Disproportionate pleasure

The vegetable garden is giving me a totally disproportionate sense of achievement and pleasure.

Most nights I pick something for dinner. Salad leaves and spring onions one night. Silver beet and carrots the next. Beetroot and baby leeks will be ready next week. I grew pumpkins! Small, but delicious pumpkins! I even picked a couple of strawberries yesterday, the plants are still flowering. They get every ray of sun that's going in their hillside garden spot, I guess that's why they're so happy. I've let them grow leaders and will plant another row when the bleak weather that is forecast passes. Beans and peas are growing well. I've just planted artichokes.

I'm eyeing the front lawn. It needs some citrus trees at least. And I'm no huge fan of lawn-mowing....

Youngest son, served with garden fresh carrots for the first time a few weeks ago pronounced them "too full of flavour". Sheesh. He's over that now

Vegetable still life photography skills needs some work!

The carrots and silver beet went into a lamb byriani. Delicious.

It's raining, but the cut-everything-down neighbour is building a retaining wall. The timbers are currently overhanging my vege garden. We'll assume he's going to trim them off back onto his own section. Of course he is.

ready for spring!

This is Falstaff, I planted 20 of these.

This is February Gold. I planted 10. These two are in the back garden, near the clothesline and the veges, and near my nice sunny seat.

This is Commanding. I planted 60 of these in the front garden kindof on the edge of a bank. I'll be able to look up at them when I slog up the hill, and down on them from inside the house. The (lovely) neighbours will have a good view of them too.

It's such a battle this gardening lark-wind, water, bugs, neighbours, weeds....
I reckon the daffodils will inspire me to keep on going.

A host of golden daffodils

While most of the blogs I read are celebrating spring and posting pictures of bulbs bursting into life, it's just bulb planting season in my little corner of the world.

I have 100 daffodils to plant. I'll finish planting them today. I have three varieties. I'm going to let them naturalise down the bank on the front lawn, and down a bank on the back lawn, and I'll have some near the front door. I hope the lack of lawn mowing that will result won't look too scruffy.

I bought them from here.

I've planted some bluebells under a tree too.

The pesky cut-everything-down neighbours have a brand new baby girl. It's nice to hear that brand new baby cry out in the garden.

Hmm, blogger won't let me show you any pics. I'll try later.