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I ran away from teaching to the country to grow veggies. There are also some chooks and a pair of troublesome goats who were so much trouble they had to go! My simple green life isn't always as simple or as green as I'd like...but I keep trying!

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Autumn in the veggie patch

The struggle to find space for new plantings
continues in the veggie patch.  
Many of the summer veggies are looking a little bedraggled ... but they are still producing.

I talked about the lazy housewife beans in yesterday's post but those mauve flowers are on a purple king bean planted later in the year.  I have just started picking these.  I will enjoy these while I can, because I think it will be too cold for them soon.


The tomatoes are looking truly moth eaten but every day I pick a few more ripening ones to bring inside.
 

The pumpkins continue to flower but the vines are withering and the pumpkins are hardening off.  I will be able to pick these during the week and prepare the bed for the next crop...probably some onions and other root crops.


Growing the corn and pumpkins together worked well.  Every corn stalk had two good sized cobs on it.  A passing neighbour made disparaging remarks last week about the corn not looking too good.  
I didn't argue and I didn't offer him any of the wonderful corn to take with him either. 


 This is some corn I planted in January.  It has just formed flowers and silk.  The race between it and the first frosts will determine if it is successful in forming and ripening cobs.
Accidental bed partners...a rogue garlic missed from last year's harvest in with the beetroot.  Some of the newly planted garlic is already up as well.

The rainbow chard is growing well..although the slugs are eating more than we are at present.

The downy mildew on the zucchini leaves haven't stopped it from flowering and setting fruit.  
This one will end up in the soup pot today.



Mmmm, maybe I left these carrots in the ground a little too long. 

 The raspberries are throwing an Autumn Harvest party all of their own.



20 comments:

  1. Just as well your neighbour can't see my watermelon or tomato plants! Let us kno how the late planted corn goes Hazel.

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  2. Those raspberries ..nummy nums..the pumpkins I do have in are going to be ready soon too..as long as the frosts stay away..its really cooling down we had our fist fire of the year the other day

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  3. I have late planted corn as well, I am keeping my fingers crossed that this second crop is okay...and low and behold I found a pumpkin on my triffid vine....yay...who knows if it will be successful, but there goes the idea of pulling it all out....
    Your produce just looks grand..I especially love the photo of the mixed pumpkins and those raspberries...just fantastic...

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  4. Everything look so yummy-licious in your patch Hazel. I like your pumpkins. I don't have much success with them.

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  5. Hey Hazel, these pics could very well be from my vegie garden.
    We have plenty of toms and beautiful purple beans, second crop of silverbeet is kicking on. Lettuces are going well and zucchine well there may be one or two still hiding amongst the leaves. Powdery mildew has made it's prescence felt.......

    So nice to be able to feed the family and friends at least they appreciate your efforts.

    No sign of frosts here in N E Vic, beautiful warm Autumn days.

    Claire :)

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  6. Hazel, you should try the "Three Sisters" approach: corn, climbing beans, and squash inter-planted. The corn stalks provide support for the climbing beans; the big leaves of the squash provide shade for the roots and conserve moisture and suppress weeds; the beans fix nitrogen in the soil for all three to use.
    Our seasons are diametrically opposite: I'm just toying with the idea of sowing my first bean seeds of the year...

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  7. I did have beans in there Mark, but I planted them after the other two sisters got growing and the beans didn't do much. i will definitely do it next season, though.

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  8. Love those last bursts of colour at this time of year - sort of special having a raspberry in Autumn :)

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  9. Oh Hazel, those pumpkins are magnificent - and is that a bright red one I see in there? It's funny, but most of the things that you call summer crops are our winter ones, along with proper winter ones as well! Summer here is just too harsh for a whole lot of things, while winter has lovely clear ries and no frost to kill things off. Funny hey.

    And those raspberries, yum alright.

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  10. Oh and I forgot to say that your neighbour is a knob, or possibly a chockchafer?

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  11. I agree with everything that Ali said
    except I dont know what a chockchafer is?

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  12. Cathy, Ali just likes to use new words she has learned. A cockchafer is a beetle. For more information, check her post about bugs from yesterday.

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  13. Hazel I think you would be more successful if you thought of a four sisters planting next summer instead of Marks recommended three sister approach!
    Save me some raspberries for lunch on Tuesday.
    Caesar

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  14. Everything still looks wonderful. I can't wait to start planting here next month. Your veggies and berries make me drool!
    Staci

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  15. Everything looks great! ..Ok maybe not the mildew, lol, but at least you are still getting zucchini. Your raspberries look wonderful. I hope mine grow as well.

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  16. Mmmmm....raspberries. No corn for Negative Nancys!!:) It reminds me of the soup Nazi from Seinfeld...."No Soup for You!!" I have those people in my neighborhood as well....I try to look unaffected, but sometimes when I'm tired, I just have to walk away:)

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  17. Looks like a superb harvest. I'm really impressed by your pumpkins.. will it be pumpkin soup, roasted pumpkin, pumpkin pie?

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  18. My plants are covered in the white stuff too but are still producing flowers and fruit. I can't decide whether to do something about it or not. It just keeps raining here so not sure if its worth the time and effort.

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  19. Fab-o Hazel, Look at those pumpkins! Did you use a mixed diggers seed?
    The only pumpkins that I ever 'grew' came out of mums compost!
    Will you do anything about the powdery mildew? I just gave up because it bothered my roses too.

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