A veggie garden thread
Interesting Fitzy.
Been a great growing season down here. Veggies are pumping.
There has been a bit of warm humid weather though which the stone fruit don't like so my peaches have got a bit of "brown rot" on most of them which is a pain in the arse.
Wait all year for it and they rot in front of your eyes!
Cucumbers have gone nuts. It’s like Day of the Triffids. Insane.
Tomatoes - really healthy looking plants, heaps of fruit, but they won’t ripen
Zucchini - started with a solid crop but have really backed off
Capsicum plants look healthy but no fruit yet.
Green beans, sugar snaps and snow peas got decimated by rats / possums. Normally an absolute crowd pleaser with the kids, fresh off the vine.
Bok Choy was kicking along nicely til the possums destroyed it.
Herbs are so so. Parsley is competing with the capsicum for colonizing rights, coriander has been a major disappointment this year, mint is mediocre.
Planted an echinacea last year, thought it had died over winter but came back with a vengeance late spring. No idea what to do with it.
Possums continue to be a challenge. They’re not scared of our sook of a Kelpie
The persistent strong easterly winds has smashed my veggie garden and taken its toll on some natives also. Silverbeet and eggplant are fairing the best.
Anyone else have ideas with veggies tolerant of the strong easterlies?
goofyfoot wrote:Interesting Fitzy.
Been a great growing season down here. Veggies are pumping.
There has been a bit of warm humid weather though which the stone fruit don't like so my peaches have got a bit of "brown rot" on most of them which is a pain in the arse.
Wait all year for it and they rot in front of your eyes!
Goofyfoot I have 3 peach trees that are into their 5th year now and I would be lucky to have got about 20 edible peaches off them in all that time thanks to this disease. Shits me up the wall as the only way to eat a peach is straight off the tree. I don't know about the humidity but I've heard once your tree is infected you may as well cut it down. I've given mine a few chances now but they are coming out next week.
Hey tubeshooter - yeah, they can be funny things the finger limes, really variable performance in terms of general growth/health and fruit production each year, then maybe you'll get some that just keep pumping out the fruit every year. My best one is pretty large now, well over head height and bushy, about 4 years old. 'Cyrstal' variety. I've already sole nearly 4kg off it over the past month, and I reckon there's at least another couple of kgs left. I've described it as 'absolutely dripping' with fruit. Looks incredible. Good sized fruit too, some as long as your hand and thick and juicy. Selling well at the local fruit & veg outlet.
Other 'ricks reds' variety trees are as you say hanging onto the fruit for ages. Its actually worked out well, in terms of me not having a massive glut to sell all at once.
watch out for the thorns - I ensure all thorns are removed from good sections of the stems so I can reach in and give it a good shake and let the fruit drop. Always tempting to grab them off the tree, but if you make a habit of that you'll soon learn. I might have mentioned it on here last year - I developed a granuloma tumour on a finger from a deep thorn spike. It was nasty
Cheers GreenJam. Thanks for the input.
Finger limes are a new thing for me, and after having them with seafood I'm hooked.. I only have the plant because a friend who moved gave it to me. It's thriving in it's new sunny position.
The thorns are a pain though, literally , and I'll be mindful of that injury of yours from now on. They are savage spikes.
I didn't know about the branch shaking part but it makes sense , thanks for the tip. I don't want to waste any of them.
Currently wearing a half dozen finger lime spikes in my index finger. It’s been a great year for them. High yield. Citrus caviar!
even though I'm extra careful these days, I'm still copping the thorn spikes regularly, and now paranoid that one will form into another one of those nasty tumours. Now whenever a spike looks to be getting a bit swollen/red/sore - my treatment is to put a decent glob of the high-grade manuka honey on it and wrap up the finger in a bandage overnight, let is absorb in. Its working wonders so far.
cd wrote:The persistent strong easterly winds has smashed my veggie garden and taken its toll on some natives also. Silverbeet and eggplant are fairing the best.
Anyone else have ideas with veggies tolerant of the strong easterlies?
Where are you?
garyg1412 wrote:goofyfoot wrote:Interesting Fitzy.
Been a great growing season down here. Veggies are pumping.
There has been a bit of warm humid weather though which the stone fruit don't like so my peaches have got a bit of "brown rot" on most of them which is a pain in the arse.
Wait all year for it and they rot in front of your eyes!
Goofyfoot I have 3 peach trees that are into their 5th year now and I would be lucky to have got about 20 edible peaches off them in all that time thanks to this disease. Shits me up the wall as the only way to eat a peach is straight off the tree. I don't know about the humidity but I've heard once your tree is infected you may as well cut it down. I've given mine a few chances now but they are coming out next week.
Hey gary just seen this post, did you pull the trees out? Are you sure it’s brown rot and not leaf curl? As far as I know brown rot will come and go with the humid weather. But that may be wrong. I wouldn’t pull them just yet
When the labours of love and La Niña collide….
This isn’t a veggie garden. It’s got a few fruit trees but it’s more about beauty and habitat. Creating a place we want to live as anyone does. A couple of nice wet years after a horrid centennial drought raises the spirits and allows the Earth to show its benevolent side.
It’s a pretty aspect to begin with, littoral rainforest bordering sclerophyll forest. Sandunes across the road and the ocean a few hundred metres away. It’s got a bit of everything. The fun and challenge is in the transplantation and propagation of new plants.Always something new to learn and admire.
Gardening….can you dig it?
[
Another garden development is the arrival of bunya nut season. This only happens every few years and the trees seem to time it so the nuts are released during times of low fire threat.
The bunya is an ancient tree species and it’s fruit was eaten by dinosaurs who then dispersed the seeds in their shit!
The bunya is very important to Australian blackfellas. The bunya harvest was time for a great ceremony and truce between groups who would journey hundreds of kms to the bunya range to share the harvest. The nuts are sweet and taste like chestnuts when roasted. The bunya pine trees were one of the only examples of hereditary possession found in Indigenous Australian culture. Families owned individual or groups of trees and these were passed down generations. The importance of the bunya to indigenous culture was initially recognised by colonists and bunya habitat protected and off limits to private ownership and development until the 1860s but the usual greed / politics soon decided that’s enough of that and the trees were mostly felled to clear for agriculture….nice work ( extreme sarcasm).
The trees can get to be 600 years old. Respect the Bunya!
Get it bunya inta ya!
Keep your eyes peeled and grab some good food. Don’t get hit in the head by a falling nut or in all likelihood you will probably die.
Do you have trees on your place? How do you prepare them to eat Blowin?
Got a tree up our place in the hinterland but these nuts are from a tree a couple of houses down. My brother in law boils them but we will roast them.
You tried them?
You’re a pro seed harvester aren’t you?
No never have. You roasting in oven or on the coals? I planted 2 at my place 8 years ago that are around 5 metres now. Beautiful looking trees. Plenty of them around the Blackall Ranges and Mary Valley if you get off the beaten path. Might go for a drive and see if I can find some to try. I’ve been to the Bunya Mountains a few times and the amount and size of the trees there is amazing.
Hi GF - where are you?
Near Forster.
I'm waiting a few weeks for sign of season change before doing a replant. But yeah have certainly been battling the salt air here.
Blowin wrote:When the labours of love and La Niña collide….
This isn’t a veggie garden. It’s got a few fruit trees but it’s more about beauty and habitat. Creating a place we want to live as anyone does. A couple of nice wet years after a horrid centennial drought raises the spirits and allows the Earth to show its benevolent side.
It’s a pretty aspect to begin with, littoral rainforest bordering sclerophyll forest. Sandunes across the road and the ocean a few hundred metres away. It’s got a bit of everything. The fun and challenge is in the transplantation and propagation of new plants.Always something new to learn and admire.
Gardening….can you dig it?
[
So nice.
When I think of the north east coast of Oz that’s what I picture. Sweet
We were going to oven roast them but the coals is a great idea! Luckily we scooped a few cones so there’s heaps of nuts to experiment.
Good luck on your search. Epic excuse to get amongst the bush with a treasure hunt for food.
cd wrote:Hi GF - where are you?
Near Forster.
I'm waiting a few weeks for sign of season change before doing a replant. But yeah have certainly been battling the salt air here.
Hey cd,
I’m on the Mornington Peninsula in Vic.
I’ve got friends who have managed to grow good crops of veggies just behind the dunes at their houses.
They have planted low growing hedges around their beds to help block the salt spray, seems to have worked.
There is a bit of info on the net about salt tolerant veggies.
https://www.yates.com.au/ask-an-expert/vegetables/plants/what-advice-do-...
yeah had some wattle trees previously providing some protection by filtering the salt air. I pulled them out to create some more space. I'm going to replant a vegative screen. Makes sense. Thanks for the feedback -link.
My asparagus (young) didn't do well- but will come back. Had a rockmellon self seed and went ok until the scrub turkeys found it. Exposed side of the rosemary died back - fig tree (young) dropped leaves, new shoots coming back now. Citrus had big leaf drop.
Eggplant and spinach probably went the best. i'm thinking of putting in some bananas- seem to grow ok on tropical islands. i had a good crop of sweet potatoes also until the scrub turkeys got into them also- they are another battle.
Ain't easy been a farmer haha
Blowin- garden looks great
seeds wrote:No never have. You roasting in oven or on the coals? I planted 2 at my place 8 years ago that are around 5 metres now. Beautiful looking trees. Plenty of them around the Blackall Ranges and Mary Valley if you get off the beaten path. Might go for a drive and see if I can find some to try. I’ve been to the Bunya Mountains a few times and the amount and size of the trees there is amazing.
Young Mr Seeds. Go out the back of Imbil, on the way to Borumba dam. There is some huge forests of them out on crown land. Pretty spooky there when they are dropping. Would kill you faster than a coconut.
This thread is epic guys.
Your little patch is gorgeous Blowy.
tiger wrote:seeds wrote:No never have. You roasting in oven or on the coals? I planted 2 at my place 8 years ago that are around 5 metres now. Beautiful looking trees. Plenty of them around the Blackall Ranges and Mary Valley if you get off the beaten path. Might go for a drive and see if I can find some to try. I’ve been to the Bunya Mountains a few times and the amount and size of the trees there is amazing.
Young Mr Seeds. Go out the back of Imbil, on the way to Borumba dam. There is some huge forests of them out on crown land. Pretty spooky there when they are dropping. Would kill you faster than a coconut.
Hello Mr Tiger
Yes mate know that area well. Have been 4wheeling out there for years with my boys. Some beautiful bush, rainforest, steep tracks and deep gorges between there and Charlie Morelands and Booloumba and some nice stands of Bunyas. Hope all is well with you and family
What a wonderful habitat you have there Blowin, all the critters must love it. I see a decorated bower bird structure. Fantastic
PS Tiger I think you’re referring to the canoe launch spot
goofyfoot wrote:garyg1412 wrote:goofyfoot wrote:Interesting Fitzy.
Been a great growing season down here. Veggies are pumping.
There has been a bit of warm humid weather though which the stone fruit don't like so my peaches have got a bit of "brown rot" on most of them which is a pain in the arse.
Wait all year for it and they rot in front of your eyes!
Goofyfoot I have 3 peach trees that are into their 5th year now and I would be lucky to have got about 20 edible peaches off them in all that time thanks to this disease. Shits me up the wall as the only way to eat a peach is straight off the tree. I don't know about the humidity but I've heard once your tree is infected you may as well cut it down. I've given mine a few chances now but they are coming out next week.
Hey gary just seen this post, did you pull the trees out? Are you sure it’s brown rot and not leaf curl? As far as I know brown rot will come and go with the humid weather. But that may be wrong. I wouldn’t pull them just yet
Not leaf curl goofyfoot. I get that every year living in a city environment but have learnt to manage that quite well. When the peaches are green they get this small spot of clear "gum" on them and as they ripen they can "mummify" with a day or two. The picture below is from a bad infestation a few years back. And it's not fruit fly as we don't have them down here. I'd love to know how to control this but as I said I haven't had much success. They are still standing so maybe I could give them another season.
I certainly dig it Blowin - looks and sounds great. And I love that you mentioned/are near the 'littoral rainforest'. Possibly my favourite ecosystem type, along with the 'dry rainforest', of which the Bunya and Hoop pines (more so Hoops) are emergents, the monarchs of the forest.
It has been a bumpa Bunya season up here. A tree I planted about 15 years ago dropped a total of 53 cones, mostly between late December and mid Jan, all done now. The year before only 3! Yeah, they obviously sense the optimal conditions for good regeneration. I've got a couple of boxes of the seeds at the moment. Give many away, but also propagate many - generally do a new batch of 20-30 seedlings each year and give the young seedlings to anyone who visits my place. They can be an awesome balcony plant and even temporary indoors plant, very hardy, can grow quite large in a small pot.
The Bunya and all the native pines are perhaps my favourite trees. I have batch on the deck, a bit of an ode to the local native pines - Bunya, hoop, kauri, plum (Podocarpus elatus).
And agreed Seeds and Tiger - there are some rippers in the Mary Valley region. I lucked onto a particularly special one very nearby, at the end of a short trail - massive, so already hugely impressive, but then also has all the old toeholds right up the trunk from when the real locals used to climb it. There is a special vibe at this place, a little waterfall and pool right next to it, I can sense the history, no doubt an old gathering place to chill while likely feasting on the nuts.
and those bloody turkeys... even though I am a Land for Wildlife property and am stoked all the habitat creation has drawn them in, I had to take action recently and trap one and relocate it. It started eating all the cassava, wiped out that crop, then started to eat green banana bunches (seems to just love starch), but the cruncher was when it decided to build a mound, and right on top of my best mully patch area, and then did it again in the next best spot. It ended up trying to build 5 mounds in different places. One sat for a while so it did actually create some awesome compost, which I then respread onto the mully zone once the bastard was long gone, thanks mate... It was a lengthy war, I lost a few battles but won in the end. Until the next one moves in I guess.
Blowin wrote:When the labours of love and La Niña collide….
Jeezus that's a slice of paradise you have there.
Been involved in hectic battles with turkeys for longer than I can remember.
Best I've come up with is a policy of strategic harassment which keeps them nervous around humans.
V. stubborn and persistent though.
yeah Freeride, they sure are stubborn and persistent. And I decided I would be the same. It was also damaging the macca trees, the amount of mulch they can move overnight is impressive.
but then you can stop them in their mound building by just putting a big tarp over the mound, and stick a mirror next to it. That seemed to work, but it just moved to the next spot, so yeah I had to be persistent.
and back to the Bunyas - someone above mentioned the Bunya Mountains. I recommend a visit - epic trees and not just the Bunyas, just really beautiful and impressive rainforest. A unique place. And lots of really cool little cottages for rent, good value in the summer off season.
Had heaps of little bush rats around lately and I think they’ve demolished my corn cobs overnight, or possums?
Also the Vietnamese mint is going nuts with basically no love. It’s been unreal in stir-fry’s and soups this summer
Pests and predators can break your heart. Just when you think you might get across the line….
Yeah they were about a week off being ready after growing for the last few months, spewing.
Little bastards knew exactly when to nail them
GreenJam wrote:yeah Freeride, they sure are stubborn and persistent. And I decided I would be the same. It was also damaging the macca trees, the amount of mulch they can move overnight is impressive.....
friends had a big pile of mulch delivered to their holiday house. two weeks later when they next visit, the mulch has disappeared, every little last speck of it. they are completely dumfounded. when walking in the bush, they find their mulch...moved a few hundred metres away and a bush turkey standing on top.
if only we could harness that energy for good.
I've made the mistake before of trying to reseed some bare patches caused by the last drought.
Turkeys come in and eat the seed and scratch up the soil and surrounding veg, making the bare patch twice as bad.
it needs to be fenced.
An awakening spiritual connection to the Earth delivered with the technical and creative ability to convey the true beauty of the experience.
that was pretty cool Hot tuna. The simple but good life...
winter crops starting to go in here, turmeric starting to be harvested, some decent yields from sweet potato patches, pumpkins everywhere, finger limes aplenty bringing in some pocket money, the macca harvest still going strong with box no. 5 nearly full, signs that the grass growth is going to slow down so looking forward to less brushcutting, and 4.20 day not far off, meaning some fresh and tasty medicinals soon to be had. Happy gardening all
Mangoes loving La Niña …..so far.
Geez look at those buds. Do you harvest them yourself or get someone in. Or just eat the ones the bats don’t get?
Pretty late to get decent fruit set on mangoes this far south, I reckon.
You want hot dry weather for fruit set - which is rare in sub-tropics. More common in Nino years.
Humid wet summer will spoil the fruit.
Could be wrong.
Been two big browns battling for territory (or mating) around the veggie patches the last few days.
Impressive animals and gee, they can accelerate when they want to.
Here’s a photo from September 15 / 2020.
The 2020/ 2021 season was the best I’ve ever seen for mangoes here. Stupid amounts of rain that year. I think the latitudal timing is heavily influenced by aspect of the plantation. This is all facing true North. As you say though … I Could be wrong !
Proper rain started about November 2020 as far as I can recall. We had record breaking rain through summer that year. Fruit was epic.
And here’s some photos from 3 December 2020. Check the difference in colour of the vegetation! Fruit is very late down here but Northern aspect keeps it pumping along.
Photos 5th February during ultra wet summer.
Wonder what varieties?
Normally wet summers see the anthracnose (fungus) destroy the fruit or ruin the fruit set.
those mangoes look awesome .
R2E2 +nam dok mai?
R2E2, Nam Doc Mai and Heidi’s in the photos. That’s about a third of them.
Pretty nuts year. Last year was a dud. I’m assuming they have sequential on / off years That’s my excuse! Can’t get enough mangos. Like Bubba and his shrimp in Forest Gump. Fresh mango, frozen mango cheeks, mango daiquiris, dehydrated mango etc etc.
Bats seem to pass through and haven’t seen them in any numbers for a few years…fingers crossed.
As for snakes…been reading about the reptilian tendency towards brumation opposed to hibernation lately. Interesting! Anyway, they’re out and about. Found a couple of male diamond pythons jostling for position near a female in the shed. Barn owl didn’t seem to be fussed. Lizards doing their doughy Valium sun bake thing. Beardeds, land mullets. Always good to see.
Love it all!
seeds wrote:R2E2 +nam dok mai?
You know your mangos! You grow?
Bought my old man an R2E2 tree about 12 years back. It’s steady but not prodigious. Little too far south for decent mango growing weather (Shoalhaven).
That crop looks incredible.
DudeSweetDudeSweet wrote:seeds wrote:R2E2 +nam dok mai?
You know your mangos! You grow?
My parents have a small plantation up north with those two varieties. Love the nam do mai especially.
Is there a gardening thread? I haven't seen one but I've seen lots of posts about people's veggie growing tips. How about we help each other out?
Planted first garden in about ten years today.
Lettuce, broccoli, swedes, kale, thyme, parsley. Raised bed under straw. Peas and carrots go in tonorrow.