Sunday Blasphemy–The Bald Avenger

In the Garden – more seedlings

I frightened what I think was a Crimson Rosella away when I opened the backdoor to go out to the garden.  He flew up into the big gum tree so I couldn’t get a picture of him but I have one that I took of the same type of bird when we were in the Blue Mountains last December.

I put a couple rows of tomatoes in the ground from my tray of seedlings.  I’m keeping some in reserve until I give the first dozen a chance to take off.  If some die from transplant shock or from the dogs stepping on them, I’ll be able to fill in.  I decided to hold off on the peppers for another week or so to let them get a bit bigger.

I planted a few more chili seeds, as well as some lemon balm and stevia, in trays inside.  I don’t really like tiny seeds (lemon balm and stevia).  They often dry out while just getting started – or I’ll water them and the drops of water will flatten the tiny plant.  I’m growing these in enclosed trays so I’m hoping the plants get to a decent size before I have to worry about them needing anything.

I also tossed a handful of old potatoes into an odd corner of one bed (odd because it has a tree stump that makes rows awkward).  If they don’t grow into anything, I’ll fill the space in with a few pepper plants.

In the Garden - Smells Great!

I'm not much for growing flowers for flowers sake.  I plant things either for the food they make or how the plant looks the whole year.  However, those plants often produce some great flowers. 

This weekend I have two blooms in the backyard that are pretty nice.  The orange tree's blooms are full on and my star jasmine is also starting to put out blooms.  The flowers are relatively small but both give off a fantastic fragrance.

^{(disclaimer: these aren't my photos)}

It makes me want to go shopping

It’s Springtime!

A year ago I posted a photo of a side bed in the back yard where I had put in a couple of lavender plants and shoved some geranium clippings into the ground.

I think the lavender and geraniums liked the spot.  The lavender has been cut back before, but it’s really enjoying the weather we’re having.  I have a 3rd variety of lavender that I want to add to the bed, so I may need to move some of the geraniums around to make room.

This was the orange tree last year.  Since then I’ve read that you should remove the branches that are within a few feet of the ground.  I guess low growing fruit is prone to mold and disease that can splash up when it rains, so for good health of the fruit and the tree, you should keep some space.  So I filled 2+ yard waste bins of clippings (and topped off my compost.  There isn’t much time between the end of the harvest and the new blooms in the spring.  There were still a couple oranges on the tree when the buds started coming in.  … and look at all those bricks… I wonder what to do with them.

My “manure” crop of clover did very well.  I almost didn’t want to till it under, but my tomato and pepper seedlings are ready for their permanent home.  I did the first tilling today, so I figure I’ll go back over it in a week when the plant material has started to break down, then put the seedlings in.  Cross your fingers for good weather.

The purple carrots and garlic are moving along (did some weeding today – after the picture)  The peas are almost long enough to train onto the sticks I’ve put in for support.  The parsnips are just a centimeter high – enough for me to see the rows and not pull them out with the weeds.

The birds have really come to our yard a lot more this year.  (I’ll take them over the 6 inch spiders any day).  Today we had a king parrot, a few lorikeets and a half dozen sulfur crested cockatoos – and those are just the ones we noticed.