2016 An Update in Photos
Thought I’d provide an update on some happenings in our Permaculture Garden by showing some images (All taken during the month of November).
I hope your garden is flourishing, and I guess we can wish you a Merry Christmas even though there’s still a whopping 3 weeks to go!
Enjoy!
Goshen Watts
1) Citrus Abundance
This year have been more amazing than ever. We’ve still got very small trees; but I just love to see really healthy new citrus flowers AND mature fruits on the same tree. Our Lemon and Lime actually have fruits in all stages: Flower, ‘Fruitlets’; Almost Ready & Ripe. In total, we have 10 (different) citrus trees! With at least 5 still very young and not yet bearing fruit.
Orange – fruit and flower
2) The Lawn?
Most years; I let the grass grow for a while, to allow it to self seed. Each year, I regret doing this for a while as the seed-heads take quite a few weeks to mature; usually well after all the weeds have! There’s other downsides, like it gets a bit tricky to navigate the lawn! But still. the wavy grass is quite beautiful. It gets chopped down this week.
Letting our lawn go to seed
3) Food Forest Update
I was ready for some bumper crops from our small trees after all the wonderful winter rains; but combined with a cold start to spring, and now ultra dry conditions for the last 5 weeks; most of it has reverted back to survival mode. However, the trees ARE getting established, so I don’t expect to see good yields for another year or 3. Still quite a neglected space (except for a bit of ‘Chop and Drop’); but overall I’m very happy with the health of the system. See here for the original post about the planting of the Food Forest.
Update of our Food Forest in Nov 2016.
4) Carrot Seeds
If never ceases to amaze me; the beauty and sheer abundance of carrots gone to seed.
These yellow carrots (only about 6-8 carrots) were from last-year… left over and long forgotten. They were not watered at all after whatever that was growing around them was harvested and the weeds grew to smother them. Then they spent a cold and soggy winter unweeded and unnoticed, right beside the path on the way to the chickens. And yet; this is what they reward us with. Humbling.
Yellow Carrots gone to seed.
5) Veg Box’s getting more Colourful
How many veggies / herbs / greens can you spot in this photo? While our boxes are not always this diverse; it’s a good indication of what comes out of a ‘managed’ permaculture system. We’re now selling more than one $15 produce box a week, and might have an opening for one or two more local customers.
One of our produce Boxes.
6) Berries
Berries have often been a bit of a failure here… until now! This year; we’re harvesting small amounts of quality raspberries and ‘huge’ amounts of large blackberries & loganberries in the ‘anti-aviary’. Apart from the obvious protection from birds, they are also given a bit more water than previously neglected plants in the past.
Berries! These are Thornless Loganberries.
7) Market Garden Update
A large chunk of my time in the last few months has gone into setting up this mini permaculture market garden, and it is finally starting to become worthy of an updated photo, and produce measurable (in boxes) quantities of food. Only about 60m sq of intensive space, most of the produce is being grown for the new French inspired restaurant on Mt Pleasant Rd: Bistrot Plume.
Permaculture inspired mini-market garden.
8) Apple Tree Guild
Still in the ‘market garden’, the adjacent space is also being utilized… This very old existing apple tree was looking a bit sad; but with some ‘Guild Planting’, it is starting to look and hopefully function much better. Around the base, we have planted:
– Yarrow
– Garlic
– Nasturtium
– Parsley
– Rhubarb
– Warragul Greens
– Rocket
– Silverbeet
Remember that chickens have free-range access to this space. To prevent destruction in the early stages, a layer of prunings were spread in a circle around the base. No irrigation, no soil additives – not even compost.
A ‘guild’ of plants around an existing Apple Tree.
Thanks for reading!
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