Meanwhile, I will just occasionally water those plants that don't seem to need any TLC at all like the chillies that are growing profusely and I am sure we could supply a restaurant with all the varieties that grow here. I don't eat them at all but the CEO likes them.
The CEO is trying to get rid of the yellow tamarillos but they just keep persisting and come up in the compost heap. LOL!
This plant is growing like a weed and I have no idea what it is but it does look pretty and doesn't seem to like a lot of water.
The hydrangeas used to look like this ....
...but this year look like this! Plus there have hardly been any flowers at all. This is the first time that I can ever remember the bush not producing masses of flowers.
So until it cools down I will just keep alive the plants we want to keep that need TLC and aren't fond of the heat and just let the veggies go. The herbs always seem to be hardy so they will be watered.
I have to keep the CEO's bromeliads alive or I won't be very popular as I am 'the waterer' :-)
I have been intending to make Fire Cider for years now and have never had horseradish growing so I bought some last year from Green Harvest and now have three plants that I am trying to keep alive.
When I bought the horseradish I also bought some West Indian lemongrass as the variety we had growing was the East Indian lemongrass. I wanted the variety that is used in Thai cooking. So there are now three plants growing really well and need to be planted out in the garden.....somewhere.
So there are some plants growing well in the heat and some are not doing well at all and like us are looking a tad limp and struggling a bit. However, we are in the last month of summer so autumn is just around the corner and it has been my favourite season for a couple of years now whereas spring used to be but a few spring heatwaves changed all that very quickly.
Lori commented on my last blog post about the dishcloths that she would like to find some crochet patterns similar to the knitted ones I mentioned. If she is reading I have ask on the Down to Earth forums if anyone had any patterns but it seems to be a bit difficult to have the same effect with crochet. However, I will keep looking as I came up with one on Pinterest and will include it in my next post.
Now I need to find a fan to sit under as it was 37C today. Our bedroom was still 30C at 5pm so I need to try and get it cooled down somehow unless I want to sleep in a sauna all night :-)
The heat has been overpowering. We are so fortunate in Australia to be able to buy good quality fresh produce if we can't or don't wish to grow our own. Watering every day here in my garden which always feels too big in the summer time.
ReplyDeleteYes Tracy, it is so great now that our Farmers Market has gone from being a monthly event to fortnightly. I am just going to water what we want to keep from now on...a bit like we did during the drought although at that time we were banned from using town water.
DeleteGood to see you have survived today. ...it was a bit too much, I had to sit under the ceiling fan with a frozen water bottle tucked against my side and lost count of the water I drank.
ReplyDeleteThe chillies thrive in the heat ,mine is just starting to get some little ones, will have to bring back some more worm juice from the coast this weekend. Aircon, swimming pool and sea breeze, here I come!
You might be able to infuse the Lemongrass in some oil for your next batch of soap, that would smell lovely. Lemongrass likes full sun and plenty of water have fun finding a good spot.
I think my tablet keyboard has heatstroke sloooow to respond.
Aah, I am jealous Margaret. Enjoy the pool and the sea breeze and think of me in the heat although today wasn't half as bad as yesterday as it was only 33C. That is a good idea about the lemongrass. Thanks.
DeleteA wise decision Chel, to leave the garden go for now. I was wondering yesterday if we might be able to plant more sub-tropical type things now that the summers seem so hot and the winters not so bitter. I see a mango tree in my future? I just love the look of your blog now, you have been tinkering again I see. Barb xx
ReplyDeleteBarb, we do have about three pawpaw trees growing but they don't normally survive winter. It is an interesting thought though. Regarding the blog, I tried to change my header and didn't like the look of it on the blog so I tried to go back to the old one but the new one had 'saved' for some reason. So I hurriedly found a really old one and used that instead. I will get a new one done eventually.
DeleteI have let my veggie patch go now too, Chel. Nothing new planted in there. Getting a few zucchinis and cucumbers and that's about it. I did replant my wicking barrels but that's because they get some shade. Will see how that goes. I'm looking forward to Autumn too and I hope it comes sooner here than it did last year! Stay cool (if possible). Meg
ReplyDeleteMeg apart from my herbs I have a few cucumbers and tomatoes. Even the zucchinis have given up the ghost. My watersaver garden is being repaired by the CEO who I think has forgotten about it and last time I looked it had weeds growing in it. Oh well I guess it will get fixed eventually. It sprung a leak a while back.
DeleteHaving similar problems here with the garden and heat. I discovered a couple of bags of cheap organic mulch in the shed, I had forgotten about, last week and spread it around the cherry tomato plants and the silverbeet. They are already mulched with straw but apparently the ground must still have been becoming too hot for them (sandy soil) as they have flourished since then and I don't need to water as much.
ReplyDeleteRobyn, our silverbeet lasted for ages but went to seed a couple of months ago. It usually grows in winter here and does really well too.
DeleteI'm with you Nannachel, bring on Autumn and Winter and may they last a lot longer. I agree with you on the vegetable garden, no planting in Dec or Jan, its not worth the time, effort and cost. My new place has a fig tree and yesterday there was one almost ready, when I went today it was half eaten and full of ants. Oh well, Ill have to cover them up for next season. Take care and try to stay cool, Guida.
ReplyDeleteGuida, you have moved at last. I hope you like your new place. The CEO has heaps of fig trees down the back and I am not sure what stage they are up to. I did cover them a couple of years back and we got quite a few but last year they didn't do well at all.
DeleteI've done the same Chel! I realised that despite a lot of watering ( and a lot of time involved in doing the said watering!) , the veggies still wilted and died, so I officially gave up 10 days ago. The sweet potato crop still seems okay but possibly they are not doing too well underneath the soil.
ReplyDeleteMaria, I am glad I am not the only one. I have never known it to be so hot for such a long period of time here. I hope your sweet potatoes are okay.
DeleteThe problem with having a large garden is deciding which plants you're going to attempt to rescue. It's been a weird summer, that's for sure.
ReplyDeletePerhaps a roof vent will help? I remember our old wooden house, would heat up something shocking, until we had a whirlybird put in the roof. It must have dropped by at least 5 degrees.
Chris, a whirlybird sounds like a good idea. Anything to cool this old place down once it gets over 35C.
DeleteOh Nana. I can so empathise! In Summer in my corner of the world, it can get so hot it literally blisters my veggie plants. And having to give up parts of your gardening is sore.
ReplyDeleteDamaria, I would expect it to be hot where you live but not here on top of a mountain range. I am always amazed at what you are able to grow over there.
DeleteThat is too bad about the veggies. I despise the heat so you have my sympathy, although I admit that I am ready this year for some warmth!!
ReplyDeleteKathy, I can well imagine you are sick of all that snow and would thoroughly enjoy seeing some warmth and sunshine. Now if we could only swap :-)
DeleteIt's hard to believe you are also experiencing such heat in Toowoomba and very sad but realistic to give up on the veges.. The hydrangeas generally look so beautiful in your part of the world. We have that orange and yellow flowered plant growing here in Mackay as well and it is a real pest. I'll try and find the name of that one.
ReplyDeletePauline, the hydrangeas have been a big surprise as this is the first year I can remember when they haven't done well. I would be interested in the name of that plant. My husband intends to pull it out as it is spreading everywhere.
Deleteyes, i haven't been able to get anything much to grow here except the Brazilian spinach which seems to like the heat, so i may plant more of it out & around the place. most herbs love this weather as most are from the Mediterranean areas. i'm going to go back to basic cottage gardening where i have it all there in the one garden, flowers, herbs & vegies, am going to redesign the front garden eventually.
ReplyDeletewell good luck with keeping all of your plants alive & hope you manage to stay cool too
thanx for sharing
Selina, there is going to be some redesigning done here too where the garden is concerned. Once it cools down and is more pleasant to be outside that is.
DeleteThank you, Nanna Chel, for continuing to search for a dish cloth pattern that is crochet! So thoughtful of you and I appreciate it. :0)
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome Lori. Watch this space.
DeleteGosh - you have worked hard all your life - just plant and grow what delights you.
ReplyDeleteHa ha, my thoughts exactly, Mr.HM.
DeleteIt's too darn hot here for anything to grow over summer. I placed a layer of hay over most of the veg patch last November. The areas I didn't cover are now full of weeds. I have been doing a little bit each evening and am gradually winning it back. One good thing is that we can have fresh salad growing over winter here.
ReplyDeleteI have a wading pool on the veranda, and on days like we are having this past couple of months, I go and wallow in the little pool to at least cool off slightly.
Stay cool and keep what you can alive in the garden.
I have even considered buying a wading pool, Jane. I think the chooks might get into it before me though :-)
DeleteNanna Chel,
ReplyDeleteThe weather has been shocking. I've been watering my container pots nearly every second day. I'm lucky that I have herbs which like the heat. The roses look like your hydrangeas so I might have to move them out of direct light. I hope you manage to find some way to keep cool, maybe a window air conditioner?
-Shiralee.
Yes Shiralee, if this is the new 'normal' for us for summer we will have to do something as we have really been struggling.
DeleteGood idea Chel as the heat is burning every thing...Watering is a full time job ATM.
ReplyDeleteIt would be even hotter down the Range too, Mandy. I am just trying to keep a few cucumbers alive now and hopefully the tomatoes will keep going throughout most of winter....if it arrives eventually :-)
ReplyDelete