It's just wonderful visiting the garden on Thursdays and being with all of the enthusiasts!
When we looked more closely at the shrivelled brown leaves of the potato crop today it appeared that they hadn't just died back ready for harvest, but had been hastened in their demise by the 28 spotted ladybird. This could be good news for those who want a flower garden, because by planting a greater variety of nectar producing flowers, the ratio of beneficial insects to destructive insects should balance out. A mix such as "Good Bug Mix" left to self seed around the edges of the garden may be a starting point.
http://www.greenharvest.com.au/seeds/good_bug_mix.html
Meanwhile however we can pick them off by hand where damage is being done, and keep up our watering roster to minimise stress on the other plants and make them less attractive hosts.
But the harvest today was again bountiful - Joe has photos.... and I'm sure we'll all become experts with zucchini as we pick our way through the weeks ahead. Post your best recipes here!! Happy Gardening!
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ReplyDeleteIndeed it was a gorgeous evening to harvest harvest harvest Kathy! I can only agree with you about the need to create a more 'inviting' environment for the good bugs. I was thinking only today that we need to get some perennial flowering plants in place. I have a few cuttings to plant out plus I will try and purchase some to put around the 'seating cycle' between the fruit trees for a start (must invite in the pollinators too). Hopefully we can get some in the ground when we plant up next on 5 February. I think we should get some bird-baths in place too – we need to create habitat for our feathered friends too. By the way, I am not sure if this is a ‘recipe’ but last night I fried up some finely sliced zucchini with wild ‘elephant’ garlic from down my lane – the combination of extra virgin olive oil, tender zucchini and crisp garlic was divine. Add to this some home-laid contented chicken eggs and it made for one scrumptious omelette. Today we extended the fried zucchini combo by adding cherry tomatoes, pine nuts and fresh basil and tossed it through fresh pasta. ‘Summer Pasta”, beer, a cool evening and fine friends … Thanks for the post!
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