watercress

Over a year ago I bought a tube of watercress seedlings at the Sunday market with little hope of seeing them flourish.  I was told there was no need for a running stream which I thought was necessary.  The seedlings were planted in a pot of half and half compost and potting mix and then placed in a bucket of water.  They are doing very well and if I could remember to buy more buckets I would start propagating.  The cress I bought at the market were grown from seeds but cuttings would easily strike roots in water.  I have a spot close to the compost bin where I have my water garden.  The area gets enough afternoon sun to keep the plants happy.  The two buckets of water chestnuts are doing well and will be ready for harvesting soon.  Eventually I will create a pond for the water plants and maybe keep a couple of fish.  I top up the water in the buckets but with the rain we have been getting that is not necessary. 

Cape Gooseberry or Physalis Peruviana

I know it as Cape gooseberry, a plant native to South America, hence the Peruviana, and was introduced to South Africa and widely grown in the Cape of Good Hope region.  My plant came from Daylesford about thirty years ago when a friend of a friend sent me back to my garden with a young plant.  I was captivated by the marble sized yellow berry encased in a crisp lantern.  I love the slightly tart berry.  Given enough water, manure and sunshine, the Cape gooseberry will do well and the berries will self sow.  It can be scraggly if left untended so I would prune it back in autumn.  The berries I pick throughout the summer months.  When I can accumulate enough I would add them to apples to make a delicious jelly.  I will be collecting the seedlings I am finding around the two bushes I have in the garden and they will be potted.  Once the bush gets too old and scraggly I will pull it out.  The plant will fill up a bare space very quickly and so long as you keep it pruned you will have an attractive bush to grace your garden.

banana

At the moment my banana grove is looking good but the frost will be coming soon and that means blackened leaves.  I have been thinking about putting up a simple framework around the grove and covering the top with clear plastic and the surrounding with a shade cloth.  That way the banana plants will be protected from the wind and the frost.  I have been harvesting some of the leaves and storing them in the fridge for use as wrappings for steaming or baking.  This is a fruiting variety but I don't know if I will ever see it produce anything, even a flower.  The banana flower is edible and much used in South East Asian cooking.
Two suckers have emerged.  I will transfer them into pots and perhaps allow them to grow in the pots rather than plant them in another part of the garden.  The banana plant loves the sun and shelter from the wind.  At the moment I am not sure if I can spare a spot to create another banana grove.

pumpkins

I have heard different stories from gradeners who are quite dissapointed with their pumpkin harvest this autumn.  I have to say the same but I managed to harvest a collection of Queensland Blue and butternut pumpkins.  The pumpkin vines lovrd the rain we have been getting but they suffered a bit from not having the warmth during the summer months.  I planted the seedlings in September, thinking that will give the vines enough warm weather to produce fruits, grow and mature in the sunshine.  Our wet summer changed all that so they were struggling a bit.
I store the pumpkins in the laundry, the coolest place in the house.  As I do not use a dryer there is no danger of rotting from the steam and ensuing damp.  The vines need to be fed and I use seaweed solution.  I will always plant butternut as I find the flesh sweet, especially when baked.  I will look out for other varieties and for their next season I shall prepare the ground well before planting.

containers planting

 

My garden is big enough but I have containers all over the place, depending on the light requirements of the plants.  Over summer I had vegetables and herbs growing in pots when I could not find room in the planter boxes and garden beds.  The pots could be moved around and when the plants have gone to seed their unsightly appearance could be tucked somewhere unnoticed.  I shall be planting bok choi and lettuce in pots this winter as I would like to leave a couple of planter boxes in fallow.  I may have some radishes but once the box is almost emptied I shall spread blood and bone and cover the soil with pea straw.  Whatever pea plants may appear will be dug into the soil in spring.

zucchini

I am still picking zucchinis and as seen in the picture, taken this morning, the zucchini bush is still producing fruits.  At the moment there are three bushes and they are a bit bedraggled but I know I will still be harvesting inthe next few weeks.  A large zucchini surprised me this morning when I looked underneath a leaf.  I try to pick them when they are still small but a bit of water and warmth and the fruit would balloon to a gigantic size.
I can always find some use for zucchinis when I cannot give them away.  They good savoury dishes, for making cakes or muffins and for pickling.  At the moment I can still pick the three main vegetables for ratatouille from my garden.  The eggplants, peppers, zucchinis and tomatoes have enabled me to make ratatouille right through the summer and it looks like I will still be picking them in the next week or so.

dahlia

If you can stop snails and slugs from feasting on the new growth appearing from the dahlia tubers in spring, you will have a supply of fresh flowers in late summer and autumn.  Dahlias are hungry plants and need full sun to do well.  I have them in different parts of my garden and one clump is still flowering with only partial sun in the afternoon.  Today's high temperature (about 28 degrees centigrade) may encourage the dahlias to send up more buds.  From past years I have noticed that when the plants are fed and watered well, they will have a longer flowering season.  I will wait till next spring to make a better bed for the couple of dahlia varieties I have.  I don't know if I will look out for more as I am running out of space in my garden.  I still have a big lawn which I intend on keeping as it is so soothing to look on to the green grass.  In winter I may look at extending the garden beds, just enough for more flowering plants.