G’day lovelies.
How you doing?
All good here…we are enjoying nice temperatures and warm winds here in Sydney.
Now, this post was meant to be about veggies and the little patch in the garden, that started in Autumn when I visited a local community garden and left with a head brimming with enthusiasm and has grown from a tiny little unused bed with a few herbs and salad leaves into four big beds and growing by the day….but when I finally got out there with my camera there were rather a few more pictures of flowers than veggies…
I have to say I am more than loving it out here in the garden…it’s step-by-step and slowly getting there…
The other day I was out there watering…as I do this I am examining the whole time to see what is going on…trying to get rid of unwanted insects, looking at the bees and lizards and seeing what is growing…
So this time, bending down to the tomatoes I came across my first fruit…so excited and squeeled out…yes!!! ….I think I did a dance too…
Mr BC was sitting on the deck reading the paper and looked over….oh yes! said I, we have our first Australian tomato….
goodie said he, with eyebrows ;-)
There is something, I dunno liberating about growing stuff though, all joking aside…I have always loved to grow things and pretty much enjoyed gardening from the moment we had some space to dig in…and in England I loved nothing better than my fingers in the Earth and certainly had successful tomato years…
Here though, as I have already said, it’s been a bit more tricky…learning about the soil, the climate, which although not arrid and dry, is dry enough at times to kill things outright and learning what does and doesn’t like the coastal air….
So I stuck these flowers in and around my beds with the salad, lavender and chillis and really was not expecting this..a plethora of colour and happy dances in the coastal breeze…right out there in my own back yard
I wondered if even mint, the bane of many a gardener’s life would take off…oh yes…will need to be curbing that …
and the salads and onions are a no brainer
the spinach is thriving…I just threw the seeds in the ground and watered…the caterpillars like these…I have so far tried egg shells and the drowning method with no luck….
…sage is liking it in this spot
a few of the flowers I have no idea what they are…I just know I could waste a whole lot of time taking photos of them…
The first BC strawberry hit the beaches too…
I mulched the veggie patch with sugar cane a few weeks ago…best thing I have done yet…
It has helped so much with the dreaded onion weed control…this stuff tries to take over everything in this place…and mulching has helped with the water retention a lot I think…plus I read that it keeps the earth cooler in the summer and apparently veggies, unlike me, don’t like it hot ;0-)
…this little chilli is surprising…I planted it way too late last year…it obviously got chilly, haha, at night, but kinda clung on for dear life over the Winter…I am assuming that Sydney’s daytime Winter temperatures are just warm enough and the earth is not frozen in the Winter to let one of these make it through…
I’m so pleased I didn’t dig it up and dump it…I had a feeling it might open up and come back to life as Spring hit…
This silverbeet has been a real success for me…I bought it on a whim, from a garden centre that I normally browse, but do not purchase in, as it is not as competitive as places like Bunnings…I was unsure whether it would work with the sandy soil but thought that the colours were lovely so why not?
It turns out that that was one of my better gardening Australia decisions as it’s pretty much grown happily, bug free, from the minute I shoved it in the ground…
The young baby leaves are delicious and as they get more established and older have a distinctly beetrooty air about them…funny that ;-)
The citrus trees seem to have taken….I have watered and fertilised them judiciously
I put in a bay tree..it’s pretty bare right now…can’t believe I have waited so long to get one of these in this cottage…just love pottering around in the kitchen and shoving a couple of these in the dinner….dried ones are good but not quite like this
So that my lovelies is my good life this week…
Bring on flower love
Be seeing ya…
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Hi Sarah, thanks for hosting. Some of the pics in my linked post is a little graphic (but fake). But I’m considering it a good life post because I’m just so proud of the person who I’m talking about. I hope you see it that way too.
x Marnie
Hello Sarah,
Once again your stunning garden photos have made mine whither in flourishing envy.
The pleasure and internal squeals of joy are fantastic aren’t they – when you see those first little buds or the first little fruit.
Thank you for having your Wednesday party – you always know how to throw a great party :)
Have a wonderful day
x
Loulou
thanks!
same to you ;-)
the flowers are so pretty.
Sarah the photos you’ve take of the flowers in your garden are just absolutely amazing!
I am in the States. In Utah. And we are slowly hitting fall. the yard is slowing down. But it does seem to have a last growth spurt.
The last week we had a good cool rain shower or two. But then we got some lovely sunny days the last days.
Your flowers look like anemones. Good cutting flowers. Do well in the house…! :) I am original dutch. And love to bring flowers in.
Your images make me swoon…they make me dream of spring and the promise of summer!
I am such a cranky fall/winter gal! I am getting on my big girl pants, however, and decorating for fall!
Thank you for your lovely shots of spring lovelies!
Thank you for hosting!
Kerry at housetalkn.blogspot.com
The flowers are breathtaking !
Hi Sarah, me again. I’ve been using garlic and chilli sprays to keep the bugs and slugs away with lots of success. Just bruise hot chillis and garlic cloves and stick em in a spray bottle, top up with water (maybe let it sit a day or so to mingle) and spray your plants,, they creepy crawlies hate it and it has no chemicals in it. Hope this helps.
x Marnie
oooh thanks, I will try this later on Marnie
xo
Wow!!! Sarah you have the most gorgeous vege patch. I’ll be showing these pics to my hubby when he gets home, our vege patch needs a make over :-). Thanks so much for sharing! X
Sorry Sarah, I didn’t mean for my last comment to come up anonymous, not the sharpest tool in the shed ;-).
Love all your flowers! Beautiful. It’s so nice to see new flowers, while here at my house, it’s fall and they are all dying. Keep showing us your flowers pictures, I enjoyed it!
Something so satisfying about growing your own food and flowers! I love it. Every year we add to our garden and try a few new veggies or fruits. This year my new favorite was eggplant. They are so beautiful and I loved growing them and photographing them! Glad you are having fun and learning how to grow things down under :)
Gorgeous garden Sarah! Love the pop of colours. Lovely flowers and herbs :)
Those flowers are stunning!
Your garden is beautiful! So many pretty flowers, Sarah! Things are coming up beautifully in your yard! Hope you’re having a great week!
Hi Sarah, wow your garden is so pretty!! One question how many hours does the veggie/herb garden need to flourish like that in Sydney?? Morning or afternoon sun??
Gorgeous Flowers!!
So beautiful, you lucky girl. Tip with the bay trees – don’t just use the leaves (dried leaves have a more potent flavour than fresh leaves) once your tree has grown a bit more use younger thick branches (after peeling off the bark)as skewers for some nice diced beef or veal then heavily salt the whole thing in rock salt and olive oil and bbq with open flame, voila – espetadas! Yum! It’s what we do with ours though I am yet to use open flame (believe me there is a difference the salt melts into the meat better, the meat gets that delicious smoky and (thanks to the bay skewer) bay leaf taste through the juicy morsel).
I heart your photographs Sarah. What the model number of your camera? Do you use a Nikon by any chance?
Or if you are into post processing, would love to know the tech specs.
I have a Canon 50D and process mostly with Windows Live
Sarah
I just checked my beer traps and they are working very well attracting and killing the slugs and snails eating my irises and cliveas.
I asked the young guy in the liquor shop for his cheapest beer. It happened to be a light beer. We discussed whether it’s the beer or the alcohol that kills the slugs and snails and whether a light beer would be sufficient for their comparatively small sized livers.
Now I know light beer works!
Beer Trap
1.Half fill an old jar with beer.
2. Lay jar on the garden bed on an angle so the beer just reaches the rim.
alison
Your flowers have brought me some super-happy this wednesday morning! Just beautiful. I have added some pics of my september garden in England. xx
gorgeous long photos of you in your wellies alongside your garden sarah…lovely photos from that angle- did your daughter take these??
Melissa x
PS- flowers make a vege garden don’t they!
nope I just put the camera on the ground and played around with the self timer!
Hello Sarah! Sounds like a lot of work, but I guess you are enjoying every step!
I love the flowers, I liked the pictures so much I might paint them… Do you mind?
why of course!
Your gorgeous garden pictures are going to help me through winter here in the US!
Oh, Spring has Sprung at your house for sure! Gorgeous images! x
I am getting a BAY tree… why have I never thought to do that?
Oh and after grocery shopping in Coles today & seeing Limes are now @ $1.50 each…… a lime tree {I did get some at the markets for 50 cents each… but still…..
yay for gardens :)
i love the very first picture, really nice crop! And the stripes and Wellies-perfect!
Happy gardening – isn’t just the best thing!! And those, my dear, are anemomes – your unamed flowers!
Enjoy!
Katherine X
thanks Katherine!
Love the spring-such a time of rebirth. We’ve got to survive a lot of months of winter before we get there again.
I am loving that garden and all those colours, we are are heading into autumn and the laves are falling fast! :( I am totally useless in the garden, the only things that grows are the weeds and our hedge, just had that cut in back before that too takes over what garden we have left.
Enjoy your Garden and the sunshine.
Woo wee..I can tell you are really enjoying gardening. Everything looks wonderful
Thanks for hosting…:)
Wow, the pink is AMAZING…great shots!
You should be very proud of yourself Sarah, you are a fabulous gardener. I love the pics of all your lovely flowers, so sunny and cheerful!
That spider in the leaf is perfect this time of year too.
Great shots. I do admire your photos!
Very Very Beautiful Pictures Sarah , Loved the Poppies and Cosmos and the Mint …so Fresh even in the Pictures :) ..Linking in to the Beach cottage ..Good Life Wednesday !!
Take Care
Sarah, here’s how I keep my mint from overtaking my garden. Get a 5 gallon plastic bucket and cut the bottom out of it. Dig a hole about 12 to 18 inches deep. Sink the bucket in the hole and fill it with soil to within about 3 inches of the top of the bucket, then center your mint in the soil and plant it in the bucket. If your mint is already established, you can dig a deep trench all around it and slide the bucket down over the plant. Fill in the bucket with soil and backfill around the outside of the bucket. The bucket keeps the mint from sending out runners, keeping the mint nicely contained so doesn’t overtake the garden.
Thanks for the tip Cathy.
alison
wow thanks Cathy, yes the mint is well established so I could easily do this…and will!
A tomato!
Yay!
Nothing better than a REAL tomato fresh out of the garden……
Keep bringing the flower love!
I, too, can spend ages photographing flowers when I don’t have a clue as to what they are…..other than just beautiful!
Your garden is looking so beautiful, a bay tree is on my garden list.
Thanks so much Sarah for hosting this and giving everyone the chance to share!
Have a great week!
p.s. I just wanted to add how beautiful your garden it. I love the flowers and use my garden pretties for subjects in my paintings. Yours are fabulous! The colors, stunning! Are they some kind of poppies?
hmmm I am not even sure…!
Beautiful, vivid photographs as usual Sarah! Thanks for hosting, Marcia
Hi Sarah
Like Marnie I use chilli & garlic spray to naturally keep the bugs at bay. It works a treat, nothing is going to munch on my vegies before I do. Garden looks fantastic, just picked my first tomatoes for the season as well. yum yum so much better fresh from the vine. Happy gardening.
Hi Sarah,
For pest control blend 10 cloves of garlic, 3 red chillis and 1/2 cup soap flakes in a small amount of water. Once pureed, add to a bucket with three litres of water. Let ferment for 24 hours, strain pulp from liquid, pour into a spray bottle and spray onto your garden. They also recommended wearing glasses when spraying due to the chilli factor!
Its been successful in stopping all pests with exception to a certain four legged pet that keeps eating the corn straight from the stalk…
hey cheers for that Leanne
Hey Sarah, I was too busy yesterday to thank you for hosting. So I’m back to say thanks!! Lovely flower pics. Your garden is beautiful.
= )
~ Catie
I’m a shove em in, water them and see what happens kind of girl too! I threw loads of seeds at my newly dug patch this year (way later than i should have done) and am delighted to be eating courgettes, spinach, runner beans, broad beans and lettuce now :-) I know what you mean about being in the garden, reaping your harvest – it is a very happy, satisfying and fulfilling feeling! Keeps me calm too…
Love your photos must get my camera out amoungst my little veg forest!
Beautiful. It was very relaxing just to look at all the photos and pretend I was in a garden. :)
good God, these photos are A. MAZING!!!!! such clarity. it’s insane :D
Your garden is perfectly dreamy! Hey, I don’t know if it is on my end or on yours, I’m not seeing the linky connect for the party. Anyhoo, hope you’re having a grand day. Toodles, Kathryn@TheDedicatedHouse