lady William, Gala and others


Our larger pear tree is a busy place - both native and honey bees are swarming all over it (the pear has taken on a marvelous pendulous shape - we don't prune it as it is in another part of the garden)


The cherry is blooming - but we never hold out much hope of a crop - each year it blooms well and sets fruit - but our climate isn't really right for cherries and before they ripen, many of the little fruits drop (and anything remaining gets snapped up by birds before we can get to them)... maybe this year....




And some of the citrus are already blooming again - citrus are such great trees - the orange blossom smell is divine, and they're so productive - the small citrus grove is now in its fourth season - so we are expecting great things over the next 12 months!