Grow your own food

The garden diary

2006

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2009

2010

January 09	February 09	March 09	April 09	May 09	June 09
July 09	August 09	September 09	October 09	November 09	December 09

October 2009: a late start to the planting season
results in a very short monthly page

A waiting game: this area is well prepared for planting. The pigs dug up the grass sods and fertilized the soil at the same time. Then we planted green manure. Once the green manure had grown well we let a few chooks into this area for a couple of months. What was left of the green manure after the chooks were moved was slashed. Finally we gave the whole area a light going over with a rotary hoe set to shallow depth. But we still can't plant! The ground is too wet!

Finally: over the last October week we plant potatoes, corn and different varieties of bush beans. The rains have left us and the soil is drying out quickly.

In the greenhouse: last year we bought tomato seedlings, but they all developed black spots and did very poorly. This year we grow our tomatoes from seed! The tomato plants on the right are ready to be transplanted into the outside beds. The pumpkins, squash and zucchini on the left have also grown well in the greenhouse.

First steps into the sun: The oldest youngsters of this breeding season enjoy the sun in their large pen. The Welsummer / Plymouth Rock crosses continue to grow very well. Maybe we are on the right track here to breed meat chooks with a reasonable weight at 12 to 14 weeks of age.
The black chook is a cross pullet, the barred chooks are cross cockerels. Brown Welsummers in the background.

New breeds of poultry
Lavender Araucana chicks these chooks lay pale blue eggs and are sometimes called "Easter eggers". Blue eggs will (all going well!) make an interesting addition to the colourful selection of eggs we sell from our farm and at our stall at Hobart's Salamanca Market.	Aylesbury ducklings Aylesburies were first developed in Great Britain more than 150 years ago and are very rare in Australia. They are a strong dual purpose breed that grows to a good size in a few months and lays over a hundred eggs per year.
A carbon neutral chook shed We plan to install photovoltaic panels and to set up a grid connected system. Unfortunately the roof of our house is too shaded to do this. But we receive good sun on the other side of the winter creek! This is a good excuse to build another shed, a chook shed with perfect northern orientation and the correct roof pitch for the panels. The shed is finished, the contract with the installer is signed. We are waiting for the panels........

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