September Garden Share Collective

 

This month I thought it might be nice to join in at The Garden Share Collective hosted by Lizzie. I'm just finding my feet with it so I will just plod along and see how it goes.

 

 My kitchen garden is really looking nice thanks to a quick run around with the lawnmower. Paths are neat and the compost heap has a load of clippings.

My system of giving each vegetable bed a bit more attention on the day of the month corresponding to its number has been working well. So well in fact I have been getting ahead. I'm sure in a couple of months time when the summery weather is here I will be telling a different tale. But I hope not.

 

The weather over the past week has been stunning. Perfect for being outdoors and decidedly spring like. Plants that were looking a bit lacklustre are now starting to put on some growth.

The orchard is at its prettiest (apart from when there is actual fruit on the trees that is). Blossoms are everywhere and the bees are especially happy. The flowers are also attracting quite a few butterflies as well which is really nice.

What I have promised myself is that given it is a new month and spring to boot, we will be eating something from the garden everyday. Some days it might be something pretty humble like a handful of herbs  or like last night, everything we ate from the plant kingdom came from the garden- asparagus, carrots, celery, rocket, lettuce, parsley, spring onion and oregano. Tonight instead of our regular Sunday fare of soup, we are having a roast lamb dinner. From the garden will be the potatoes, carrots, broccoli, cabbage and a few leafy greens. The lamb of course is from the farm too.

September is one of my favourite months (I have eleven others by the way) it being my birthday month and all. The weather is usually near perfect. Not too hot or cold and a little rain to keep things fresh. The winds that batter us in August have usually dissipated too. This month I have my high tea to look forward to as well and a rather intense to-do list. So here it is, the to-do list.

September To- Do in the garden

• mow the orchard and label trees
• mulch roses
• weed herb garden path
• move compost along
• mulch front garden
• keep sowing seeds for summer
• tidy up shed garden
• general clean and tidy

Tracy

Weeding and such

 This small part of the front garden probably shouldn't be bothered with at all. It has poor drainage and not much seems to like it there. Consequently I never pay it much attention. Well, it is there so I guess it deserve better treatment and who knows, maybe it will reward my efforts with some flowers. Today when I weeded there it had a cement like crust on top and a fair bit of clay below the surface but on a positive note, there were a lot of very fat and healthy looking earthworms. Can't be too bad if the worms like to live there.

 I wanted to mulch the area after I finished weeding and planting a few cuttings and seedlings. Before mulching I had to weed the mulch. The grass in the bale had sprouted and was really growing rather nicely. At least this batch of mulch doesn't seem to have any nasty weeds in it like some we have had.
It's always a risk when bringing mulch.

It didn't take too long. Half an hour tops which is lucky because I seem to have a mountain of things on my to-do list.

 

One job completed today was gathering rocks to place around my kumquat tree. It is in an old wash tub which I found on the roadside. The bottom half of one side of the wash tub is no more so I thought rather than move the tree and because I like the old tub too, I would just build it up with rocks. Doesn't look too bad and the soil is staying where it should which really is the main thing. Collecting rocks is a good workout too.

 

Now I'm off to do some baking and bread making because even though I would like to, I can't work outdoors all day.

 

Tomorrow is a big work day too.

 

Are you busy? If you are, I hope you are busy doing things that bring you joy.

 

Tracy

Too early for tomatoes??

The last few times I have visited the plant shop they have had tomato seedlings galore (and they are very tempting). Now just last week we had our coldest night time temperatures of the year with severe frosts so  when I see people loading their trolleys and baskets with tiny little tomato plants I want to shout don't do it. Wait. Of course I don't, it's none of my business and in fact most likely the gamble will pay dividends. Today when I bought my own little punnet of tomatoes I felt like I should be looking over my shoulder just in case there was some crazy lady about to tell me not to do it and wait until it was safe. Alas, she was holding the basket and in my defence, my seedlings are going to be potted on and hang out in the greenhouse for a little while.

 

Tiny Tim tomatoes unfortunately photobombed by a dog's bottom

 "Tiny Tim" is a variety I haven't grown for a while. The last few years I've stuck with grape type small tomatoes and  black cherry tomatoes which have been prolific.

 The little greenhouse where my seeds start out is getting a bit too warm so I think I might move it just a fraction to cool it down a touch. I don't want the seeds to cook, just germinate. The okra were the first seeds to pop up and so far I have ten or so varieties of tomatoes in there plodding along.

 It might be too early for tomatoes to be in the ground here but apparently not too early for the almond to be in bloom.

Monarch on the plum

And not too early for the plum trees either. The apricot is going to be next to burst into flower. Any day now. It's good the flowering is staggered a bit, it gives the bees a longer time period to access the orchard flowers and it also means the bees can concentrate their efforts on pollinating only a few trees at a time. Win-win.

 

The turkeys have taken up nesting rights in amongst some lavender bushes. I'm not sure if I will leave them there and work out some sort of way to secure the mother bird from predators or if I will help her choose a more appropriate nest. My birds are fairly compliant until they start incubating the eggs that is.  It does sound rather dreamy though, a nest in the lavender.

 

Have you started planting any spring/ summer things yet?? Or are you settling down for the cooler seasons in the north?

 

Tracy

High Tea for me

I've done it. I've chosen a date for my High Tea for Habitat for 2013. Saturday, 14 September is the day and I do hope it is a nice one weatherwise because I'm thinking a springtime tea in the garden will be sweet.

 

 Last year was very small scale with just my sister and some of our children but this year I thought why not go a little bigger. Who knows though, maybe no one will be able to or even want to trek out here for a cuppa and a piece of cake so it still might be small scale yet.

High tea is my favourite kind of afternoon tea. Why? I'm not fond of sweets so all those lovely little savoury morsels entice me. I do like baking the sweet things though so I'm happy all round. I don't like buying into the trend that high tea has become of late but I can say I've been having high tea even when it wasn't THE thing to do and I will be still partaking long after it is blasé and the next fad has taken its place.

The High Tea for Habitat program raises funds for Habitat for Humanity and building homes both here in Australia and overseas. It feels good to help out even in a small way and the added bonus is time with friends. It's not too late to register to host  a tea of your own. If you do sign up to host a tea, you are sent the sweetest host kit and the even can be as big or small as you like. It's fun. I just wish all of my lovely blogging friends could visit for my high tea now that would be fun.

No more talk of tea or I will be boiling the kettle and I have to get back to work. We had a very cold start this morning. A heavy frost and our lowest temperatures this year. Birdbaths and chicken water dishes frozen over. Makes me wonder why I actually sowed my spring vegetable seeds in the little greenhouse last week. But they seem ok and warmer than the surrounds so all is good there.

Tomorrow I am off to Agquip so most likely no blogging, no gardening, no cooking. Just tired feet from lots of walking.
Tracy

Distracted... it's so easy

My top priority in the garden today is to get bed 4 of the herb garden weeded and ready to replant. It is an unsightly mess of weeds with a few herbs hanging in there that you can barely make out. I have been a slacker regarding this bed. But according to my calendar , it is the week that this bed must be put to rights. Not only that, I think it is a good idea to come clean here and not just show the pretty parts of the garden. It's how it really is. But today I am not going to be distracted too easily, I hope.

 

 Before this quick tea break, I made some progress and the lure of the wee new chamomile, lavender and tansy plants I have to pop in to all of those new spaces opening up will have me back out there after lunch (and some necessary housework of course) to finish the job.

Not before I got distracted by the Chinese Witch Hazel on the way inside. It is a flurry of pink and very pretty even to someone like me who isn't fond of pink.

 The euryops is also looking rather good but it isn't going to stay for much longer. Once it finishes flowering, it's coming out. It has grown too spindly and tall for the position it is in (my fault for not being harder with the pruning). The bees and hoverflies enjoy it so I will most likely replace it with one of its offspring. Watching bees is a distraction. So is wandering after the butterfly that decided to land on the calendula. I'm ok with that though.

The other good thing to come from actually weeding that overgrown herb bed is some surprise free plants amongst the unwanted ones. I discovered a few small salad burnet plants which had self-sown. They are all now resettled in other parts of the herb garden and watered in. Replanting and watering free plants definitely does not count as a distraction.

I'm heading back out into the gusty and rather cold  August wind.
Tracy

Eating Weeds... stinging nettles

Firstly I'm going to apologise for the rubbish pictures of my pasta. I'll use the excuse that I have a cold (my first in a couple of years) and I wasn't in the mood.

 

We don't eat weeds often but sometimes I get it into my head to do something a bit different. We have already had nettle pasta a time or two this season and that is probably my favourite way to eat nettles. I'm not a fan of nettle soup but Tim likes it so I make that on occasion too. The reason why I chose nettles for my pasta filling yesterday was that my spinach and silverbeet/ chard are just not ready to be picked in large enough quantities.

 

The nettles however are lush and asking to be picked or at least removed.

The secret to no stings is simple. Don't touch them. I use a rather uncoordinated  approach with scissors and tongs to snip the leaves off before blanching them. The blanching process destroys their stinging powers.

 Nettle and ricotta  filled pasta.

Ingredients

Pasta

300 grams plain flour

3 eggs

Filling

200 grams stinging nettles (or spinach, silverbeet or other greens of choice), discard stems

200 grams ricotta

1 egg yolk

100 grams Parmesan, grated

Sauce

100 grams butter

1/2 cup sage leaves

Method

Make pasta by combining the eggs and flour in a food processor until it comes together. Then knead for a few minutes until it is smooth. Allow to rest whilst making the filling.

Blanch the nettle leaves, drain and then squeeze out excess liquid.

Chop the nettles finely and combine with the remaining filling ingredients. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Roll the pasta into sheets about 5cm wide and as thin as possible. Fresh lasagne sheets from the fridge section in the supermarket could substitute.

Place a pasta sheet on a lightly floured surface and place heaped teaspoons of filling every 5cm.

Dampen the pasta around the filling and top the pasta with a second sheet.

Press around the filling to remove air pockets and seal.

Cut into squares.

Cook the pasta in a saucepan of boiling water until done to your liking. About 5 minutes for me.

To make the sauce, cook the butter in a fry pan over a medium heat for a minute then add the sage leaves.

Cook for another two minutes until the butter is slightly brown and the sage leaves are crisp.

Remove from heat and add the pasta.

Toss gently to coat the pasta in the sauce and serve.

Next time I will make a tomato based sauce for these because I think that would go well together and I prefer it to buttery sauces.

Tracy

I hope this works

I have just joined my blog up with the bloglovin site because I know quite a few people are reading blogs they follow over there. As for me, I just follow along and read the blogs  I like from the Blogger dashboard. I don't like to complicate things.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin.

With all of that said, I hope the link works for those using bloglovin.

Tracy

Follow">http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/6063707/?claim=sn6p5zt78qy">Follow my blog with Bloglovin