vegetable love

Around this time of year, always about two months too early, I start thinking about the Autumn/Winter vegetable garden. A nice ritual is going through the seeds, seeing what I've already got hanging around.



I can't do anything rash yet (like pull the garden apart) as the ignored summer vegetables are still looking good. Self-seeded tomatoes and pumpkins ( no fruit but I can live in hope),cucumbers, zucchini and basil that was put in the day after we came back from holiday. My first bush tucker, the Warrigal greens, are thriving and went into a curry the other day. All the herbs are doing well, and the passionfruit vine has lots of green fruit. The big rhubarb plant is going gangbusters and even the two little six month old plants are coping.

I am a very messy vegetable gardener and it drives my husband a bit distracted.
I have things planted in the style of a perennial garden, with different leaves, flowers and foliage mixed up like a paint palette. He prefers neat, orderly rows of vegetables. When he was chief gardener years ago the vegie garden was immaculate. Because I am now in charge, as I have the time to plant, weed, and whatever and he doesn't, I have it the way I like but I know he struggles with it. In my defence, apart from the look of it - softer, and you don't notice if you pull out a lettuce or whatever leaving a gap, because everything is so blousy and voluptuous - it is better for insect control. I read something once by Jackie French who said planting vegies in lines was like providing a runway for insects to travel from plant to plant, but mixing things up confuses them. I like the sound of this very much ( and I have no bugs on my plants, except the odd snail so maybe the theory is right).




I'm also a great believer in planting by the cycles of the waxing and waning moon which produces more vigorous disease resistant plants. You can buy calendars from places like Digger's seeds if you want to try the theory. I know this makes me sound quite batty but believe me, it works!



These are Warrigal greens / New Zealand spinach. I want to try planting more and different Bush tucker this year.