There was much plant talk, and sharing of seeds and ideas at our August garden visit to John and Carol's garden in Fernmount (near Bellingen), just off Waterfall Way on the Coffs Coast.
Setting up the seed-table. It is difficult to remain patient until the seed-sharing time after afternoon tea.
Stairs behind the Davison Plum
Apple trees just starting to break into flower.
The slope beside the stairs make an excellent well-drained and easily accessible herb garden. The bamboo at rear produces edible shoots.
Lebanese Cress and Thai Coriander grow well in the moist shade of the ornamental Costus (Spiral Ginger) and Panama Berry. Salvia flowers attract the smaller birds.
The terraced vegetable garden with garlic in pots and snowpeas on the bamboo teepee.
A self-seeded guava is almost ready to eat. This fruit yellows slightly and then falls. The flavour is slightly lemony.
This Villa Franca lemon is fruiting heavily. It seems more resistant to fungus diseases that cause bumps on the other lemon varieties in this wet climate.
Variegated Arundo donax (giant reed) slows water in the stormwater stream bed and creates plentiful quantities of mulch
Fruiting snowpeas seem a much better bet than telephone peas in this climate.
Cape Gooseberries are ready to eat when they fall.
These small custard apples are suffering from the cold but one is ready to pick.
Garlic and Perpetual Silver Beet grow well in pots.
Chinese Celery. The leaf tastes like Mustard but the fleshy stalk is mild and makes an excellent green for cooking.
Can you pick the Chilacayote melon from the Kent and Gramma pumpkins? Pumpkin recipes are eagerly sought at this time of the year. Australians have been enjoying pumpkins since European settlement but we understand many see pumpkins as cattle fodder.
The top vegetable garden viewed from below with bromeliads on the slope. The Red Russian Kale is thriving.
Setting up the seed-table. It is difficult to remain patient until the seed-sharing time after afternoon tea.
Stairs behind the Davison Plum
Apple trees just starting to break into flower.
The slope beside the stairs make an excellent well-drained and easily accessible herb garden. The bamboo at rear produces edible shoots.
Lebanese Cress and Thai Coriander grow well in the moist shade of the ornamental Costus (Spiral Ginger) and Panama Berry. Salvia flowers attract the smaller birds.
The terraced vegetable garden with garlic in pots and snowpeas on the bamboo teepee.
A self-seeded guava is almost ready to eat. This fruit yellows slightly and then falls. The flavour is slightly lemony.
This Villa Franca lemon is fruiting heavily. It seems more resistant to fungus diseases that cause bumps on the other lemon varieties in this wet climate.
Variegated Arundo donax (giant reed) slows water in the stormwater stream bed and creates plentiful quantities of mulch
Fruiting snowpeas seem a much better bet than telephone peas in this climate.
Cape Gooseberries are ready to eat when they fall.
These small custard apples are suffering from the cold but one is ready to pick.
Garlic and Perpetual Silver Beet grow well in pots.
Chinese Celery. The leaf tastes like Mustard but the fleshy stalk is mild and makes an excellent green for cooking.
Can you pick the Chilacayote melon from the Kent and Gramma pumpkins? Pumpkin recipes are eagerly sought at this time of the year. Australians have been enjoying pumpkins since European settlement but we understand many see pumpkins as cattle fodder.
The top vegetable garden viewed from below with bromeliads on the slope. The Red Russian Kale is thriving.
