Starting Out

Well time is really flying and it's already been 2 weeks in our new home! My main project to start out with is setting up a vegie patch. We have 4 garden plots which are about 12m x 1m.

Two of these plots are planted with established fruit trees including apples, nectarines, mandarines, plums (I think), oranges and lemons. There is also a stand of banana trees and a huge mulberry tree out the back. The other two plots are so barren, dry and dejected at the moment it's going to be a challenge for me, who knows zero about growing food, to get it up to some sort of healthy state. I did invest in a great book so I'm sort of learning something as I go.

I started digging up one of the plots and it's hard work and hot work! I'm about 3/4 of the way through. My plan is to improve the soil by digging out to a spade depth, using the fork to loosen up the subsoil, add some cow manure on top of this loosened soil and then replace the top soil. I might even add some mushroom compost into the top soil to give it some more nutrition.

I will then leave this for a few weeks and then after some good rain throw on some blood and bone and then start planting. I haven't decided what to plant yet but it will be all things we like to eat here and some extras for companion plants to deter pests. I'm going to try and be a bit organic and try to stay away from the chemical pesticides if I can.

For now I need to finish digging and then I'll go next door and collect cow manure from my neighbour's paddocks! Fun fun fun!!! he he he

Other than the vegie patch, we went to our first farmer's markets in Nabiac on Saturday which was nice. Got some nice sourdough bread, mmmm, and beautiful fresh tomatoes, grapes, corn, zucchini, garlic, strawberries. Everything we bought was really cheap and fresh and yum. So we'll be going again next month. We also bumped into an old friend of Paul's mum from Glenbrook who has been living up here for a while now and she has invited me to join her group of seed and plant collectors. How funny! So I'll go along to meet new people if nothing else!!! Besides I need all the gardening tips I can get. It's such a small world....

We also bought two muscovy ducks to keep our own Ducko company in his new dam. They are only 10 weeks old and they are already as big as Ducko! They are going to be huge. They are very tame and can be patted and hand fed.

Hannah also got a kitten for her birthday, here she is with Breana. Her name is Suki and she is a very good kitten, already toilet trained and so good with the girls who pest her to no end.

Paul tried out his new tractor too, used it to level some ground which was left all over the place after some stumps were removed. He was very happy with how it all went considering he really has no idea what he's doing! Looks good though...

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Saltwater which is only about 7kms from us. It's a very nice picnic spot with free gas BBQs, plenty of shade and good ammenities. There is a short walk to a lagoon and the beach which is almost completely deserted. The lagoon is great for the kids although suspiciously too warm for my liking!

We also bumped into the agent from Wingham who was helping us with the other place we almost bought. He is so nice and we met his lovely wife and two girls. Such a coincidence they were there as they live about an hour away and it was their first visit to Saltwater. So we seem to be bumping into all these people that we probably are meant to meet up with. It's been nice.

Still feel like I'm on holidays though.... :)