garden in february

a quick garden update of how things are looking this february.

the lime tree is happy and making more limes. they should be ready soon! 

i have some great flowers blooming.

 

i never really planted much flowers in the past

 

but i really love these ones

 

they keep getting fuller and fuller.

the corn is almost ready, might try some soon

 

can you wait too long to harvest it?

 

and i finally have three full boxes of tree seedlings in FULL sun. it has not been easy to get to this point and I am very happy, still 3 more to get to this point but we are making progress.

and then there is this beauty in the front succulent garden, with a little yellow flower in the center. i always think if a plant flowers it must be happy. and this little plant looks happy to me.

mexican feast!

yesterday was the first day of spring, and me and borris and our friend shelsy decided to celebrate with a mexican feast. it was so good, i am having left overs tonight Yay!

i got this book given to me, and i haven't had the chance to cook from it yet.

so yesterday i made these sauces/dips from the recipe book. the bean dip, the guacamole, i bought a green salsa and made a warm cheesy mexican dip. they were all so good.

 

shelsy and i also made our own tortilla from scratch. we used the tortilla press i got for my birthday and they turned out really well. tonight i am making the left over ones into quesadillas.

 

we were so hungry and the food was so yummy they couldn't even stop to smile.

 

the highlight for me was this chipotle mayo i made. i made it to go on the roasted corn. this is a copy of one of our favorite dishes at a new mexican restaurant in town. and i think for a first try it was a success.

  

next time i think the cheese needs to be a harder young cheese, like a pecorino, but basically you roast the corn, then slather it in the chipotle mayo, sprinkle with cheese and a squeeze of lime juice! 

to - die - for!

autumn garden

well since i have hurt my back on monday i haven't been out in the garden but i took these pics of my garden on the weekend. it has been raining heaps here and the garden is loving it.

although it is autumn my lime tree is fruiting again and my gourd vine is growing well.



the other week i planted some seedlings, chinese broccoli and onions. i ran out of room for potatoes, maybe next year.

my green capsicum are a bit hard to see but they are growing really well. they are a bit miniature still and i am trying to not pick them yet to let them grow.

this is the garden view lettuce, green onion, celery, rocket, spinach, beans, radish, carrots, parsnip, and passion fruit vine.

this is just another view of the garden. i love looking at it, even though with my back out right now i can't do anything in it. i have another week or so to rest but it is predicted to rain for a few days so i just have to let it all be and grow.

end of march garden update

it has been raining all day and my garden is very happy about that.

for the end of march things are looking pretty good. unfortunately it doesn't look like my tomatoes are going to fruit. i kind of knew this would happen seeing as i planted them so late i the season. next year i hope i can finally get a crop of yummy tomatoes, in fact i might plant out the whole back garden in tomatoes! so i am thinking of taking them out and planting my garlic and onions in their place. Also the cabbage and broccoli i planted are growing but being eaten at the same time. at least something is enjoying them.



i also seem to have a small case of aphids on some plants. if anyone knows how to get rid of them please share your secret. i am going to dedicate an evening this week to wiping each leaf clean of aphids but i think i need to do something more to prevent their return.

last week i did do some planting, basically scattering seeds. I scattered parsley seeds everywhere in the garden and i mean everywhere and it is taking root in many places. i also planted out spinach, carrots, parsnip, kale, and other things i can't even recall now and they all seem to be sprouting too so now i just need to wait patiently and see what they all are.

this is the seedling side of the garden. as i said i have onions and garlic still to plant and my beans and peas are also coming up so soon i will need to built some sort of trellis near the fence line. of and some beetroot to plant too. so much to do and so little space! i am just going to pack it all in and hope for the best. kind of like how i plan my weeks.

life has been crazy busy lately but my hope is after easter life will take on a more relaxed if not just normal busy pace.

ok! enough about the %$@&*! lime already!

i know i know, we have all heard enough about my lime tree, but today i actually harvested my first of ten limes on the tree. this is definately a moment to capture in history on my blog.



i promise i won't take a photo of each one i pick but really i have been waiting four years for this moment.

so here i am happy and with my lime, about to grab the vodka and soda.

cheers

limes and garlic

i know it has been quite some time since i have updated this blog, but i have just now recovered from a well deserved holiday and i now actually feel like i can get back into my normal life.

before i left to go overseas i had some very small limes on my tree. when i returned a couple weeks ago, this is what i came home to.



some lovely big and delicious looking limes! they are almost ready to pick and enjoy. i have had this tree for 3 or 4 years now and i have never enjoyed a lime from it before. this year i started fertilising regularly in the spring/summer and it seems to be working.

i must get the vodka and soda ready.

just before i left i had to give up my community garden spot, as no one would be able to keep up the watering. lucky i did as there was a +40 heat wave for 5 days while i was away.

so before i left i dug up my garlic and hung it under my stairs to dry. the bulbs are a bit small for being harvested early, but they are very good and strong tasting.

so there my first blog in months and for 2010. i will blog more about what i have planned for this year and what i have been up to since i got back to australia soon.

lime tree

two years ago my friend's parents were visiting around the time of my birthday and they bought me a lime tree. i love limes. they are very expensive so i thought this would be the answer to me living a life rich in limes. unfortunately i have not always lived in a place that was good for limes. and since that first year i have yet to harvest and enjoy a single lime.

the tree lives in a pot so i can move it around with me and it has for the last year and a half been living in a shady area, not the nest situation for citrus but it seems to have adapted to it now.

this year i decided to learn more about citrus growing and it turns out they like lots of food in the growing months, so i diligently went out and bought some citrus food and have been feeding my lime tree religiously the past few months.



and as a result i have my most promising limes yet. this is the biggest one probably 2.5 cm in length. i just noticed it the other day actually.

and i have many more smaller limes that looks strong and hopefully they will become yummy delicious juicy lime fruit too.

up until now they tree would fruit but then it would always fall off but now that i am feeding the tree the limes are sticking and i can't wait to enjoy my first true harvest of limes early next year.