Tuesday 17 April 2018

The productive compost heap

Sometimes I wonder why I bother planting seeds when I see some of the produce that turns up in the compost heap without any help from me. The other day some pumpkin vines in the compost died off and revealed a huge Queensland Blue which had been growing underneath them. Mind you, I can't even remember the last time we had cooked up one of these pumpkins but have a vague recollection of a neighbour giving us one a couple of years ago. I never buy them as they are so huge and are hard to store with all the wildlife around the place.




It is not ready to pick as yet so hopefully it will ripen unscathed. 




I am not sure if it is another Queensland Blue but there is another vine that has grown right up to the top of the macadamia nut tree which is above the compost heap.




 I had planted some Golden Nugget pumpkins earlier on but, of course, they are a much smaller size and I was a bit disappointed that some of the vines died back when they were extremely small. We had such a crazy summer that it surprises me that anything grew at all.

 


 Also growing in the aforementioned compost heap which is one of two huge heaps, are lots of chillies....




 ....and macadamia nut seedlings which pop up everywhere....


 



 

 ....as the cockatoos enjoy knocking the macadamias off their stems every day when they are having breakfast and afternoon tea.

 
 


 All the lettuce went to seed in the heat and now our watersaver garden is full of lettuce just in time for the colder weather when we don't eat lettuce as much ;-) Some people are hard to please eh?





 So far the wildlife hasn't attacked the passionfruit also growing in the compost heap and I have already been able to pick a few.





 Just to finish on a soapmaking note...a soapy friend said she had bought some Blue Cornflower Petals from Green Living Australia so I have been looking out for when the seeds and seedlings became available and recently I came across some punnets in Bunnings and they are growing really well. I should have enough dried cornflower petals to supply most of Queensland I think. LOL! I still haven't planted the packet of seeds I bought as well.  Perhaps I should just throw them in the compost heap!!

I believe the weather is finally starting to warm up in the Northern Hemisphere which will make everyone who lives there very happy I would dare say as it seems to have been a long and cold winter. Here it is still very warm with days in the high twenties even though we are halfway through Autumn and it is usually cooling down by now. I had a look at my blog archive to see what the weather was like this time last year and Aussies were recovering from Cyclone Debbie so thankfully this has been a calmer year where we live in SE Queensland.

Have a great week everyone!




















23 comments:

  1. It's funny what self seeds from compost and around the garden. Seems to happen so easily and yet the seeds we 'baby' and dote upon don't always do so well. Survival of the fittest at work i suppose. I'm pretty impressed by the macadamia seedlings just sprouting up as you like.
    Another use for your cornflower petals is in herbal teas. I'm not sure that it adds much in the way of flavour but it does add a nice blue hue.
    On another note - thanks for you tip about the sourdough starter in banana bread. It has been a popular addition to the snack rotation around here.
    Cheers,
    Laura

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    1. Glad you liked the banana bread, Laura. It is a nice change from the norm.

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  2. I love your watersaver garden.
    I am going show your post to one of my friends and ask if he can make one for me. :)

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    1. Nil, they aren't hard to make. I did purchase that one and we put it together ourselves but most people just make their own from bits and pieces. It was my retirement gift to myself :-)

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  3. I love it when nature plants volunteers for me! They're always maintenance free. Because nature knows the best place to let those seeds emerge. I would be mighty pleased with that pumpkin. I was able to grow squash, in spats, but no pumpkins!

    You're right, summer was crazy. And it seems Autumn, is going to be too! I recorded 36 degrees Celsius, on the verandah, the other day. Crazy! That's a summer temp. I wonder if our winter will be colder though? Like WAY colder.

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    1. The Queensland Blue is huge, Chris. I can't believe it grew so well without any help from me :-)

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  4. I am so glad I am not the only one who get surprises from the compost heap. Tomatoes grow by themselves and the ones I grow from seed hardly emerge from the ground. Lucky you to have a macadamia tree. No space in my little patch for another tree.

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    1. Susan we now have three macadamia nut trees as a couple grew from dropped nuts.

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  5. I'd be pretty pleased with anything that grew this past Summer because the weather sure wasn't helpful! I've got lettuce going again now too but we will still eat it in salads and on sandwiches over the cooler months. I must plant some cornflowers as I love them, their beautiful blue is just so vivid. I have planted some little violas though and love their cheery little flowers. Meg:)

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    1. Yes it has been crazy weather, Meg. Today it is drizzly and cooler after a lot of heat lately. I am looking forward to drying the cornflowers to use in my soaps.

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  6. Has to be the most productive compost heap going! I'd be worried if a Qld blue grew to the heights of the almond tree, people worry about coconuts falling, now they have to watch out for pumpkins! lol. We have been eating lots of macadamias from friends trees, I wish I had room for one.

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    1. Clarissa, I too wondered about Queensland Blue pumpkins falling out of the macadamia nut tree. LOL! If you are still reading this here is how to add a 'Contact Form' on your blog for those of us who can't leave comments there...
      1.Go to Blogger dashboard
      2.Click 'Layout'
      3.Click 'Add a Gadget'
      4.On top left hand side click on 'More Gadgets'
      5.Click on 'Contact Form'
      6.Click on 'Save'
      7.Then drag it to wherever you want it on your sidebar.

      Hope this helps.

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    2. Thanks so much for the tip, Meg did tell me you couldn't leave a comment and I was trying to workout how to do just this, excellent x

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  7. That blue pumpkin is gorgeous! I have never seen a "real" blue one...only the resin-type in the decorating aisle of TJ Maxx.

    Yes, it is starting to warm up here, and we are beginning to think about our garden. This year, the new-try is watermelon.

    Blessings,
    Patti

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    1. Patti they are quite common here and are huge pumpkins. I will probably roast some.

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  8. Nana Chel,
    That's a magic compost heap you've got there! Apparently the blue pumpkins are best for scones and leaving the skin on for corned beef dinners. Ahem, I wouldn't say no to free seeds if you manage to get it to ripen :) The weather has been really nice of late, it will be interesting to see what Winter brings.
    -Shiralee.

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    1. Shiralee, I will definitely save some seeds for you if it ripens. So far so good.

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  9. What a fantastic pumpkin. Things that just come up are the best! I have never seen those kind of chilies they are gorgeous! What abundance Nanna Chel. Love the cocky! xxx

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    1. Annabel, as far as I know they are Bishop's Cap chillies. These are reasonably mild just how I like chillies.

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  10. I am so impressed by your Queensland Blue Chel. I always buy the Jap pumpkins. Perhaps we need two compost heaps? One for seedlings and one for turning over to produce good compost.

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    1. We do have two huge compost heaps, Pauline. One is completely in the shade under another macadamia nut tree and the one in the sun has all the pumpkins growing in it :-)

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  11. My worm farm compost is the same, always producing pumpkins and tomatoes ;)

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    1. Liz I just counted eight pumpkins on the ground and two up in the tree. LOL!

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