June, our first month of winter and it has finally been feeling like winter has arrived. We've had some chilly days and plenty of rain, but still an occasional day where it's been too warm to light the fire. There's so much fresh green growth in the garden!
These carrots need a bit more thinning. Luckily it's right next to a chicken run and they're eager to help dispose of the thinned ones.
The first of the vacated runs has been planted up. The peas are growing nicely along one fence and I've put some more seeds in along the other fence. The potatoes are coming up, I've transplanted a load of lettuces and there are some coriander seeds in.
I know there are lots of weeds coming up around the beds, through the straw paths, but that's okay because it's food for the rabbits and when our food plants are harvested, the chickens will go back in and enjoy what's left, while they fertilise and prepare it for a later season of planting. They can also peck through the fence at anything which grows alongside it.
In the other run I have some coriander seedlings popping up, probably from some seeds I'd thrown in the last time the run was free. So they seem to have stayed dormant, survived a round of summer and chickens only to come up now. Plants never cease to amaze me!
I had a potato start sprouting in the fridge, so I cut it in half and planted it in the corner of the second run, but it they have yet to emerge. Now I'm just trying to decide what else to plant in there. Maybe some more of those lettuces. Nature has already made stone decisions for me with the coriander and numerous nettles emerging. I should have enough to harvest them while young and tender this year.
The orange tree is a bit sparse this year. It was a tough summer and the previous year it had a big scale burden, which is now under control. The chickens also stripped the leaves within reach, so the bottom of it is looking a bit rough. It should recover and put out new growth in spring and it's big enough for it not to be a problem. It's a balance where I have to expect some damage, in return for the chickens doing a great job fertilising and keeping weeds and pests under control.
The separating and transplanting of the onion seedlings is still ongoing. New seedlings seem to be popping up all the time, just when I think I've thinned the original sown patch out.
There is plenty of weeding needed on the front, if I want to get the soursobs to a more manageable level.
The calendula plants are doing well and flowering. The rosemary had exploded with flowers and even the lavender has a couple of stunted flower heads. I'm not sure if this is the time of year for them, though.
Someone recently started a buy nothing group for our area and I was able to pick up some more landscaping rocks to finish terracing on the front. It's still a work in progress, as I haven't had enough time to complete it.
The rains have really spurred lots of growth this month.
Nasturtiums self seed so easily
The pepinos are able to put some of that rain into fruits now. One for us, inside and one for the birds outside the fence.
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