There are two types of people in the world. People who love custard apples and people who had never heard of them. Those who love custard apples have a problem. You can't easily buy them. I can understand why. They are nobbly and misshapen which must make them hard to box up and transport. They … Continue reading Custard Apples: How to win friends and influence people
Category: Gardening Fix
Wildlife taketh and the wildlife giveth
Last week I mentioned how excited I was to plant a grape again. Saturday morning I was doing some unwriting (deleting 700 words from my WIP) and I heard a commotion outside. I thought it was the cockatoos who are a handsome menace. I went outside to find this: I want to love brush turkeys. … Continue reading Wildlife taketh and the wildlife giveth
Spring/Sprinter stories part 4
It is officially Spring. I feel good because I have done nearly all my spring jobs already. Most all my fruit trees are fertilised and the fruit fly traps are out. The biggest job, one I hate, I completed today. Mulching. Now I have itchy hay forearms. The other exciting news this week is that I … Continue reading Spring/Sprinter stories part 4
Spring/Sprinter stories part 3
We are still on the gentle slope that will eventually lead to the hell that is summer. For now, I can still spend some hours on my weekend in preparation. So much to do! I realised I have a habit of starting in close to the house and moving out to the edges of the … Continue reading Spring/Sprinter stories part 3
Spring/Sprinter stories part 2
Windy Saturday - the Ekka winds as the locals call them. If you don't know why you are not a real Queenslander. The exceptional thing about August is my favourite smelling flowers are both blooming - my jonquils and my jasmine. Earlier in the week, I pruned my rose for the first time ever. I … Continue reading Spring/Sprinter stories part 2
Spring/Sprinter Stories
It is only the second week of August, technically winter, but it is really spring or specifically sprinter. The temperature is in the high twenties with 30 degrees forecast for next weekend. It's still a little cool at night and a few cooler days might still appear but it is spring enough to get into the … Continue reading Spring/Sprinter Stories
Show day or Christmas Day?
My Canadian friend calls this a "cactus de noël' because it flowers at Christmas time. Here in my southern hemisphere, it flowers, like clockwork, for Ipswich Show Day in the middle of May. In fact, the first time I noticed this plant was as a potted plant competitor in the Ipswich Show. I just had to … Continue reading Show day or Christmas Day?
Succulent Love
Succulents are eminently suitable for my unreliable rainfall and heat. They are beautifully architectural and can grow so slowly they seem static. Then they throw marvellous delicate flowers. They look great in pots... ...and old, no longer able to hold tea, tea cups. They do not require drain holes. I do not know why. … Continue reading Succulent Love
Eggplant or Aubergine?
My best summer crop has been eggplant which I must remember to call aubergine because it is a much cooler word. I remember hearing or reading an interview with Joanne Harris who said the American publisher of Chocolat wanted to replace her use of aubergine with eggplant and she refused because - well aubergine is … Continue reading Eggplant or Aubergine?
Gardening in Pajamas
I was up early this Sunday morning gardening in my pyjamas. Why? Because I can. Obviously, this is not pitch fork, turning over dirt gardening. It is more the type of gardening where you sip some coffee between dead heading a rose and plucking the odd weed. Speaking of weeds, I have a pretty weed. … Continue reading Gardening in Pajamas