2013 - 2014 Vege garden
last updated 30th March 2014
.....back in March we had Tropical Cyclone Lusy come through, which appart from a few days of heavy rain and powerful winds, the cyclone marked a big change in the seasons.
these little cantelopes were so sweet and fragrant and juicy, possibly the nicest I've ever had. There were a couple of others too but with the heat and the rain they rotted on the ground before we could get them, that's why we collected these two even though they were small. But they were so nice.
a few Lettuces and Broccoli to help us into Autumn and Winter.
Baby Pak Choi with Carrots tucked in between them
Cress to the left Roquette (Rocket) in the centre from the seeds of the last crop, and Celery on the right.
a few Red Rossa Lettuce and a few Curly Lettuce
A random Zucchini hiding under the Nasturtiums
Hubbard Squash
I'm amazed how many Hubbard Sqash grow from one seed, we've had six huge Squashs from this one plant so far.
last of the Zucchinis
we've had such a good crop of Zucchnis this year its been great.
found a Broccoli among the Peas and Zucchinis
they're a bit difficult to see here, but there's heaps of nice Peas
this is some of the damage the Cyclone did in smashing down the Tomatoe plants, but we have still been pulling out a few kgs a day, and there's still more to pick
last of this years Tomatoes, but what a season, so many Tomatoes
finally got a few nice Karelas
a few went to seed also due to us missing them during the Cyclone
wonderful Lettuces
also if you look carefully there's a few Runner beans growing up the wire frame, all the other Beans are finished now.
let us see what we can get going for the next season. I've got a lot
to do pulling out old plants and composting and fixing beds for the winter
crops of Silverbeat, Cabbage, Wong Bok, Pak Choi, Lettuce and Broccoli
that I've got growing in seed trays waiting for a spot in the garden.
Sooooooooo here in NZ we're just in the change of seasons as Summer comes in its last few weeks and we head in a cooler Autumn. Many of our Summer veges have come and gone the loving memory still remains. In this 5th post you'll see the remnants of the Summer crop of Tomatoes, a few Watermelons, wonderful Beetroots, so many Cucumbers and Carrots, most of the Brassicas have gone, new Brussel sprouts, Broccoli and Cauliflower planted. The new bed is pumping veges out already and has Mung bean plants coming to maturity, Broad beans are there, Runner beans are just flowering, and a few random Squash and Zucchinis. In the old beds the Zucchinis are giving a final crop after I cut back all the dead and dried up leaf and stalks, there's lots happening that should now take us through to mid-winter July in time for me to get things ready for Spring again.
a few of Summer's veges Cauliflower, Broccoli, Sicilian purple Cauliflower, Zucchinis, Runner Beans, Cucumber, a little Pumpkin and Banana Squash.
its been ridiculous, we've been collecting 3 -5kgs tomatoes daily, we even have the freezer full of them
a few Beans, Zucchini (even a double one), Cabbage head and Lebanese Cucumbers
Beetroot and more Tomatoes
a couple of Zucchinis and Cabbage
after cutting off all the dry and dead foliage the Zucchinis are coming back for another crop
all fresh new leaves
we still keep finding the occasional sleeping giant
here's a few small Black Beauty Zucchinis in among the Nasturtiums
another sleeping giant Zucchini (White Zucchini)
These Brussel Sprouts are looking pretty rough
Silverbeet
weeded the Silverbeet bed and thinned them out a bit
the Curly Kale is still going strong, a few Carrots around them and a few Lettuces too
this is the bed where the giant White Radish was. It weighed 8kgs, it was a whopper.
On the right is the Land Cress, really nice and hot and spicy flavour.
In the middle are the seeds from the Roquette (Rocket) from last season.
I let it go to seed and then shook the seeds pods over the area and this
is what we have so far,
they are just beginning to come up, another week or so and they can
be used in salads etc.
To the left are Celery plants.
the bushy green plants are Baby Pak Choi, and in between those lines are different varieties of Carrots. It worked nicely last season so just repeating the success formula
these are Brussel Spouts coming along nicely, with Basil in the foreground
a few Runner Beans hanging on the frame
more Beans and a couple of small Pumpkins
A couple of months ago I found some Comfrey growing in the orchard, so I cut off a whole load of leaves and put it into this bucket with some water, put the lid on and walked away and forgot about it for a bit. Well the end result is the most "aromatic brew" I've smelled since going past the open tip outside Dum Dum airport in Calcutta.
To gain some experience of the aroma click HERE to activate "Smell Experience Device"
......the plants love it ........lol
Tomatoes to the left, Beans to the right
this is where all the Brassicas were last season. Now Lettuces round the edge, Carrots and Beetroot still growing down the right side, and in the middle will be the new Broccoli once they are big enough to transplant
This is the Melon bed, there's a few different kinds if one looks closely; Watermelons, Rockmelons etc
Water Melons growing on the sides of the frame
This little beauty is just about ready
a bit difficult to see, but there's some Capsicum Green peppers there
more Peppers, Chilies and Tomatoes
Peas just coming into flower
some small Telegraph Cucumbers next to the Peas
Hmmmm its a bit difficult to see the Burgundy Okra, you can see the stems maybe....... next pic will show
here's a few Burgundy Okra
Black Capsicum Peppers
Green Chilies
Karela - Bitter Gourds
a wild mess of Tomatoes
We had a couple of really heavy storms recently which smashed down the Tomato plants
a bit of a close up on the Melons, Rock Melons and a few White Cucumbers
more Tomatoes, the Sun was the other side of the shot so there's the haze
Potatoes coming along nicely
more Melons, Rock Melons, Water Melon plants
a feral Squash got loose and is growing through the Eggplants
Eggplants to the right, just starting to get little flowers on them now, a bit late but that's life eh
This is that new bed. There's a Bean frame at the end that got smashed
down in the wind storm a few days ago.
On the right at the end is a small patch of Broad Beans, presently
being over taken by some random Zucchinis, and a renegade Squash that is
on the loose.
To the left at the end is a block of Mung Bean plants, they wont be
long until they start giving their beams
In the middle is Brussel Sprouts (again)
One the right down in the corner is a section of Peas that are just
going to flower which turn to Peas
Eggplants directly in front and a few Lettuces around the edge presently
under that Squash's leaves
Brussel Sprout plants competing with the Squash at the moment
beautiful fresh leaf growth of the Zucchinis
Broad Beans if you look carefully
looking through the Runner Beans at the Broad Beans
a Bumble Bee doing its stuff
Rock Melons just in flower
here's that Melon/Watermelon patch
the Mung Bean patch
Tomatoes everywhere
more Tomatoes
some Carrots poking their heads through, asking to be picked
nice little Green Capsicum Pepper
a few more Green Capsicums and Tomatoes
little Rock Melon (Cantaloupe)
a shot toward the house, its about 7pm and the Sun is still hot and there's a haze over the valley
just to give an idea of how tall those Potato plants are growing
big Beetroot ready to come out
the Green Clements Okra are a little smaller than the Burgundy Okra but they're getting there
a few Runner Beans on the frame
Here's my new batch of Tulasi (sacred Basil) plants
a few Coriander seedlings, Marigold Seedlings, and some Cress
in the round tray are the Broccoli and Cauliflower seedlings I just sprouted from seed, they will go in the bed in the garden in a couple of weeks
a few Lettuce and Rosa (red) Lettuce seedlings I planted from seed letting them get big enough to transplant into the garden
Some Coriander and a few different varieties of Basil too.
Two older Tulasi (sacred Basil) plants with their purple Manjaris (flowers)
and my old friend the Chile bush faithfully bearing fruits
the kitchen garden, a few Tomatoes, Coriander, Roquette, Basil and other bits and pieces
More Coriander, more Basil, some Purple Basil, Licorice Basil and Clove
Basil.........
so that's all for now, hopefully catch us later for the next post.
Fourth post of the Garden
(.....most of the fourth posting pics were taken
by my grandson 4 year old Shyam)
Sicilian purple cauliflower
inside the climbing frame
pumpkins climbing up the walls
Pink banana pumpkin squash
Lunar Squash
Lunar Squash
Black beauty zucchinis
Black beauty zucchinis
Black beauty zucchinis
Stripped Italian zucchinis
Stripped Italian zucchinis
soft white skinned zucchinis
Zucchini bread
newly planted Silverbeet and Brussels sprouts
soft white skinned zucchinis
soft white skinned zucchinis
white radish
white radish
white radish
Stringless pole runner beans
my assistant Shyam
Shyam had an accident with a NZ Christmas tree (pahutakawa) ended up
in A&E and the doctor glued the wound closed and put "butterfly stitches"
on it.
The gunk around his mouth and nose is front ice cream , he's a kid
give him a break lol
Telegraph cucumbers lurking in the long grass lol
he loves to sample the fresh veges, he got me to offer some baby carrots for a snack
he finished the first batch and went back for more
The Roquette behind him is now going to seed, great crop from those
Tomatoes to the left, and Cauliflowers in front
can't get veges fresher then that
eeee what's up doc?
just to show the height of the pumpkins and zucchinis
the carrot patch
huge tomatoes still growing
huge tomatoes still growing
huge tomatoes still growing
huge tomatoes still growing
Basil growing in with the Tomatoes good companions
another Sicilian Cauliflower just getting its colour
Green Brocoflower, cross beteen Cauliflower and Broccoli
Snowball Cauliflower taking shape
The new cucumbers in front of the Burgundy Okra
Shyam's favourite Pea patch
Cucumbers hiding in the grass
some of these made a wonderful Raita tonight
Lebanese Cucumbers companions of the Tomatoes
White Cucumbers
Baby Telegraph Cucumbers
Baby Telegraph Cucumbers
Established Cucumbers growing up the frame
Watermelon down the front
Cucumbers and Burgandy Okra
Broccoli, with Radish and Lettuce, and Tomatoes
Curly Kale, Radish, Lettuce, Tomatoes, and Silverbeet
Red Radish
could hear the rumble of thunder as the clouds moved in
a few Apples coming to the orchard
the Bamboo blowing in the wind
Shyam took all these pics of this fly, I just included a couple lol
Then he found another bug
and then another bug
soft skinned white zucchinis - they make fantastic zucchini bread, and zucchini scones and zucchini cakes
yellow Squash
oooops more Zucchinis - I'm sure they hide
Italian Zucchnis - I nearly fell over these ones hiding under the leaves across the path
yellow Zucchinis
Curly Leafed Kale
Liquid Seaweed mixture
Cress
Tomatoes, next to the Carrots
Shyam bean spotting
about three or four kgs
The thunder rumbling in a few drops of rain while the Sun still shines on us - Divya snan
looking toward the Kaimai ranges, across the Uretara river
The new bed filled with grass clippings and sprinkled with Garden Lime,
just need a bit more compost and then the topsoil and we're in business.
I have a whole load of tiny seedlings waiting in seed trays to take
their place in Krishna's service. They'll be in the next posting in a month
or so.
see you again soon
love from Shyam and me
Third posting of the Garden
17th December 2013
Blue Ridge Kale
yours truly in the garden
the new bed to be, half filled with grass cuttings
Lebanese Cucumbers
Lebanese Cucumbers
The Tomatoes are coming along nicely
Broccoli and Tomatoes
Beetroots
Savoy cabbage just forming its head
These are amazing stringless runner beans
Savoy cabbage
the peas
last of the white radish (Muli) the rest found their way into salads and parathas
last of the white radish - now a giant
Bush beans
A view of the garden
soft skinned white Zucchinis
Curly Kale with Lettuce growing in their shade
right hand side is Zucchinis with Bush beans growing among them
left side is Curly Kale with Lettuce growing in their shade
and yes that is my belly sticking out into the pic lol
old Silverbeet & Swiss Chard
new Silverbeet and Brussel sprout seedlings
Zucchini loka
Second post of the Garden
its all starting to happen, as the weather gets better. This front one is the Zucchini bed
lots of Zucchini flowers, we've already had a few 5-6 inch zuchs out so far......
despite the abundance of foliage there's still lots of air-flow and pathways for all the bees and hover wasps to do their pollination thing
lots of broccoli coming on, and as you can see we've had a few. The one's we collected were much bigger than the shop ones' and tastier too. No sprays used here
you may have remembered from the previous pics this was the bed with
the square of carrots in the middle,
they are still there and growing nicely but they've had some gaps filled
in with the huge Lettuces, and now the Curly Kale is coming on in the center
in between the Zucchinis in this bed I put some Bush beans (Dwarf beans) apparently they help each other, great companions
back to the Broccoli, we've even had some leaves, wonderful stuff
Lettuces stuck between the Broccoli and the Zucchinis
we've had so much out of this bed its been unbelievable. The Pak Choi is now ready to come out as its going to flower, I've been thinning them out and using heaps, had several shopping bags FULL of the Pak Choi. What to speak of these Lettuce down the front, and I've pulled some out and relocated them in the new bed. The Carrots are a long way off still, the Carrot tops look pretty good but in the ground are only one and half inch Carrots, I pulled a few just to have a look and show little Shyam, they are really tasty already though.
first of the Beet root
I just love looking at all these amazing veges
This is the Red Champion Radishes, a little bit peppery, not too hot, Shyam loves them
so easy to grow and such abundance......
some of the first Tomatoes in are now about three feet tall (one meter) and lots of flowers
when one first looks at this bed it looks a little chaotic, there's lots of different kinds of Brassicas (Savoy cabbage, Cauliflower, Broccoflower, Sicilian Broccoli (purple), but if you look closer too there's heaps of Beetroot around the edge and a couple of varieties of Lettuce too, and a line of Carrots all around the edge, they're all looking after each other.
in this pic one can see the Lettuce to the left, the Beetroot leaves
with the red vein, a Flame Lettuce to the right, some Brassicas, and if
you look carefully there's some Carrot leaf showing too
in the front is the Cucumbers finally starting to climb the frame. In between the Cucumbers are Tomato and Nasturtiums, all very compatible together
Here's a view showing the whole thing with the new bed down the front, we'll take a look there in a bit.
yes Gaura Gopal I found a use for that container, filled it with grass clippings so I can mulch a few places
looking at the Okra close to the fence and more Tomatoes just down in front
Little Okra by the fence, and you can see the Peas on the other side of the fence, climbing up, these are really nice and sweet, Shyam eats the entire pods as well as the peas.
a few close ups of the Peas
many of the Runner Beans are between two and three feet tall now, little
nodules are there where the flowers will come in the next few weeks, and
from them the Beans
the bed center right is Shyam's favourite its where all the Roquette (Rocket - Arugula) is growing
another climbing frame
far left in this bed is Cress, quite spicy, very nice (too hot for Shyam lol), then we have some Lettuce, and then the Roquette (Rocket - Arugula), and to the right the Daikon (Muli) Radish and Red Champion Radish
just to give some size comparison, and I don't have delicate little hands either lol
Silverbeet and Swiss Chard with red stalk
Flaming huge Lettuce - or was that huge Flaming Lettuce
a few little Zucchini just putting out female flowers with the Zucchini under it
these Lettuce are so sweet tasting
a few Marigolds to attract the benefic bees and wasps who are
doing such a good job pollinating
We get swarms of bees coming over from the wetlands heading to the
orchards, sometimes so many you can hear them coming and see the massive
swarms as the bees fly over
over the fence we have all this Gorse and those white Umbrella plants, they are a relative of the Carrot family (not so good for my keeping pure breed Carrots), but they attract many different Hover Flies, Wasps and Bees, so they are really good to help with Pollination (and cross - pollination) lol
The Gorse also attracts lots of birds for the seed, but they stop off
for a snack in the garden too cleaning up any Cabbage white butterfly caterpillars,
snails and slugs too.
Plus there's a couple of rather hungry Hedge hogs who come visiting
in the evening when I do the watering.
still lots of room, but I think I'm done with expanding
The Zucchini bed spilling over
down in the front are a few varieties of Pumpkin to climb up the frame
and do their think
in the blue contain is a tiny tiny Formosa Papaya tree growing
a couple of Beetroots
here we have some small Celery plants, some more small Broccoli, and down the left some small Lettuce
Some small Tomato plants, and Curly Ridge Kale, and a line of Silverbeet.
BUT in this bed too are over 250 Pea plant seeds (peas) and Red Champion
Radish which hopefully will start to surface in the next week or so.
They are all companions and will help each other grow, give support,
and with the Marigolds tucked away in the corners we might attract some
good bees too.
close-up of the Cucumbers, Tomatoes and Nasturtiums
you might notice a small Lettuce between the Cucumbers near the bamboo
at the bottom
as the weather gets a little warmer its prompted to germinate the Karala (Bitter Melon), a few are now coming through. I planet them way to early in the ground, we are learning.....
Karela and a friendly Nasturtiums and Marigolds
I've got a few things growing up on the balcony too..........
Coriander to the left, its not Holy Basil, just Sweet Basil despite its paying obeisance, some Parsley, then more Coriander
Tulasi (Holy Basil) coming back to life after winter
Buckwheat on the left, Cress, and then all the Tomatoes, a few varieties, same with everything ALL grown from seed
a view of the garden from outside my office from the balcony
same view but looking more toward the wetlands and bird sanctuary
a few different kinds of Capsicum and Chilli plants coming up
If you look real careful in the larger round pot on the right there's
tiny tiny Peppermint just coming through
Some more Tulasi coming through too
more Coriander and Parsley
under the plastic is more Karela seeds germinating
more seeds trays for seedlings later on to replace some in the ground now
a few other seed trays, and some of last years Tulasis that made it through the winter and some that didn't
a couple more Tulasis.......
That's the end of this update, I'm looking forward to how the garden develops over the summer, which is just around the corner now
Thanks for having a look, Haribol
First post of the Garden
22nd October 2013
Spring is here and I've been making an effort to put a vege garden together, here's a few pics
I've been growing everything from seed, here's a few plants outside my office on the deck
a few more to replace those coming to maturity in the next month or so
two of last year's Tulasi plants that survived the winter, and my last years Chili bush
the raised bed at the back was the first one established along with
the Broccoli bed next to it.
....in the front is the Zucchini (Courgette) bed, with a few Nasturtiums
and Marigolds to attract the bees once the Zucchini flowers are there
some of the Zucchinis are just beginning to get flowers
front bed has a few different types of Zucchini and Bush (dwarf) Beans and a few Brocoflowers (cross between Cauliflower and Broccoli)
This is the back bed with Lettuces around the edge a square of Carrots
in the center and Curly Ridge Kale and Broccoli
in between the Lettuce there's Beetroot too but they are still very
small
Silverbeet on the left, Beetroot with the red stems on left right side
is Swiss chard with red, white and yellow stems
down the center are bush beans little heart shaped leafs
these were the first Broccoli planted from seed, getting ready...still on the small side at the moment.
next to the Broccoli bed we have another Broccoli bed just recently
planted
around the edge different kinds of Lettuce, and down the right side
more beetroot
here's the first Tomatoes we planted on the left and some smaller ones on the right, with their friends Basil and Sage to help growth
here's a few Pumpkin seeds that are just coming through
these were all planted from seed too rows of Lettuce on the far left
with a line of Carrots next to them then Pak choi (Chinese cabbage) then
more
Carrots then more Pak choi then another Lettuce, more Carrots and more
Lettuce, then a Ruby Red Lettuce which is slower growing where the dark
mark is
on the left Red Radish, next to them Daikon White Radish (Muli) then
tiny little Red Lettuce, and the bright green is Roquette (Rocket)
to the right of them some smaller Green Lettuce and a funny gap where
the Parsnips are meant to be, only one came up so far...
then on the far right are Land Cress
here's a close up of one of the Red Radishes
from this angle you can see the Ruby Red Lettuce between the Radish and the Roquette
here's the climbing bean frame, the Beans are coming along nicely most
of them are just reaching out to climb the strings.
We have a pheasant (bird) who came and ate the tops of some of the
Beans so I have replacements for the gap growing outside the office
this bed is a mixture of many different kinds of Brassicas. Some grow
wide like the Savoy Cabbages, some grow high like the Brussel Sprouts and
some
bear their fruits on a stalk like Cauliflowers (there are Green Cauliflowers,
Purple Scicillian Cauliflowers and White Snowball Cauliflowers
Down the edge there are different Lettuces, there's also a line of
Carrots on either side and Beetroots too.
In the pots are Celery, Rosemary, Mint and Peppermint to keep the white
cabbage butterflys away.
here's a couple of different kinds of Peas climbing up the wire
This side are Okra (Lady fingers) (Green Clements and Red Burgundy)
and a line of Tomatoes down the middle and between them and the grass
are Lettuce (only planted yesterday)
You will have noticed I have many of the same veges in different stages
of development.......hopefully that will keep them all coming
here in this verticle frame are Karela (Bitter melon), only just coming through.....
This side of the vertical frame are Cucumbers and Tomatoes, with different coloured Lettuce in between them on both sides, should look nice in a month or so.
This is it so far tucked in the corner of the orchard
a view from the other end of the Brassica bed, everything is really small still
some small Pumpkin's coming up and more Cauliflowers in the seed trays
The wooden Kiwi fruit bins cost $10 each, so I used some whole and cut some up to make raised beds
I just love looking at these seedlings. Soon I have to start thinning them out to make room for them to grow more. Some will be used and some replanted in other places.
look at these beautiful little Lettuce hiding under the Broccoli
some of the first Beetroots getting nice and round
that's my seat over on the right a great place to sit and chant or have a breather between doing things
here's another shot of the Lettuces, with the Carrots and the Curly Blue Ridge Kale, and Broccoli
close up of those tiny Carrots
close up of the next generation of Beetroots....so tiny
The Runner Beans or "Beanstalks" as little Shyam, my helper calls them
flaming Peas again
close up of the Okra, with the Tomatoes in front
Karela (Bitter melon - Bitter Gourd)
Karela just coming through
here's another one
the view over the fence is amazing
the wind just picked up and suddenly all these clouds are here
The orchard
the amazing Jasmine bush
wow the clouds are really here now, mee theenks its gonna rain...save me watering the garden
A view across the valley showing the bird sanctuary and wetlands the Uretara River and a few cows too.
Hope you liked the pics, I'll try and do an update in a month or so see the difference........see yer later