shiukopuppy's Blog
shiukopuppy's posts about: Strawberries
Oct 5, 2007 | 3:43 AM PST
Tags: snowpeas , Strawberries , watercress , toadflax , bamboo screen , mulch
We've been harvesting snowpeas here and there. I've been eating a few but also blanching and freezing some for future use. My 'ordinary' peas haven't started cropping yet.
The main task of the day was mulching the native garden (they are all very young plants). I potted some strawberry runners that I recently bought on ebay (kunowase variety). Potted some watercress that I got from the nursery and re-potted some toadflax seedlings that I had grown. I also planted some tree seeds for bonsai - Giant Redwood, Banyan tree, Japanese Cedar and Australian trees - Cider Gum, Native Apricot, and some Tea Trees.
We started to put up a bamboo screen for some privacy. When we bought the bamboo screens from the nursery, I picked up some copper snail repellent and a shade loving plant - name forgotten - which I'll take a photo of tomorrow!
Jul 22, 2007 | 2:47 AM PST
Tags: avocado , Pomegranates , seaweed emulsion , fish emulsion , mulch , soil pH , multi grafted apple tree , quince , Strawberries
We got up early on Sat to go to the farmers markets. We're trying to learn about the seasons and eat locally grown, fresher produce. So we bought some veggies and australian native flowers. I soaked the vegetables for pesticides when I got home.
We did lots of gardening as it was unusually warm. The pomegranate and avocado that we bought recently were still in their growing bags from the nursery, so we potted them. We're renting our house so we have to grow our trees in pots and dwarf them a bit so that we can take them with us to future houses. It's also better for these trees because they need free draining soil and we have heavy clay soil. I ran around testing the soil pH in the different garden beds today - the soil was acidic when we moved in, but we have managed to make it neutral over time.
I'm still confused about my strawberries: I didn't cut them down because they are still fruiting! It's late winter and there are lots of strawberries in progress. Will letting them live increase their susceptibility to diseases? I thought they were supposed to die! anyway, that is an ongoing mystery..
I mulched all of my fruit trees and berries with lucerne, and gave the trees and garden beds some seaweed solution. I gave my asian greens and winter lettuces some fish emulsion, and also gave some to my peas because I don't want them to flower until after the last frosts. 6 weeks until spring, but there could still be some spring frosts. We planted out a sago palm and moved some clover to areas of bare lawn - we have been under water restrictions for many years here due to drought. Lawns have had to be sacrificed but clover seems very immortal.
Today we went to see a friend who we found out works at a nursery. We bought a flowering quince, a bare rooted 2-way grafted apple tree, a few native Australian plants and ground breaker solution. He took 70% off everything which was exciting. When we got home we potted the tree and we found out that the naughty local possums had eaten our mustard green manure.
Jul 19, 2007 | 2:37 AM PST
Tags: guava , grapes , nashi , Pomegranates , almond , coffee , avocado , berries , lime , Lemon , strawberries , water apple , lychee , durian , mango , star fruit , papaya , honeydew , dragon fruit
There are varying climates in Australia, but I currently live in a temperate area. I'm growing the fruits that need winter chilling but I'm dreaming of the fresh fruit of hot summery places! There are things that I just can't grow here or at least not grow well. Especially right in the middle of winter! It's heartbreaking to taste the fruit in the shops and even sadder when the fruit has come a long way and suffers in flavour for it.
Rambutans here are overpriced and old. I used to eat fresh mangoes, dates, pomegranates, papyas and honeydews when I lived overseas. I even ate durians. The shrivelled tiny star fruits in the shops here are unappetising. Lime and lychee drinks - not financially viable! Bananas are expensive because there was a typhoon in the banana growing areas. Earlier this year I visited a fruit farm and spice gardens in Malaysia where I tasted dragon fruit and my new favourite is the wax jambu or water apple. Above is me at the farm gesturing to a plant that I forgot what it was!
So you can see that I love to eat!! This is a major motivator in the garden. Hopefully one day I can garden in a tropical setting. And I comfort myself that I get to grow a lot of my current plants that would not survive in the tropics. As spring is nearing, I am checking all my fruit/trees' health.
GUAVA: Died back completely this winter, but I read somewhere that they recover well.
GRAPES: Still can't figure out how to prune them - it has been a few years of struggle..
NASHI: Had some rust or something last summer. I have dealt with that. It's about to bud-burst!
POMEGRANATES, ALMOND, COFFEE, BERRIES: Still very dormant
AVOCADO: Looks cold and sad!
LIME: Going crazy, looks to be outgrowing its container
LEMON: Not looking very motivated..
STRAWBERRIES: Now they are working very hard :)
