Sunday, December 20, 2009












This might be the only chance I get to add to my blog before Christmas so I'd better get going!
The weather has been quite cool and we've had some rain too, which has been good for the tomatoes and also for the blackspot on the roses! We had one hot day which threw me into a panic thinking that the tomatoes would get burnt, so we quickly assembled a shadecloth roof for them. This was not easy as some of them are over 6 ft high now! Plenty of fruit forming and more flowers too. If they stay healthy and pest free I can see me having trouble getting rid of them all.
We harvested the cherries 3 weeks ago, 8 1/2 kilos of gorgeous luscious juicy fruit! We shared some, ate some, froze some and made 8 jars of jam! The trouble with cherries is that they have to be used within a few days or they go bad.
I planted out the currants in the side bed, along with the raspberries, youngberry, pepino, blueberries and jostaberry. I think we can safely say that is no longer a vegie bed!
I'm amazed at how much fruit we got from 1 raspberry cane! Can't wait till next year when all the canes will fruit!
The roses are starting their Christmas flush now, and the blackspot is the worst it's ever been. I've given up spraying, it does nothing. I just go around with a bucket and pick off as many diseased leaves as I can every day or so.
The new roses this year are delightful - Summersong is an intense orange, Darcy Bussell is a vibrant cerise, Rose of Narromine is just so pretty in yellow and orange. I'm waiting for the Lilac Rose to bloom now. Oh yes, I've ended up with 3 William Shakespeare 2000. The old one who looks like a standard with one cane, is totally defoliated now :( Maurice Utrillo is an amazing rose, brilliant red and yellow and BIG blooms in sprays. Beautiful.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009












Well December's here already!
The garden is still looking green and lush from all the rain we've had lately. Fortunately yesterday was a perfect day for a garden party for a garden club I belong to. I was freaking out last week because the lawns were desperate for a cut and the rain kept on and on.........
The roses are having a break mostly, getting ready for their Christmas flush. Blackspot, dieback and powdery mildew are thriving of course!
The tomatoes are going nuts, I decided not to trim the side shoots off in the beginning but now I'm thinking I should have done - it's a jungle there!
I have caterpillars in my strawberries :( :( . I sprayed them with Dipel last week but they're still destroying foliage and getting into the fruit. I'll pull all the pots out and examine them closely tomorrow and keep them away from the undamaged ones.
The cherries are looking very tempting now, bright red and shiny! The birds share my admiration of course and have been getting the ones near the edge of the netting.
My next job will be to harvest the garlic so that I can plant the blackcurrants, whitecurrants and redcurrants. Oh, and the Pepino.