Any 2018 harvest yet?

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Today we picked all the ripe broad beans as we are now getting into hot weather and there are a lot of them. Guess what we will be doing this afternoon :) .

broad bean harvest.JPG
 
I've waited patienly for my first capsicums to ripen only to find that the fruit flies and the fruit spotting beetles have been having a field day
on the fruit and causing them to rot on the plant.
As soon as the fruit is stung it starts to rot in the heat from the sting site.

Added to this the sun scald I've yet to harvest a blemish free fruit out of 24 loaded plants.
Every second day I'm picking a 10 ltr tub of half rotted fruit that's going to the chickens.

It's breaking my heart but I'm going to have to tough it out and remind myself that
capsicums here are perennial so long as I look after them.
Come "winter" - dry season there'll be next to no pest pressure and they'll
be better quality.

I only had 6 poblano chilli seedlings survive transplanting.
I'm pretty sure I went too heavy with the hydrated lime/ epsom salt mix in the
planting hole.
Killing them with kindness is still killing them.
 
The chickens no doubt enjoyed the waste but I know how you feel it is heartbreaking :( . With the cooler weather no doubt you will get a good crop then, summer is a bit hit and miss here also with both tomatoes and capsicums because of fruit fly.
 
The chickens no doubt enjoyed the waste but I know how you feel it is heartbreaking :( . With the cooler weather no doubt you will get a good crop then, summer is a bit hit and miss here also with both tomatoes and capsicums because of fruit fly.

With the tomatoes I'm sticking with the tried and true cherry tomato varieties that are immune to the heat, humidity and the fruit flies wit the exception of Barry's Crazy and Isis Candy cherry tomatoes.
I'm not even bothering with any full sized tomatoes again until at least April next year.
 
Yep @Tank_Girl still not mastered the full sized ones here either and the cherry tomatoes seem to be almost bomb proof and we get a good crop off them.

I brought Blue Ridge Mountain tomato seeds because they are suppose to be a full sized hot weather tomato but I have no faith they'll cope with the fruit flies.

I just went out to pick the gold zucchini and they're all stung and mush on the vine. All of them.

I have the Grey zucchini starting to flower and so far I'm very impressed with the lack of powdery mildew on them.
I'm holding thumbs the fruit fly will ignore them and if they do I'll be buying bulk seed and they'll be a permanent
part of the summer rotation.

Rattle snake beans are the most delicious bean I've ever tasted par none.
It's almost a shame to cook them and it's an exercise in self control not to scarf them down
so I have enough to cook for dinner.
SC if you can find them I highly recommend these pole beans.
They're awesome.
 
I harvested the first two ever Grey zucchini.

They're short, bulbous and the skin is fragile - very easily scratched and blemished.
But, what flavour!
I just sliced them and steamed them with a sprinkle of salt and a pat of butter so I could judge their flavour
without anything else getting in the way.
Fantastic!
I haven't yet seen any tell-tale fruit fly stings on the fruit that is still developing on the plants
and no powdery mildew has developed on them after all the rain we've had.
I need to start some more seedlings because they aren't quite as productive as the longer varieties
but the fact I can now have zucchini's in summer is awesome.
I certainly won't complain.
This variety for the summer garden is a keeper.

The gold zucchini aren't fit to be eaten with the amount of fruit fly attack so they're now chicken food for as long as
the plants survive and produce fruit.

My KY1 tomato plants have finally developed blight but they are at the end of their
productive lives.
I got so much beautiful, juicy, flavourful fruit off these short, sprawling plants I couldn't keep up.
This variety is AWESOME.
 
It's rather odd frankly. I have mostly clay soil but I can find just the right spot and make something over preform. My Green peppers continue to give me tons of peppers. My carrots/ once I found the perfect spot love it there. And I've had 3 crops of eggplant go south but where I have them now they are awesome. But I planted them to late and the plants are beautiful but only have 4 eggplant. This place is truly a place of right time right place. I'm keeping notes and will find all the right places!
 
That sounds similar to up here. I've moved my tomatos and peppers around in all 3 of our spots and the worst soil of all is the only place they produce good at.
I have been adding leaves and compost over the years and while it's improved things, I still have a long ways to go with it over all.
 
Harvested another 20 bunches of silverbeet and took them into church to give away again today as we are approaching the 21st of November where we will be pulling the garden beds down here and flattening them out with a front end loader.

Still have garlic to pick tomorrow, some beetroot and some carrots left. We will start to pot up our thyme, rosemary, lemon grass and canna and calla lilies to take to our new home.

Just gone into more severe water restrictions being 170 lts per person per day from 200 lts per person.

Armistice day here today bless our military personnel past and present.
 
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Today we are getting all our plants potted up and ready to take to our new home.

So far we have potted up 6 thyme plants I divided off other plants, 6 calla lilies, 6 hotshot canna lilies of each orange and yellow, 6 spider plant orchids and 3 lemon grass divisions. Yet to pot up 2 california capsicum seedlings to take with us. They are all beside the shed ready for the move and are being watered.
 
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