Spring Fever Garden

I've been spending the afternoon in the garden, weeding, thinning, mulching, tidying, inspecting... Life has been so busy the last few weeks I've barely been into the garden, and due to Spring Fever all the garden has  begun to jungle. Which means I have to get my ass into gear and tidy up before it gets out of hand.

Thinning Fruit....

My peaches have gone nuts. I have too many fruitlets and it is time for thinning. As you can see above I need to take out at least two (the smaller ones in the middle) to allow the other fruit to grow properly. If this is not done I will have very poor small fruit, and the tree will suffer as it sends all its energy into producing masses of tiny fruit. The same principle applies to all other fruit trees, so now is the time to thin, thin, thin out. 

No just fruit trees either. The carrots I have sown had their first thinning out today, and will have another one in a few weeks time, and I'll also have to thin out and transplant the lettuce I have sown between the rows of carrots.

Mulch, Mulch, Mulch...

My early planted, coddled potatoes are paying off. The frost net has come off for good as Melbourne Cup Day is almost here and I use this as a reminder that frosts are now over. They are three times as large as those planted at the "recommended" time, and a spot check revealed potatoes are forming already. The soil has warmed up sufficiently to allow me to hill up and mulch around my plants - if this is done too early the soil stays too cold and the plants do not grow as well. 

My heart leaps at the sight of artichoke flowers popping up among their gorgeous silvery fronds. Of course, lots of people do not get excited about artichokes, but the best price I've seen is $2.00 a flower - mine are for free! In a couple of weeks stuffed artichokes will undoubtedly be on the menu...I'm salivating thinking about the hearts drenched in garlic olive oil...

The strawberries also needed mulching, as my early plantings have already begun to fruit. The sugar cane mulch will keep the fruit clean and dry to prevent rot. I'll also have to net for birds before they begin to have a smidge of pink.

 Broad beans! How do I love thee, let me count the ways... Broad beans in lemon and cumin dressing, with new potatoes, broad bean pesto, tiny whole beans in stir frys...dried for winter stews... Ok, I'm a little excited about broad beans, but they are so easy to grow in the mountains, and produce so abundantly how could I not love them. They taste amazing straight out of the garden, so I'm also salivating about those...