not the weekend for getting much done on the farm.. it was too damn hot. Neither of us like the heat much but this weekend it really floored us.
We couldn't get accommodation for Saturday night so we stayed home and visited my Grandpa, went to the movies in the afternoon and stayed up way too late that night watching "Gone with the Wind".. :) Ray hadn't ever seen it (I have, many many times!) and I suspect that it was only Grandpa's recommendation that convinced him that 3 1/2 hours of technicolour and overdramatisation was a good idea!! haha! We both enjoyed it...
We were supposed to get up early Sunday for our day trip to the farm. We planned to get there by 9am but when we woke at 7.45 we realised that we were not going to beat the heat and that watering was going to be a real chore.
We plan to stay Easter Saturday and Sunday so the tent had to be put up and the floor fixed as our rabbit decided that last time she and the tent were in the same vicinity she would scratch the hell out of the floor. She was very close to becoming dinner that day but she lives on - away from the tent!
So we are prepared (somewhat) for our camping trip at Easter. We are expecting visitors on Easter Saturday which is very exciting for me as we've had visitors just once so far (other than our lovely neighbours of course ) - Mum and Al came up for the day last Easter. I can't believe that was a year ago. I'm really looking forward to showing our friends where our future lies..
Oh, the tomatoes have grown beautifully in the tyre garden but haven't ripened as yet.. any suggestions as to why?
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
We said goodbye
to our beautiful Bonnie this weekend.
Last Thursday morning (21st Feb) we woke up to discover that she was not in the backyard. After a few tense hours and some phone calls to the council we found out that she had been struck by a car throughout the night some time and had been killed.
Ray dug her a grave right in front of the fairy stump and we laid her to rest there.
Last Thursday morning (21st Feb) we woke up to discover that she was not in the backyard. After a few tense hours and some phone calls to the council we found out that she had been struck by a car throughout the night some time and had been killed.
Ray dug her a grave right in front of the fairy stump and we laid her to rest there.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
The current project
is the construction of the chook house in the middle of the pen. As with the pen itself, the chook house is being constructed of galvanised posts and rails and the walls will be of corrugated iron.
We decided to construct it in this manner to avoid using timber wherever we can as timber harbours lice. The other reason is that the posts will form part of the aquaponics shelter/roof system once the pen progresses to that stage of development.
"What's aquaponics," you say? Ask Ray... :)
We decided to construct it in this manner to avoid using timber wherever we can as timber harbours lice. The other reason is that the posts will form part of the aquaponics shelter/roof system once the pen progresses to that stage of development.
"What's aquaponics," you say? Ask Ray... :)
We have many
high tech systems at FSF.. check this one out..
We have been known to wonder if we drive 2 hours just to have a snag in bread with a cuppa tea!
We have been known to wonder if we drive 2 hours just to have a snag in bread with a cuppa tea!
Having mentioned
watering the tyre garden, I thought I'd show you our sophisticated watering system...
look at that lovely mucky dam water, full of goodies for the trees and vegies. It's like liquid compost!
These pictures are taken by the creek's edge, one looking towards the dam, the other towards the pen and the shed. It takes over an hour to water everything, even longer on hot days when we just about lose the will to keep going. We love winter!
We're always careful not to collect these tiny little cuties when get our watering happening..
look at that lovely mucky dam water, full of goodies for the trees and vegies. It's like liquid compost!
These pictures are taken by the creek's edge, one looking towards the dam, the other towards the pen and the shed. It takes over an hour to water everything, even longer on hot days when we just about lose the will to keep going. We love winter!
We're always careful not to collect these tiny little cuties when get our watering happening..
Speaking of thriving...
here are some of our fruit trees.
Although we didn't expect to so soon, we have managed to harvest a piece of fruit from FSF! A single cherry... hehe. We were very surprised to see it growing and hoped and hoped that a bird wouldn't get to it before it ripened enough for us to pick it and eat it..
We waited and waited and each week it was still there.. slowly ripening...
Ta dah! We had half each and it was worth waiting for... delicious!
Although we didn't expect to so soon, we have managed to harvest a piece of fruit from FSF! A single cherry... hehe. We were very surprised to see it growing and hoped and hoped that a bird wouldn't get to it before it ripened enough for us to pick it and eat it..
We waited and waited and each week it was still there.. slowly ripening...
Ta dah! We had half each and it was worth waiting for... delicious!
Whilst the war
on the weeds was being carried out, I busied myself with a small experiment. Ray had picked up a tractor/truck/not sure but sure is big tyre in his travels around tips and clearing sales and although I'm not usually keen to grow food in tyres, I set up a small garden bed to see how it would fare being neglected for two weeks at a time.
Having read about African women who bury unglazed pots into the ground as water sources for their plants I thought I'd give it a go. The theory is that by filling the pot and covering it to stop evaporation, the slowly seeping water provides moisture to the root zone of the plants. As we are not there to water more consistently, I figured that this was as good a system as any, and so gave it a go. Having said that, we have had during each fortnight away some rain at FSF so I am unable to give a definitive answer as to whether the pot alone would have produced the results below.. also, when we are there I give the plants a good drink, like 6 litres of water and obviously the thick mulch makes all the difference also... but I'd say that the experiment is a success - we're thrilled, everything is thriving!
FSF is truly a learn-as-we-go experience. We've never dealt with weeds before, we've never grown fruit trees or vegetables or built structures like these before.. we're flying by the seat of our pants! :D
Having read about African women who bury unglazed pots into the ground as water sources for their plants I thought I'd give it a go. The theory is that by filling the pot and covering it to stop evaporation, the slowly seeping water provides moisture to the root zone of the plants. As we are not there to water more consistently, I figured that this was as good a system as any, and so gave it a go. Having said that, we have had during each fortnight away some rain at FSF so I am unable to give a definitive answer as to whether the pot alone would have produced the results below.. also, when we are there I give the plants a good drink, like 6 litres of water and obviously the thick mulch makes all the difference also... but I'd say that the experiment is a success - we're thrilled, everything is thriving!
FSF is truly a learn-as-we-go experience. We've never dealt with weeds before, we've never grown fruit trees or vegetables or built structures like these before.. we're flying by the seat of our pants! :D
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