As I write, the rain, which has been pouring down for the last hour or
so since we arrived home, seems to have ceased for the time being.
The last few days have been fairly overcast and chilly on this side of
the world, which has prevented us from being outdoors as much as we would like
to be. However, we have had plenty to
keep us occupied. With our music concert
fast approaching, Nancy and I have been working quite hard on polishing up the
songs we’ve been given to play. We had
an almost two hour lesson on Tuesday and another this morning with our friend,
Miss Indio who plays the tenor recorder.
We will be playing a few songs together with her this coming Sunday. Hopefully I’ll be able to share some
photographs of the event with you all:-)
I have also finally been able to buy my first heirloom and open
pollinated seeds from Living Seeds. It
was so exciting to go down to the post office yesterday and collect our parcel! Last night I finished putting together a hot
box for starting our seeds in. As it is
still too cold outside at the moment, we have to get a head start on spring by
planting indoors. We’ve never used a hot
box before, so we’re all very keen to see how it will affect the growth of our
seedlings. In the past we haven’t had
much luck with starting seeds ourselves.
First peas... This is our second season with peas – I cannot
wait to start using them in the kitchen.
Hopefully they make it to the house, though... Nothing is quite as satisfying and delicious
as a fresh pea pod plucked straight from the plant.
Our cauliflower
is finished now which is such a pity.
Next year we plan to plant much, much more so that we can continue
harvesting right through spring.
At the moment the garden looks rather sparse with only a few beds of
peas and broad beans and lettuce plants dotted in between. But we are all very expectant and driven to
create a lovely garden which will not only provide healthy organic food for our
family and friends, but also become a tranquil where we can walk around and
relax after a hectic day. As my window
faces the garden, I have the privilege of looking out onto our hard work each
day and taking in the beauty. I would
very much like to have a few flowers thrown in amongst the veggies for extra
colour too.
Lush rocket
spills over the bed. We love the peppery
taste of rocket in salads or torn on sandwiches. Rocket is one of the easiest crops I’ve ever
grown and adds so much beauty to a winter garden!
Growing your own food, or as much of it as possible is really hard work,
but it is also a healthy part of life. I
know we might fail and I am prepared for that, but there again we may not. If we never have the courage to try anything,
we’ll never know how wonderful something could have been.
At present it is really only my dad and myself doing the physical labor
as my mom is now carrying another precious blessing and the girls are still too
young to contribute any real muscle (they will, however be helping me plant seeds
and care for the garden and maybe even have a bed to grow a few of their own
crops in).
Nancy isn’t our gardener, so she helps my mom inside by making snacks
and tea for the people doing the digging, weeding, etc.
Broad beans
flowering... This is the first time I’ve
grown broad beans to this stage. Last
year we had to move before any flowers started appearing like this:-(
Two weeks ago we had someone come and help us make new vegetable
beds. Being at work each day and coming
home to lots of little girls who want their daddy’s undivided attention, my dad
isn’t always able to help me as much as I would maybe like him to, so we
thought if we had a gardener come once in a blue moon to do some of the more
strenuous tasks, my dad would be freed up to be more of a daddy to his daughters:-) But he is the one who helps me with jobs like
staking beans up, supporting peas and showing me how to make a hot box! I am always very grateful for his input and
enthusiasm. It certainly helps when you
and your family believe in the same thing and work together to achieve the same
goal:-)
I love nasturtiums
as they not only add vibrant colour to salads, but also are wonderful companion
plants. This year we grew cauliflower right next to two huge nasturtium bushes. The result was almost perfectly formed cauliflower
that grew to a good, healthy size and weren’t infested with some or other
bug. As our garden is organic, we can
only assume the nasturtiums played the important role of protecting our
cauliflower. Now we will always plant
cauliflower and nasturtium together.
Pea plants have
to be one of the most beautiful features in a vegetable garden – I love how their
dainty tendrils cling to the supports provided for them... These pretty greens also add a delicate (and
tasty) touch to a salad.
And now that I have been greatly cheered up by these colorful garden
photographs, I shall say goodbye. The
rain has begun again and I found I have gone quite numb from cold which has
come from sitting still too long in one position.
Do you have a
vegetable garden this year? If so, what
is your favourite garden chore?
P.S. If you are only just beginning
your garden, Aunty Wendy at Urban Homestead South Africa has a wonderful series
she is featuring on her blog at the moment on how to get your spring garden up
and running. You can visit her blog here...
Blessings,
Kelly-Anne
